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Engaging
New Ideas in EducationA conversation with Dr. Hetty Roessingh
How many words do you know?Language, learning and literacy for K-12 and beyond
7:00 – 8:15 pmTuesday, January 19, 2010Room 179, Education Classroom BlockThe Prairie
Metropolis Centre
(File Number 410-2006-2530)
Funding provided by:
How many words do you know?
Background
• Arrival of over 1.1 million newcomers since 2001• Canada has a selective immigration policy that
favors the best and the brightest• Huge numbers raise questions about Canada’s
ability to fulfill the promises that draw so many here
Background
• High SES backgrounds• High academic expectations• Desire for post-secondary studies at university• Want careers in professions (engineering,
business, and sciences)• Determined, smart, tenacious
Background
• Immigrant children (and increasingly the Canadian born children of immigrants) make up the future
• Canada needs these newcomers to go on to post-secondary studies
• Basis for a highly literate and well educated society
Background
• Facing a “double deficit”: the inability of first generation immigrants to realize their potential due to language barriers, followed by their children who are struggling academically for the same reasons.
• Lost educational capital for the workplace and for Canada’s future economic well being
BackgroundESL Students in CBE Over Time
0
5000
10000
15000
20000
25000
ESL Students 3338 3870 4649 5422 6113 6985 6803 8836 9666 10925 12190 15493 17613 20436 21000
1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007
Large increase in the numbers of coded ESL learners in the K-12 System
Growing Numbers headed for higher education
Coded for ESL
What does it mean to know a word and how
do we count them?
Quick Questions
1. At what grade level is the Calgary Herald written?Grade ?
2. How well do you have to read to graduate from high school?
Grade ?3. At what grade level are university textbooks written?
Grade ?4. How long does it take for a child to learn conversational English?
Years ?5. How long does it take for a child to learn academic English?
Years ?
Conversational vs. Academic English
Language Learning TrajectoriesL1 trajectory (high socio-economic status) (pink line)
0
20000
40000
60000
80000
100000
120000
140000
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
Age
Vo
ca
bu
lary
Grade 12 (80,000 - 100,000)
Grade 11 (65,000)
Grade 10 (40,000)
Grade 9 (35,000)
Grade 8 (30,000)
Grade 7 (25,000)
Grade 6 (20,000)
Grade 5 (15,000)
Grade 4 (12,000)
Grade 3 (10,000)
Grade 2 (8,000)
Grade 1 (5,000)
Things to notice about the trajectory
1. Language learning is not linear, it is exponential2. Distinct thresholds trigger accelerated growth
forward, and these are represented by the three stars
3. The first star marks the easy to get gains most children seem to be able to achieve: the shift from learning to read to reading to learn
4. The second star marks the shift to symbolic thinking that not everyone is able to make
5. The third star marks the shift to advanced and accelerated academic language
ESL trajectories for different age on arrival (AOA) cohorts
How do ESL students stack up in K-12 and
beyond?
