New vocabulary levels tests for L2 Spanish

Abstract

One particularly neglected area in the teaching and learning of vocabulary in Spanish as a foreign language (SFL) classes is testing. Since vocabulary is essential in meaning-oriented language instruction, a potential benefit to the field is to develop new testing instruments to support vocabulary learning and instruction. After discussing several tests from the English as a Second Language (ESL) field, we share two Spanish vocabulary tests, one receptive and one productive, which are based on successful ESL tests. The tests were created using vocabulary drawn from 1000-word frequency levels in A Frequency Dictionary of Spanish (Davies 2006).