CTEL CTEL Vocabulary Development for English Learners 2

Question 1

A teacher models how to break down the word 'photosynthesis' into its parts: 'photo' (light) and 'synthesis' (putting together). This strategy is best described as:

Accepted Answer

Morphological analysis

Answer

Morphological analysis is the strategy of breaking words into meaningful parts (prefixes, roots, suffixes) to infer meaning, which is especially powerful for academic vocabulary.

Question 2

Which term describes a student's ability to understand a word when reading or hearing it, even if they cannot yet produce or use it independently in speech or writing?

Accepted Answer

Receptive vocabulary

Answer

Receptive vocabulary refers to words a learner understands when encountered in listening or reading, which typically precedes productive use of the same words.

Question 3

According to research on vocabulary and reading comprehension, approximately what percentage of the words in a text must a reader understand for adequate comprehension to occur?

Accepted Answer

95–98%

Answer

Research indicates that readers need to know approximately 95–98% of words in a text to read with adequate fluency and comprehension without vocabulary support.

Question 4

A semantic map (word web) is MOST effective for vocabulary instruction because it:

Accepted Answer

Shows relationships between a target word and related concepts, synonyms, and examples

Answer

Semantic maps activate prior knowledge and build conceptual understanding by visually connecting a target word to related ideas, categories, synonyms, and antonyms.

Question 5

The 'Matthew Effect' in vocabulary development, coined by Keith Stanovich, refers to which phenomenon?

Accepted Answer

Students with large vocabularies read more and therefore acquire more vocabulary, while students with smaller vocabularies fall further behind

Answer

The Matthew Effect describes how vocabulary-rich students read more widely, gaining more vocabulary, while vocabulary-poor students avoid reading, causing the gap between them to widen over time.

CTEL Exam Practice Test

CTEL Exam Practice Test

CTEL CTEL Vocabulary Development for English Learners 2