The Effectiveness of Word Focused Tasks. How Elaborate Processing Predicts Vocabulary Learning. A Literature Review.

Abstract: L2 vocabulary learning is a sizeable challenge for all EFL students. Particularly, the lexical threshold for reading is a substantial learning feat requiring time and effort. Vocabulary research indicates that incidental learning alone is not sufficient for learners to achieve a functional EFL vocabulary. Despite this fact, the Swedish syllabus provides little guidance on the topic and Swedish EFL teachers show little awareness of what teaching methods could complement incidental vocabulary learning such as word-focused tasks. This literature review aims at examining what recent EFL research has found to be important features for making word-focused tasks effective and to discuss resulting pedagogical implications. Research into this field focuses on the predictive abilities of two theoretical models, the involvement load hypothesis and the technique feature analysis. Although empirical studies support the effectiveness of word-focused tasks on vocabulary learning, neither model is found to be superior in its predictive ability. Nevertheless, research shows that task features which incorporate different types of elaborate processing and direct learners’ attention to the form-meaning connection are effective.