Canadian Born: Trajectory of Canadian Born children of immigrants who received no/little ESL support (yellow line)
0
20000
40000
60000
80000
100000
120000
140000
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
Age
Vo
cab
ula
ry
Grade 12 (80,000 - 100,000)
Grade 11 (65,000)
Grade 10 (40,000)
Grade 9 (35,000)
Grade 8 (30,000)
Grade 7 (25,000)
Grade 6 (20,000)
Grade 5 (15,000)
Grade 4 (12,000)
Grade 3 (10,000)
Grade 2 (8,000)
Grade 1 (5,000)
Cohort A: Hypothetical trajectory of elementary aged arrivals who received no/little ESL support (i.e. AOA ≤ 12) (red line)
0
20000
40000
60000
80000
100000
120000
140000
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
Age
Vo
cab
ula
ry
Grade 12 (80,000 - 100,000)
Grade 11 (65,000)
Grade 10 (40,000)
Grade 9 (35,000)
Grade 8 (30,000)
Grade 7 (25,000)
Grade 6 (20,000)
Grade 5 (15,000)
Grade 4 (12,000)
Grade 3 (10,000)
Grade 2 (8,000)
Grade 1 (5,000)
Cohort A: Hypothetical trajectory of elementary aged arrivals who received no/little ESL support (i.e. AOA ≤ 12) (red line)
Cohort B: Young arrivals who received ESL support in high school(dark purple line)
0
20000
40000
60000
80000
100000
120000
140000
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
Age
Vo
cab
ula
ry
Grade 12 (80,000 - 100,000)
Grade 11 (65,000)
Grade 10 (40,000)
Grade 9 (35,000)
Grade 8 (30,000)
Grade 7 (25,000)
Grade 6 (20,000)
Grade 5 (15,000)
Grade 4 (12,000)
Grade 3 (10,000)
Grade 2 (8,000)
Grade 1 (5,000)
Cohort B: Young arrivals who received ESL support in high school(dark purple line)
If only . . . Earlier intervention
Cohort C: Jr. high aged arrivals who had ESL support at high school age (i.e. AOA is 12 – 14) (brown line)
0
20000
40000
60000
80000
100000
120000
140000
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
Age
Vo
cab
ula
ry
Grade 12 (80,000 - 100,000)
Grade 11 (65,000)
Grade 10 (40,000)
Grade 9 (35,000)
Grade 8 (30,000)
Grade 7 (25,000)
Grade 6 (20,000)
Grade 5 (15,000)
Grade 4 (12,000)
Grade 3 (10,000)
Grade 2 (8,000)
Grade 1 (5,000)
Cohort C: Jr. high aged arrivals who had ESL support at high school age
Cohort D: Sr. high arrivals who had ESL support (i.e. AOA is 15+) (teal line)
0
20000
40000
60000
80000
100000
120000
140000
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
Age
Vo
cab
ula
ry
Grade 12 (80,000 - 100,000)
Grade 11 (65,000)
Grade 10 (40,000)
Grade 9 (35,000)
Grade 8 (30,000)
Grade 7 (25,000)
Grade 6 (20,000)
Grade 5 (15,000)
Grade 4 (12,000)
Grade 3 (10,000)
Grade 2 (8,000)
Grade 1 (5,000)
Cohort D: Sr. high arrivals who had ESL support
The Tipping Point
• The point in the trajectory at which you no longer have recourse to L1
• At each AOA there is benefit to having recourse to L1• For every AOA there is a certain meltdown of L1 that
puts students at risk• Additive bilingualism: older arrivals• Subtractive bilingualism: younger arrivals• Regardless of AOA, for all of them there is a tipping
point at a certain point in time. • All of the K-12 cohorts at are at risk in higher
education
How many words are you using . . . uncovering active vocabulary in Grade 9 PATs
Compleat Lexical Tutor (Cobb, 2009) www.lextutor.ca
Grade 9 PAT: ESL Student Pass (56%)
Grade 9 PAT: Acceptable
Grade 9 PAT: Excellence
Grade 9 PAT Vocabulary Profiles
ESL Pass Acceptable Excellence
K1-K2 96.87 96.26 90.7
AWL 0.09 0.56 2.59
Off-List 3.03 3.18 6.71
TTR 0.29 0.46 0.52
BNC 99% 3000 words 6000 words 9000 words
BNC Stretch 5000 words 10,000 words 15,000 words
Best Words (last 1% of text)
angry, evil, forever, meanwhile, nervous, panic, disco, tutor, gym, yelled
garbage, hallways, blazer, trash
siblings, rundown, indomitable, gravitate, megaphone
How many words are students using in the Grade 9 PAT?
3
6
9
5
10
15
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
Nu
mb
er o
f W
ord
s
99% 3 6 9
Stretch 5 10 15
ESL 56% Acceptable Excellence
How many words do you need . . . uncovering passive vocabulary
Compleat Lexical Tutor (Cobb, 2009) www.lextutor.ca
Language Sample: Everyday communication - excerpt from “Friends” Season One
RACHELOh God, come on you guys, is this really necessary? I mean, I can stop charging anytime I want.MONICAC'mon, you can't live off your parents your whole life.RACHELI know that. That's why I was getting married.PHOEBEGive her a break, it's hard being on your own for the first time.RACHELThank you.PHOEBEYou're welcome. I remember when I first came to this city. I was fourteen. My mom had just killed herself and my step-dad was back in prison, and I got here, and I didn't know anybody. And I ended up living with this albino guy who was, like, cleaning windshields outside port authority, and then he killed himself, and then I found aromatherapy. So believe me, I know exactly how you feel.
