Vocabulary Size Test

The present study addressed the development and the empirical validation of a recent bilingual Persian version of Vocabulary Size Test (VST). Moreover, an attempt was made to scrutinize the relationship between the previously-validated 14000bilingual version and this20000 version both of which measured receptive vocabulary knowledge. To accomplish this goal, the newly-developed version of VST was trialed on 294 Persian EFL learners from three proficiency levels, i.e. low, mid and high. The findings from Rasch Model analysis suggested that the new test functioned well because it fulfilled these criteria: it enjoyed a high level of reliability, it supported a unidimensional underlying construct, and the items formed a meaningful difficulty continuum. Furthermore, the results of one-way between-subject ANOVA indicated that the test was capable of distinguishing learners with different levels of proficiency. Moreover, it was revealed that the newversion was highly correlated with monoli...

This study aimed to explore the factors influencing word difficulty among Korean EFL learners, focusing specifically on word frequency, word length, and CSAT inclusion status. By examining both the simple and interaction effects of these variables, the study assessed their impact on word difficulty as measured by learners' VST performance. The results indicated that CSAT inclusion status was the most significant predictor; words included in previous CSAT exams (2009-2023) were found to be more challenging than those that were not. Furthermore, word length significantly influenced word difficulty, with longer words presenting greater challenges due to increased cognitive demands. While word frequency was also a significant predictor, its impact was less pronounced than that of the other factors, suggesting that frequency-based assessments may not fully capture the nuances of word difficulty for Korean learners in an EFL context. The study additionally highlighted the complexity of word difficulty through significant two-way and three-way interactions among frequency, word length, and CSAT inclusion status. These interactions suggest that the three predictors dynamically influence each other, rather than functioning independently, to affect word difficulty.

Vocabulary breadth refers to the number of words that a language user (or learner) knows. • Breadth of vocabulary knowledge assessment includes receptive and productive tests measuring knowledge of the form- meaning connections of words. • Vocabulary depth refers to how well a word is known. • Depth of vocabulary assessment measures one or more aspects of lexical knowledge (e.g., word parts, associations, collocations).

The present study aimed to validate a 70-item Korean bilingual version of the Vocabulary Size Test (VST) using Rasch modeling. The goal was to assess the applicability of this Korean version of the VST for Korean learners of English in an English as a foreign language (EFL) context by examining validity evidence based on Messick's framework. Specifically, the study focused on the content, substantive, and external aspects of construct validity. However, the findings provided weak evidence supporting the utility of the VST as a measure of receptive vocabulary for Korean EFL learners. The test was deemed too easy and lacked the ability to effectively differentiate among varying levels of second language proficiency, with many test items exhibiting unexpected behavior. Additionally, the VST showed a weak correlation with another measure of second language proficiency. In light of these findings, the study offers specific recommendations for improving the test's validity and usefulness.

This paper provides and explains the criteria by which the first eight 1,000-word frequency bands of the Japanese bilingual Vocabulary Size Test (VST) were revised. The VST (Nation & Beglar, 2007) was designed as a measure of vocabulary size for language learners. It was originally produced and validated in a monolingual format, but in recent years several bilingual versions have also been made. These variants may yield more accurate results, because they avoid conflating vocabulary knowledge with ability to decode answer choices in the L2. However, they have received little scrutiny beyond initial piloting and may therefore benefit from further examination and refinement (Nguyen & Nation, 2011). This paper describes the revision of the first eight 1,000-word frequency bands of the Japanese bilingual VST with the goal of increasing the test’s unidimensionality and accuracy. The revisions (a) removed English loanwords from the answer choices to prevent examinees from correctly respon...

Over the last 20 years vocabulary research has grown from a Cinderella subject to a position of some importance. Vocabulary is now considered integral to just about every aspect of language knowledge and is a lively and vital area of research and innovation. With this development have come standard and widely-used tests, such as vocabulary size and lexical richness measures, and commonly accepted metaphors, such as the mental lexicon as a web of words. Less widely known outside academic circles, however, is the extensive work on learners' lexis and the utility, reliability and validity of the tests we use to measure and investigate it. This volume brings together contributions from internationally-renowned researchers in this field to explain much of the background to study in this area. It introduces to a wider audience the concerns, the newest approaches and developments in the field of vocabulary research and testing.

