After reading chapter 12 one thing that really got my
attention was vocabulary which may seem so silly since we as individuals use it
everyday. In the topic of vocabulary we may think just about how things are
said or put together but really look at the process of how you learn it or
obtained it. When did you learn words or parts of your vocabulary? Who taught
you? How early did you develop the skill? All these question have sparked me
and interest this topic since some people have a larger or smaller vocabulary than
others. Why is that one may use lots of different words when someone else in
society may use so little words. One thing that is a contributing factor is due
to poverty and economic status. From our textbook a study was done and found
that individuals who have a smaller vocabulary have a lower economic status
which affects the amount of words used. Children can become behind in learning
and that can prevent the child from the same opportunities as another child.
Parents who have different status backgrounds may have a variation of exposure
of words, expectations, and advancement of concepts or foundations of learning
for there children. The chart listed in the text shows the levels and sequence
of expectations of reading and where a child should place at each age. Its fascinating
to know that there are standards and levels which can help parents to ensure
and make aware to there children.
I also found the vocabulary section of the chapter quite interesting! Like you, I’ve also wondered how some people can pick up vocabulary more easily than others. What makes one person more likely to have a larger vocabulary than the next person? While studying for the SATs during tenth and eleventh grades, I remember that some of my friends could pick up vocabulary so quickly and naturally, while others had a more difficult time. After reading the chapter, I learned that there are various factors as to why people have different sized vocabularies. Like you explained, socioeconomic status is a huge contributor to the level of someone’s vocabulary. Families with lower SES use less developed language; therefore their children do not learn as much as children from families with higher SES. They have smaller vocabularies, simpler grammar, and shorter sentences. Another factor that affects vocabulary is parents’ educational statuses. As reported in our textbook, the National Center for Education Statistics found that “24 percent of the children of mothers with less than a high school education” are read to daily, while “70 percent of the children of mothers with at least a BA” are read to daily (Berger 331). Hopefully children of lower SES will be able to overcome social norms and expand their vocabulary and language as children with normal and higher SES statuses are able to.
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