ABSTRACT |
The present paper examines the role of vocabulary size as an indicator
of the quality of composition. In fact, different measures of lexical
richness have been repeatedly proved to correlate with overall writing
quality. Writing quality was defined by the score obtained by
compositions following assessment with the ESL Composition Profile,
and the 1000 Word Test and the 2000 word frequency band of the
Vocabulary Levels Test measured the size of learners’ vocabulary. The
written production of 270 young Spanish learners of English conform the
sample of the study, together with counts of their vocabulary sizes.
Analysis of data revealed very interesting results. Significant, but
low, correlations were found for both frequency levels (r=.489 for level
1k, and r=.335 for 2k at p<.01), showing thus that the number of words
that a learner knows predicts to some extent the quality of the written
work of that learner. Nevertheless, the weak correlations also indicate
that other factors, apart from (receptive) vocabulary size, also play a
role in assessing writing. Present results also point to an
interrelation between receptive and productive vocabulary knowledge, as
evidenced by the lower correlation between vocabulary size at 2k and
quality score. Expanding vocabulary knowledge, especially from the
second thousand list, can enhance and improve writing performance in the
target language.
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