The York Assessment of Reading for Comprehension Secondary Test (YARC) was originally designed by Stothard, Snowling, Clarke, Barmby and Hulme (2010) for secondary school students in the UK between the ages of 11 and 16 (both monolinguals and learners of English as an Additional language). Since tests that were developed for a particular group are not necessarily suitable for other groups, the aim of this research was to find out to what extent the YARC Secondary reading comprehension test could be used to measure reading comprehension among Arabic L1 adult L2 learners of English. As vocabulary knowledge has often been found to be a key predictor of reading, we administered two offline vocabulary tests (measuring depth and size of word knowledge) in addition to the YARC Secondary to 30 native English-speaking and 28 Saudi Arabian learners of English attending university courses in their home country. The findings showed that YARC scores correlated significantly with scores on the vocabulary tests, and that scores on the Single Word Reading Test (SWRT) for adult L1 Arabic learners fell within the range for children in the UK aged 11 years and three months. Evidence of the suitability of the YARC texts was also obtained through an analysis of students' ability to retain meaning and use (in a sentence) of non-words encountered in the YARC texts. We conclude that the YARC Secondary can be used with some groups of adult L2 learners of English, provided adaptations are made to the reading comprehension texts to ensure the vocabulary levels are appropriate for the target group.

Listening comprehension constitutes a major problem for second language learners but little is known about the relative contribution of different factors to listening comprehension. Since there are still only very few studies in this area by comparison with studies focusing on the relationship between reading and vocabulary, there is a need for studies which can fill the gap in our knowledge about the specific contribution of generic and discrete-point measures of language ability to explaining listening. In the present study among 151 non-English major students at a university in Northwest China we explore what proportion of the variance in listening comprehension is explained by general language proficiency, vocabulary size and metacognitive awareness. Our results show that vocabulary size is the strongest predictor, followed by general language proficiency, while metacognitive awareness is less important. We discuss implications for the componential structure of the notion language ability, theories of listening and pedagogical practice in L2 classrooms.

This research compares the outcomes of two computer-assisted second language (L2) idiom learning conditions: deliberate and contextual. Low-intermediate proficiency Japanese learners of English studied 36 idioms online by either using flashcards or reading them in sentences with contextual clues to their meanings over three learning sessions. Posttest results of these two learning conditions were compared with each other and with a baseline condition in which no learning occurred. In an idiom translation posttest, L2 participants showed superior declarative knowledge of the idioms learned in the flashcard condition. Nondeclarative knowledge gains were measured on a self-paced reading (SPR) task that was validated in a pilot study with 60 native (L1) readers. Although the idioms primed semantic probes during reading for L1 participants, this was not the case for L2 learners. Nevertheless, the two learning conditions had some positive effects on the semantic probes compared to the baseline. The finding that figurative meanings of the idioms were accessed during reading is particularly important for the flashcard condition, suggesting that this learning approach results in the knowledge relevant in real-time language use.

This paper will explore the critical roles of vocabulary development and teaching reading as a basis of vocabulary growth in an advanced English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classroom. An application is promoted from the discussion, which identifies the interrelation between reading and vocabulary growth (Krashen, 1989; Horst, Cobb, Cobb, & Meara, 1998; Waring &Nation, 2004; Hunt & Beglar; 2005). The quality of a reading text and the learners’ interests are considerations that must be taken into account for improved vocabulary instruction.

This collection brings together recent research on the influences between first and additional languages with a focus on the development of multilingual lexicons. Featuring work from an international group of scholars, the volume examines the complex dynamics underpinning vocabulary in second and third languages and the role first languages play within this process. The book is organized around three different facets of research in this area – lexical recognition, processing, and knowledge; the effects of first languages on second language reading and writing, collocations, and translation skills; and, vocabulary testing – drawing on examples from a variety of languages, including European languages, Arabic, and Japanese. Setting the stage for further research on the interplay between first languages and multilingual lexicons, this volume is key reading for students and researchers in applied linguistics, language learning and teaching, bilingualism, second language acquisition, and translation studies.

This research paper tried to evaluate the department of English students' vocabulary size by using Nation Vocabulary size tests (VST). The study used a sample of the third level students at the department of English-Faculty of Education-Aden at the University of Aden in three categories according to their academic achievement in the class (High =80-100, Medium= 70-79.99 and Low =less than 69.99). To measure the vocabulary size, the researcher used on Nation and Beglar (2007) (14000) vocabulary size test. Based on the analysis of students correct answers in the VST, the study found that students' vocabulary size ranges between 1000-8000 words with variant percentages. It was found that (80%) of third level students vocabulary size (high 08-100 and medium 70-79.99) is in the range (1000-3000), (76%) of third level students vocabulary size (high 08-100) is in the range (1000-5000) and (51%) are in the range (1000-8000). The study found that (59%) of third level students (medium...