ROSSThe word you're looking for is 'Anyway'...MONICAAll right, you ready?RACHELNo. No, no, I'm not ready! How can I be ready? "Hey, Rach! You ready to jump out the airplane without your parachute?" Come on, I can't do this!MONICAYou can, I know you can!RACHELI don't think so.ROSSCome on, you made coffee! You can do anything! (Chandler slowly tries to hide the now dead plant from that morning when he and Joey poured their coffee into it.)ROSSC'mon, cut. Cut, cut, cut,... Cut, cut, cut, cut, cut, cut,cut... (She cuts one of them and they cheer.)RACHELY'know what? I think we can just leave it at that. It's kinda like a symbolic gesture...
MONICARachel! That was a library card!ALLCut, cut, cut, cut, cut, cut, cut..CHANDLER(as Rachel is cutting up her cards) Y'know, if you listen closely, you can hear a thousand retailers scream. She finishes cutting them up and they all cheer.MONICAWelcome to the real world! It sucks. You're gonna love it!
FK Grade Level: 2.1
Web VP v3 (Cobb, 2009) Vocabulary Profile:K1-K2 96.31%AWL 0.61%Off-List 3.07%BNC 99%: 6,000BNC Stretch: 12,000
FK Grade Level 2.1 99% Coverage 6,000 words Stretch 12,000 words
Reading Sample: Calgary HeraldExplosion flattens southeast Calgary home By Stephane Massinon and Chuck Chiang, Calgary Herald January 18, 2010 CALGARY - An explosion and fire in the southeast community of Penbrooke this morning levelled one home and damaged two others, police and fire officials confirmed this morning.
Fire officials said they responded to multiple calls involving an explosion in the 1400 block of Pennsburg Drive S.E. at roughly 4:30 a.m. this morning. Crews arriving on the scene said the house where the explosion took place was blown apart, with one 10-feet-by-10-feet piece landing on the other side of the street.
No injuries were reported, but crews are stilling looking through the rubble to see if there were anyone caught in the home during the explosion.
“That’s kind of the challenge we were faced with this morning. The majority of reports were that the place was vacant,” said fire department spokesman Jeff Budai.
“And then one of the neighbours said he thought he saw a light on prior to the explosion.”
The two houses next to the home where the explosion took place also suffered structural damage, officials say. The damage was so severe, crews say, that residents will have to find alternative accommodations for the immediate future.
“It was pretty bad. The walls in one house actually blew into (the other) a few feet. It actually pushed the furniture into the middle of their room," said Budai.
Fire and arson investigators are looking into the cause of the explosion.
FK Grade Level: 9.2
Web VP v3 (Cobb 2009) Vocabulary Profile:
K1-K2 90.98 / AWL 5.15 / Off-List 3.86
BNC 99%: 5,000 / BNC Stretch: 7,000
FK Grade Level 9.2 99% Coverage 5,000 words Stretch 7,000 words
Reading Sample: Biology 20Adaptation and Change, Chapter 4, pp 96 – 115,
Biology, Nelson Theory of Natural Selection:Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection can be divided into five distinct ideas:Overproduction Struggle for existence (competition)VariationSurvival of the fittest (natural selection)Origin of new3 species by inheritance of successful variationsBy briefly examining the main ideas, it is possible to understand the basis of Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection.Overproduction. In simple terms, overproduction means that the number of offspring produced by a species is greater than the number that can survive, reproduce, and live to maturity. For example, if the millions of eggs laid annually by a female codfish were to survive to adulthood, the oceans would be filled solid with codfish in a few short years. However this does not happen, because only a few survived and reproduce.Darwin’s concept of overproduction was influenced by Thomas Malthus’s Essay on population, written in 1798. The essay pointed out that while populations of organisms increase geometrically, the arithmetic progression. The resulting gap between the two explains the idea of overproduction. Struggle for existence. (competition). Because of overproduction, organisms of the same species, as well as those of different species, must compete for limited resources such as food, water, and a place to live.Variation. Differences among traits occur among members of the same species. Therefore, no two individuals are exactly alike. Darwin believed that these variations (including acquired variations) are passed on to the next generation.Survival of the fittest. (natural selection). Those individuals in a species with traits that give them an advantage (those that are well adapted to their environment) are better able to compete, survive, and reproduce. All others die off without leaving offspring. Since nature selects the organisms that survive, the process is called natural selection.Origin of new species (speciation). Over numerous generations, new species arise by the accumulation of inherited variations. When a type is produced that is significantly different from the original, it becomes a new species.
