and domain-specific words to explain ideas (ELD.PI.9–12.6). The productive strand focuses on ELs
expressing complex and abstract ideas in oral presentations using an appropriate level of formality
(ELD.PI.9–12.9), writing using appropriate register (ELD.PI.9–12.10), and justifying opinions by
articulating sufficient textual evidence using appropriate register (ELD.PI.9–12.11). The CA ELD
Standards also focus on students’ abilities to analyze and apply knowledge of vocabulary and linguistic
structures in a variety of academic texts and topics (ELD.PII.9–12, Standards 1–7).
Vocabulary
At the high school level words abound. In every
subject specialized vocabulary is used to communicate
disciplinary understandings, and students need to learn to
read and speak each subject’s unique language. Whether
a student is studying geometry, economics, Shakespeare,
chemistry, physics, ceramics, basketball, or the works of the
transcendentalists, students need to learn the words used
in each area to understand what they read, hear, discuss,
and write. In chapter 2 of this ELA/ELD Framework, as well
as in Appendix A of the CCSS for ELA/Literacy (NGA/CCSSO
2010a), three categories or tiers of words are described.
Disciplinary vocabulary is most often classified as Tier Three;
these domain-specific words are the least frequently occurring but are important for comprehension.
Tier Two or general academic words (e.g., accommodate, preclude, reciprocal) are common to many
disciplines and occur frequently; these words are necessary for comprehension in many areas and
contexts.
Kamil and others (2008, 11) recommend that teachers “provide students with explicit vocabulary
instruction... [to] help them learn the meaning of new words and strengthen their independent
skills of constructing the meaning of text.” To carry out the recommendation, the panel suggests the
following:
- Dedicate a portion of the regular classroom lesson to explicit vocabulary instruction.
- Use repeated exposure to new words in multiple oral and written contexts and allow sufficient
practice sessions. - Give sufficient opportunities to use new vocabulary in a variety of contexts through activities
such as discussion, writing, and extended reading. - Provide students with strategies to make them independent vocabulary learners.
Vocabulary instruction should focus on teaching specific words that students must know to
understand texts and topics and on teaching word-learning strategies that students can use to
determine word meanings independently. Teachers decide which words are worthy of teaching directly
based on students’ needs and the demands of the text and subject. Students also learn strategies for
figuring out what words mean as they read; these include use of morphology (e.g., affixes, roots),
context clues, and reference materials. Two other components are important for learning vocabulary:
exposure to rich language, including wide reading, and word consciousness. Most words are learned
incidentally through reading; repeated encounters with words increase the likelihood that they will
be remembered and used in students’ speaking and writing. Word consciousness, or metalinguistic
awareness, sensitizes students to their own understandings of words and language structures, and
students use this awareness to identify words they may not fully understand and sentences that may
be complex and confusing. Calling attention to words in different contexts, discussing them, and
promoting curiosity and explorations of new words and ideas, teachers and students establish an
environment that fosters vocabulary development.
Calling attention to words in
different contexts, discussing
them, and promoting curiosity
and explorations of new
words and ideas, teachers
and students establish an
environment that fosters
vocabulary development.Grades 9 to 12 Chapter 7 | 683