The Matthew Effect, or in other words, the Achievement Gap

As the vocabulary gap among students widens and texts become more complex, vocabulary knowledge becomes a critical determinant of successful comprehension, and, ultimately, successful reading.

While the Matthew Effect is nothing new in terms of vocabulary instruction, I thought I would address the history of the term. According to Hugh W. Catts and Allan G. Kamh (2005), the term comes from a biblical passage in the book of Matthew that comments on how the rich get richer and the poor get poorer.

Children entering kindergarten every year have remarkable differences in vocabulary knowledge. Some children have countless hours of exposure to various types of print and a wealth of rich, supportive oral language experiences. Other children have limited experiences with print and oral language. It is estimated that by the time children reach second grade, children with strong vocabularies know approximately 4,000 more root words than their peers. Furthermore, children experiencing delays in vocabulary growth are less likely to develop their vocabulary knowledge through independent reading and are at significant risk for experiencing reading and learning difficulties. Ultimately, these students will be labeled as having a language or reading disability.

What the Research Says:

*Vocabulary knowledge is one of the best indicators of verbal ability.

*Vocabulary difficulty strongly influences the readability of text.

*Teaching the vocabulary of a selection can improve students’ comprehension of that selection.

*Growing up in poverty can seriously restrict the vocabulary children learn before beginning school and can make attaining an adequate vocabulary a challenging task.

*Disadvantaged students are likely to have substantially smaller vocabularies than their more advantaged classmates.

*Lack of vocabulary can be crucial factor underlying the school failure of disadvantaged students.

(Graves and Watts-Taffe, 2002)

Types of Vocabulary Instruction

Implicit- exposing student to unknown words through the use of read-alouds and shared reading experiences. However, students with lower vocabularies are less likely than their peers with higher vocabularies to learn words incidentally while listening to stories.

Embedded- explanations of vocabulary words when encountered during shared storybook readings. Explanations usually include using a simpler synonym, role playing to acting out the word’s meaning, or pointing to a picture that illustrates the word’s meaning.

Extended- is characterized by explicit, conspicuous teaching that includes using both contextual and definitional information, giving multiple exposures to target words in varied contexts, and encouraging deep processing. For example, teachers may explore the word “cauldron” by asking the following questions:

1. What does “cauldron” mean? (Open-ended questions measure students’ expressive definitional knowledge.)

2. Is “cauldron” a big pot? Is “cauldron” a mean person? (These types of questions, restricted to ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answers, provide information about students’ receptive definitional knowledge.)

3. Can a “cauldron” talk? Can you put water in a “cauldron”? (These types of questions, restricted to ‘yes’ or ‘no’ responses, provide information about students’ contextual understanding of the word.)

(Coyne, McCoach, & Kapp, 2007)

While extended instruction results in greater word learning than does embedded instruction, this does not mean that embedded instruction should not be included in the literacy block. Given the amount of words students are expected to know by the time they graduate high school, it is important for teachers to carefully determine which words to teach. This involves prioritizing word lists. While the word “superfluous” is an excellent example of robust vocabulary, the word “radius” may play a more significant role in the academic setting, and therefore, may require more attention from teachers. Since the word “radius” has multiple meanings, i.e. the line segment from the center of a circle to the perimeter, or a bone located within the human forearm, it should be taught using extended instruction. While the word “superfluous” would be taught through embedded instruction. Teachers must be intentional and purposeful in their planning and teaching of vocabulary. And as always, discretion is advised.

Excellent Resources for Teachers

Article

Coyne, M.D., McCoach, B., Loftus, S., Zipoli, R., Jr. & Kapp, S. (2009). Direct vocabulary instruction in Kindergarten: Teaching for breadth versus depth. The Elementary School Journal, 110, 1-18.

Book

Beck, I. L., Kucan, Linda, & McKeown, M.C. (2002). Bringing Words To Life: Robust Vocabulary Instruction. New York. The Guilford Press.

Websites

Flocabulary

Read Write Think Game