This research paper tried to evaluate English students' vocabulary size by using Nation Vocabulary size tests (VST). The study used a sample of the third level students at the English-Faculty department of Education-Aden at the University of Aden in three categories according to their academic achievement in the class (High =80-100, Medium= 70-79.99 and Low =less than 69.99). The researcher used Nation and Beglar (2007) (14000) vocabulary size test to measure the vocabulary size. Based on the analysis of students' correct answers in the VST, the study found that students' vocabulary size ranges between 1000-8000 words with variant percentages. It was found that (80%) of third level students' vocabulary size (high 08-100 and medium 70-79.99) is in the range (1000-3000), (76%) of third level students' vocabulary size (high 08-100) is in the range (1000-5000) and (51%) are in the range (1000-8000). The study found that (59%) of third level students (medium 70-79.99) are in the range (1000-5000) and (40%) of them are in the range (1000-8000). The third level students (low, less than 69.99) recorded the lowest size by (50%) in the range (1000-3000), (41%) in the range (1000-5000) and only (21%) are in the range (1000-8000). Considering the total word size of the three categories together, the study found that (70%) are in the range (1000-3000), (59%) range in the range (1000-5000), and (37%) are in the range (1000-8000).

One crucial aspect of CLIL-based foreign language learning in instructional settings is vocabulary growth. As a consequence, research should be interested in how CLIL fosters vocabulary learning. Noticing an apparent shortage of data-driven quantitative research on vocabulary growth in this field of CLIL is, therefore, problematic. The present paper reports findings from a mixed-methods study of vocabulary growth in an Austrian lower secondary school CLIL setting, with English as the language of instruction and learning. The aim of the study was to analyse how the use of CLIL in the English classroom could benefit learners in their acquisition of vocabulary in the target language. First, a repeated-measure-design with experimental and control groups assessed receptive vocabulary growth by means of a standardized vocabulary size test. Second, students' questionnaire data as well as vocabulary profiling of the CLIL teachers' linguistic input explored possible covariates for the vocabulary test scores. We found that CLIL-related effects were only co-determined by input frequency, while extramural factors did not play any role in this study. As a consequence, overly optimistic expectations regarding the linguistic impact of CLIL in a mixed-ability setting guided by a predominantly implicit language teaching approach need to be re-evaluated critically.

The mid short vowels: /e/ and /o/ are among the vowels shared between Hausa and Yorùbá but differ in Hausa mid-high long, front and back vowels: /e:/ and /o:/. The phonemic differences in the two languages have caused learning difficulties among the Yorùbá native speakers to achieve their second language learning desire and competence. Yorùbá-Hausa learners mispronounce certain disyllabic Hausa words due to the substitution of vowels in the first and second syllables. Thus, both lexical and grammatical meanings of the Hausa words are affected. This study examined the production of the 12 Hausa vowels by level 1 and level 3 students who were learning Hausa as a second language to determine if there was a significant difference in how level 1 and level 3 students pronounced the short and long mid-high, front and back Hausa vowels. 88 Yorùbá native speakers were recruited using purposive sampling. Twenty-four different wordlists extracted from Bargery's (1934) Hausa-English dic...

This article describes a research study that determined the depth of vocabulary knowledge of 28 intermediate ESL learners. The study was carried out with Bricklayer, a vocabulary assessment tool for L2 English which tested the ESL learners on 72 words. Two post-tests collected evidence for concurrent validity. A semantic distance test captured incremental knowledge for 36 words, but Bricklayer's predictive power for this partial knowledge was weak. A standard multiple-choice test of the remaining 36 words showed that Bricklayer predicted 61% of known words and 69% of unknown words; results were better for words which were strongly predicted to be known or unknown. These +ndings provide promise that Bricklayer's assessment paradigm assists in building up models of students' knowledge and behaviour in CALL environments.

Focus on forms (FonFs) is a pedagogical approach in Instructed Second Language Acquisition (ISLA) that emphasizes students’ conscious and direct attention to learning target language features in isolation and outside their meaningful context. FonFs has been employed extensively in foreign language vocabulary instruction, and earlier studies reported positive results for such interventions. The present study investigated mobile-assisted FonFs in the context of English for Academic Purposes (EAP) to address the vocabulary learning needs of Iranian EFL students and examined developments in receptive and productive knowledge of academic words. In doing so, the participants in the experimental learning condition (N = 22) were exposed to academic vocabulary using digital flashcards on their mobile phones, and those in the control group (N = 15) used word lists. The participants’ vocabulary knowledge was tested using different measures before and after the treatments, and the results were ...

