What Electronic Tools Can EFL Teachers Use to Assess L2 Embedded Vocabulary Objectively?

Abstract

Measuring vocabulary is of paramount importance for EFL teachers and researchers, as nowadays it is widely acknowledged that L2 vocabulary is central to the learning and acquisition of foreign languages. It is a difficult task to assess the vocabulary produced by learners in written tasks, as it implies the subjectivity of the rater and/or raters. However, EFL teachers can use a wide range of computer-mediated assessing instruments in order to analyse such vocabulary in a more objective way. In this article, we will describe and analyse three electronic instruments: the Lexical Frequency Profile (Laufer & Nation 1995), P_Lex (Meara & Bell 2001) and V_Size (Meara & Miralpeix 2007). These computer-mediated text analysers represent a sample of instruments that EFL teachers can use to assess the L2 vocabulary produced by learners in different writing tasks. We consider that our description and analysis of such assessing tools will enable them to decide which one best fits their pedagogical and/or assessment goals.