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Published: 26 September 2014

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Vocabulary/Oral Language/Comprehension: Some research findings

Dr Kerry Hempenstall, Senior Industry Fellow, School of Education, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia.

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How does the research assist us in ensuring that students are able to maximise their understanding of what they read? Though it may appear intuitively that the answer is obvious, the research provides a few surprises. It also highlights how influences on vocabulary and comprehension can vary significantly over a student's school career.

"Vocabulary refers to the words children need to know to comprehend and communicate. Oral vocabulary is the words children recognise or use in listening and speaking. Reading vocabulary is the words children recognise or use in reading and writing."

Carnine, D, Silbert, J., Kame’enui, E.J., Tarver, S.G., & Jungjohann, K. (2006). Teaching reading to struggling and at-risk readers. Pearson Prentice Hall, New Jersey.

“The process of acquiring and using words in oral and written contexts is a life-long learning process that begins quite critically during the early years. Knowledge of vocabulary meanings affects children’s abilities to understand and use words appropriately during the language acts of listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Such knowledge influences the complexities and nuances of children’s thinking, how they communicate in the oral and written languages, and how well they will understand printed texts. …Unless children develop strong vocabularies early in life and continue to deepen and broaden their vocabulary knowledge throughout the schooling years, they will predictably face difficulty in understanding what they read, will not use advanced and mature words in their writing, will have problems with academic subjects, will perform poorly on national achievement tests, and will fall steadily behind their more vocabulary-proficient peers” (p. 333-4).

Sinatra, R., Zygouris-Coe, V., & Dasinger, S. (2011). Preventing a vocabulary lag: What lessons are learned from research. Reading & Writing Quarterly, 28(4), 333-357.

"In addition to the NRP report, six reviews and two meta-analyses of vocabulary instruction were published between 1998 and 2009 (Baker et al., 1998; Baumann, Kame’enui et al., 2003; Elleman et al., 2009; Harmon et al., 2005; Jitendra et al., 2004; Kuhn & Stahl, 1998; Read, 2004; Swanborn & de Glopper, 1999). The most recent meta-analysis, by Elleman et al., included 37 studies in prekindergarten to twelfth grade. Among the findings was that students with reading difficulties who were exposed to vocabulary instruction benefited three times as much as those who were not. The meta-analysis conducted by Swanborn and de Glopper examined incidental word learning. Kuhn and Stahl synthesized the research of learning words from context, whereas Baker et al. identified advances in the research on vocabulary development for diverse learners. Baumann, Kame’enui et al. categorized vocabulary strategies by their use: strategies for teaching specific words and strategies to learn words independently. The other vocabulary reviews focused on more restrictive populations or topics. For example, Read examined studies in second language learners’ vocabulary instruction since 1999, and Harmon et al. identified several effective strategies for students struggling with content-area texts. Jitendra et al. highlighted the importance of choosing an instructional method based on instructional goals and the needs of individual students. However, none of these reviews highlighted the methodologies of the studies cited" (p.254-55).

Hairrell, A., Rupley, W., & Simmons, D. (2011). The state of vocabulary research. Literacy Research and Instruction, 50(4), 253-271.

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