Date of Award
2020
Degree Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology
Department
Psychology
First Advisor
Gary Stoner
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of receptive vocabulary knowledge on first and second grade reading comprehension for 340 Kindergarten Dual Language Learners (DLLs) and monolingual students. An additional purpose of the study was to examine the effect of a Tier 2 vocabulary intervention on students’ reading comprehension abilities. Linear regression analyses found statistically significant interactions between initial vocabulary knowledge and DLL status, as well as initial vocabulary knowledge and intervention treatment condition on first grade reading comprehension. Vocabulary at the end of Kindergarten and the change in vocabulary scores also significantly predicted first grade comprehension. Further, vocabulary knowledge was a significant predictor of second grade comprehension, but only when it was assessed at the end of Kindergarten. Effects of treatment condition and language status were not observed for second grade comprehension. Overall findings indicate that vocabulary makes a small, but significant contribution to reading comprehension, although its contribution varied based upon timing of vocabulary assessment. Implications for school professionals and suggestions for future research are discussed.
Recommended Citation
Cruz, Jennifer, "THE ROLE OF KINDERGARTEN VOCABULARY KNOWLEDGE AND LANGUAGE STATUS ON EARLY READING COMPREHENSION" (2020). Open Access Dissertations. Paper 1200.
https://digitalcommons.uri.edu/oa_diss/1200
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