An assessment was conducted in order to gather information on student attitudes to and knowledge of vocabulary, and in particular to English loanwords used in Japanese. A secondary purpose for the study was to look into potential benefits and pitfalls of the explicit teaching of vocabulary. Three categories for instruction were identified. The first, true cognates are loanwords that have been borrowed into Japanese, retaining the same meaning as in English. The second, false friends are also borrowed words that are similar in form. Close false friends have similar form and meaning while distant false friends have somehow undergone a semantic shift and acquired a new or original Japanese meaning. Finally, synforms are words that are similar looking and sounding but with different meaning to other words and prone to cause confusion in non-native speakers. Introduction/Background One concern of many for educators in the English language teaching field in Japan is to know how to help our students become more competent readers of authentic texts in English, to help them better comprehend texts, and understand how the words on a page are connected to each other so students do not simply resort to word-byword interpretation. This means training them to go beyond simply being able to use an English to Japanese dictionary and translate a text into Japanese. It also means helping them to get the original gist of a text and understand how words collocate and function together.

Listening comprehension constitutes a considerable challenge for second language learners, but little is known about the relative contribution of individual differences in distinct factors to listening comprehension. Since research in this area is relatively limited in comparison to that focusing on the relationship between reading comprehension and factors such as vocabulary knowledge and working memory, there is a need for studies that seek to fill the gap in our knowledge about the specific contribution of aural vocabulary knowledge, written vocabulary knowledge and working memory capacity to explaining listening comprehension. Among 130 non-native speakers of English, the present study examines what proportion of the variance in listening comprehension is explained by aural vocabulary knowledge, written vocabulary knowledge, and working memory capacity. The results show that aural vocabulary knowledge is the strongest predictor of listening comprehension, followed by working mem...

This paper examines how students vocabulary levels as determined by the Vocabulary Size Test (Nation & Beglar,) can be used in conjunction with the RANGE program (Nation & Heatley,) to predict the suitability of passages used in timed reading practice. The paper further discusses what could be done to facilitate reading fluency practice for these students, and finally uses previously obtained scores from timed reading to corroborate predictions.

This study investigates the relationship between depth and breadth of vocabulary knowledge and EFL learners' listening comprehension. It is designed to find out whether there is a meaningful relationship between vocabulary knowledge and listening comprehension in general, and to determine which dimension of vocabulary knowledge is a better predictor of successful listening comprehension in particular. Data gathered through three tests including Vocabulary Knowledge Test (VLT), Word Associate Test (WAT), and standardized listening comprehension test, from 32 EFL learners were analyzed and the findings revealed that there is a high and positive relationship among the three variables and also between the independent variables. Future analysis indicated that though both VLT and WAT contribute to listening comprehension, VLT is a better predictor of successful listening comprehension performance.

Listening comprehension is a multifaceted L2 skill and its actual mastery has proved challenging for many EFL learners (Matthews, 2018). Pre-listening supports may help us change the dire situation in developing effective listening competence. Therefore, the current study tried to examine the effect of vocabulary preparation, grammar instruction and background knowledge activation as pre-listening tasks on the listening comprehension among 95 Iranian intermediate EFL learners in three experimental groups who were randomly selected from among 142 Iranian EFL learners after administration of a paper-based TOEFL. In group A, the teacher elaborated on the difficult grammatical structures of the listening comprehension (LC) test and the students did some exercises. Group B practiced related difficult words using synonyms, antonyms, and sentence examples. In group C, some topical knowledge about the content of the LC test was given and discussed. After the treatment, a valid researcher-ma...

One crucial aspect of CLIL-based foreign language learning in instructional settings is vocabulary growth. As a consequence, research should be interested in how CLIL fosters vocabulary learning. Noticing an apparent shortage of data-driven quantitative research on vocabulary growth in this field of CLIL is, therefore, problematic. The present paper reports findings from a mixed-methods study of vocabulary growth in an Austrian lower secondary school CLIL setting, with English as the language of instruction and learning. The aim of the study was to analyse how the use of CLIL in the English classroom could benefit learners in their acquisition of vocabulary in the target language. First, a repeated-measure-design with experimental and control groups assessed receptive vocabulary growth by means of a standardized vocabulary size test. Second, students' questionnaire data as well as vocabulary profiling of the CLIL teachers' linguistic input explored possible covariates for the vocabulary test scores. We found that CLIL-related effects were only co-determined by input frequency, while extramural factors did not play any role in this study. As a consequence, overly optimistic expectations regarding the linguistic impact of CLIL in a mixed-ability setting guided by a predominantly implicit language teaching approach need to be re-evaluated critically.

