Comparing General and Scientometrics-Specific Academic Word Lists for Improving Reading Comprehension in Library and Information Science

Barzan, Pooria; Khany, Reza; Tazik, Khalil

doi:10.22080/iselt.2026.29938.1117

Comparing General and Scientometrics-Specific Academic Word Lists for Improving Reading Comprehension in Library and Information Science

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

¹ Department of English Language and Literature, Ilam University, Ilam, Iran

² Assistant Professor, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, Iran

10.22080/iselt.2026.29938.1117

Abstract

This study addresses a key gap in English for Specific Purposes (ESP) pedagogy within Library and Information Science (LIS) by developing and evaluating a Scientometrics-Specific Academic Word List (SSAWL) to enhance reading comprehension. General Academic Word Lists (AWLs), such as Coxhead’s (2000), often overlook domain-specific terminology essential for scientometrics (e.g., “bibliometrics,” “h-index”). A specialized 8.5‑million‑word corpus from leading scientometrics journals produced a validated SSAWL of 1,105 high‑frequency word families. Using a quasi-experimental pretest–posttest design, 60 intermediate-to-advanced EFL undergraduate LIS students were assigned to an experimental group receiving 12 weeks of explicit SSAWL instruction via Research‑based Academic Vocabulary Education (RAVE) or a control group receiving equivalent general AWL training. Assessments included multiple‑choice, short‑answer, and cloze reading tasks using authentic scientometrics passages, an adapted Vocabulary Levels Test, surveys, and focus groups. Results showed that the SSAWL group achieved significantly greater gains in scientometrics text comprehension (accuracy and speed) and in domain‑specific vocabulary knowledge, with large effect sizes (Cohen’s d = 1.67–3.85; partial η² = 0.39–0.79). Qualitative findings indicated improved confidence and contextual vocabulary use. This study demonstrates the superiority of corpus‑derived, domain‑specific word lists over general AWLs for specialized reading in LIS and offers a validated resource for ESP curriculum design.

Keywords

Main Subjects

Copyright © 2026 The Author(s). Published by the Faculty of Persian Literature and Foreign Languages at the University of Mazandaran. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0) license.

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