The Role of Digital Glossaries in Enhancing ESP (English for Specific Purposes) Vocabulary for Engineering Students

Abstract

Diploma engineering students in polytechnic institutes across Telangana face a persistent vocabulary challenge: they possess strong technical knowledge in their mother tongue but lack the English terminology to express it in academic and professional contexts. This paper examines the role of digital glossaries as branch-specific lexical scaffolds for English for Specific Purposes (ESP) vocabulary acquisition in Computer Science Engineering (CSE), Electronics and Communication Engineering (ECE), and Electrical and Electronics Engineering (EEE). Grounded in Mayer's Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning, Sweller's Cognitive Load Theory, and Krashen's Affective Filter Hypothesis, the paper proposes a Three-Tier Integration Model comprising a Lexical Audit, Multimodal Digitization, and Laboratory Integration. The model addresses the semantic interference caused by recycled general English vocabulary, the cognitive demands of abstract technical concepts, and the language anxiety experienced by students from regional language backgrounds. The analysis demonstrates that branch-aware digital glossaries, enriched with phonetic, visual, and contextual nodes, produce stronger lexical retention, reduced language anxiety, and greater learner autonomy than paper-based vocabulary tools. The paper concludes that for institutions in regional technical education hubs, digital glossaries offer a scalable, curriculum-aligned, and infrastructure-light solution to the vocabulary gap that continues to limit the employability and academic performance of diploma engineering students.