Listening comprehension is a multifaceted L2 skill and its actual mastery has proved challenging for many EFL learners (Matthews, 2018). Pre-listening supports may help us change the dire situation in developing effective listening competence. Therefore, the current study tried to examine the effect of vocabulary preparation, grammar instruction and background knowledge activation as pre-listening tasks on the listening comprehension among 95 Iranian intermediate EFL learners in three experimental groups who were randomly selected from among 142 Iranian EFL learners after administration of a paper-based TOEFL. In group A, the teacher elaborated on the difficult grammatical structures of the listening comprehension (LC) test and the students did some exercises. Group B practiced related difficult words using synonyms, antonyms, and sentence examples. In group C, some topical knowledge about the content of the LC test was given and discussed. After the treatment, a valid researcher-ma...

The present study explored vocabulary knowledge as a multi-aspect construct by examining the acquisition order of different vocabulary aspects and the relationships between these aspects. A battery test of receptive and productive vocabulary aspects, based on Nation’s (2013) framework, was administered to 156 Thai EFL learners in tenth (n = 84) and twelfth (n = 72) grades. Two different grades of Thai EFL learners were used to better describe the vocabulary acquisition process. The results indicated that scores on the tests assessing receptive knowledge of an aspect were higher than scores on the productive knowledge tests, for both grades. However, overall, the twelfth-grade learners performed better than the tenth-grade learners. The findings also revealed significant correlations between knowledge of the different aspects. Furthermore, the Implicational Scaling (IS) analysis revealed that the two grades had distinct implicational patterns of vocabulary aspects. These results prov...

The mid short vowels: /e/ and /o/ are among the vowels shared between Hausa and Yorùbá but differ in Hausa mid-high long, front and back vowels: /e:/ and /o:/. The phonemic differences in the two languages have caused learning difficulties among the Yorùbá native speakers to achieve their second language learning desire and competence. Yorùbá-Hausa learners mispronounce certain disyllabic Hausa words due to the substitution of vowels in the first and second syllables. Thus, both lexical and grammatical meanings of the Hausa words are affected. This study examined the production of the 12 Hausa vowels by level 1 and level 3 students who were learning Hausa as a second language to determine if there was a significant difference in how level 1 and level 3 students pronounced the short and long mid-high, front and back Hausa vowels. 88 Yorùbá native speakers were recruited using purposive sampling. Twenty-four different wordlists extracted from Bargery's (1934) Hausa-English dic...

The present study examined the effects of different types of word retrieval practice on L2 vocabulary learning. Eighteen undergraduates at a Japanese university were asked to learn twenty-four English pseudo-words, paired with illustrations, in three conditions: receptive retrieval, productive retrieval, and control. In the receptive retrieval condition, they received opportunities to recall meanings; in the productive retrieval condition, to recall forms; and in the control condition, to repeat words while looking at their paired illustration. Data from posttests indicated that (1) on the receptive vocabulary knowledge test, the receptive retrieval condition scored significantly higher than the control condition and equal to the productive retrieval condition, and (2) on the productive retrieval knowledge test, the productive retrieval condition was significantly more effective than the other two conditions.

This paper provides and explains the criteria by which the first eight 1,000-word frequency bands of the Japanese bilingual Vocabulary Size Test (VST) were revised. The VST (Nation & Beglar, 2007) was designed as a measure of vocabulary size for language learners. It was originally produced and validated in a monolingual format, but in recent years several bilingual versions have also been made. These variants may yield more accurate results, because they avoid conflating vocabulary knowledge with ability to decode answer choices in the L2. However, they have received little scrutiny beyond initial piloting and may therefore benefit from further examination and refinement (Nguyen & Nation, 2011). This paper describes the revision of the first eight 1,000-word frequency bands of the Japanese bilingual VST with the goal of increasing the test’s unidimensionality and accuracy. The revisions (a) removed English loanwords from the answer choices to prevent examinees from correctly respon...

This paper presents a vocabulary size test in Greek as a foreign language derived from the first 5000 lemmatised words of the Hellenic National Corpus. It is designed as a Greek version of Meara and Milton’s (2003) X-Lex checklist test which has test forms in a number of other languages. Such a test should provide useful information to both learners and teachers of Greek as a foreign language in an important area of language knowledge, and should help indicate both student level and measure learning progress. The test has been trialled on learners of Greek at CEFR A1, A2, B1 and B2 levels in the School of Modern Greek, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. Results suggest that the test works reliably, has good construct validity and provides estimates of vocabulary size which are believable and fit well with estimates of vocabulary size at CEFR levels in other languages.

