Level of Lexical Frequency of Education Students

The terms vocabulary, lexis, and lexicon are synonymous according to

Jackson & Amvela(2000). Hence, lexical frequency is one way of saying
vocabulary frequency. Vocabulary frequency is the number of times that
particular words are used relative to each
other(engres.ied.edu.hk/vocabulary/vocabulary 2-3.html). In short, it is the
number of times the words appear either in oral or written language.
Vocabulary is an essential building block of language(Schmitt et al.,2001). It
is the core component of language proficiency and provides much of the
basis for how learners speak, listen, read, and write (Richards, 2002).
Furthermore, vocabulary is at the heart of communicative competence
(Meara, 1996) and can be a prediction of school success (Verhallen &
Schoonen, 1998).
A study about lexical knowledge found out that with adequate lexical
knowledge and competence, learners are able to cope with the English
language because vocabulary acquisition is a requisite and determinant of
the extent of learners language literacy via the four language skills (Torres &
Ramos, 2003; Nation, 2001).Ample studies have shown that vocabulary is
significantly correlated with learners; speaking (Denning & Leben, 1995),
listening (Hu, 1999), reading (Laufer, 1991), and writing (Santos, 1988)
abilities. In addition, many studies have found that vocabulary size is a
positive predictor of overall language proficiency (e.g. Gui, 1985; Meara &
Jones, 1987).A vocabulary size is the number of words that a person
knows(engres.ied.edu.hk/vocabulary/vocabulary 2-3.html).According to
Schmitt et al., vocabulary size is directly related to the ability to use English
in various ways.For example,knowledge of the most frequent 2000 words in
English provides the bulk of the lexical resources required for basic
everyday oral communication(Schonell et al.,1956). The minimum threshold
for minimal comprehension is set at around 3000 word families and a level of
5000 is necessary to be capable of reading for pleasure( Olmos) and of
authentic texts(Schmitt et al.,2001). A study by Hazenberg and
Hulstijn(1996) found that a vocabulary of 10000 magnitude maybe required
to cope with the challenges of university study in an L2. Based on the study
of Kaur et.al, some Malaysian students do not participate in communicative
learning activities because they cannot express themselves due to limited
lexical ability. Also, Xiaochen (2006) has found out that there is a close
relationship between English proficiency and learners productive vocabulary.
Various studies conducted at secondary schools as well as at institutions of
higher learning showed that lexical paralysis is a major contribution to the

learners incapacity to cope with the language skills of listening, speaking,

reading, and writing (Kaur et.al, 2007).
With all these researches stressing the importance of vocabulary in
the academic field, the researchers are alarmed when they interviewed
English teachers and found out that only 49% of BSED-English students have
reached the mid frequency level or 3000 vocabulary size frequency while
the remaining 51% fell short from the minimum threshold. The researchers
believe that there is a need to conduct their own study to determine the
level of vocabulary size frequency of UCLM third year BSED-English students
to find out their lexical competence. They believe that the third year BSEDEnglish students should have mastered the basics of language
competencies in order for them to be competent when they are expose in
the real field.
The researchers are competent to conduct the study and are equipped
with the skills in using English language. They are fourth year education
students specializing English and possessing the skills necessary to sustain
the research.