At the recent IATEFL conference inwards Brighton, I gave a beak every bit role of the MaWSIG showcase almost the way wordlists are used (and misused), peculiarly inwards writing ELT materials together with some of the issues that writers require to live on aware of.
Below is an overview of my fundamental points together with also links to some of the references together with tools I mentioned. I've embedded links inwards the post, but also repeated them all at the end, therefore if you lot came to the beak together with just desire the links, experience gratuitous to scroll down.
What exercise I hateful past times a wordlist?
My beak was almost the form of standardized wordlists that conduct maintain been position together according to some criteria (typically frequency together with usefulness for learners) together with and therefore published amongst the aim of beingness used every bit a terra firma for deciding which vocabulary to prioritize inwards teaching. There are loads of wordlists out there, but I mentioned just a few of the most well-known:
General lists: GeneralService List (GSL), New GSL, Oxford 3000™
Specialist lists: Academic Word List (AWL), Academic Vocabulary List (AVL), New AWL, champaign of report specific lists (e.g. for Engineering, Medicine, etc.)
Multi-word lists: Phrasal Expressions List, Phrasal Verbs List, Academic Collocations List
Vocabulary degree tools: These approach the trouble from a slightly dissimilar perspective. Instead of providing a limited listing of target vocab, they instead class items from a learner's lexicon according to the degree at which learners are most probable to start using/need each item. I'm peculiarly familiar amongst English Vocabulary Profile, EVP (from Cambridge) together with there's also the Global Scale of English, GSE, vocab tool (from Pearson). Both online tools allow you lot to seem upward an item together with banking concern check its suggested degree based on the CEFR scale (A1, A2, B1 etc.)
Why are wordlists popular?
Given the huge multifariousness of English linguistic communication vocabulary, it's non surprising that anything that gives teachers together with materials writers a starting betoken together with a guide to which items powerfulness live on most useful to learn kickoff is popular. Wordlists render a principled terra firma for planning a vocab syllabus, backing upward our intuitions almost which words are most frequent together with saving us from reinventing the bike past times having to query the frequency of each discussion every bit nosotros travel along. For publishers, they also assist to ensure a consistent approach to vocab across a coursebook series, across dissimilar titles or betwixt a grouping of writers all working on the same project; they render a unmarried lexical hymn-sheet for everyone to sing from, if you lot like.
Why you lot require to empathize your list:
Whilst wordlists conduct maintain an obvious appeal, peculiarly for writers, I squall back it's genuinely of import to empathize whatever listing you lot conception to work earlier you lot acquire started. Understanding how a listing was position together, what the aims of the listing compilers were, what criteria they used to select items together with what information they used is vital. To accept the academic wordlist (AWL) every bit an example:
- It aims to position full general academic vocab, therefore it excludes items that only appear inwards specific disciplines, such every bit scientific discipline or medicine, together with focuses on words mutual across a make of disciplines. So if you're educational activity ESP/ESAP, you'll require to supplement it amongst relevant subject-specific vocab.
- It's based on information from published academic writing, non from pupil writing. That agency it provides a skillful guide to the vocab students powerfulness require to know receptively (i.e. for reading), which powerfulness non necessarily live on quite the same every bit what they require productively, for their ain writing. See Durrant (2016) for an interesting seem at what proportion of an academic wordlist pupil writers genuinely need.
- The AWL excludes items on the GSL based on the premise that EAP students volition conduct maintain already 'learnt' this heart together with soul full general vocabulary. That doesn't, however, accept into trouble organisation human relationship whatever gaps inwards students' full general vocab cognition or that many of those full general words are absolutely vital for academic writing together with are oft used inwards a way that powerfulness non live on solely predictable together with students powerfulness non conduct maintain already encountered. That's non necessarily a criticism of the listing (you've got to pull the trace somewhere), but it does hateful that every bit a writer, you lot powerfulness desire to include some of that off-list vocab inwards your syllabus.
And it's non just the AWL this applies to, all wordlists conduct maintain their ain quirks together with limitations together with unless you lot empathize what these are, you're non going to acquire the best out of the listing or empathize what gaps you lot powerfulness require to fill. See the links at the bottom of this post for some places you lot tin larn to a greater extent than almost dissimilar lists.
