Purpose: The authors asked whether adolescents with Down syndrome (DS) could fast-map novel nouns and verbs when word learning depended on using the speaker's pragmatic or syntactic cues. Compared with typically developing (TD) comparison children, the authors predicted that syntactic cues would prove harder for the group with DS to use and that…

This study examined the composition of vocabulary and preschoolers' vocabulary learning in an early literacy program. Fifty-six children with typical achievement, with special needs, and at risk for disabilities participated. Curriculum-based measures (CBM) were used to track children's receptive and expressive vocabulary growth over three…

Previous studies have identified the features of preschool programs that correlate with positive outcomes for low-income children, but the impact of economic integration has not been studied. This study compares the receptive language growth of two groups of children from low-income families. One group of children (N=35) attended economically…

Comparison of the fast mapping skills of language-impaired four- and five-year-olds (N=11) and nondisabled peers (N=11) revealed no differences in ability to infer a connection between a novel word and referent, to comprehend a novel word after a single exposure, and to recall nonlinguistic information associated with the referent. (Author/CB)

Language disabled (LD) and average (N=40) six- and eight-year-olds were evaluated on the ability to detect multiple word meanings in ambiguous sentences with and without picture clues and to identify appropriate word meaning by sentence context. LD students did not show average growth in these abilities over the two-year age span. (Author/DB)

This article argues in favor of a receptive vocabulary component in foreign language courses through consideration of: productive vs. receptive vocabulary knowledge; misconceptions in receptive vocabulary instruction; and classroom-tested approaches and activities for receptive vocabulary development. (CB)

Early development is likely influenced by quality of early parenting and improvements or declines in quality over time. Little is known about how changes in different dimensions of parenting influence child outcomes, nor the relative sizes of associations when considering several aspects simultaneously. These questions are addressed in the Early…

Performance on the Yes/No test (Huibregtse et al., 2002) was assessed as a predictor of scores on the Vocabulary Levels Test (VLT), a standard test of receptive second language (L2) vocabulary knowledge (Nation, 1990). The use of identical items on both tests allowed a direct comparison of test performance, with alternative methods for scoring the…

This study investigated relationships between teacher talk exposure in preschool and school and children's second language vocabulary acquisition. Teacher talk exposure and vocabulary acquisition in Turkish-speaking children learning Norwegian and attending various classrooms were assessed yearly from when the children were in their next-to-last…

Young children were found to overextend and underextend newly uttered but previously understood words. The data are discussed in terms of differences between children's and adult's word meanings and between comprehension and production. (Author)

Proposes three dimensions of lexical competence: partial to precise knowledge; depth of knowledge; and receptive to productive use ability. The relationship between the two knowledge dimensions and the acquisition of word meaning is considered, with emphasis on the complexity of the semantization process and on the need for redefining lexical…

Two experiments examined preschoolers' ability to apply multiple labels to representational objects and to people. Found that preschoolers reliably produced or accepted several words per entity and accepted a high percentage of class-inclusive and overlapping word pairs. The mean number of words produced in labeling task was related to receptive…

Investigates the differential effects of three conditions--nonegotiated, premodified input, negotiation without "pushed output, and negotiation plus pushed output--on second language (L2) learners vocabulary comprehension and acquisition (receptive and productive). Findings of the study provide empirical evidence for the important role of…

Sees word formation as an economical, important means of building vocabulary. Gives examples showing several different word-building patterns. Sees as a reasonable teaching goal the gaining of competence only in "receptive" word formation, i.e., recognition. The student can learn to build new words only from simple, frequently recurring…