Wesche and Paribakht’s (1996) 5-point self-report scale of vocabulary knowledge
(VKS) was adapted to measure the vocabulary development of the subjects since it allows to
specify the stages of vocabulary acquisition from first exposure to production and enables the
researcher to determine how well the participants know these vocabulary items. This scale
also shows the students’ partial knowledge of items. The VKS is composed of 5 levels as
follows:
1: I don't remember having seen this word before.
2: I have seen this word before but I don't know what it means.
3: I have seen this word before and I think it means ________ (synonym or translation).
4: I know this word. It means __________ (synonym or translation).
5: I can use this word in a sentence. e.g.: ___________________ (if you do this section, please
also do section 4).
Figure 2: The Vocabulary Knowledge Scale (Wesche and Paribakht, 1996).