User beware:
Issue 1: The nature of English
One number amongst trying to chivvy words into a nice, keen listing is that English linguistic communication is a messy beast together with words are slippery lilliputian suckers!
Multiple meanings: English linguistic communication is a highly polysemous language, that is, many words conduct maintain multiple meanings. For example, a table tin live on a slice of article of furniture (very much an simple word) or it tin live on a graphic representation of information inwards rows together with columns (definitely a less frequent sense). Most lists don't differentiate betwixt senses, leaving the user to gauge which feel is the heart together with soul ane that should live on taught together with whether they should stretch to other senses or not. Lists such every bit EVP together with GSE exercise plough over levels for dissimilar senses (so EVP has table=furniture every bit A1 together with table=chart every bit B1), but if you lot position your text through a text-checking tool such every bit Text Inspector or VocabKitchen, it'll demo the degree for the basic, most frequent feel only. So inwards the phrase "the information inwards the tabular array above", table would live on highlighted every bit A1.
What is a word: Most lists bargain inwards lemmas, that is a unmarried role of spoken communication together with its associated inflections (so speak, speaks, spoke, spoken, speaking is ane lemma). Some lists, such every bit the AWL, accept the discussion household unit of measurement every bit their basic unit, that takes inwards all the words from a unmarried root, including dissimilar parts of spoken communication together with prefixes (develop, development, developing, developmental, underdeveloped, etc.). This makes feel inwards an EAP context where beingness able to switch betwixt parts of spoken communication is a fundamental science for pupil writers, but deciding which members of a discussion household unit of measurement to focus on also requires a flake of mutual sense. You might, for example, create upward one's hear to skip disestablishment every bit role of the establish discussion family!
Chunks: Most frequency-based wordlists tend to focus on private words, only because fifty-fifty the most mutual phrases or formulaic expressions (at least, inwards the kickoff place, etc.) just don't acquire inwards in on frequency criteria alone. However, linguistic communication chunks brand upward somewhere betwixt 30-50% of whatever text, therefore they're clearly a genuinely of import role of vocabulary learning. This has 2 implications for writers (and teachers); firstly, you lot may desire to supplement your wordlist amongst some useful chunks (such every bit those on the phrasal expressions listing or just collocations to travel amongst your fundamental words) together with again, you lot require to accept chunks into trouble organisation human relationship if you're using text-checkers - the chunk 'in the kickoff place' volition live on shown every bit a sequence of A1 unmarried words rather than beingness recognized every bit a fixed facial expression (ranked every bit B2 on EVP).
Issue 2: The nature of linguistic communication learning
Similarly, linguistic communication learning is a messy, non-linear sort of process, that isn't every bit simple every bit ticking words off a listing together with declaring them 'learnt'. Wordlists acquire inwards all every bit good slow to autumn into this trap though. Many's the fourth dimension I've been told past times an editor that I can't include a discussion inwards a vocab activeness because it's already been 'covered' at a previous degree ... together with every bit Dorothy Zemach position it therefore brilliantly inwards her plenary "We can't conduct maintain a pupil reckon a discussion twice!". Most query agrees that vocab learning requires repeated exposures to a word. Of course, I empathize where my editors are coming from together with at that topographic point are other ways of recycling vocabulary without having to conduct maintain the same words pop upward every bit the vocab focus fourth dimension together with again, but it's soundless an of import factor to deport inwards mind.
There's also the number of whether a discussion is going to live on most useful for a pupil at whatever detail phase for receptive purposes (i.e. nosotros just desire them to recognize together with empathize it when they comes across it) or whether nosotros seem them to live on able to work it productively. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 lot of words volition start off inwards a student's receptive vocab together with and therefore gradually shift into their productive repertoire. Some words volition acquire stuck inwards reception fifty-fifty though we'd similar them to motility on. And others tin quite happily remain every bit receptive only ... I know plenty of words that I empathize but volition in all likelihood never experience the require to use. Again, agreement whether a listing is suggesting words for receptive or productive work at a detail degree is vital. So, EVP, for example, aims to depict vocab that students are using productively at sure enough levels (based inwards large role on what students are writing inwards Cambridge exams). So if a discussion is labelled B1, together with therefore B1 students are already confident plenty to work it inwards their bear witness writing. That agency they in all likelihood became familiar amongst it receptively quite some fourth dimension before. And if I desire to include a discussion inwards a reading text inwards a B1 book, every bit receptive vocab, choosing an item marked every bit B2 volition live on solely appropriate.
