New releases
Three web-based programs designed and programmed by Laurence Anthony are now freely accessible from his web site. The links are given below.
The Picture Vocabulary Size Test (PVST)
https://laurenceanthony.net/software/pvstweb/
The PVST tests receptive knowledge of the most frequent 20,000 word families of English. The test can be used with native speakers of English and non-native speakers. The test can be used with both spoken and written input or spoken input alone. Learners need not be literate to sit the test. The following document describes the test in detail.
Previously the test had to be downloaded, but this web-based version now makes it more easily accessible.
Word Family Finder
https://laurenceanthony.net/software/wordfamilyfinder/
This very useful program has recently been updated to include frequency figures from a 10 million word corpus containing 7 million words of spoken English. It can be used to quickly check the frequency level of a word (1st 1000, 2nd 1000 and so on up to the 30th 1000) to see whether it is worth teaching or studying. The 30,000 word family lists and the lists of proper names (basewrd31), marginal words (basewrd32), transparent compounds (basewrd32), and acronyms (basewrd34) can also be downloaded from within the program.
Affix Trainer
https://laurenceanthony.net/software/affixtrainer/
The program can be used to learn to recognize the most useful English derivational prefixes and suffixes (Levels 3, 4 and 5 of Bauer & Nation, 1993). Learners should do a large number of the short self-checking exercises at each level, especially Level 5 which covers fifty affixes, to make sure that they are well practised. The 10 Level 3 affixes should be studied by learners who know around 1000-2000 words. The 11 Level 4 affixes should be studied by learners who know around 4000 words, and the 50 Level 5 affixes by learners who know around 5000 words (see the CEFR table in Paul Nation’s resources under Vocabulary Lists). See the Word Parts section of Paul Nation’s resources for much more information about these word parts, along with Bauer & Nation (1993) under Publications.