Exploring the lexical profile of advanced L2 writers

Longitudinal data from the Russian Overseas Flagship program

Datos Bibliográficos

ID21360183
AutoresWilliam J Comer (0000-0002-8168-2810, Department of World Languages and Literatures Portland State University Portland Oregon USA, autor de correspondencia)
Año2023
Volumen107
Número1
Páginas268-288
Fecha de publicación2023-03-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaModern Language Journal (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 0026-7902 • E-ISSN: 1540-4781
EditorialWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1111/modl.12831
OpenAlexW4368366859
IdiomaEN
Referencias citadas30

This study explores the lexical profile of essays written by 48 advanced learners of second language (L2) Russian who participated in the Russian Overseas Flagship, an intensive year‐long study abroad program designed to help students reach Interagency Language Roundtable (ILR) Level 3 proficiency in all skills. Using the lexical frequency profile and P–Lex as measures of vocabulary sophistication, the study found that over the 9 months of the program, students significantly increased their usage of words from the lowest frequency bands. This adds to previous findings that knowledge of lexical items at the 3,000–5,000 word frequency levels predicts reading proficiency at the ACTFL advanced high–superior level in Russian. However, the increase of vocabulary sophistication was not clearly correlated with improvements in the students’ writing proficiency scores, as measured on the ILR scale. A qualitative analysis of the students’ low‐frequency vocabulary usage reveals their control of native Russian vocabulary and derivational morphology. The analyses reveal the effects of writing tasks on student vocabulary usage

Language proficiency · Linguistics · Mathematics education · Reading (process) · Sociology · Sophistication · Vocabulary · Vocabulary development · Natural Language Processing Techniques · Psychology · Second Language Acquisition and Learning · Text Readability and Simplification