Session 4: Incidental and Intentional Approaches to Vocabulary Instruction Vocabulary: Learning, Teaching & Assessing

Vocabulary: Learning, Teaching & Assessing 

Session 4: Incidental and Intentional Approaches to Vocabulary Instruction

By Sam Barclay

This blog post explores two key approaches to vocabulary learning: incidental and intentional. We'll delve into the strengths and weaknesses of each, analyze factors influencing learning outcomes, and discover how to leverage them effectively in language teaching.

The Importance of Vocabulary

Vocabulary acquisition is fundamental to language development. It goes beyond just words; it encompasses understanding grammar, pronunciation, subject-specific knowledge, and cultural nuances. Traditionally overlooked, vocabulary is now recognized as a vital component of language learning, influencing fluency and overall language performance.

Learning and Learning 

Counting Vocabulary Knowledge

Before exploring approaches, let's address how we quantify vocabulary knowledge. There are three main methods:

• Word Types: This is the most sensitive method, counting every word inflection as a separate entity (e.g., "walk," "walks," and "walking" are all considered distinct words).
• Lemmas: This approach considers the base word (root) and its inflections (e.g., "walk" would be the lemma for "walk," "walks," and "walking").
• Word Families: This is the most inclusive method, encompassing the base word, inflections, and derivations (e.g., the word family for "walk" would include "walk," "walks," "walking," "walker," and "walkway").

The chosen method depends on the purpose (reading vs. speaking) and the learner's proficiency level. For instance, native English speakers typically know around 11,000-16,000 word families, whereas many L2 learners (second language learners) may not reach this level.

Understanding Vocabulary Knowledge

There are two main perspectives on vocabulary knowledge:

• The Word Knowledge Approach: This approach outlines various aspects of word knowledge, including form (spelling, pronunciation), meaning, collocations (typical word pairings), and derivational morphology (how words are formed from others).

• The Developmental Approach: This approach views vocabulary acquisition as gradual, with learners incrementally acquiring different aspects of word knowledge over time. For example, form-meaning associations might develop faster than understanding multiple meanings of a word.

The Role of Frequency

Zipf's Law (1935) predicts that a small number of words are very frequent in a language, while many words are used less often. This frequency correlates with learnability; high-frequency words are generally easier to learn than low-frequency words. Here's a breakdown of frequency categories:

• High Frequency: 1-3,000 words
• Mid-Frequency: 4-8,000 words
• Low Frequency: 9,000+ words

For fluent reading comprehension, learners ideally understand at least 95% of the words they encounter (roughly 4,000-8,000 word families). Similarly, for listening comprehension, understanding 90% of the words is desirable (around 2,000-3,000 word families).

Learning and Learning 

Corpus-Based Learning and Learning Burden

Corpus analysis of real-world language usage has led to the creation of general service lists (high-frequency words) and more specific vocabulary lists for various fields. However, learning some words requires more effort than others, influenced by various factors:

• Intralexical factors: These are inherent to the word itself, such as its length, complexity, and phonological features.
• Interlexical factors: These relate to how a word connects to other words in the language, such as synonyms and antonyms.
• Contextual factors: These depend on the specific context in which a word is encountered, including the surrounding text, visuals, and the learner's background knowledge.
• Individual factors: These encompass the learner's aptitude, motivation, and learning style.

Engagement and Depth of Processing

Engagement is crucial for effective learning. We can consider engagement through factors like behavior, emotion, and cognitive involvement. The depth of processing hypothesis suggests that words processed more deeply are better retained. Frequency can be used as a metric for learning burden, with higher frequency words generally being easier to learn. However, some difficulty can be beneficial for long-term retention.

Learning Multiword Expressions (MWIs)

MWIs, or formulaic language (e.g., "fall behind," "run for your life"), are common in everyday language. Corpus analysis helps identify frequently occurring MWIs using metrics like mutual information (MI) and t-scores. Similar to single words, the difficulty of learning MWIs is influenced by word-based, contextual, and individual factors. Modifying contextual factors can promote MWI learning.

