Developing an English Zoology Academic Word List: A Corpus-Based Study
Article Sidebar
Main Article Content
Abstract
This study aimed to (1) generate a list of common vocabulary used in zoology research articles and (2) validate the word lists with zoology experts. The Zoology Research Articles Corpus (ZRAC) was compiled from 268 zoology research articles published between January 2016 and February 2019 from the International Journal of Zoology by the Zoological Society of London. AntWordProfiler (v1.4.0) (Anthony, 2013) software was used to analyse the frequency of the 1,530,384 words comprising the ZRAC. The software identified 504 frequently used words generally related to zoology. Seven university zoology lecturers were asked to clarify the specification of the words in the field of zoology. This validation process resulted in the removal of 218 words (43.25%), as they were not specifically related to the field of zoology. The list was then categorized into word families. The word list was generated using Coxhead's range and word frequency criteria, and called the Zoology Academic Word Lists (ZAWL). The ZAWL aims to assist undergraduate and graduate students in their preparation for the reading and writing of research papers in zoology. Additionally, ZAWL can be applied in vocabulary pedagogy for lecturers in selecting appropriate vocabulary to teach undergraduate and graduate classes.
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Copyright by the Faculty of Arts, Chulalongkorn University.
Photocopying is allowed for internal, non-commercial use only. Photocopying for other uses or for purposes other than indicated must be permitted in writing from the Faculty of Arts, Chulalongkorn University.
All views or conclusion are those of the authors of the articles and not necessarily those of the publisher or the editorial staff.References
Anthony, L. (2013). AntConc (Version 3.4. 3) [Computer Software]. Waseda University.
Boonyos, K. (2014). Establishment of a microbiology academic word list [Master’s thesis, Thammasat University]. TU Digital Collections. https://digital.library.tu.ac.th/tu_dc/frontend/Info/item/dc:94740
Chen, K. Y. (2011). The impact of EFL students’ vocabulary breadth of knowledge on literal reading comprehension. Asian EFL Journal, 51, 30-40.
Chung, T. M., & Nation, P. (2003). Technical vocabulary in specialised texts. Reading in a foreign language, 15(2), 103-116.
Corson, D. (1997). The learning and use of academic English words. Language Learning, 47(4), 671-718. https://doi.org/10.1111/0023-8333.00025
Coxhead, A. (2000). A new academic word list. TESOL Quarterly, 34(2), 213-238. https://doi.org/10.2307/3587951
Esfandiari, R., & Moein, G. (2015). A corpus-driven food science and technology academic word list. Issues in Language Teaching, 4(2), 157-131. https://dx.doi.org/10.22054/ilt.2015.7229
Hsu, W. (2013). Bridging the vocabulary gap for EFL medical undergraduates: The establishment of a medical word list. Language Teaching Research, 17(4), 454-484. https://doi.org/10.1177%2F1362168813494121
It-Ngam, T., & Phoocharoensil, S. (2019). The development of science academic word list. Indonesian Journal of Applied Linguistics, 8(3), 657-667. https://doi.org/10.17509/ijal.v8i3.15269
Kumar, G. S., Kishore, V., & Radha, D. (2013). The harmony between vocabulary building competency and comprehension skills: Experimental technology-enhanced methods for strengthening word power. IUP Journal of Soft Skills, 7(4), 34-39.
Phyllis, K. (1996). Assessment of academic literacy skills: Preparing minority and LEP (Limited English Proficient) students for postsecondary Education. CA: California State Univ., Fresno. Dept. of Educational Research. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED415498
Li, X., & Li, L. (2015). Characteristics of English for Science and Technology. In X. Du, C. Huang, & Y. Zhong (Eds.), Proceedings of the 2015 International Conference on Humanities and Social Science Research (pp. 161-165). Atlantis Press. https://dx.doi.org/10.2991/ichssr-15.2015.31
Liu, J., & Han, L. (2015). A corpus-based environmental academic word list building and its validity test. English for Specific Purposes, 39, 1-11. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esp.2015.03.001
Laufer, B., & Ravenhorst-Kalovski, G. C. (2010). Lexical threshold revisited: Lexical text coverage, learners' vocabulary size and reading comprehension. Reading in a foreign language, 22(1), 15-30.
Martínez, I. A., Beck, S. C., & Panza, C. B. (2009). Academic vocabulary in agriculture research articles: A corpus-based study. English for Specific Purposes, 28(3), 183-198. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esp.2009.04.003
Moghadam, S. H., Zainal, Z., & Ghaderpour, M. (2012). A review on the important role of vocabulary knowledge in reading comprehension performance. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 66, 555-563. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2012.11.300
Nation, I. (2001). Learning vocabulary in another language. Cambridge University Press.
Nation, I. (2006). How large a vocabulary is needed for reading and listening? Canadian Modern Language Review, 63(1), 59-82. https://doi.org/10.3138/cmlr.63.1.59
Nation, I. S. P. (2016). Making and using word lists for language learning and testing. John Benjamins Publishing Company.
Nation, P., & Waring, R. (1997). Vocabulary size, text coverage and word lists. Vocabulary: Description, acquisition and pedagogy, 14, 6-19.
Ohashi, Y., & Katagiri, N. (2020). The ratios of CEFR-J vocabulary usage compared with GSL and AWL in elementary EFL classrooms and suggestions of vocabulary items to be taught. Asia Pacific Journal of Corpus Research, 1(1), 61-94. https://doi.org/10.22925/apjcr.2020.1.1.61
Qian, D. D. (2002). Investigating the relationship between vocabulary knowledge and academic reading performance: An assessment perspective. Language learning, 52(3), 513-536.
Sheng, L., & McGregor, K. K. (2010). Lexical–semantic organization in children with specific language impairment. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 53(1), 146-159. https://doi.org/10.1044/1092-4388(2009/08-0160)
Valipouri, L., & Nassaji, H. (2013). A corpus-based study of academic vocabulary in chemistry research articles. Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 12(4), 248-263. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeap.2013.07.001
Vongpumivitch, V., Huang, J.-Y., & Chang, Y.-C. (2009). Frequency analysis of the words in the Academic Word List (AWL) and non-AWL content words in applied linguistics research papers. English for Specific Purposes, 28(1), 33-41. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esp.2008.08.003
Wang, J., Liang, S.-I., & Ge, G.-c. (2008). Establishment of a medical academic word list. English for Specific Purposes, 27(4), 442-458. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esp.2008.05.003
Wang, P. (2017). A Corpus-based Study of English Vocabulary in Art Research Articles. Journal of Arts and Humanities, 6(8), 47-53. https://doi:10.18533/journal.v6i8.1255
Ward, J. (2009). A basic engineering English word list for less proficient foundation engineering undergraduates. English for Specific Purposes, 28(3), 170-182. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esp.2009.04.001
West, M. (1953). A general service list of English words: With semantic frequencies and a supplementary word-list for the writing of popular science and technology. Longman; Green.
Yang, M.-N. (2015). A nursing academic word list. English for Specific Purposes, 37, 27-38. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esp.2014.05.003
Zhang, S., & Zhang, X. (2020). The relationship between vocabulary knowledge and L2 reading/listening comprehension: A meta-analysis. Language Teaching Research, 1-30. https://doi.org/10.1177/1362168820913998