Target vocabulary selection: a methodological proposal based on the triangulation of lexical sources

Abstract

This paper presents a proposal on how to select suitable vocabulary items to teach Spanish as a foreign language (SFL) based on the triangulation or complementation of three sources of lexical information: (1) the available lexicon in native Spanish speakers, (2) the most frequent vocabulary in Spanish and (3) the specific notions of the Plan curricular del Instituto Cervantes. Previously, an analysis of the lexical needs of a sample of SFL students has been carried out, whose results have been collated with the abovementioned sources of vocabulary. The found shortcomings have been evaluated in order to observe how they are covered by each of these three sources. It has been proven that each source covers different lexical needs (with a similarity of 12.5% in the covered needs and a lexical compatibility of the sources of 24%), so the viability of the triangulation is justified. The resulting proposal offers a lexical compilation in different levels that combines the benefits of several well-established selection criteria and overcomes the limitations arising from using them individually