Activity: Analyze Learning Burden and MWIs

Task Analysis and Pedagogical Applications

Task 1: Textbook Analysis

This task asks you to analyze a textbook unit from the perspective of learning burden. Here's how to approach it:

1. Identify New Lexical Items: Look for words or phrases that are likely new to learners at this particular stage in their learning journey.
2. Evaluate Learning Burden: Consider the factors mentioned earlier (intralexical, interlexical, contextual, and individual) to assess the potential difficulty of learning these new words.
3. Strategies to Aid Learning: Based on the learning burden analysis, propose strategies to make these new items more accessible. Some options include:
   • Pre-teaching: Introduce the words before they appear in the unit, focusing on form, meaning, and context.
   • Visual Aids: Use illustrations, diagrams, or concept maps to visually represent the meaning of new words.
   • Contextual Scaffolding: Frame the new words with clear and concise sentences that provide context clues.
   • Mnemonics and Imagery: Create memory aids like rhymes, acronyms, or mental images to help learners remember the new words.

Task 2: MWI Analysis in Text

This task asks you to examine how MWIs are used in a text and consider their learnability:

1. Identify MWIs: Look for frequently occurring phrases that function as single units of meaning (e.g., "put off," "take place").
2. Learning Potential: Evaluate how readily learners can acquire these MWIs based on factors like frequency, transparency (how easily the meaning can be derived from individual words), and contextual clarity.
3. Strategies to Increase Acquisition: Here are some strategies to enhance MWI learning:
   • Highlighting: Underline, bold, or color-code MWIs to draw attention to their structure.
   • Explicit Instruction: Explain the meaning and function of MWIs, providing examples of their usage in different contexts.
   • Controlled Practice: Offer learners opportunities to practice using MWIs in controlled activities like sentence completion or dialogues.

Authenticity vs. Modification

There's a tension between using authentic texts and modifying them to make them easier for learners. While authenticity is valuable, excessively difficult texts can hinder learning. Here's how to strike a balance:

• Prioritize Comprehension: Aim for a level of difficulty that allows learners to understand the main ideas and key vocabulary in the text.
• Strategic Modification: Modify texts strategically to make burdensome vocabulary or MWIs more accessible without compromising the overall meaning.
• Scaffolding Techniques: Use scaffolding techniques like glosses, definitions, or paraphrases to support learners without altering the original text significantly.

Pedagogical Applications - Intentional Learning

Based on the research on intentional learning, here are some practical applications for teachers:

• Focus on High-Frequency Words: Prioritize teaching high-frequency words that learners will encounter more frequently.
• Richer Instruction for Beginners: Beginners generally experience a higher learning burden. Provide richer instruction with more scaffolding and support.
• Consider Burden When Selecting Words: Don't just focus on frequency; consider the potential learning burden of words when making teaching selections.
• Design Supportive Materials: Design teaching materials that reduce the impact of contextual factors on learning burden.
• Overestimate Learning Goals: Set slightly ambitious learning goals to push all students, while still providing support for weaker learners.

Pedagogical Applications - MWI Learning

Here are some strategies to promote MWI learning based on the research:

• Seeding and Flooding: Introduce MWIs multiple times throughout a lesson or unit (seeding) or present them intensively in a focused activity (flooding).
• Reduced Variability: Repeat MWIs in their entirety to avoid confusion.
• Salience: Highlight MWIs visually or through other means to draw attention to their structure.
• L1/L2 Comparisons: For bilingual learners, compare and contrast MWIs in their native language (L1) and the target language (L2).

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  Learning and Learning 

  
  
  

Reflection and Further Exploration

This session explored incidental and intentional learning approaches to vocabulary acquisition. Reflect on your own experiences as a learner or teacher:

• Activity Analysis: Consider a vocabulary activity you've used. Did it focus on form, meaning, or both? How could you improve it based on what you learned about intentional learning?
• Input and Learning: Evaluate whether your teaching or learning experiences provide sufficient input to promote vocabulary development. Is the input level appropriate? How can you introduce more meaning-focused input?

Remember, vocabulary learning is a continuous process. By understanding the factors influencing learning burden and the strengths of both incidental and intentional approaches, we can create effective

Keywords: vocabulary learning, incidental learning, intentional learning, learning burden, vocabulary acquisition, MWI (multiword expressions), language learning