This paper focuses on the design and evaluation of the computer-assisted vocabulary learning (CAVL) software WUFUN. It draws on the current research findings of vocabulary acquisition and CALL, aiming to help Chinese university students to improve their learning of English vocabulary, particularly that with which they experience most difficulty. It is argued that vocabulary should be learned explicitly as well as implicitly; learners need to be trained to become good learners, e.g., by being instructed in useful learning strategies, to enable them to learn vocabulary more efficiently and effectively. A design model of CALL efficacy is constructed to ensure the quality of vocabulary learning in CALL programs; it is employed in the design of the software WUFUN. Finally, the preliminary results of the software evaluation are reported and discussed.

This article describes the development and validation of a Vietnamese bilingual version of the Vocabulary Size Test — a test which measures written receptive vocabulary size. The test can be used to measure the English vocabulary size of Vietnamese learners of English. A learner’s total vocabulary size is calculated by multiplying their test result by 100. The research adds to our knowledge of vocabulary size testing in the following ways. First, it shows that a bilingual version of a monolingual test performs in much the same way as the monolingual test, distinguishing learners of different proficiency levels and returning lower scores at later levels of the test. Second, it shows that every level of the test should be sat, otherwise there will be a considerable underestimation of learners’ vocabulary sizes. This suggests limitations to the previously accepted assumption that learners’ vocabulary growth can be largely related to word frequency. Third, it shows that bilingual tests ...

The face-to-face mode of delivery had significantly been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Due to its spread, the government had suspended the traditional classroom teaching system, requiring its alternative online teaching instead. Accordingly, English teachers needed to be prepared with the necessary digital literacy skills for effective online teaching. Considering this situation, this study sought to survey the digital literacy skills of secondary school level English teachers of Nepal to check their preparedness for online delivery. A questionnaire was prepared through Google Docs and circulated to English teachers through emails and Messenger. Data was collected using the snowball-sampling method. Altogether, 426 English teachers across the country participated in this study. This study found that secondary school-level English teachers possess the necessary digital literacy skills like word processing, the use of the Internet, downloading, online presentations, and hence, ar...

The present meta-analysis aimed to summarize the extent to which second language vocabulary is learned from the most frequently researched word-focused activities: flashcards, word lists, writing, and fill-in-the-blanks. One hundred effect sizes from 22 studies were included in meta-regression analyses and administered separately for the observations measured with meaning-recall and form-recall tests. The results revealed that the average percentage learning gains were 60.1% and 58.5% on meaning-recall and form-recall immediate posttests. These gains dropped to 39.4% and 25.1% on delayed meaning-and form-recall tests, respectively. These results suggest that learning through word-focused tasks is far from guaranteed. Moreover, the percentage learning gains among the different activities ranged from 18.4% to 77.0% on immediate posttests and from 23.9% to 73.4% on delayed posttests indicating that there is much variation in efficacy among the activities. Moderator analyses revealed that learners' place of study and direction of learning affected learning.

Vocabulary learning has received considerable attention from reading comprehension input in second language acquisition research. However, a little is known about vocabulary gains from listening comprehension input. This paper aims to review L2 vocabulary gains from listening comprehension input in comparison to reading comprehension and reading while listening comprehension activities. We search for the terms “vocabulary learning”, “vocabulary acquisition”, and “listening comprehension” in several international databases to elicit target studies. The target studies have been reviewed in terms of focus, methodology employed, L2 environment, type of participants, and findings. Results of the review found that vocabulary acquisition from listening comprehension input was significant—though less than reading input—for long run and could be stored in long term memory. Therefore, it could be retrieved more easily than vocabulary from reading comprehension input. Recommendations and sugge...

This study continued an investigation of test strategy and usage of an ''I don't know'' (DK) option on the 20,000-word family, 100-item Vocabulary Size Test (VST; Nation & Beglar, 2007). Unlike previous studies, which reported on an L1 American English user (Lucovich, 2014), the participants in this study were two L1 GreekÁL2 American English users. Each participant took the original and DK-added versions of the VST. A structured qualitative interview, based on Nagy, Herman, and Anderson's (1985) word interview protocol and piloted in previous studies, asked the participants about their answers on the VST. This study aimed to discover how non-Japanese L1/non-English L1 test takers determined their answers, how they qualitatively perceived and used the DK option, and whether this differed from the L1 American English and L1 Japanese users of English. As in previous studies, the participants used the DK option only on unknown items where partial knowledge or test taking strategies were unusable.

Listening comprehension is a multifaceted L2 skill and its actual mastery has proved challenging for many EFL learners (Matthews, 2018). Pre-listening supports may help us change the dire situation in developing effective listening competence. Therefore, the current study tried to examine the effect of vocabulary preparation, grammar instruction and background knowledge activation as pre-listening tasks on the listening comprehension among 95 Iranian intermediate EFL learners in three experimental groups who were randomly selected from among 142 Iranian EFL learners after administration of a paper-based TOEFL. In group A, the teacher elaborated on the difficult grammatical structures of the listening comprehension (LC) test and the students did some exercises. Group B practiced related difficult words using synonyms, antonyms, and sentence examples. In group C, some topical knowledge about the content of the LC test was given and discussed. After the treatment, a valid researcher-ma...

