Un’analisi del vocabolario ortografico e fonologico di apprendenti italiani di inglese: Il ruolo delle parole imparentate

The aim of this study is to provide an in-depth analysis of the lexical knowledge of Italian learners of English as a foreign language. On one hand, we examine the presence of differences between the orthographic and phonological vocabularies, and on the other hand, we explore the role of formal similarity with the native language (L1). To achieve this goal, we administered to a group of 76 students from secondary school aged between 15 and 19, the V_Yes/No test (Meara, Miralpeix 2017) which we manipulated to evaluate both orthographic and phonological vocabulary. The results highlighted a clear superiority of orthographic vocabulary for all learners, regardless of their English proficiency level. Additionally, students consistently applied formal similarity criteria in lexical decision, more frequently recognizing cognate words compared to non-cognates. Results provide important insights for the assessment of the learners' vocabulary and for the development of teaching strategies aimed to enhance lexical development in L2 learners, emphasizing the importance of reinforcing oral vocabulary and encouraging awareness of formal similarities between languages.