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Improving comprehension online: effects of deep vocabulary instruction with bilingual and monolingual fifth graders

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Abstract

This quasi-experimental study investigated the effects of an Internet-delivered universally designed depth of vocabulary intervention that targeted both English-speaking and Spanish–English-speaking students. Two hundred forty students, 49% of whom were Spanish–English bilinguals, participated in the 16-week intervention. Intervention students read eight multimedia texts with embedded instruction on 40 words and reading strategy support. Students could access all texts and activities in Spanish and English. In comparison to a control group, there were significant intervention effects on a standardized measure of vocabulary knowledge, but effects were non-significant for comprehension. Similarly, significant effects on researcher-developed measures of vocabulary depth were detected, but not for a researcher-developed measure of breadth.

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Acknowledgments

The research reported here was funded by a grant from the Institute of Education Sciences, US Department of Education to CAST, Inc (#R305G050029). The opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not represent views of the Institute or the US Department of Education. We would like to thank the CAST, Harvard, and Boston College research teams as well as the administrators, teachers, and, most especially, the children who have contributed to this work.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Boston College, 140 Commonwealth Ave, Chestnut Hill, MA, 02467, USA

    C. Patrick Proctor

  2. Vanderbilt University, Vanderbilt, TN, USA

    Bridget Dalton

  3. Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA

    Paola Uccelli, Catherine Snow & Sabina Neugebauer

  4. University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, USA

    Gina Biancarosa

  5. Center for Applied Special Technology, Wakefield, MA, USA

    Elaine Mo

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  1. C. Patrick Proctor
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Correspondence to C. Patrick Proctor.

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Proctor, C.P., Dalton, B., Uccelli, P. et al. Improving comprehension online: effects of deep vocabulary instruction with bilingual and monolingual fifth graders. Read Writ 24, 517–544 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11145-009-9218-2

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