La ricerca sull'uso dei dizionari nell'insegnamento delle lingue

The consultation of dictionaries and encyclopedias is an essential part of the basic strategies aimed at retrieving new information and acquiring knowledge. It seems that the use of dictionaries is not topical in actual foreign language teaching situations, although the Council of Europe, with its political objectives in the field of modern languages and in support of multilingualism and lifelong learning, has been emphasizing the fundamental role of reference tools like dictionaries, as well as a high level of appropriate skills and expertise in their use. This article aims to present recent findings from research into dictionary use and to discuss several important results of empirical studies in the field of foreign language learning and teaching, including online dictionaries and mobile devices in particular. Based on these findings, lastly the article reviews some requests related to lexicographical practice, empirical studies and foreign language teaching.