3-070 - Choosing Words to Teach: A Theory-Informed Approach

Session Type: Paper Symposium

Integrative Statement

The issue of how various characteristics of words influence ease of learning is one that cuts across multiple disciplines. In cognitive science, a large body of research has explored the effect of word-level factors such as concreteness (Paivio, Yuille, & Madigan, 1968) and differences in learning by form class (e.g., Gentner & Boroditsky, 2006). In education, metrics such as Beck and McKeown’s Tier System (2007) are used to gauge word difficulty and inform the selection of words for instruction. However, there has been little crossover between these fields, and metrics widely used in educational contexts often lack specificity. A stronger, theoretically-grounded metric is needed to compare words’ relative difficulty, predict how challenging words will be to learn, and estimate the kinds of supports needed for instruction.
            The present symposium seeks to bridge these fields, applying findings from language learning literature to the issue of word selection in vocabulary instruction. Here, we draw on research proposing that the perceptual accessibility of words influences their ease of learning (Hadley et al., 2016; Maguire, Hirsh-Pasek, & Golinkoff, 2006). Perceptual accessibility encompasses the dimensions of shape, concreteness, and imageability, which we operationalize to create a research-based metric for scaling words’ difficulty. Paper 1 presents the conceptual framework and coding system for the Perceptual Accessibility Metric (PAC). Paper 2 analyzes how PAC ratings for words used in a preschool vocabulary intervention relate to children’s word-learning. Paper 3 explores the applicability of the PAC to dual language learners, and discusses implications for receptive vocabulary assessment.

Sub Unit

• Education, Schooling

Chair

• Elizabeth Burke Hadley, University of South Florida

Discussant

• David K Dickinson, Vanderbilt University

Individual Presentations

• How Perceptual Accessibility Influences Word Learning: Presenting a Metric for Scaling Word Difficulty - Presenting Author: Elizabeth Burke Hadley, University of South Florida; Non-Presenting Author: David K Dickinson, Vanderbilt University; Non-Presenting Author: Kathy Hirsh-Pasek, Temple University; Non-Presenting Author: Roberta Michnick Golinkoff, Univ of DE

• Learning About Vocabulary Learning: How Perceptual Accessibility Can Inform Target Selection and Intervention Design - Presenting Author: Elizabeth Spencer Kelley, University of Missouri; Non-Presenting Author: Howard Goldstein, University of South Florida

• Which Words Do Children Learn? Implications for Dual Language Learners and Receptive Picture Vocabulary Assessments - Presenting Author: Trina D. Spencer, University of South Florida