Classroom Behavioral Protocol to Assess Contextual Diversity and Lexical Alignment in Second-Language Vocabulary Learning

This article presents a classroom-based behavioral protocol designed to evaluate the contributions of contextual diversity in reading input and lexical alignment during peer interaction to second-language vocabulary acquisition. The methodology integrates target-word screening, counterbalanced reading and interaction tasks, immediate and delayed vocabulary assessments, manual coding of lexical alignment, and mixed-effects statistical modeling. In a representative implementation, 86 Chinese undergraduate English learners completed reading tasks with varying degrees of contextual diversity alongside interactive tasks structured to elicit target-word reuse. Quantifiable behavioral indices included target-word dispersion, semantic variability, alignment rate, shared lexical items, target-word reuse frequency, and contextually appropriate uptake. This protocol provides a structured framework for researchers aiming to investigate vocabulary acquisition within authentic instructional environments while preserving rigorous experimental control. Representative results demonstrate that high contextual diversity and robust lexical alignment correlate with enhanced immediate and delayed receptive and productive vocabulary gains. As the protocol does not incorporate direct physiological, gesture-based, or eye-tracking measurements, embodied cognition is contextualized strictly as an interpretive framework rather than a directly quantified mechanism.