Research has shown that general vocabulary knowledge (e.g., Milton & Treffers-Daller, 2013), academic vocabulary knowledge (e.g., Townsend et al., 2012) and general intelligence (e.g., Laidra et al., 2007) are good predictors of academic achievement. While the effect of these factors has mostly been examined separately, Townsend et al. (2012) have tried to model the contribution of general and academic vocabulary to academic achievement and ,nd academic vocabulary knowledge adds only marginally to the predictive ability of general vocabulary knowledge. This study, therefore, examines further factors as part of a more extensive predictive model of academic performance, including L1 vocabulary knowledge, L2 general and academic vocabulary knowledge, and intelligence (IQ) as predictors of overall academic achievement among learners of EFL. Performance on these measures was correlated with Grade Point Average (GPA) as a measure of academic achievement for undergraduate Arabic L1 users (...

This paper presents an empirical study with the aim of investigating Arabic, as a second language, vocabulary knowledge of 122 primary school students in Morocco. To fulfill our aim, it is necessary to prepare valid and reliable tests that can be useful and practical for both teachers and textbook designers in order to plan, diagnose, research and foster learners‟ vocabulary development. Two tests were designed; the first one is a Yes/No format of a vocabulary test, and a multiple choice questions test (MCQ). The main objectives behind this paper are: to measure L2 Arabic learners‟ vocabulary knowledge (Vocabulary size) and to compare the scores of the Arabic Yes/No test with scores of the multiple choice questions test and to see how they correlate with each other. Hence, we will be able to know how much vocabulary learners learn after six years of studying Arabic and to relate our findings to the teaching methodology of Arabic as a second language. The obtained findings confirmed ...

Knowing about the language is very aspiring goal. Though, all the vocabulary of language is not acknowledged even by the native presenters. There are several words families that existing in English language. The words in families are allocated according to their frequencies; high frequency words comprise 80% of running words in the text, while low frequency words almost cover 5% in the academic text. The core purpose of this study is to determine the association of high and low frequency words with reading by using (Nation, I.S.P. & Beglar, D, 2007) different levels of test with different TOEFL reading subset, the investigation based on the performance of second language learners. The setting of this study was based on experimental research. The nature of this study is quantitative. The research queries were responded through descriptive statistical analysis. This study took 30 participants for data. The data deals with two type of tests, first one was (Nation, I.S.P. & Beglar, D, 2...

This paper provides and explains the criteria by which the first eight 1,000-word frequency bands of the Japanese bilingual Vocabulary Size Test (VST) were revised. The VST (Nation & Beglar, 2007) was designed as a measure of vocabulary size for language learners. It was originally produced and validated in a monolingual format, but in recent years several bilingual versions have also been made. These variants may yield more accurate results, because they avoid conflating vocabulary knowledge with ability to decode answer choices in the L2. However, they have received little scrutiny beyond initial piloting and may therefore benefit from further examination and refinement (Nguyen & Nation, 2011). This paper describes the revision of the first eight 1,000-word frequency bands of the Japanese bilingual VST with the goal of increasing the test’s unidimensionality and accuracy. The revisions (a) removed English loanwords from the answer choices to prevent examinees from correctly respon...

The mid short vowels: /e/ and /o/ are among the vowels shared between Hausa and Yorùbá but differ in Hausa mid-high long, front and back vowels: /e:/ and /o:/. The phonemic differences in the two languages have caused learning difficulties among the Yorùbá native speakers to achieve their second language learning desire and competence. Yorùbá-Hausa learners mispronounce certain disyllabic Hausa words due to the substitution of vowels in the first and second syllables. Thus, both lexical and grammatical meanings of the Hausa words are affected. This study examined the production of the 12 Hausa vowels by level 1 and level 3 students who were learning Hausa as a second language to determine if there was a significant difference in how level 1 and level 3 students pronounced the short and long mid-high, front and back Hausa vowels. 88 Yorùbá native speakers were recruited using purposive sampling. Twenty-four different wordlists extracted from Bargery's (1934) Hausa-English dic...

