Diploma Thesis from the year 2005 in the subject Didactics for the subject English - Pedagogy, Literature Studies, grade: 1,00, PH Oberoesterreich, language: English, abstract: This paper aims at raising the reader's awareness for the complexity of dictionaries and is meant to convey lots of additional information on dictionaries as such and also on how to use them, especially with young learners of English in the classroom. The majority of dictionary owners are not aware of the huge source of knowledge they could have access to if they had learned how to use a dictionary properly and therefore actually will not profit from their purchase. The first thing most adults do when they start to learn a new language is to buy a dictionary, because this seems to be the first step to successful language acquisition to them. This might be true for some people who really know how to appropriate the multifarious information provided by their dictionaries.

The basis for this additional volume are the three volumes of the handbooks Dictionaries. An International Encyclopedia of Lexicography (HSK 5.1–5.3), published between 1989 and 1991. An updating has been perceived as an important desideratum for a considerable time. In the present Supplementary Volume the premises and subjects of HSK 5.1–5.3 are complemented by new articles that take account of the practice-internal and theoretical developments of the last 15 years. Special attention has been given to the following topics: the status and function of lexicographic reference works, the history of lexicography, the theory of lexicography, lexicographic processes, lexicographic training and lexicographic institutions, new metalexicographic methods, electronic and, especially, computer-assisted lexicography.

This book examines two questions: firstly, which dictionary type, bilingual or monolingual, is most effective for intermediate learners of German, and secondly, which features make monolingual dictionary definitions more effective. Using Chinese students from Hong Kong and Shanghai as the subjects of research, the effectiveness of the different dictionary types for reading comprehension and incidental vocabulary learning was measured experimentally and by the think-aloud method. The only monolingual learner dictionary for German available at that time proved linguistically too difficult for the intermediate proficiency level. Therefore, new definitions were developed based on findings from the think-aloud study and on principles promoted as user-friendly in lexicographic literature. Comparison of the two definition types revealed several features that determine their effectiveness for intermediate learners. Findings have theoretical and pedagogical implications. In the theoretical field, some lexicographic principles were recommended that are, unlike previous principles, based on empirical insights into user needs. In the pedagogical field, the findings provide an empirical basis for the evaluation and recommendation of suitable dictionaries for intermediate learners.