The vocabulary gap

Why vocabulary decides so much, and why high schools need to care.

Reading it doesn’t mean they understand it

Three reasons why literacy gaps grow in secondary school.
Tap each to learn more.

A secondary student reading intently in a school library

Exactly how many words does a student need?

The vocabulary demand of secondary school is enormous, which is why morphology helps.

“Vocabulary size is the single most reliable correlate to reading ability.”
— E. D. Hirsch Jr., Why Knowledge Matters (2016)
Interested to read more?
Knowledgethe thinking possible
Vocabularythe specific words
Morphologythe building
blocks
Knowledge is made of vocabulary is made of morphology

The vocabulary your students need is large, but structured.

Evidence consistently demonstrates the impact of teaching academic words on purpose. The barrier to this knowing/doing gap is that secondary teachers are subject experts, not literacy experts.

The knowing/doing gap is precisely the gap morphed is built to close. Teachers need only the knowledge of their subject to identify the vocabulary that matters. Morphed does the rest.

Teaching morphemes that directly align with the curriculum builds student reading comprehension, causing deeper subject knowledge.

Close the vocabulary gap with morphology.
Lean on morphed.

Where to next

Sources +
  • Hirsch, E. D. Jr. (2016). Why Knowledge Matters. Harvard Education Press.
  • Murphy, D. & Murphy, J. Thinking Reading: What every secondary teacher needs to know about reading. John Catt.
  • Beck, I. L., McKeown, M. G. & Kucan, L. (2013). Bringing Words to Life: Robust Vocabulary Instruction (2nd ed.). Guilford Press.
  • Beck, I. L. & McKeown, M. G. (1991). Conditions of vocabulary acquisition. Handbook of Reading Research (Vol. 2).
  • Nagy, W., Herman, P. & Anderson, R. (1985). Learning words from context.
  • McKeown, M. G., Beck, I. L., Omanson, R. C. & Pople, M. T. (1985). Reading Research Quarterly, 20(5), 522–535.
  • Stanovich, K. E. (1986). Matthew effects in reading. Reading Research Quarterly, 21(4), 360–407.
  • Duff, D., Tomblin, J. B. & Catts, H. (2015). Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 58(3), 853–864.
  • Quigley, A. (2018). Closing the Vocabulary Gap. Routledge.

Close the vocabulary gap in your school

Turn the words of your curriculum into reading that transfers across every subject.

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