WWC review of this study

The Effectiveness of a Program to Accelerate Vocabulary Development in Kindergarten (VOCAB): Kindergarten Final Evaluation Report. NCEE 2010-4014

Goodson, Barbara; Wolf, Anne; Bell, Steve; Turner, Herb; Finney, Pamela B. (2010). National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance. Retrieved from: https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED512900

examining

1,204

Students

, grade

K

Practice Guide

Review Details

Reviewed: February 2024

At least one finding shows moderate evidence of effectiveness

At least one statistically significant positive finding

Meets WWC standards with reservations

For:

Practice Guide (findings for Kindergarten PAVEd for Success (K-PAVE))

Using:

Research Design:

Randomized Controlled Trial

Rating:

Meets WWC standards with reservations because it is a randomized control trial with cluster level inferences and joiners, but it demonstrates baseline equivalence.

This review may not reflect the full body of research evidence for this intervention.

Evidence Tier rating based solely on this study. This intervention may achieve a higher tier when combined with the full body of evidence.

Findings

Listening comprehension outcomes—Indeterminate effect found for the domain
Outcome measure	Comparison	Period	Sample	Intervention mean	Comparison mean	Significant?	Improvement index	Evidence tier
Kaufman Test of Educational Achievement–II (KTEA–II), Listening Comprehension subtest standard score	Kindergarten PAVEd for Success (K-PAVE) vs. Business as usual	0 Years	Full sample; 1,204 students	89.95	88.32	No	--

Vocabulary development outcomes—Statistically significant positive effect found for the domain
Outcome measure	Comparison	Period	Sample	Intervention mean	Comparison mean	Significant?	Improvement index	Evidence tier
Expressive Vocabulary Test–2 (EVT–2) standard score	Kindergarten PAVEd for Success (K-PAVE) vs. Business as usual	0 Years	Full sample; 1,204 students	92.57	92.03	Yes	2

Evidence Tier rating based solely on this study. This intervention may achieve a higher tier when combined with the full body of evidence.

Sample Characteristics

Characteristics of study sample as reported by study author.

Female: 50%
Male: 50%
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Mississippi

Race
Black		85%
Other or unknown		2%
White		13%

Study Details

Setting

The intervention was implemented in kindergarten classes as a supplement to regular English language instruction. Schools were selected from the Mississippi Delta region and surrounding districts. Schools that were eligible for participation were those that had at least two kindergarten classrooms, at least two consenting kindergarten teachers, and at least 40% of students eligible for free or reduced-price meals.

Study sample

Teachers were primarily White (55%) or African American (45%), had early childhood certifications(76%), and approximately 16 years of teaching, with 10 years teaching in kindergarten. The student sample was 85% African American, 13.3% White, and 1.7% other. Approximately 93% of students were eligible for free or reduced-price meals. The median age was 6 years, 2 months.

Intervention Group

K-PAVE is an adaptation of a preschool program intended to increase vocabulary comprehension, and oral language skills. 1 Every week a new set of ten thematically-linked vocabulary words are introduced using explicit Instruction with picture cards. Students are introduced to the picture card, given a short definition, and asked to choose a picture of the target word from among other pictures of known words. 2 The new words are reinforced over multiple contexts throughout the day using interactive readings (see next item below), adult-child conversations, and extension activities in centers and other subject domains (e.g., if the target word is radish, then radishes might be used in a counting math activity that week). 3- Interactive readings of one nonfiction book and one fiction book containing the target words are conducted at least twice during the week. During the reading teachers ask at least two questions each in the following categories: a)questions that require students to students to label, recall, describe, and locate; b) questions that require students to students to judge, contrast, compare, summarize, predict, define, take another point of view, or solve problems; and c) questions that relate the book to students’ experiences. -The program is implemented as a supplement to the regular instructional environment. -There are 24 weekly units that are delivered throughout the day through explicit instruction, interactive book reading, and adult-child conversations. -A list of the ten words of the week are also sent home to parents, who are encouraged to use them in conversations with the child at home. -The regular classroom instructor delivers the intervention. -Materials include 24 fiction books and 24 nonfiction books, 240 picture cards for the 240 vocabulary words, and cards showing a picture of the target word among other pictures of known words. -The intervention is not scripted. -Formative assessments were not used. Fidelity of implementation results are presented on p. 66. Based on a 12-point fidelity checklist, 32% of teachers implemented 10-12 strategies, 37% implemented 8-9 strategies, 25% implemented 5-7 strategies, and 7% implemented four or fewer strategies. Three quarters of teachers implemented all strategies associated with interactive book reading, but only one quarter of teachers implemented strategies for explicit vocabulary instruction or adult-child interaction. Only 13% of teachers implemented all 12 strategies.

Comparison Group

The comparison condition were schools with similar demographic characteristics who did not implement the supplemental program and went about business as usual.

Support for implementation

Teachers were trained initially at a group training. Three follow-up teleconferences were held during the program intervention, and classroom visits were conducted to observe implementation and provide feedback for teachers who were not implementing with fidelity.

Foundational Skills to Support Reading for Understanding in Kindergarten Through 3rd Grade

Review Details