Issue 3: The nature of learners
Finally, learners don't shape the unmarried homogenous audience that universal wordlists propose they powerfulness live on amongst an equal number together with make of vocab learning gaps to live on filled.
L1 plays an of import role inwards vocab learning, amongst learners from L1s that portion a history amongst English linguistic communication (Romance languages, Greek, Germanic languages) having a caput start when it comes to sure enough words because they're unopen cognates inwards their kickoff language. For example, a discussion similar diurnal may seem 'difficult', but if you're an Italian, French, Spanish, Portuguese or Romanaian pupil of creature behaviour, you'll in all likelihood recognize it correct away. Whereas your German-speaking peer volition in all likelihood conduct maintain to seem it upward to abide by it's translation (tagaktiv).
Age, interests, location together with linguistic communication needs volition also play a role inwards just which vocab items are relevant to whatever given student. Yes, they'll in all likelihood all abide by a mutual heart together with soul useful, but they'll desire words to depict the things that are of import or helpful to them together with their context too. When I was learning French at school, I wanted to know all the cool, teenage slang, nowadays I'd live on to a greater extent than probable to desire vocab to depict my garden. Anyone using English linguistic communication inwards an ESP context is probable to require evidently low-frequency, specialist terms, sometimes quite early inwards the linguistic communication learning process.
Language degree makes a divergence too. Whilst most linguists concur on a mutual heart together with soul of the to a greater extent than frequent duet of chiliad words or therefore which powerfulness sustain a learner upward to, say, intermediate level, beyond that, frequency statistics acquire less reliable together with less useful. As you lot start to investigate lower frequency words, the make of similar-frequency items of a abrupt explodes together with just which words you lot conduct to learn volition inevitably conduct maintain to live on guided to a greater extent than past times usefulness for detail groups of learners than past times simple frequency, making wordlists a much less reliable guide for higher degree learners.
Wordlists: snog, marry, avoid?
So, if wordlists are therefore flawed, should nosotros live on bothering amongst them at all? Well, personally, I'm non going to live on dumping them just yet because they are soundless undoubtedly an incredibly useful tool. But they're just that, a tool, to live on used similar whatever other reference resources nosotros powerfulness plough to, every bit just ane role of the mix, amongst sum cognition of their idiosyncratic quirks, taking into trouble organisation human relationship all the factors I've mentioned hither together with e'er applying a company dose of mutual sense.
 |
Photo past times Rayi Christian Wicaksono on Unsplash |
Links:
Wordlists:
These are the most useful links I've found for each list. Most plough over the background to the listing together with the listing itself.
General Service List (West, 1953)
New GSL (Browne, et. al, 2013)
Oxford 3000™ (OUP)
Academic Word List (Coxhead, 2000)
Academic Vocabulary List (Gardner & Davies, 2013)
New AWL (2013)
Phrasal Expressions List (Martinez &Schmitt, 2012)
Phrasal Verbs List (Garnier & Schmitt, 2015)
Academic Collocations List (Pearson)
English Vocabulary Profile (Cambridge)
Global Scale of English linguistic communication vocab tool (Pearson) - for background to the vocab tool, click on Developing the GSE Vocabulary on the Research & Expertise page
See also Mura Nava's splendid listing of wordlists for many to a greater extent than lists together with links, including many of the specialist ESP lists.
Text analysis tools:
Text Inspector - a paid tool amongst several analysis options (including EVP together with AWL)
VocabKitchen - a gratuitous tool amongst CEFR together with AWL options
Lextutor - a gratuitous tool amongst several analysis options, but non the most user-friendly interface
Other references:
Durrant, P. (2016) To what extent is the Academic Vocabulary List relevant to academy pupil writing? English for Specific Purposes 43
Working amongst wordlists - a weblog post I wrote for the MaWSIG weblog a duet of years ago
0 Response to "Iatefl2018: Vocabulary Lists: Snog, Marry, Avoid?"
Post a Comment