Toward a Predictive Measure of L2 Proficiency: Linking Proficiency and Vocabulary in Spanish as a Foreign Language

Abstract

Research in vocabulary size and depth in a foreign language has gained popularity since the 1980s, and efforts at developing reliable measures of FL vocabulary continue today as placement tests such as the Eurocentres vocabulary tests (Meara and Jones, 1990, 1998) remain subject to revision and improvement. In an attempt to investigate a possible relationship between vocabulary size and language ability, this study developed two measures: a cloze-passage test (recognized as a valid predictor of overall proficiency) and an adaptation of Meara and Buxton's (1987) Yes/No vocabulary test, which purports to estimate learners' vocabulary size. Scores on the two tests were correlated, yielding a weak positive correlation of .36; however, this finding was not statistically significant. Further testing with a larger sample is necessary for improving the behavior of the tests.