A Comparison of Aural and Written Vocabulary Size of Japanese EFL University Learners

This study attempts to compare aural and written vocabulary knowledge (size) of Japanese university EFL (English as a Foreign Language) learners and investigate their relationship to listening and reading abilities, and overall English proficiency. To this end, two types of vocabulary size tests were developed using a word list tailored to Japanese EFL learners, and they were administered to a total of 332 university students. The results indicated that the aural and written format of the tests produced a differing result, although the overall tendency was the same. Item analysis was then carried out to further investigate the differences. Analysis of correlation coefficients of proficiency measures and the two formats of the vocabulary size tests revealed that both the aural and written vocabulary size of the participants correlated strongly with the proficiency measures. Based on the findings, practical implications are discussed for the effective use of vocabulary size tests in educational settings.