An Empirical Study on Corpus-based Lexical Approach and Second Language Fluency

Abstract

Although lexical approach has been widely recognized as an effective method for improving second language (L2) fluency, there is limited empirical evidence on its impact on acoustic indicators of L2 oral fluency. This study analyses the effects of a corpus-based lexical approach in enhancing oral fluency of 40 students of non-English major at a university in Western China. The results indicated significant improvements in mean length of silent pause and reductions in repetitions, suggesting enhanced language organization and confidence in expression. However, no significant changes were observed in speech rate and number of filled pause. The findings suggest that corpus-based lexical approach can effectively reduce long silent pauses and improve fluency, though its short-term impact on speech rate and short pauses is limited.