Assessing vocabulary size in Malaysian preschoolers: insights from the Malaysian English cross-linguistic lexical task and parents of multilingual children questionnaire
This paper introduces the first freely available Malaysian English vocabulary size assessment for 4- to 6-year-old Malaysian children: the newly developed Malaysian English Cross-linguistic Lexical Task (MECLT). Using MECLT scores to measure vocabulary development, the study further explores the eff...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Published: |
Routledge
2025
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| Online Access: | http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/119183/ |
| _version_ | 1848867896934006784 |
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| author | Lew, Joe W. Łuniewska, Magdalena Lee, Soon Tat Yap, Ngee Thai |
| author_facet | Lew, Joe W. Łuniewska, Magdalena Lee, Soon Tat Yap, Ngee Thai |
| author_sort | Lew, Joe W. |
| building | UPM Institutional Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | This paper introduces the first freely available Malaysian English vocabulary size assessment for 4- to 6-year-old Malaysian children: the newly developed Malaysian English Cross-linguistic Lexical Task (MECLT). Using MECLT scores to measure vocabulary development, the study further explores the efficiency of two approaches: the sum of the number of home languages versus a language exposure composite score, in classifying children’s language profiles (monolingual, bilingual, or multilingual). Sixty children who predominantly speak English at home were assessed on their comprehension and production of nouns and verbs. Significant age effects in MECLT scores were observed between 4- and 5-year-olds, as well as between 4- and 6-year-olds, suggesting that the MECLT is a valuable tool for capturing vocabulary growth among Malaysian preschoolers. Furthermore, in analysing predictors of MECLT scores, the study found that the home language model, which includes age and the number of home languages, was the most accurate predictor of vocabulary size. In contrast, the language exposure composite score model, while detailed, did not significantly enhance predictive accuracy and proved to be more complex and time-consuming. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-15T14:43:47Z |
| format | Article |
| id | upm-119183 |
| institution | Universiti Putra Malaysia |
| institution_category | Local University |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-15T14:43:47Z |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| publisher | Routledge |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | upm-1191832025-08-07T03:41:19Z http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/119183/ Assessing vocabulary size in Malaysian preschoolers: insights from the Malaysian English cross-linguistic lexical task and parents of multilingual children questionnaire Lew, Joe W. Łuniewska, Magdalena Lee, Soon Tat Yap, Ngee Thai This paper introduces the first freely available Malaysian English vocabulary size assessment for 4- to 6-year-old Malaysian children: the newly developed Malaysian English Cross-linguistic Lexical Task (MECLT). Using MECLT scores to measure vocabulary development, the study further explores the efficiency of two approaches: the sum of the number of home languages versus a language exposure composite score, in classifying children’s language profiles (monolingual, bilingual, or multilingual). Sixty children who predominantly speak English at home were assessed on their comprehension and production of nouns and verbs. Significant age effects in MECLT scores were observed between 4- and 5-year-olds, as well as between 4- and 6-year-olds, suggesting that the MECLT is a valuable tool for capturing vocabulary growth among Malaysian preschoolers. Furthermore, in analysing predictors of MECLT scores, the study found that the home language model, which includes age and the number of home languages, was the most accurate predictor of vocabulary size. In contrast, the language exposure composite score model, while detailed, did not significantly enhance predictive accuracy and proved to be more complex and time-consuming. Routledge 2025-01 Article PeerReviewed Lew, Joe W. and Łuniewska, Magdalena and Lee, Soon Tat and Yap, Ngee Thai (2025) Assessing vocabulary size in Malaysian preschoolers: insights from the Malaysian English cross-linguistic lexical task and parents of multilingual children questionnaire. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 28 (5). pp. 596-611. ISSN 1367-0050; eISSN: 1367-0050 https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13670050.2024.2446996 10.1080/13670050.2024.2446996 |
| spellingShingle | Lew, Joe W. Łuniewska, Magdalena Lee, Soon Tat Yap, Ngee Thai Assessing vocabulary size in Malaysian preschoolers: insights from the Malaysian English cross-linguistic lexical task and parents of multilingual children questionnaire |
| title | Assessing vocabulary size in Malaysian preschoolers: insights from the Malaysian English cross-linguistic lexical task and parents of multilingual children questionnaire |
| title_full | Assessing vocabulary size in Malaysian preschoolers: insights from the Malaysian English cross-linguistic lexical task and parents of multilingual children questionnaire |
| title_fullStr | Assessing vocabulary size in Malaysian preschoolers: insights from the Malaysian English cross-linguistic lexical task and parents of multilingual children questionnaire |
| title_full_unstemmed | Assessing vocabulary size in Malaysian preschoolers: insights from the Malaysian English cross-linguistic lexical task and parents of multilingual children questionnaire |
| title_short | Assessing vocabulary size in Malaysian preschoolers: insights from the Malaysian English cross-linguistic lexical task and parents of multilingual children questionnaire |
| title_sort | assessing vocabulary size in malaysian preschoolers: insights from the malaysian english cross-linguistic lexical task and parents of multilingual children questionnaire |
| url | http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/119183/ http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/119183/ http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/119183/ |