FK Grade Level: 10.8Web VP v3 (Cobb 2009) Vocabulary Profile: K1-K2 82.16 / AWL 10.15 / Off-List 7.69BNC 99%: 8,000 / BNC Stretch: 17,000
FK Grade Level 10.8 99% Coverage 8,000 words Stretch 17,000 words
Reading Sample: 1st Year Textbook1st Year Biology Textbook
Although the atom is the smallest unit having the physical and chemical properties of its element, these tiny bits of matter are composed of even smaller parts called subatomic particles. Physicists have split the atom into more than a hundred types of particles, but only three kinds of particles are stable enough to be of relevance here: neutrons, protons, and electrons. Neutrons and protons are packed together tightly to form a dense core, or nucleus, at the center of the atom. The electrons move about this nucleus at nearly the speed of light (Figure 2.3).
Electrons and protons are electrically charged. Each electron has one unit of negative charge, and each proton has one unit of positive charge (Table 2.2). A neutron, as its name implies, is electrically neutral. The atomic nucleus is positive because of the presence of protons, and it is the attraction between opposite charges that keeps the rapidly moving electrons in the vicinity of the nucleus.
The neutron and proton are almost identical in mass, each about 0.0000000000000000000000017 gram, much more conveniently written 1.7 x 10-24 g. Grams and other conventional units are not very useful for describing the mass of objects so minuscule. Thus, for atoms and subatomic particles, scientists use a unit of measurements called the atomic mass unit (amu), also called the dalton in honour of John Dalton, the English chemist and physicist who helped develop atomic theory around 1800. Neutrons and protons have a mass of almost exactly 1 dalton apiece (actually 1.007 and 1.009, respectively, but close enough to 1 for our purposes). Because the mass of an electron is only about 1/2000 that of a neutron or proton, we can ignore electrons when computing the total mass of an atom.
FK Grade Level: 14.4Web VP v3 (Cobb 2009) Vocabulary Profile: K1-K2 78.57 / AWL 5.44 / Off-List 15.99BNC 99%: 10,000 / BNC Stretch: 10,000
FK Grade Level 14.4 99% Coverage 10,000 words Stretch
10,000 words
Reading Sample: 1st Year Textbook1st Year Canadian Studies Book of Readings
CNST 231: Introduction to Canadian Studies
A Unique RelationshipHow do we begin to analyse a relationship as complex as that between Canada and the United States? There are no obvious models or appropriate cases on which to base a comparison. The example sometimes used, that of the European Union (EU), conjures up the wrong images. There are 15 EU members, not two, and its major members are more comparable in size than the dramatic asymmetry in population and gross domestic product (GDP) that characterizes the Canada-US case. Most important, the members of the EU agreed in the Treaty of Rome to the eventual establishment of an economic union, in other words, the pooling of their individual national sovereignties for the creation of a new, larger entity. There are common EU policies across a range of areas, a number of supranational institutions that make and implement these policies, since January 1999 a common currency and a European central bank, and, as of the beginning of March 2000, a new institutional arm to handle defence issues.
Flesch Kincaid Grade Level: 16.0Web VP v3 (Cobb 2009) Vocabulary Profile: K1-K2 82.63 / AWL 13.77 / Off-List 3.59BNC 99%: 13,000 / BNC Stretch: 14,000
FK Grade Level 16.0 99% Coverage 13,000 words Stretch 14,000 words
Summary of Reading Demands
Sample 99% Coverage FK Grade Level
TV Show “Friends” 6000 words 2.1
The Calgary Herald 5000 words 9.2
Biology 20 Textbook 8000 words 10.8
Biology Textbook (1st Yr)
10,000 words 14.4
Canadian Studies Article
13,000 words 16.0
Dr. Hetty Roessingh’s Graduate Student:Scott Roy Douglas, PhD (Candidate)
Graduate Division of Educational Research, University of Calgary
After High School . . . University
How many words are you using . . . at university
The Government of Alberta is proposing to institute a mandatory physical education course for all students from kindergarten to Grade 12. Do you support this proposal?
