Receptive Vocabulary Knowledge Research Articles

A longitudinal investigation of the impact of code-switching versus target language only on Saudi EFL students' written receptive vocabulary knowledge development in terms of breadth

This longitudinal research was conducted to investigate the effect of code-switching versus target language only on Saudi students' written receptive vocabulary knowledge development in terms of breadth. A total of sixty male samples were randomly chosen from the population of Saudi EFL students at Jouf University in Saudi Arabia who enrolled in extensive English courses. This course is provided for those who scored less than the direct admission score of 2.5 out of 5 in the English replacement test. Samples were equally divided and allocated into two classrooms. In the first class (i.e., C1), thirty students were instructed by a non-native English speaker who employed code-switching as a pedagogical strategy. Students in the second class (i.e., C2) were instructed by non-native English speakers who employed the target language only as a pedagogical strategy due to the different language backgrounds between the instructor and participants. Data were collected from samples of both classes using the Vocabulary Size Test developed by Nation and Beglar (2007) at four different intervals and over four months (i.e., one academic semester). Results revealed that Saudi students' vocabulary knowledge in terms of breadth had developed significantly at four different intervals in both classes. However, the development in C2 where the instructor employed the target language only, was significantly higher than in C1 where code-switching is employed. Moreover, results also indicated that samples in C1 where code-switching is employed experienced a newly coined linguistic status called Receptive Vocabulary Recission (RVR) which indicates the act of avoiding the acquisition of new English vocabulary since they were habituated to be given an additional explanation for new vocabulary using their first language knowledge. This rescission was very tangible from the mean difference between C1 and C2 score averages.

University students’ academic vocabulary development through mobile-assisted learning: Exploring the impacts on receptive and productive knowledge

This study explored the effectiveness of mobile-assisted vocabulary learning through digital flashcards on receptive and productive aspects of academic vocabulary knowledge among Iranian EFL university students. In a quasi-experimental design, 86 participants were divided into three groups: a digital flashcard group (DFs), a traditional paper flashcard (PFs) group, and a control group using word lists, to assess the impact of these methods on vocabulary acquisition over five weeks. The findings revealed that students utilizing DFs exhibited significant improvements in both receptive and productive vocabulary knowledge compared to those using PFs and the control method. Notably, the increase in receptive vocabulary was more substantial than in productive vocabulary, highlighting the differential effects of DFs on various aspects of vocabulary learning. This finding underscores the need for targeted strategies to enhance productive aspects of academic vocabulary specifically. The study supports the integration of DFs into English for Academic Purposes (EAP) programs to leverage their potential in boosting vocabulary acquisition effectively. However, the lesser gains in productive vocabulary suggest the necessity for complementary instructional methods, which focus on more active vocabulary learning tasks. Based on these findings, the study argues that mobile-assisted vocabulary learning should be considered a practical strategy for supporting academic vocabulary development among university students.

Vocabulary learning strategies in extramural English gaming and their relationship with vocabulary knowledge

Research has shown that students learning English as a foreign language can enhance their vocabulary knowledge through exposure to the target language outside of school. However, little is known about whether certain extramural activities have stronger links with vocabulary acquisition than others, and more crucially, the extent to which the vocabulary learning strategies that learners employ during extramural English encounters affect vocabulary learning outcomes. The study reported in this article investigated the relationship between the vocabulary learning strategies employed by 116 students in a Norwegian secondary school when gaming extramurally in English, their gaming frequency, engagement in other EE activities besides gaming, and their receptive and productive English vocabulary knowledge. The findings revealed that inferencing, using language references, and notetaking when gaming statistically significantly correlated with participants’ productive vocabulary knowledge, whereas only inferencing predicted their receptive vocabulary knowledge. Moreover, a negative link was discovered between playing driving games and receptive vocabulary knowledge.

Exploring the Vocabulary Knowledge of EFL Teachers in Saudi Public Schools

The present study investigated the nature of the vocabulary levels of male and female EFL teachers in Saudi schools and identified the receptive and productive vocabulary knowledge between male and female EFL teachers in Saudi schools. The study adopted a quantitative approach and collected the data through an online version of receptive and productive vocabulary knowledge tests. The findings revealed that male and female EFL teachers had low levels of vocabulary knowledge. Further, the findings revealed that EFL teachers at Saudi schools typically possess higher receptive vocabulary levels than productive vocabulary. The findings also indicate that gender substantially influences the vocabulary knowledge of EFL teachers. Finally, the study provides several implications and recommendations for further studies.

