The Effects Of Dictionary Entry Types On High School Students’ Incidental Vocabulary Acquisition: An Empirical Study

Vocabulary is an essential and vital component of every language, and vocabulary studies are a focal field for many language researchers, in which incidental vocabulary acquisition has attracted a lot of attention over the years. Dictionary has been proved of great help for language learning. With the advent of electronic or digital dictionaries, multiple forms of dictionary entry information are ready for the foreign language learners’ asking. However, empirical studies concerning dictionary effectiveness from the users’ perspective are far from enough in China. The present study is devoted to investigating L2 incidental vocabulary acquisition under three different conditions, namely, headwords with English definition and Chinese equivalent(Condition 1), headwords with English definition and Chinese equivalent plus English example(Condition 2), headwords with English definition and Chinese equivalent plus English example with Chinese translation(Condition 3).The study intends to find out how the three conditions affect vocabulary acquisition and retention and to investigate how learners’ proficiency level affects vocabulary learning in each condition. To answer these questions, this study carries out a quantitative experiment involving 132 second-year high school students in Jiangsu Province. The students are asked to do a gap-filling task, with the help of a mini-dictionary containing nine words. VKS is used to measure their vocabulary gains with one immediate post-test and one delayed post-test. The mean score of four exams in their first year of High School is used as a criterion to distinguish high-achievers from underachievers. With the help of SPSS, the data is analyzed. The results are discussed from perspectives of information processing theory and comprehensible input.The major findings of this study are as follows:First, different entry types yield different effects on L2 incidental vocabulary acquisition and retention. In both post-tests, the best result is achieved under Condition 1, followed by Condition 2 and Condition 3. In view of the participants’ current English proficiency level, it can be concluded that for intermediate or pre-intermediate language learners, Condition 1is the most desirable. In terms of vocabulary retention between the two posttests, Condition 3sustains the least vocabulary loss, while Condition 2 the greatest vocabulary loss which might result from cognitive overload. In the immediate posttest, the best word comprehension and production is achieved under Condition 1, followed by Condition 2 and Condition 3. In the delayed posttest, the best word comprehension and production is still achieved under Condition 1, yet followed by Conditions 3 and 2.Second, English proficiency level is associated with the participants’ incidental vocabulary acquisition. There is a moderate correlation between students’ English proficiency level and incidental vocabulary acquisition results under each condition. Besides, Condition 1 turns out to have the highest correlation with vocabulary acquisition results. In terms of the comparison between high-achievers and underachievers with regard to incidental vocabulary acquisition results, the two groups differ significantly in that high-achievers outperform underachieves, which may mostly be attributed to the difference in their existing knowledge.The findings of this study can be of some significance for EFL teachers and learners, and it can provide some insights to lexicographers as well.