Vocabulary Footprint of a Native English Speaking 1st Year University Student
Vocabulary Footprint of a Non-Native English Speaking 1st Year University Student
Choosing the right words: Reliance on the first 2000 words of English
Reliance on the first 2000 words of English
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
NS NNES
Choosing the right words:Usage of the Academic Word List
Usage of the Academic Word List
5.8
6
6.2
6.4
6.6
6.8
7
7.2
7.4
7.6
7.8
NS NNES
Choosing the right words:Usage of Vocabulary Beyond the First 2000 Words of English
Usage of Vocabulary Beyond the First 2000 Words of English
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
NS NNES
Choosing the right words:how many words are they using?
7
11.52
5.67
9.01
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
NS 7 11.52
NNES 5.67 9.01
BNC 99% BNC Stretch
Choosing the right words:How many $50 words are in their essays?
0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.8
K8+Ratio 0.69 0.29
NS NNES
BNC K8+ Ratio(K8+Words/Total Words)*100
3 “good” words in a 400 word essay
1 “good” word in a 400 word essay
catalyst
sedentary
cardiovascular
spatula
Using a wide variety of words:NS first year essays are shorter with more variety of words
0.395
0.4
0.405
0.41
0.415
0.42
0.425
0.43
0.435
0.44
0.445
Type Token Ratio 0.44 0.41
NS NNES
Using words accurately:What can go wrong
Besides, being a good observator is an attribute in understanding widely and managing professionally to have a leadership.
Using words accurately:1st Year NNES students make more vocabulary mistakes
0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1
1.2
wo
rd e
rro
r p
er 1
00 w
ord
s
Word Error Ratio 0.42 1.12
NS NNES
Less than 2
mistakes in a 400
word essay
More than 4 mistakes
in a 400 word essay
NNES Students at University = Success!
76%
72%
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
Success 72 76
NS NNES
Required to withdraw at some point in the course of their studies
22%
6%
0
5
10
15
20
25
RTW 6 22
NS NNES
Placed on academic probation at some point in their studies
33%
14%
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
AP 14 33
NS NNES
Grade Point Average
2.93
2.51
2.3
2.4
2.5
2.6
2.7
2.8
2.9
3
GPA 2.93 2.51
NS NNES
Note:
NS = 52% > 3.0
vs. NNES = 26% > 3.0
Courses attempted and paid forbut not earned
2.14
5.46
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
CANE 2.14 5.46
NS NNES
$516.09 per ½ course =
NS $1104.43
NNES $2817.85
(diff = $1713.42)
Total Semesters
9
12
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
Total Semesters 9 12
NS NNES
Note Spring Summer Semesters: NS=2 NNES=4
Conclusions
• Size matters• Breadth and depth of vocabulary is
important• Mobilize what you have by making
good choices• Higher studies demand an apt and
precise vocabulary• It’s harder than you think
Implications and Future Directions
• Informs:– Policy– Pedagogic practices– Programming– Provision of support
services
Next Steps
• Larger scale study• More refined analysis• Using the findings for practical ends that target
policy reforms, faculty in-service on pedagogical practices, counseling service, programming (adjunct courses, sheltered courses, English upgrades, credit for EAP courses, etc.), working more collaboratively with local school boards to enhance and strengthen ESL services
–iEAP – (intensive English for Academic Purposes)
Questions, Comments, Conclusions?
Hetty Roessingh, PhDFaculty of Education, 2500 University Drive NW, Calgary, Alberta. T2N 1N4
Statistical analyses were carried out with the Statistics for Vocab Research webpage on the Compleat Lexical Tutor website (Cobb, 2009) using the t-Test for Independent Samples (P<0.05).
Lexical Profiling was carried out with the tools available on the Complete Lexical Tutor website (Cobb, 2009).