The development of a Chinese vocabulary proficiency test (CVPT) for learners of Chinese as a second/foreign language

In order to address the needs of the continually growing number of Chinese language learners, the present study developed and presented initial validation of a 100-item Chinese vocabulary proficiency test (CVPT) for learners of Chinese as a second/foreign language (CS/FL) using Item Response Theory among 170 CS/FL learners from Indonesia and 354 CS/FL learners from Thailand. Participants were required to translate or explain the meanings of the Chinese words using Indonesian or Thai. The results provided preliminary evidence for the construct validity of the CVPT for measuring CS/FL learners’ receptive Chinese vocabulary knowledge in terms of content, substantive, structural, generalizability, and external aspects. The translation-based CVPT was an attempt to measure CS/FL learners’ vocabulary proficiency by exploring their performance in a vocabulary translation task, potentially revealing test-takers’ high-degree vocabulary knowledge. Such a CVPT could be useful for Chinese vocabulary instruction and designing future Chinese vocabulary measurement tools.

The Impact of Loanwords on the English– Japanese Version of Vocabulary Size Test

The Vocabulary Size Test (VST) measures English learners’ decontextualised receptive vocabulary knowledge of written English and has nine bilingual versions with multiple-choice options written in other languages. This study used the English-Japanese version of the VST to investigate the extent to which loanword items were answered correctly by Japanese first language (L1) university students compared to non-loanword items, and whether it was easier to answer these loanword items when the correct answer option was written in loanwords rather than Japanese-words. Paired t-tests showed a significant difference in correct response rates between the loanword and non-loanword items, and the loanword options and Japanese-word options, with a large effect size. The results suggest the relative ease of learning English loanwords compared to non-loanwords for L1 Japanese users, and the need to consider the use of loanwords in vocabulary tests to measure test-takers’ vocabulary size more accurately.

Measurement of Language Knowledge as a Controversial Elaborative Linguistic Framework

This article is an attempt to determine the significance of vocabulary knowledge by describing its components and features on the basis of different existing models in such a way as to explore the language knowledge measurement criteria and find out the extent to which language knowledge is adequately measured. In fact, a plethora of research has been conducted on teaching and learning vocabulary, and testing vocabulary size. Though this linguistic element has been a controversial issue for so long, many scholars in the field of linguistics agreed upon the utility and the crucial role it has in relation to language teaching, learning, and testing. However, the investigation of the vocabulary knowledge takes into consideration three different aspects. The first aspect deals with vocabulary measurement, with the clarification of the differentiation between language knowledge in terms of its inference and language performance in terms of its observation. The second aspect examins the meaning of “word knowledge” by distinguishing between receptive and productive vocabulary knowledge. The third aspect deals with the qualitative aspect of the learners’ vocabulary knowledge in terms of understanding by identifying “breadth” and “depth”. This article also paves the way for the review of vocabulary size and the counting of family words on the basis of rigorous empirical studies in this field.

The Role of Chinese Vocabulary Knowledge in Composition Writing among Upper Elementary School Students

The present study aims to investigate the role of vocabulary knowledge in composition writing among Chinese children. Drawing on Nation’s (2001) vocabulary framework, this study operationalized Chinese vocabulary knowledge from receptive and productive perspectives and in form, meaning, and use domain, respectively. A total of five measures assessing receptive vocabulary knowledge, productive vocabulary knowledge (form, meaning, and use), and composition writing skills were administered to 249 Chinese students in grade 4 (N = 91), grade 5 (N = 90), and grade 6 (N = 68). Hierarchical regression results showed that across upper elementary grades, productive vocabulary knowledge made a significant and substantial contribution to Chinese writing performance after controlling for age and receptive vocabulary knowledge. Inspections on vocabulary knowledge in each individual domain further revealed that knowledge of vocabulary form was the strongest predictor of writing performance at grade 4, while knowledge of vocabulary meaning and use make increasing contributions to composition writing at higher grades. Findings from this study underline the relative importance of productive vocabulary knowledge in form, meaning, and use at different developmental stages and extend writing models to non-alphabetical languages. Pedagogical implications were also drawn from the present study to inform better educational practices on scaffolding beginning writers with specific aspects of vocabulary knowledge.

