فاطمه آقائی

Abstract
The present study aimed to examine the effect of a corpus-based glossary on vocabulary learning in Persian reading texts among non-Persian speakers. Given the central role of vocabulary in second language acquisition and the scarcity of corpus-based resources for teaching Persian, a specialized corpus of clothing-related texts was compiled and analyzed. Based on this corpus, a glossary was developed that included simplified definitions, authentic usage examples, collocations, and essential grammatical notes. In addition, a reading lesson was designed following Neil Anderson’s ACTIVE framework (۱۹۹۴). The study sample consisted of ۱۰ intermediate-level learners who were randomly assigned to control and experimental groups (five learners each). The research instrument included a vocabulary pre-test and post-test. The experimental group received both the reading text and the glossary, whereas the control group was exposed only to the text. The results showed that the mean scores of the control group increased from ۱۲.۶۰ to ۱۵.۰۰, while those of the experimental group rose from ۱۳.۶۰ to ۱۶.۴۰, corresponding to a ۱۹–۲۱% improvement, with ۹۰% of learners showing better performance. Although the paired statistical tests (t-test and Wilcoxon) yielded borderline significance levels (p ? ۰.۰۵–۰.۰۶), the large effect size (Cohen’s dz ? ۱.۲) and the ANCOVA results (? = ۱.۲۷, p = ۰.۰۴۴) indicated that the experimental group significantly outperformed the control group. These findings suggest that a corpus-based glossary can effectively enhance vocabulary learning, although further studies with larger samples are needed for broader generalization. Theoretically, this research underscores the importance of corpus-based resources in Persian language instruction. Practically, it provides a model for designing more precise and efficient instructional packages across various domains of language education.

Keywords: Vocabulary learning, Teaching Persian as a second language, Corpus-based dictionary, Reading comprehension, ACTIVE framework, Language corpora, Language for specific purposes