Diverse Learning Project

Academic Vocabulary and Exposure for Rural Students

Presented by: Naomi Mallory for Gardner-Webb University

Today's Objectives

• Background of Rural Students

• Understanding District & School Demographics.

• Tier Levels of Vocabulary.

• Understanding the Difficulties of Vocabulary for Rural Students.

• Strategies to Implement in the Classroom.

Rural Students

Rural students are students that live in a predominantly rural area.

Maps of the world (n.d.)

Understanding District & School Demographics

"The Roadmap of Need is a whole child needs assessment for North Carolina youth, produced annually by the Public School Forum of North Carolina’s Center for Afterschool Programs (NC CAP)" (

(Public School Forum of NC, 2020)

District Demographics

• Ranked 68th overall economic development

• 58.10% proficient score on 3rd grade reading EOGs for 2017-2018

• 2.21 actively licensed physicians

• 23.80 % Food Insecurity* reported in 2017

• Ranked 67th in Childhood Poverty

School Demographics

• Approximately 340 students; Grades 3rd-5th

• 100% one-to-one Chromebook devices

• 3/5 of students receive free & reduced lunch *pre-covid, all students receive free lunch this year.

Academic Vocabulary

Tier Levels of Vocabulary Words

• Tier 1: Basic-Primarily Learned Through Conversation

• Tier 2: Cross-Curricular Words

• Tier 3: Domain-Specific Words

Multiple Choice

Which of the following is an example of a Tier 3 Vocabulary Word?

• Book

• Measure

• Round

• Economics

Multiple Choice

Which of the following is an example of a Tier 2 Vocabulary word

• Forward

• Convince

• End

• Above

Multiple Choice

Which of the following is an example of a Tier 1 Vocabulary Word

• Planet

• Harsh

• Giant

• Cognitive

Difficulties of Academic Vocabulary Faced by Rural Students

Access to resources

"Rural students may have less access to high-speed internet, AP coursework, or extracurricular opportunities, and low-income rural students may face unique challenges related to transportation, childcare, food insecurity, housing, and healthcare" (Smith, 2017)

Difficulties with Content

• Difficulty finding reading principles such as main idea or author's point of view.

• Students with very limited background knowledge may become frustrated or shut down when reading a text on an unfamiliar topic (Hattan, 2019)

• Understanding vocabulary words in mathematical contexts allows children to work with numbers in ways that they previously could not (Hassinger-Das et al., 2015)

A Break in the Cycle

The cycle for academic success is broken when one or more of the connecting factors are missing.

Image courtesy NoteZone.Net

Strategies to Implement in the Classroom

Exposure

• Incorporate your own life stories or experiences.

• Develop a mindset in which any verbal interaction is an opportunity for developing academic language.

• Speak using academic language within a context that makes the meaning clear to students

• (Himmele & Himmele, 2009)

Open Ended

What is your example of using academic language within a context?

Instructional Strategies

• Incorporate the use of trade books in your classroom.

• Use active involvement

• Read alouds

• Word of the Day

• Teaching vocabulary in rich contexts, using repetition and multiple exposures.

• (Sobolak, 2008)

Multiple Select

What strategy would you like to use in your classroom? Mark all that apply

• Trade Books

• Active Involvement

• Read Alouds

• Word of the Day (WOD)

• Repetition/ Multiple Exposure

References

Kame'enui, E. J., & Baumann, J. F. (Eds.). (2012). Vocabulary instruction : Research to practice. ProQuest Ebook Central https://ebookcentral-proquest-com.ezproxy.gardner-webb.edu

Himmele, P., Himmele, W. (2009). The Language- Rich Classroom: A Research-Based Framework for Teaching English Language Learners. 30-33. http://www.ascd.org/ascd-express/vol5/505-himmele.aspx 

Hassinger-Das, B., Jordan, N., & Dyson, N. (2015). Reading Stories to Learn Math: Mathematics Vocabulary Instruction for Children with Early Numeracy Difficulties. The Elementary School Journal, 116(2), 242-264. doi:10.1086/683986

Hattan, C. (2019). Prompting Rural Students’ Use of Background Knowledge and Experience to Support Comprehension of Unfamiliar Content. Reading in Research Quarterly, 54 (4), 451-455 https://doi-org.ezproxy.gardner-webb.edu/10.1002/rrq.270

Maps of the World (n.d.) https://www.mapsofworld.com/usa/states/north-carolina/counties/perquimans-county-map.html

 

Mastering the Fundamentals of College Reading and Writing. (2015, June 28). Vocabulary in Context [video] youtube. https://youtu.be/VVYtdvVUmzQ

Beck, I. L., & McKeown, M. G. (2004). Increasing Young Low-Income Children’s Oral Vocabulary Repertoires through Rich and Focused Instruction. Elementary School Journal. 

PaTTAN. (2020, August 12). Literacy Snippet: Tiered Vocabulary Instruction [video] youtube. https://youtu.be/PDuk7hDNW9U 

Public Schools Forum of North Carolina. (2020, April 29). 2020 Roadmap of Needs. https://www.ncforum.org/report-highlights-where-young-people-face-the-greatest-obstacles-to-success-in-north-carolina/ 

Smith, A. (2017, October 4). Bumps in the Road for Rural Students. Inside Higher Ed. https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2017/10/04/nonacademic-barriers-highlight-challenges-facing-rural-colleges%C2%A0 

Sobolak, M. (2008). Effects of the Amount of Vocabulary Instruction for Low-Socioeconomic Students.