![]() In order to access the world around them, learners need a rich understanding of all three tiers of vocabulary - this enables them to change their formality of speech depending on their audience, access the complex language of literature and exam papers, and think like experts in specific disciplines. While these words aren’t used that often in casual dialogue, they are essential to unlocking learners’ potential in academia - for this reason, they often need explicit teaching in the classroom. These are the words that allow us to access academic texts, such as high-level literature, newspaper articles and exam papers. Tier 2 vocabulary, while not as specific as Tier 3, are challenging, ambitious words that don’t usually crop up in day-to-day conversation. In the middle of these two tiers is Tier 2 vocabulary. For example, “tectonic” is a word that you wouldn’t usually use outside of Geography, and “refraction” is a word commonly found in the Physics classroom. These are words that aren’t used outside of the context of a specific subject, or have a different meaning in one subject versus another. On the other side of the spectrum, Tier 3 vocabulary is the subject-specific vocabulary of a particular discipline. Knowing Tier 1 vocabulary gives learners the basic language skills they need to communicate with others, but this vocabulary is not enough for them to achieve their full potential. Tier 1 language is used in casual conversation everyday, and doesn't usually require explicit teaching for learners to understand them. These are the words we use in everyday conversation, such as “put”, “get”, “walk”, etc. In their book Bringing Words to Life, they segmented the vocabulary we use into three tiers - Tier 1, Tier 2 and Tier 3. ![]() This is where the three tiers of vocabulary become important.īeck, McKeown and Kucan (2002) came up with an efficient way of breaking down vocabulary, and vocabulary instruction, into smaller, more manageable parts. In order for teachers to best tackle the broad subject of “vocabulary”, there has to be a way to break it down into smaller chunks so that each can be taught more efficiently. Having a rich, ambitious, broad vocabulary is vital for learners to succeed, both in school and throughout their lives - but not all vocabulary is made the same or has the same purpose.
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