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Most Vocabulary Programs Fail To Work. Here's Why.
What are the two main reasons almost all vocabulary programs fail to increase the rate at which students learn new words?
What are the two main reasons almost all vocabulary programs fail to increase the rate at which students learn new words?
1. Everyone is lumped onto the same level of difficulty with no regard for their skill level.
2. They don’t take the student through the material enough times to embed the information in their long term memory.
Research has show that there is an enormous difference in the vocabulary of first graders in the top 5% of their class and the ones in the bottom third. In fact the difference is often times as much as a 4500 word difference in the total number of words they know. The good news is that this has nothing to do with the student’s IQ since both groups acquired new words at the same rate when they were taught based on their skill level. The research shows that the 4500 word difference is a function of what the student is exposed to at home through reading or being spoken to.
Schools in general are unaware of K-1 student’s vocabulary level (the only way to measure it is orally and they do not have the tools to do that). But if nothing is done to help children with vocabulary deficits catch up, they will remain behind their peers and, with each new grade (as the vocabulary level of their textbooks rises), they will fall farther and farther behind in reading. How to close the gap? Find out what words students already know then start them on an intelligent vocabulary learning path to accelerate their acquisition of new words. Most vocabulary programs offer students a one-size-fits-all vocabulary list in which many of the words are either too easy or too hard for individual students. Such lists either bore or frustrate students but they have never been shown to increase new word acquisition.
At this point it’s fair to ask what a well designed vocabulary program would look like. One of the most important elements is making sure the student gets enough repeat exposures in different formats to commit the new word to their long term memory. We’re not talking about them necessarily using the words in their everyday conversation as much as we’re talking about them being able to recognize them when they see or hear them. In the end the student must know the meaning of the word, the proper spelling plus the proper pronunciation. Then when they run across one of these words while reading they will immediately know its meaning and be able to read at full speed.
The last thing that must be considered is that the learning process must be something that the student enjoys. The simple fact is that if they don’t like the process they will never use the program enough to make a difference. Improving their vocabulary is the best way to help them catch and ultimatley pass there peers.