Vocabulary is a frequent target for speech-language pathologists (SLPs) working with children with speech and language impairments. In the latest clinical forum from Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools (LSHSS), Guest Editor Suzanne M. Adlof provides SLPs, special education teachers, and classroom teachers with the latest resources on evidence-based vocabulary instruction for students of all ages.
Adlof introduces the forum, which is followed by an article by Margaret G. McKeown discussing the importance of vocabulary instruction. This sweeping paper ends with an important summary of the features of effective vocabulary instruction. McKeown writes that “these principles of effective instruction have been found to apply for teaching word meanings for all students—students of all levels, pre-K through high school; learners learning English as an additional language; and learners with learning disabilities,” (McKeown, 2019, p. 471).
Two additional articles focus on students of all ages. Dawna Duff presents a guide that SLPs can use to measure outcomes when performing vocabulary interventions with students. Later, Danielle Colenbrander, Katherine Pace Miles, and Jessie Ricketts present the results of a systematic review finding strong evidence in support of making sure students see how a word is spelled.
Other articles in the forum focus on instruction for students in specific stages of school. Two articles focus on students in elementary school. First, LSHSS Editor-in-Chief Holly Storkel and colleagues report on book-reading intervention for children with developmental language disorder (DLD), with supportive findings that dosing—or, the number of exposures to words—was more important than the length of sessions or how frequently the sessions occurred. Then, Mary Alt and colleagues look at spoken word-learning differences in three groups of second graders: those developing typically, those with DLD, and those with dyslexia.
Three articles focus on vocabulary instruction and intervention for children in middle school. Amy Elleman and colleagues review 17 studies examining the impact of vocabulary instructions on middle school students and present five key research-based recommendations for clinical practice. Bilingual learners are the subject of an article by Amy Crosson and Margaret McKeown, who provide an overview of EL RAVE, a whole-class vocabulary program focusing on words with Latin roots. Duff describes a 6-week robust vocabulary instruction program for children in sixth grade.
Older students may benefit from interactive programs that SLPs can easily modify to fit their needs. Adlof and colleagues as well as McGregor and colleagues both focused on students using websites to work on vocabulary in high school and in preparation for the Graduate Record Examinations (GRE), respectively. Both of these programs showed some positive results, although the authors stress that online approaches may not be best for every student.
We’d like to thank Suzanne Adlof and the authors for their work on this important clinical forum. Adlof sums it up best in her prologue when she writes, “I hope that readers will be inspired and empowered to apply the strategies reviewed in this forum with the students in their care to improve their vocabulary, literacy, and academic achievement” (Adlof, 2019, p. 464). You can read the entire forum here or explore individual articles below.
References
Adlof, S. (2019). Prologue to the forum: Vocabulary across the school grades. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 50, 461–465. https://doi.org/10.1044/2019_LSHSS-19-00007
McKeown, M. G. (2019). Effective vocabulary instruction fosters knowing words, using words, and understanding how words work. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 50, 466–476. https://doi.org/10.1044/2019_LSHSS-VOIA-18-0126
In This Issue
Adlof, S. (2019). Prologue to the forum: Vocabulary across the school grades. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 50, 461–465. https://doi.org/10.1044/2019_LSHSS-19-00007
Adlof, S. M., Scheiper Baron, L., Scoggins, J., Kapelner, A., McKeown, M. G., Perfetti, C., . . . Petscher, Y. (2019). Accelerating adolescent vocabulary growth: Development of an individualized, web-based, vocabulary instruction program. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 50, 579–595. https://doi.org/10.1044/2019_LSHSS-VOIA-18-0143
Alt, M., Gray, S. I., Hogan, T., Schlesinger, N., & Cowan, N. (2019). Spoken word learning differences among children with dyslexia, concomitant dyslexia and developmental language disorder, and typical development. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 50, 540–561. https://doi.org/10.1044/2019_LSHSS-VOIA-18-0138
Colenbrander, D., Pace Miles, K., & Ricketts, J. (2019). To see or not to see: How does seeing spellings support vocabulary learning? Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 50, 609–628. https://doi.org/10.1044/2019_LSHSS-VOIA-18-0135
Crosson, A. C., McKeown, M. G., Robbins, K. P., & Brown, K. J. (2019). Key elements of robust vocabulary instruction for emergent bilingual adolescents. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 50, 493–505. https://doi.org/10.1044/2019_LSHSS-VOIA-18-0127
Duff, D. M. (2019a). Has vocabulary intervention had an effect? A valid, reliable, and (fairly) quick outcome measure for semantic knowledge. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 50, 506–517. https://doi.org/10.1044/2019_LSHSS-VOIA-18-0134
Duff, D. M. (2019b). The effect of vocabulary intervention on text comprehension: Who benefits? Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 50, 562–578. https://doi.org/10.1044/2019_LSHSS-VOIA-18-0001
Elleman, A., Oslund, E. L., Griffin, N. M., & Myers, K. E. (2019). A review of middle school vocabulary interventions: Five research-based recommendations for practice. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 50, 477–492. https://doi.org/10.1044/2019_LSHSS-VOIA-18-0145
McGregor, K. K., Marshall, B., Julian, S., & Oleson, J. (2019). Learning while playing: A randomized trial of serious games as a tool for word mastery. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 50, 596–608. https://doi.org/10.1044/2019_LSHSS-VOIA-18-0121
McKeown, M. G. (2019). Effective vocabulary instruction fosters knowing words, using words, and understanding how words work. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 50, 466–476. https://doi.org/10.1044/2019_LSHSS-VOIA-18-0126
Storkel, H. L., Komesidou, R., Pezold, M. J., Pitt, A. R., Fleming, K. K., & Swinburne Romine, R. E. (2019). The impact of dose and dose frequency on word learning by kindergarten children with developmental language disorder during interactive book reading. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 50, 518–539. https://doi.org/10.1044/2019_LSHSS-VOIA-18-0131