Utilizing Facebook Input to Enhance Vocabulary Knowledge in Young EFL Learners

This mixed-methods study investigated the role of Facebook in enhancing Thai EFL primary school learners’ vocabulary knowledge. The study's primary goal was to examine how using Facebook as an instructional platform improves the written form of English vocabulary knowledge. Twenty-four primary school students, aged 11-12, participated in this study. Two tests were designed and validated to measure students’ receptive and productive knowledge of word form. A focus group was also used to gain deeper insight into students’ perspectives on the impact of Facebook input on vocabulary learning. Descriptive and inferential statistics were performed to analyze quantitative data, while content analysis was used to analyze qualitative data. The results showed that students significantly improved their receptive and productive vocabulary knowledge, and the knowledge of word form (written) developed along the receptive-productive continuum. Additionally, the qualitative findings showed the usefulness of Facebook input. Indeed, the participants viewed the Facebook input as an inviting and stimulating atmosphere and a helpful platform to acquire vocabulary by engaging and sharing with their peers in the learning activity. Overall, the study indicates that Facebook input is an efficient alternative platform for vocabulary teaching. Implications for practitioners and suggestions for future studies are also provided.

Predictors of English Medium Instruction academic success in Vietnamese Higher Education

Abstract Recent research has investigated predictors of English Medium Instruction (EMI) academic success in Higher Education in various contexts; however, mixed findings have been reported, and empirical research in emerging contexts like Vietnam is relatively scarce. In addition, little is known about the associations between tertiary EMI outcome, gender, and high school performance. To fill these research gaps, the present study was conducted to explore the roles of gender, high school grades, English language proficiency and vocabulary knowledge (both receptive and productive knowledge) in Vietnamese tertiary EMI academic achievement. To this end, 78 Vietnamese undergraduates majoring in business studies participated in the study. The participants took the Vocabulary Levels Test (Schmitt et al. 2001) and Productive Vocabulary Levels Test (Laufer and Nation 1999) to measure their receptive and productive vocabulary knowledge. Their English language proficiency test scores, EMI course grades, and high school grade point average (GPA) were also collected for data analysis. Simple linear regression analyses revealed that high school GPA, English language proficiency together with both receptive and productive vocabulary knowledge significantly predicted EMI academic outcome while gender did not. The results are discussed with implications for EMI in Higher Education.

Teachers’ receptive and productive vocabulary sizes in English-medium instruction

ABSTRACT Despite the growing popularity of English-medium instruction (EMI), the conditions for and consequences of teaching and learning academic content through English are poorly understood. The ability of teachers in the EMI environment (i.e. disciplinary or ‘content’ teachers) to engage students in English is central in this regard since intelligible interaction between the teacher and the students is a precondition for learning when the medium of instruction is English. Across EMI contexts, concerns have been raised about teachers’ level of English proficiency (their ability to speak, write, read and listen in English), but research measuring their English proficiency attainments is lacking. This paper focuses on a key dimension of teachers’ English proficiency: vocabulary knowledge. Teachers (n = 130) took tests of receptive and productive knowledge of general and academic English vocabulary. The testing revealed significant proficiency variation in the cohorts tested, with some teachers exhibiting very low levels (<3000 words) of receptive and productive vocabulary knowledge. Implications for teaching in EMI are discussed.

Linking Language to Action: Enhancing Preschoolers' Communicative Abilities Within Language Stimulation.

Children's vocabulary and syntactic skills vary upon school entry in depth and breadth, persistently influencing academic performance, including reading. Enhancing early communicative abilities through multisensory, playful, and conversational experiences is essential and will benefit children's school readiness. This study investigated whether a language-to-action link created during language stimulation, which combines multisensory input, play, and conversation using clay, improves preschoolers' communicative abilities in terms of vocabulary, syntactic, and pragmatic language abilities more than traditional toy-based language stimulation. Language skills were examined in a pre- to posttest design in which 43 typically developing participants, ages 3-5 years, were randomly assigned to clay-based (n = 24) or traditional play-based (n = 19) language stimulation for 8 weeks. Receptive and expressive vocabulary knowledge for items introduced in the language stimulation program, mean length of utterance (MLU), and conversational initiations improved for participants in the clay condition, whereas significant language skill growth was not observed for participants in the traditional play-based stimulation condition with toys. A language-to-action link is created when children engage with open-ended materials, such as clay, as they craft target objects hands on and step by step, affording additional opportunities for language input and output. Results preliminarily suggest that using open-ended materials may enhance children's communicative abilities in receptive and expressive vocabulary, syntax/MLU, and pragmatics (i.e., conversational initiations) more than prefabricated toy objects during language stimulation. https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.24093780.

