OAE Vocabulary Development 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Tier 2 vocabulary words, as described by Beck, McKeown, and Kucan, are best characterized as:
- Basic, everyday words known by most young children (e.g., happy, run)
- High-frequency, high-utility academic words that appear across subject areas (e.g., analyze, conclude) (Correct answer)
- Highly specialized, domain-specific technical terms (e.g., photosynthesis, isosceles)
- Words encountered only in literary texts and poetry
Correct answer: High-frequency, high-utility academic words that appear across subject areas (e.g., analyze, conclude)
Tier 2 words are sophisticated, general-academic vocabulary that appear across disciplines and are critical for academic success.
Question 2: The most effective vocabulary instruction goes beyond providing a definition and includes:
- Having students copy definitions from a dictionary
- Multiple exposures in varied contexts and active use of the words (Correct answer)
- A weekly vocabulary quiz to test recall
- Silent reading of texts containing the target words
Correct answer: Multiple exposures in varied contexts and active use of the words
Rich vocabulary instruction involves repeated, varied encounters with words across contexts and requires students to actively process and use the words.
Question 3: A student uses context clues to figure out the meaning of 'arduous' from 'The arduous hike left the team exhausted.' What type of context clue is present?
- Synonym clue
- Definition clue
- Example clue
- General inference clue (Correct answer)
Correct answer: General inference clue
The context provides an inferable connection (exhaustion following the hike) from which the student must infer the meaning — this is a general inference rather than an explicit definition or synonym.
Question 4: Which strategy best helps students develop morphological awareness to independently learn new vocabulary?
- Teaching students the meanings of common Greek and Latin roots, prefixes, and suffixes (Correct answer)
- Having students use a thesaurus for every unknown word
- Requiring students to read the same word in 10 different sentences
- Assigning daily vocabulary worksheets with fill-in-the-blank activities
Correct answer: Teaching students the meanings of common Greek and Latin roots, prefixes, and suffixes
Knowledge of morphemes — roots, prefixes, and suffixes — enables students to independently decode and infer the meaning of many unfamiliar words.
Question 5: The 'vocabulary gap' between students from higher- and lower-income backgrounds refers to:
- Differences in decoding ability
- Significant disparities in the size of vocabulary students bring to school (Correct answer)
- Variation in interest in reading between groups
- Differences in the ability to use a dictionary
Correct answer: Significant disparities in the size of vocabulary students bring to school
Research shows that children from lower-income backgrounds often arrive at school with significantly smaller vocabularies due to differences in language exposure.
Question 6: Which instructional technique builds both vocabulary and conceptual understanding by having students compare and contrast target words?
- Word wall
- Semantic feature analysis (Correct answer)
- Repeated reading
- Phonemic awareness drill
Correct answer: Semantic feature analysis
Semantic feature analysis uses a matrix to help students compare how multiple related words share or differ in their features, building deep conceptual understanding.
OAE Vocabulary Development 1
Tier 2 vocabulary words, as described by Beck, McKeown, and Kucan, are best characterized as: