Understanding vocabulary acquisition, instruction, and assessment: A research agenda

This paper suggests six areas of vocabulary research which the author believes would be fruitful for future research. They include (1) developing a practical model of vocabulary acquisition, (2) understanding how vocabulary knowledge develops from receptive to productive mastery, (3) getting lexical teaching/learning principles into vocabulary and language textbooks, (4) exploring extramural language exposure and how it can best facilitate vocabulary acquisition, (5) developing more informative measures of vocabulary knowledge, and (6) measuring fluency as part of vocabulary competence. Nine tasks are suggested for how to research these six research directions, with advice on research design and how to set about carrying out the tasks.