Turkish bilingualized dictionary: A model suggestion for a1 level

Today, foreign language learning is no longer a need but it has become a necessity. Although the methods and materials used in language learning have changed in the course of time, dictionaries have still been seen as an important tool in language learning. With the development of technology, the increase in internet usage, the emergence of alternative education models such as distance education and the spread of individual learning, language education which was previously conducted in classrooms under the guidance of teachers, has started to be carried out outside the classrooms. These developments in foreign language learning have introduced new types of dictionaries in accordance with the needs of language students. One of these dictionary types is bilingualized dictionaries. The first bilingualized dictionary was English-English-Hebrew which was published in 1986. Three different terms -semi-bilingual, hybrid and bilingualized- have been used in literature for such dictionaries that are produced as an alternative to monolingual and bilingual dictionaries. These terms are often used interchangeably. Bilingualized dictionaries present some information such as definition and example of use in monolingual dictionaries along with the translation equivalent of the word in L1 in bilingual dictionaries. In such type of dictionaries, an entry is first defined in L2 and then translated into L1. The definitions are elaborated with examples of use afterwards. Examples of use are sometimes translated into L1 and sometimes not. A bilingualized dictionary at A1 level for students learning Turkish as a foreign language has not been published in Turkey yet. In this study, a bilingualized model of dictionary has been developed in order for the students learning Turkish as a foreign language to benefit from these dictionaries more. In the development of this model, the word list of A1 level textbook of "Yedi İklim" Turkish language teaching set published by Yunus Emre Institute is included in the dictionary. The entries in the word list and the examples of use have been searched on English-English online dictionaries and the definitions and examples of use on online dictionaries which are thought to be clear and understandable have been translated into Turkish. If the definitions are thought to be insufficient on English-English online dictionaries, the definitions of Turkish Language Association are translated into Turkish. In some cases, other online sources have been used both in definitions and examples of use. The model suggestion is based on the entries at A1 level. As the language proficiency increases, language students' ability to infer the meaning and ability when to look up a word in the dictionary improves. The students with low level of language proficiency are relatively more liable to look up a word in dictionary. With the dictionary model presented in this study, it is tried to fill a gap in this field by enabling the beginning level language students who need to use the dictionary more to understand the meaning of the words more accurately and see how these words are used in a context. Keywords: Bilingualized Dictionary, A1 Level, Foreign Language Teaching