Dictionary use by English language learners (original) (raw)
Related papers
Dictionary Use and Perceptions Regarding Dictionaries
This survey examines factors relating to student dictionary ownership , as well as perceptions concerning dictionary use, and the quality of current dictionaries in light of likeable, dislikable, and desirable features as determined by the survey population. Data collection through the survey-method allowed for a distribution of 270 questionnaires to eight freshman classes, resulting in a return of 244 useable surveys for the study. The focus of this study's questionnaire is threefold , and gathers data concerning the background of the student's dictionary(s), student's use of their dictionary(s), and dictionary characteristics and features of relevance to the Korean EFL student. Analysis of the data allows us to see what kind of dictionary students possess, where and how they most often put their dictionary to use, and what they would like to see in an ideal dictionary. Further, the results suggest that students are active dictionary users who are aware of the shortcomings and virtues of their current dictionaries and, having consciously evaluated these aspects, will take them into consideration when acquiring a future dictionary. A discussion of survey findings culminates with recommendations on dictionary selection for University English Program (UEP) students within Korea.
Drawing the Profile of Students of English as Dictionary Users
Fifty freshmen students of English took part in a study in order to establish their profile as dictionary users. The respondents completed a questionnaire regarding the types of dictionaries they used, the frequency of use, the main reasons for consultation, the difficulties in the lookup process, instruction in dictionary use, etc. The analysis of data revealed that the students use monolingual dictionaries (MLDs) more frequently than bilingual dictionaries (BLDs), and that the difficulties they have in the lookup process are due to deficiencies in their dictionaries. In addition, the results provide evidence that our students do not take full advantage of their monolingual dictionaries because they hardly make use of the appendices and usage guides in them. The findings also indicate that their dictionary skills are more or less weak. Therefore, this study suggests that our students should receive more training in dictionary use so that they enhance their skills and make the most of their dictionaries. .
Language Learners and Dictionary Users: Bibliographic Findings and Commentary
1998
This is a report of the findings of an exhaustive bibliographic search done on scholarly articles written over the past thirty years about learners' dictionaries. The completed annotated bibliography of over 460 academic articles on learners' dictionaries, both monolingual and bilingual, written in English, German, French, and Italian, reveals a number of truths about the field of lexicography in the 1990's. The findings revolve around the tension between two notions: lexicography as a science vs. lexicography as an art. Empirical findings, based on the compilation of all citations in a computer database, include, but are not limited to, the following: most often cited learners' dictionaries, most often cited bilingual dictionaries, and the most influential trends in learners' dictionaries over the past thirty years.
English learners' dictionaries in Australia: a challenge to publishers
Many students are unaware of the value of learners’ dictionaries and prefer to use bilingual dictionaries, which offer a quick and easy translation of unknown vocabulary. Nevertheless, they frequently find that bilingual dictionaries do not provide enough information to allow them to use new words productively. By undertaking a vocabulary exercise using either bilingual dictionaries or monolingual English learners’ dictionaries, ESL students at an Australian university were exposed to a new resource and evaluated the contribution it made to their use of unfamiliar English vocabulary. The potential contribution that learners’ dictionaries could make to their use of academic English was also assessed by the students. It was found that, though most students had little prior knowledge of learners' dictionaries, at the end of the session they rated the learners' dictionaries more highly than bilingual dictionaries in terms of the contribution which each dictionary could make to their English writing skills.
Review article: For future reference? Current English learners' dictionaries in electronic form
System, 1996
Some of the most innovative and needs-focused EFL publications of the past two decades have been the major learners' dictionaries from Oxford, Longman and Collins COBUILD. Each new edition has moved further away from the traditional nativespeaker model designed primarily for receptive use, and paid greater attention to the productive needs of non-native speakers. It is perhaps not surprising, however, that the new features that have set learners' dictionaries most radically apart from those dictionaries designed for native-speakers are often those that are least suited to the traditional A-Z book format. Extensive cross-referencing, grammatical, pragmatic and cultural information ranging from the specific to the general, and attention to lexical units beyond the single word all place a strain on standard dictionary look-up procedures and beg for some sort of multi-level presentation. Computerised dictionaries are not a cheap solution, nor will they be readily available to the majority of EFL learners for many years to come, but they are capable of providing a format particularly well suited to the diverse information modern EFL reference books contain.
A study of dictionary use by international students at a British University
This paper reports on an investigation into the dictionary-using habits of international students studying in the medium of English at a British University. Over a period of three years, six groups of students were set assignments requiring them to report on the way they had consulted dictionaries to find the meanings of unknown words in texts of their choice. Eighty-nine assignments were analysed, to reveal subjects' choices of reading material, look-up words and dictionaries. The data also showed that whilst the majority of words were looked up successfully, more than half the subjects were unsuccessful in at least one out of five dictionary consultations. Subjects were found to have particular difficulty in selecting appropriate entries and sub-entries in their dictionaries. Some consultation problems resulted in serious errors of interpretation, which subjects were largely unaware of.
Годишњак Филозофског факултета у Новом Саду
This paper explores how tertiary level teachers of English for Specific Purposes (ESP) and their students use dictionaries in ESP teaching and learning. The study included 21 ESP teachers and 705 students from the University of Novi Sad. Data were gathered by conducting a questionnaire (one for teachers and one for students) and an interview. The teachers’ questionnaire had 45 questions, whereas the students' contained 60 questions. Of these, 16 questions were identical and the answers to them were compared using ANOVA. The results reveal that the teachers’ and students’ views of dictionary use differ significantly with respect to 11 questions. The students primarily use online bilingual dictionaries and tools, whereas the teachers prefer monolingual dictionaries in the form of mobile phone applications. Dictionaries were primarily used for finding word meanings, with students failing to understand all lexicographic information. The results necessitate that both students and tea...
Which Dictionary? A Review of the Leading Learners' Dictionaries
1988
Three major dictionaries designed for learners of English as a second language are reviewed, their elements and approaches compared and evaluated, their usefulness for different learners discussed, and recommendations for future dictionary improvement made. The dictionaries in qrlstion are the "Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary," the "Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Usage," and "COBUILD," the Collins dictionary with a completely new defining style. Elements considered include treatments of pronunciation and grammar, layout, coverage (including geographical terms and proper names, new words, specialist terms, idioms, and Americanisms), and the language used for defining terms. Areas suggested for improvement or consideration in future dictionary development include the treatment of likely learner misconceptions about words and the information given about frequency and collocational range of words in use. Each dictionary is seen as having important advantages for different learner groups. (MSE)