Electronic glossing – is it worth the effort?

This article is based on a PhD thesis that investigates how electronic glossing can support active vocabulary learning in English for Academic Purposes (EAP). Electronic glossing is generally acknowledged as contributing to vocabulary learning. Electronic glosses have been investigated in recent years in the areas of incidental vocabulary acquisition and reading comprehension. Despite a considerable number of studies showing the positive effects of electronic glosses on reading comprehension and vocabulary learning, only a few studies have attempted to look into learner attitudes toward this means of vocabulary learning and how electronic glosses support vocabulary acquisition. The aim of this paper is to investigate three questions: When do learners use electronic glosses? How do they use electronic glosses? What attitudes do learners have towards electronic glossing as a means of vocabulary learning? The motivation of the study was the need to design materials for a course in EAP for students of economics. To provide students with appropriate input custom-made exercises were created. These consisted of authentic texts that were annotated with ready-made electronic glosses and included an accompanying reading task. A longitudinal qualitative study with upper-intermediate and advanced learners (levels B2 and C1 according to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages) in an authentic EAP class was conducted with electronically glossed reading tasks. The study reported here took place in an authentic EAP classroom over a period of four consecutive academic terms. The main research instruments were screen observations during class periods, Likert scale questionnaires and semi-structured interviews on the basis of the questionnaires, conducted after the end of each term. The main result of this study is that electronic glosses are acknowledged as useful and appropriate by learners. Learners are particularly motivated to use the glosses if the words are perceived as relevant to their future careers. When authentic texts are combined with accompanying tasks, glossing enables active vocabulary learning.