TEA ESL Vocabulary Development & Academic Language 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Jim Cummins distinguishes between BICS and CALP. What does CALP stand for?
- Communicative and Linguistic Proficiency
- Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency (Correct answer)
- Content-Area Language Proficiency
- Contextual Academic Language Practice
Correct answer: Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency
CALP stands for Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency, referring to the higher-order language skills needed for academic success in formal educational settings.
Question 2: According to Beck, McKeown, and Kucan's tiered vocabulary framework, which tier includes domain-specific words like 'photosynthesis' and 'isotope'?
- Tier 1
- Tier 2
- Tier 3 (Correct answer)
- Tier 4
Correct answer: Tier 3
Tier 3 words are low-frequency, domain-specific academic terms used in particular content areas like science, math, or social studies.
Question 3: How long does research suggest it typically takes ELL students to develop CALP compared to BICS?
- BICS takes 5-7 years; CALP takes 1-2 years
- BICS takes 1-2 years; CALP takes 5-7 years (Correct answer)
- Both BICS and CALP take approximately 3 years
- BICS takes 6 months; CALP takes 2-3 years
Correct answer: BICS takes 1-2 years; CALP takes 5-7 years
Research by Cummins indicates ELLs typically develop conversational fluency (BICS) in 1-2 years, while academic language proficiency (CALP) takes 5-7 years.
Question 4: Which vocabulary strategy involves teaching students to use prefixes, roots, and suffixes to determine the meaning of unfamiliar words?
- Semantic mapping
- Morphemic analysis (Correct answer)
- Contextual redefinition
- Concept sorts
Correct answer: Morphemic analysis
Morphemic analysis involves breaking down words into their meaningful units (morphemes) such as prefixes, roots, and suffixes to decode word meanings.
Question 5: A Spanish-speaking ELL notices that the English word 'celebrate' is similar to the Spanish word 'celebrar' and shares the same meaning. This is an example of a:
- False cognate
- True cognate (Correct answer)
- False friend
- Loanword
Correct answer: True cognate
True cognates are words in two languages that share similar spelling, pronunciation, and meaning, allowing ELLs to transfer vocabulary knowledge across languages.
Question 6: Which of the following is a false cognate ('false friend') that could confuse a Spanish-speaking ELL?
- 'Animal' in English and 'animal' in Spanish
- 'Library' in English and 'librería' (bookstore) in Spanish (Correct answer)
- 'Natural' in English and 'natural' in Spanish
- 'Music' in English and 'música' in Spanish
Correct answer: 'Library' in English and 'librería' (bookstore) in Spanish
'Library' and 'librería' are false cognates because 'librería' means 'bookstore' in Spanish, not 'library' (biblioteca), potentially causing comprehension errors.
Question 7: The Texas English Language Proficiency Standards (ELPS) require ELL students to develop vocabulary across all subject areas. Which ELPS strand specifically addresses cross-curricular vocabulary development?
- Listening
- Speaking
- Reading
- Cross-curricular second language acquisition (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Cross-curricular second language acquisition
The ELPS cross-curricular second language acquisition strand (c1) addresses vocabulary development across all content areas in Texas schools.
TEA ESL Vocabulary Development & Academic Language 1
Jim Cummins distinguishes between BICS and CALP.
What does CALP stand for?