Lexical Fossilization And Corrective Feedback In Second Language Acquisition

The understanding of how and when lexical fossilization in second language acquisition comes into being is very difficult without the full knowledge of second language lexical development. Two models of vocabulary acquisition in a second language in instructional settings are outlined. Harmer's model 'Knowing a word' approaches the issue from outside the lexical entry, thus failing to provide insight into the formation of lexical fossilization. Levelt's model psycho-linguistically reveals the internal structure of the lexical entry. In light of how lexical entries in the L2 lexicon evolve, L2 vocabulary acquisition is seen in Levelt's model as consisting of three phases: the formal phase, the L1 lemma mediation phase, and the L2 integration phase. Owing to various factors, L2 lexical development often falls short before the integration phase is completed. This failure of the ideal lexical development is referred to as lexical fossilization in second language acquisition. Defossilization is impossible by definition, but something can be done to reduce lexical fossilization. Experimental evidences have been found that corrective feedback in guided journal writing effectively helps diminish lexical fossilization in second language acquisition.