Nippers – vocabulary item:  'spectators'

Word knowledge: moving along a continuum Because an individual word fits into a complicated system of language, there are many things to learn about any particular word and there are many degrees of knowing (Nation, 2001). Therefore, learning a word can be thought of as an incremental process along a continuum of word knowledge. Stahl (1986) suggested three stages of word knowledge: association, comprehension, and generation.  At the association level, students can make accurate associations with the word, although they may not understand its meaning; at comprehension level, they can understand the commonly accepted meaning of a word; and at generation level, they can use the word in a novel context. [1] This vocabulary resource enables students to increase their knowledge of a word from whatever point it lies along the knowledge continuum – from association at the first step of vocabulary knowledge, through to comprehension and novel usage.

From recognising words to building a broad understanding

The word 'spectators' is clearly related to crowds at sports events for the majority of students. Finer distinctions can be built upon this concept (such as the possibility of there being only two spectators watching something like a volcanic eruption, or a crowd of people who are not spectators) to build a broader understanding of the word.

Task a). Students are asked about the first step in vocabulary acquisition, i.e., where they recognise the word from. About half of the students in the trial had no prior knowledge of the word. Students who had heard the word mainly knew it from TV in a sporting context. A small group quoted the word from the passage in the Nippers article, which they should not have read until Task d). (By jumping ahead these students did not reflect upon their prior experience of the word nor try to use their initiative to place it in the context of a sentence themselves in Task b). Despite the high number of students with no prior knowledge or understanding of the word, by the end of the task most students had clearly linked the word to a crowd of people who are watching something through looking at context.

Task b) assesses basic comprehension of the word. About half of the students trialled had prior exposure to the word. Most of this group used it correctly in a sentence, e.g., The spectators are deathly silent. Students who had not seen or heard the word before mostly passed on this task. Almost all students used the word correctly in a sentence when the question was repeated in Task f).

Task c). The definitions students write hereexplicitly show their level of comprehension of the word. Almost all students who were unfamiliar with the word were unable to come to a definition, but by Task e) the majority of this group had come to a definition. This indicates that most students are able to find meaning through context.

Task d) i). This task assesses two skills: firstly, basic word recognition in identifying the word 'spectators' in the story; and secondly, the ability to identify the surrounding text which carries meaning. Most trial students found the word 'spectators' in the story and copied the word in a brief and appropriately meaning-giving context into d) i), e.g., with the preceding sentence in the text:

"First up are the running races. As the nippers sprint across the sand, the spectators in the noisy crowd cheer for their favourite teams."

In summary, most students found appropriate meaning through context, a meaning which can be built on, i.e., they have made a good start towards fully understanding the word. The definition of 'spectators' suggested here can be built on with subsequent experiences of the word. Students need to be open to the possibility of increasing their knowledge of a word along the word knowledge continuum after establishing a basic understanding of a word through a certain context.

Task e).Most students who wrote a legitimate definition in Task c) repeated it here. A small group made slight improvements to their first definitions here, e.g., a student who wrote A crowd of people watching something, in Task c) wrote Someone who is watching in Task e).  This kind of re-definition indicates that students are learning from the text that spectators can be part of, or individuals within, a crowd. These students have increased their knowledge of the word on the word knowledge continuum. Almost all the student who were unable to write a definition or wrote an incorrect definition in Task c) wrote a definition in this Task, e.g. one student who wrote Stealer and scavenger, in c), wrote The sideline people in Task d).

Task f).This assesses the students' ability to generate use of the word in a new way (novel usage is considered to be the highest stage of word knowledge). Almost all students who attempted this task completed it successfully, including the students who passed or guessed Task b). The majority of sentences were in a sporting context. A small group wrote sentences very close in wording to the Nippers excerpt, while a small group wrote more expansive sentences, e.g., The spectators breathe a sigh of relief when the ref confirms Not Out.

Task g). Most students, even those who wrote correct definitions of 'spectators' and used the word in a sentence twice, had a question. The most common query was What does this word really mean? Other queries were about the nature of spectators: Are judges and parents also spectators? and Can there be one spectator only? A small group asked where the word came from or why the word was used. The amount of queries indicates a high degree of curiosity.  It may be that student engagement in learning new vocabulary increases when they have to actively participate in meaning-making. Perhaps a way forward is for students to form groups which have to arrive at consensus decision on the definition of the word?