OAE Vocabulary Development

Question 1

Tier 2 vocabulary words, as described by Beck, McKeown, and Kucan, are best characterized as:

Accepted Answer

High-frequency, high-utility academic words that appear across subject areas (e.g., analyze, conclude)

Answer

Basic, everyday words known by most young children (e.g., happy, run)

Answer

Highly specialized, domain-specific technical terms (e.g., photosynthesis, isosceles)

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Words encountered only in literary texts and poetry

Question 2

The most effective vocabulary instruction goes beyond providing a definition and includes:

Accepted Answer

Multiple exposures in varied contexts and active use of the words

Answer

Having students copy definitions from a dictionary

Answer

A weekly vocabulary quiz to test recall

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Silent reading of texts containing the target words

Question 3

A student uses context clues to figure out the meaning of 'arduous' from 'The arduous hike left the team exhausted.' What type of context clue is present?

Accepted Answer

General inference clue

Answer

Synonym clue

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Definition clue

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Example clue

Question 4

Which strategy best helps students develop morphological awareness to independently learn new vocabulary?

Accepted Answer

Teaching students the meanings of common Greek and Latin roots, prefixes, and suffixes

Answer

Having students use a thesaurus for every unknown word

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Requiring students to read the same word in 10 different sentences

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Assigning daily vocabulary worksheets with fill-in-the-blank activities

Question 5

The 'vocabulary gap' between students from higher- and lower-income backgrounds refers to:

Accepted Answer

Significant disparities in the size of vocabulary students bring to school

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Differences in decoding ability

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Variation in interest in reading between groups

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Differences in the ability to use a dictionary

Question 6

Which instructional technique builds both vocabulary and conceptual understanding by having students compare and contrast target words?

Accepted Answer

Semantic feature analysis

Answer

Word wall

Answer

Repeated reading

Answer

Phonemic awareness drill