Theory and Practice in Vocabulary Learning and Instruction

Abstract

This article describes principled, research-based ways to consider vocabulary instruction. The relation between vocabulary knowledge and reading comprehension is discussed first. Only fairly thorough understanding of words improves comprehension of a given text. Then, the roles of direct instruction and incidental acquisition of word meanings are explored. Students acquire knowledge of a great number of words incidentally; direct instruction accounts for relatively few. Next, 3 approaches to vocabulary instruction are discussed: definitional, contextual, conceptual. Each approach is discussed as it relates to learning new words and to improving comprehension. The definitional and contextual approaches used alone are not as effective as a combination of the 2 in improving comprehension. The conceptual approach builds more thorough word knowledge and is more likely to affect comprehension, but it is time consuming in terms of teacher preparation and allocated class time. Not all words need the in-depth instruction to which the conceptual approach lends itself. This type of instruction is recommended for words crucial to understanding a text. The article concludes with recommendations for future research on vocabulary instruction. Research is especially needed to determine effective ways of teaching students to become independent word learners and efficient ways of helping students develop thorough understandings of important words and concepts.