Keyword: «vocabulary instruction»

The relevance of the problem under research is determined by the need to find effective methods of teaching English vocabulary in the context of a non-linguistic university. This is due to the fact that curricula often require mastering a substantial volume of vocabulary both in general English and in the language of the profession. Additionally, vocabulary is of practical importance for the overall development of communicative competence. Furthermore, over the past two decades, the rapid advancements in the fields of neuroscience and cognitive psychology have prompted researchers to shift their focus towards the empirical findings, leading to the establishment of an evidence-based approach to foreign language teaching. Consequently, it is pertinent to refer to the evidence base of scientific research for a deeper understanding of cognitive processes, techniques for long-term retention of material, and the characteristics of certain learning strategies for vocabulary acquisition. The aim of this article is to systematize the most effective methods of teaching vocabulary in the English language classroom at a non-linguistic university from the perspective of an evidence-based approach. The research is conducted within the framework of an evidence-based approach, relying on substantiated information. The following theories are also reflected in the work: the situated cognition theory, the cognitive-affective theory of learning with media, cognitive load theory, and the levels of processing theory. Monitoring of the leading trends in the teaching of foreign language vocabulary has allowed for formulating the key principles of vocabulary instruction: reorganizing information about lexical units within cognitive strategies; thematic vocabulary clustering; contextual learning; the level of cognitive load; cognitive depth of vocabulary processing. The theoretical significance of the research lies in the potential to enrich scientific understanding of the cognitive processes that govern foreign language vocabulary acquisition, taking into account the findings obtained from the empirical studies. The practical significance of the article is that the outlined principles of working on vocabulary can help educators expand their methodological toolkit. Additionally, the illustrated methods of interacting with vocabulary can be utilized by teachers in various educational contexts, adapted to suit the needs of the learners.