Important note about size and levels tests Measuring vocabulary size and interpreting vocabulary size test scores Vocabulary size tests are intended to estimate the total number of words a learner knows. This estimate can be useful when comparing groups of learners, measuring long-term vocabulary growth, or providing “one kind of goal for learners of English as a second or foreign language” (Nation, 2013, p. 522). The Vocabulary Size Test (VST) (Nation & Beglar, 2007), for example, is a measure of written receptive word knowledge based on word family frequency estimates derived from the spoken subsection of the BNC (Nation, 2006). Each item on the VST presents the target word first in isolation followed by a non-defining context sentence, with four answer-choices presented in either English or in the learners’ L1. Results of the VST among samples with a wide range in ability have shown that the test is able to reliably distinguish between learners of different vocabulary proficiency...

The student placement test in English as a Second Language used for the Eurocentres schools in the United Kingdom differs from traditional placement tests in that it is a vocabulary test and does not attempt to measure other aspects of learner knowledge of English. The test attempts to measure absolute size of the learner's English vocabulary. The totally automated test is administered by displaying a large number of words on a computer screen, asking the learner which he knows, and using mathematical formulas to estimate vocabulary size. The examinee proceeds through a series of such screens. An example with French vocabulary illustrates the method. The mathematical model used for calculating vocabulary size evolved from military research. Results of administration of the test to about 250 students from a wide range of language backgrounds were compared with results of the previously-used placement test at the Eurocentres schools found relatively high correlations between the tests but some variation by language group. It is concluded that the test works well for placement but needs further refinement, and that visual recognition of words may not accurately reflect knowledge of them. Use of imaginary words in the test should also be reconsidered. (MSE)

The student placement test in English as a Second Language used for the Eurocentres schools in the United Kingdom differs from traditional placement tests in that it is a vocabulary test and does not attempt to measure other aspects of learner knowledge of English. The test attempts to measure absolute size of the learner's English vocabulary. The totally automated test is administered by displaying a large number of words on a computer screen, asking the learner which he knows, and using mathematical formulas to estimate vocabulary size. The examinee proceeds through a series of such screens. An example with French vocabulary illustrates the method. The mathematical model used for calculating vocabulary size evolved from military research. Results of administration of the test to about 250 students from a wide range of language backgrounds were compared with results of the previously-used placement test at the Eurocentres schools found relatively high correlations between the tests but some variation by language group. It is concluded that the test works well for placement but needs further refinement, and that visual recognition of words may not accurately reflect knowledge of them. Use of imaginary words in the test should also be reconsidered. (MSE)

KEYWORDS Vocabulary Size Nation Vocabulary size test (VST) Range Word Family ABSTRACT This research paper tried to evaluate English students' vocabulary size by using Nation Vocabulary size tests (VST). The study used a sample of the third level students at the English-Faculty department of Education-Aden at the University of Aden in three categories according to their academic achievement in the class (High =80-100, Medium= 70-79.99 and Low =less than 69.99). The researcher used Nation and Beglar (2007) (14000) vocabulary size test to measure the vocabulary size. Based on the analysis of students' correct answers in the VST, the study found that students' vocabulary size ranges between 1000-8000 words with variant percentages. It was found that (80%) of third level students' vocabulary size (high 08-100 and medium 70-79.99) is in the range (1000-3000), (76%) of third level students' vocabulary size (high 08-100) is in the range (1000-5000) and (51%) are in the range (1000-8000). The study found that (59%) of third level students (medium 70-79.99) are in the range (1000-5000) and (40%) of them are in the range (1000-8000). The third level students (low, less than 69.99) recorded the lowest size by (50%) in the range (1000-3000), (41%) in the range (1000-5000) and only (21%) are in the range (1000-8000). Considering the total word size of the three categories together, the study found that (70%) are in the range (1000-3000), (59%) range in the range (1000-5000), and (37%) are in the range (1000-8000).

This study developed a vocabulary size test for Japanese learners of English as a foreign language (EFL) using the New JACET List of 8,000 Basic Words (VST-NJ8). Data from the vocabulary size tests were interpreted to assess, diagnose, and predict learners' lexical proficiency. Yet, existing tests for Japanese EFL learners involve two critical issues regarding unrepresentative contents and inflated estimation of vocabulary size due to methodological restrictions. For these reasons, a large-scale item bank was created in Study 1 by sampling 800 target words and 2,400 distractors from the New JACET List of 8,000 Basic Words. The data from 2,155 test-takers were analyzed using the three-parameter logistic (3PL) model of the item response theory to obtain the invariant parameters of difficulty, discriminability, and pseudo-guessing probability for every item. In Study 2, an automatic test assembly was conducted in consideration of the number of items to be included, the distribution of parts of speech, and the test information functions estimated by the 3PL model. The item characteristics were argued for validation in terms of the content, substantive, structural, generalizability, and external aspects of construct validty. The administration, scoring, and interpretation methods of the VST-NJ8 are fully provided.