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Vocabulary Development in Efl Learners

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Annotated Bibliography on Vocabulary Development in EFL Learners
Supatranut Singhanuwananon 5506040111

Vocabulary Development in EFL Learners: Optimizing Lexical Competence
Vocabulary teaching and learning in English language teaching (ELT) had been long considered unimportant until the light started to gleam gradually on the field in the 1980s to the 1990s (Nation, 2011; Henriksen, 1999). It has become widely known that slow vocabulary development blocks learners’ ability to comprehend L2 content through reading and listening (August, Carlo, Dressler, and Snow, 2005). Studies also show that because EFL learners have very much fewer productive vocabulary than receptive vocabulary, they often encounter difficulties in language production (Zhong, 2011). As an EFL learner myself, I have experienced such problems as well. Oftentimes, my vocabulary limitations interfere with my communication in L2. Therefore, it kindles my personal interest in studies of L2 vocabulary development.
Because vocabulary has become one of the key elements in ELT and ELL, through decades, many research have been conducted to identify how vocabulary is learned and developed, and what factors that impede or boost learners’ lexical competence. Hence, this study attempts to respond to the research questions as follow:
1. What are existing vocabulary learning strategies that EFL learners use?
2. What are factors that affect vocabulary development in EFL learners?
3. What are effective vocabulary learning strategies for EFL learners? The findings suggested that EFL learners learn L2 vocabulary through multifarious strategies such as making a personal word list, guessing from contexts, and using word cards. From the results, these different strategies, however, vary in learning effectiveness. The studies also revealed that more than single factors impact on learners’ lexical competence. For

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