The Effects of Post-Encoding Emotion on Second Language Vocabulary Learning

There is evidence that emotion induced in the process of encoding impairs associative memory, yet the effect of post-encoding emotion on second language vocabulary learning remains largely unclear. An experiment was carried out to examine the effects of post-encoding emotion (positive, negative, and neutral) on learning of multidimensional vocabulary knowledge, that is, productive and receptive vocabulary knowledge in five aspects: orthography, meaning and form, grammatical function, syntagmatic association, and paradigmatic association. To carry out the study, 106 Chinese students voluntarily took part in the present study and they were randomly divided into positive group, negative group, and control group. After completing the vocabulary learning task and undergoing emotion manipulation by three video clips (positive, negative, and neutral), all participants sequentially took a multidimensional vocabulary test containing 10 subtests in a immediate, delayed, and post-delayed tests. The result showed a significant impairing effect of post-encoding emotion, especially positive one, on both item memory and associative memory under a longer retention interval, and no significant effect of post-encoding emotion upon semantic memory was found. Both theoretical and practical implications for second language vocabulary learning was put forward.

Effect of Explicit Teaching of Vocabulary Strategies on EFL Learners’ Recall and Recognition of Academic Words

Objectives: This study aimed at investigating the effect of the explicit teaching of vocabulary strategies on 202 EFL learners’ improvement of receptive vocabulary knowledge in terms of meaning recall and recognition of academic words. Methods: This mixed-methods study consisted of two phases: quantitative and qualitative. In the first phase which was a quasi-experimental design with two groups (experimental and control), all students responded to an adapted vocabulary test that has multiple choice and multiple matching questions. Through focus group interviews with some participants in the experimental group, qualitative data on students’ perceptions of the effectiveness of explicit teaching of vocabulary strategies were collected. While the quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics and Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA), the interviews were transcribed and analysed thematically. Results: The results of the study revealed that the explicit method of teaching vocabulary strategies was effective in improving students’ vocabulary knowledge in terms of both meaning recall and recognition of academic words. Conclusions: Thus, the explicit method of teaching vocabulary strategies can be recommended for EFL learners in academic reading courses.

Productive vocabulary knowledge in L2 German: Which word-related variables matter?

In vocabulary research, factors affecting second/foreign language (L2) receptive vocabulary have been investigated extensively. However, few studies have examined factors affecting productive knowledge (i.e., form recall), especially concerning Languages Other Than English (LOTEs). Moreover, not much is known about the influence of time on L2 learners' productive single word knowledge. Nevertheless, it is crucial to understand which variables affect productive vocabulary learning in order to optimize the learning process. A 3-year longitudinal study was conducted with Dutch-speaking university learners of German (N = 64) to investigate to what extent time, frequency, cognateness, concreteness, and age of acquisition (AoA) play a role in the development of productive single word knowledge in L2 German. Results revealed that time, frequency, cognateness, and AoA together explained 28% of the variance. L2 frequency was found to be the main predictor for L2 form recall. Cognateness also played a role, although the impact was lower compared to the findings of studies on receptive vocabulary knowledge. Concreteness did not affect L2 learners’ form recall scores. Based on the results of the study, suggestions for materials and pedagogical implications will be discussed.

The Effects of Multimodal Teaching on English Vocabulary Knowledge of Thai Primary School Students

It is increasingly prevalent in digital learning and teaching strategies for discerning a global perspective on creating the student learning experience. Multimodality is an emergent phenomenon that may influence how digital learning is designed, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic in which immersive learning environments, such as a virtual learning platform, were employed. This immersive platform may assist learners in engaging in, paying attention to, and reflecting on their learning. This quasi-experimental study examined the effects of multimodal teaching on primary school learners&amp;rsquo; English vocabulary and their attitude toward the learning environment. The participants were 59 primary school students in the northeastern part of Thailand. They were divided into two groups: experimental and control groups. The former consisted of 33 students, while the latter comprised 26. Following Nation&amp;rsquo;s (2013) word knowledge framework, two tests were developed to measure participants&amp;rsquo; receptive and productive knowledge of the words. L2 vocabulary scholars validated the tests, and the reliability of the tests was checked using Cronbach&amp;rsquo;s alpha coefficient. The questionnaire was also developed to explore the participants&amp;rsquo; attitudes toward using multimodal teaching methods to improve their vocabulary knowledge. The results showed that although both groups increased their vocabulary knowledge, the statistical analysis revealed that the multimodal teaching technique significantly enhanced participants&amp;rsquo; receptive and productive vocabulary knowledge. The results also indicated that primary school participants had a positive attitude toward using multimodal teaching methods to improve their vocabulary knowledge. The current study suggests that the multimodal teaching method effectively improves Thai primary school learners&amp;rsquo; receptive and productive word knowledge and helps them learn new vocabulary.

