ASSESSING VOCABULARY

Without grammar very little can

be conveyed, without vocabulary
nothing can be conveyed
David Wilkins
 Words are the basic building blocks of a language; we use
them to create sentences, larger paragraphs, and whole texts.
 As native speakers, we rapidly acquire vocabulary in
childhood and this development continues as we
encounter new experiences and concepts.
 For the second language learner, the process is
demanding, sometimes requiring a more conscious effort.
For others, vocabulary acquisition seems to occur more
naturally, the by-product of a knack for automatic
language processing.
 Language researchers and teachers recognize that
vocabulary knowledge is integral to overall second language
ability and are now focusing on ways to teach vocabulary and
also assess the knowledge of vocabulary.
Why is Vocabulary Development Important?
Vocabulary development is crucial from a theoretical and practical

standpoint.
Experts agree that vocabulary is central to the language learning

process.
Generally recognized that a solid vocabulary is necessary at every stage of

a learners language development.

Folse (2003) points out that you can get by without the correct syntax or

grammar, but not vocabulary.

Without syntax, meaning is hindered; but without vocabulary

meaning is impossible.
From a practical standpoint, educators cite that lexical
knowledge is important in the development ofother
language skills.
The lack of needed vocabulary is the most common cause

of students inability to say what they want to say during

communication activities (Chastain, 1988: 327).
Tests of vocabulary often provide a good guide to reading

ability (Heaton, 1990).

 The Nature of Vocabulary
When we describe the nature of vocabulary, we
immediately think of words. So what are words, and how
do we define them for testing purposes?
 First of all, we can identify words as tokens and types.

Tokens are all the words in the paragraph.

Types do not count words that are repeated, only words that
are of different forms.
There are big lies. And little lies. And somewhere in
between there are the lies we tell our doctors. Even the
most famous doctor of all, Hippocrates, knew that those
pesky Greek patients might tell a fib or two. To find out if
they were stretching the truth, Hippocrates measured their
pulse rates.
 Fuction Words vs Content Words
Function words are seen as belonging more to the grammar

of the language than vocabulary.

Prepositions, articles, conjunctions, and other little

words.
In isolation, function words mostly show the association

among content words in sentences.

 Content words are nouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs.

Its content words that we focus on in vocabulary tests.

Some vocabulary tests might focus on larger lexical items

such as phrasal verbs, compound nouns or idioms, which

have meaning only as a whole unit.
 The prefabricated language or lexical phrases, as Nattinger

and DeCarriro called them, are groups of words that seem to

have a grammatical structure but operate as a single unit
and have a particular function in communication. The
authors identified four types of lexical phrases:
Poly words

Institutionalized expressions

Phrasal constraints

Sentence builders
 Poly words are short fixed phrases that perform a
variety of functions such as qualifying, marking fluency,
disagreement, etc.

for the most part, so to speak, wait a minute

Institutionalized expressions are longer utterances

that are fixed in form such as proverbs and formulas for
social interaction.

nice to meet you, hows it going, see you later

Phrasal constraints are medium-length phrases that have
basic structure with one or two slots that can be filled by various
words or phrases.

yours truly / sincerely, as far as I know/can tell / am aware

Sentence builders are phrases that provide the framework for

a complete sentence with one or two slots where whole ideas
can be expressed.

that reminds me of X, on the other hand X, not only X but also Y

What does it mean to know
a vocabulary item?
 Defining Lexical Knowledge
Richards (1976, p.83) outlined a series of assumptions about
vocabulary ability that developed out of linguistic theory:

1. The native speaker of a language continues to expand his or her

vocabulary in adulthood, whereas there is comparatively little
development of syntax in adult life.

2. Knowing a word means knowing the degree of probability of

encountering that word in speech or print. For many words we also
know the sort of words most likely to be found associated with the word.
3. Knowing a word entails knowledge of the network of
associations between that word and other words in
language.
4. Knowing a word implies knowing the limitations imposed on
the use of the word according to variations of function and
situation.

5. Knowing a word means knowing the syntactic behavior

associated with that word.

6. Knowing a word entails knowledge of the underlying form of

a word and the derivations that can be made from it.
7. Knowing a word means knowing the semantic value of a
word.

8. Knowing a word means knowing many of the different

meanings associated with the word.
 Nation (1990) took Richardss (1976) approach further by
specifying the scope of the learners task to include the
distinction between receptive and productive vocabulary
knowledge.

We may be able to recognize a word when we see or hear

it. But are we able to use it in our speech or writing?
 The production of a word requires a different set of abilities
from those needed for reception of a word, so both modes of
performance need to be taken into account in assessment.
 The Definition of Vocabulary Ability

1. The context of vocabulary use

2. Vocabulary knowledge and fundamental processes

3. Metacognitive strategies for vocabulary use

 Vocabulary in Context
Traditionally in testing, we view context

as the sentence or environment in

which the target word occurs.
However, from a communicative
language use position, context is more
than just the linguistic environment in
which a word occurs; it also includes
different types of pragmatic knowledge.
That is, the meaning of the target word
has to be viewed within the social and
cultural environment as well.
 How important is context?
An important dimension of vocabulary assessment is
concerned with the roleof context.

Some formats are context-independent as they present

students with words in isolation and require them to select
meanings for the words without reference to any linguistic
context.

In context-dependent vocabulary tests students need to

make use of contextual clues.
 Although it is generally accepted that context can provide
students with much needed information abouta word to help
them understand it, noted scholars in the field
ofvocabulary(Folse,2003; Laufer,1997)pointoutthe
limitations involved with contextual clues.

In EF/SL texts, we provide rich clues to facilitate language

comprehension but in the real worldthey are rarely if ever
present to thesame degree.
Fundamental Processes of Vocabulary
Acquisition
Another feature of vocabulary ability is the learners

knowledge of word characteristics, perceiving different

forms of words, recognizing linguistic roots to decipher
meaning, using context for guessing meaning, and even
simply knowing the parts of speech to which words
belong.
 Metacognitive Strategies
We use a set of strategies in trying to read illegible
handwriting, other strategies when we need to convey a sad
message, and still others when we might be talking with a
nonnative speaker of our language.

Second language learners often use metacognitive

strategies to overcome their lack of vocabulary knowledge
when they are communicating.
Some Considerations in Designing
Assessment Tasks

1. Clarify your purpose

2. Define your construct

3. Select your target words

4. Determine mode of performance

 Assessment Decisions
When considering vocabulary and how to test it,
teachers often ask themselves the following questions:
How should Itest vocabulary?

Which kind ofvocabulary should I test?

Which format(s) should I use?

How many items should I include?

How important is context?

Are there any tools orresources that can help me?

 How should I test vocabulary?
Deciding how we test vocabulary is related to how we
teach it.
- Students should not simply memorize long lists
- Instead present vocabulary in context
- When testing vocabulary, avoid testing words in isolation.
Designing Assessment Tasks : Receptive
Vocabulary
Designing Assessment Tasks: Productive
Vocabulary
CEFR Levels for assessing
vocabulary
LETS DISCUSS!
What are the challenges in
assessing
students vocabulary skills?
 Which assessment tool is the most
effective one for you? And why?
 Work in groups and prepare your
own authentic vocabulary task
for your students
 REFERENCES
Douglas, B. H. (2004). Language Assessment Principle and
Classroom Practices.NY: Pearson Education.

Online Resourses:

https://www.ukessays.com (Last Access:

07.04.2017)
https://
tr.scribd.com/presentation/57365584/Assessing-Vocabulary-i
n-the-Language-Classroom-com
(Last Access: 07.04.2017)