The Lemma Dilemma: How Should Words Be Operationalized in Research and Pedagogy?

Recently there has been some debate about the appropriacy of different lexical units in pedagogy and research (e.g., Brown et al., 2020; Dang & Webb, 2016a; Kremmel, 2016; Laufer & Cobb, 2020; McLean, 2018; Nation, 2016; Nation & Webb, 2011; Vilkaite-Lozdiene & Schmitt, 2020). The le...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Studies in second language acquisition 2021-12, Vol.43 (5), p.941-949
Main Author: Webb, Stuart
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Computational Linguistics
English
Language Research
Language Tests
Learning Processes
Listening
Morphology
Pedagogy
Profiles
Second Language Instruction
Second Language Learning
Second language vocabulary learning
Teaching Methods
Vocabulary Development
Vocabulary instruction
Word Lists
Citations: Items that this one cites
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Summary:Recently there has been some debate about the appropriacy of different lexical units in pedagogy and research (e.g., Brown et al., 2020; Dang & Webb, 2016a; Kremmel, 2016; Laufer & Cobb, 2020; McLean, 2018; Nation, 2016; Nation & Webb, 2011; Vilkaite-Lozdiene & Schmitt, 2020). The lexical unit (word types, lemmas, flemmas, word families) needs to be considered when developing wordlists, vocabulary tests, and vocabulary learning programs. It is also central to the lexical profiles of text and corpora, which indicate the vocabulary learning targets associated with understanding different types of discourse. Perhaps most importantly, the lexical unit of words found in vocabulary learning resources such as word lists and tests may affect their pedagogical value. The aim of this article is to highlight aspects of research and pedagogy that are affected by lexical units and describe issues that should be considered when operationalizing words in studies of vocabulary and learning resources.
ISSN:0272-2631
1470-1545
DOI:10.1017/S0272263121000784