Language Transfer in Chinese EFL Learners’ Receptive Vocabulary Knowledge of Delexical and Lexical Verb+Noun Collocations

Restricted verb+noun collocations in English comprise delexical verb+noun collocations and lexical verb+noun collocations. The former are combinations containing verbs with ‘light’ meaning, such as make a mistake, take pictures, and have dinner, while lexical verb+noun collocations refer to combinations with technical meaning or figurative sense, such as draw a conclusion and hold discussions. Many studies have shown that these collocations are challenging to non-native English speakers, but to what extent and why one type is more challenging than the other has not received much research attention. The current study focuses on Chinese EFL learners’ receptive knowledge of delexical and lexical verb+noun collocation, particularly in relation to the influence of their first language (L1). To address this, the study measured Chinese EFL learners’ receptive knowledge of delexical and lexical verb+noun collocations using COLLEX5 collocation test and the extent to which their responses in the test were congruent or incongruent with their L1, i.e., Mandarin. The results show that Chinese EFL learners’ receptive delexical verb+noun collocation knowledge is higher than their lexical ones. The results also show that 92.3% of delexical verb+noun collocation errors are congruent with Mandarin. L1 influence is also evident in lexical verb+noun collocation errors but to a lesser extent, i.e., 72.6%. These findings indicate that L1-influenced errors account for a significant portion of the errors, suggesting that EFL learners' L1 influences how L2 collocations are processed in the mental lexicon.

How Useful Are Bilingualized Dictionaries in Discriminating Between Near-Synonyms?

Abstract This study investigates the usefulness of a bilingualized dictionary (BLD) against a monolingual one (MD) in a fill-in-the-blank test requiring the ability to discriminate between a set of near-synonyms. 156 participants, all English major undergraduates studying in Poland, were divided into two groups based on the type of dictionary they used. The study compared the two groups with respect to their test scores, learners’ prior receptive vocabulary knowledge, and task completion time. The experiment revealed the limitations of the BLD in this type of task, demonstrating that the dictionary was no more useful than the MD. While the scores were unaffected by dictionary type, they were significantly influenced by the learners’ receptive vocabulary size: the larger the size, the better the performance. The task completion time was not significantly affected by dictionary type, vocabulary size, or scores. The paper discusses learners’ errors and possible reasons for the limitations of the BLD.

The Impact of Image-Driven Stimuli on Malaysian Young Learners’ Receptive and Productive Vocabulary

In Malaysia’s present scenario, competency in English is not a surety despite it being part of the curriculum from the very start of primary education. In view of the importance of lexical knowledge in language development and the hypothesised superiority of pictorial stimuli, the present study tested the effectiveness of an image-driven intervention for receptive and productive vocabulary knowledge development among Malaysian Year 1 students. A quasi-experimental design was utilised, involving Experimental and Control groups (totalling 159 participants). Three tiers of testing were administered – pre-testing, post-testing to measure for recall, and delayed post-testing for retention. The Experimental group experienced five imagedriven sessions designed for lexical development (one session per week, 30 minutes per session). The Control group was not accorded the same treatment. Approximately 90% of the participants belonged to the B40 (Bottom 40%) group – the group with the lowest income level in Malaysia. Despite the lack of statistical significance, our findings on the whole show development with respect to the participants’ lexical knowledge after experiencing the image-driven intervention, with raw scores clearly indicating receptive and productive vocabulary improvement at both the recall and retention stages. The study’s findings extend the current knowledge base, especially within the Malaysian domain which suffers from an unfortunate lack of similar studies focusing on lower primary learners. Also, the results appear promising (with only five treatment sessions) and pave the way for more research concerning the effectiveness of the intervention among young ESL/EFL learners.

The Role of Executive Functions in Lexical Processing During Reading Comprehension

AbstractRobust relation has been revealed previously between the components of executive function (EF) and reading comprehension performance. However, the specific role of EF in the reading processes remains relatively underexplored. Within the framework of the lexical quality hypothesis (LQH), this study examined the contribution of EF to the lexical processing of words, and how this eventually supports reading comprehension. A total of 262 Grade 3 students in Hong Kong were assessed using multiple measures of EF, lexical processing skills (i.e. orthographic awareness, morphological awareness, and receptive vocabulary knowledge) and reading comprehension, respectively. Our findings indicate significant associations between EF and lexical processing skills, which, in turn, contributed to better reading comprehension. The results demonstrate how EF supports Chinese reading comprehension through the mediating effects of a reader's mental operation in obtaining meanings of individual words. The findings support to the notion that peripheral skills facilitate reading comprehension through more central skills.