Vocabulary is one of the keys for children’s success as early learners, study finds

Four year olds who enter early learning settings with good vocabulary and attention skills are more successful learners, a new study from The Ohio State University has found. 

Published in the journal Early Education and Development the study of 900 four year olds showed that a child’s ability to engage with educators and peers is affected by the range of words they know.

Researchers also found that young children are more likely to get involved with classroom tasks if they have learned how to suppress inappropriate behavior and block out distracting thoughts and feelings.

“Children with lower inhibitory control and vocabulary skills appear to be at risk of displaying different kinds of non-engaging behaviors,” lead author Qingqing Yang explained.

To calculate skill levels, the researchers used several measures including the pencil tap test. This was used to assess inhibitory control – the child was instructed to tap once when the assessor tapped twice and vice versa.

For vocabulary, children were asked to name objects in pictures; and assessors rated classroom engagement with teachers, peers and tasks by spending around four hours observing each child individually.

Positive classroom engagement included sociability, communication, and self-reliance with tasks; and negative included conflict with teachers and peers as well as off-task behaviors.

Results showed that children with stronger vocabulary skills at the start of the preschool year displayed more positive engagement with both their teachers and peers.

In addition, those with better inhibitory control had more positive engagement with tasks and less negative interaction in the classroom.

Conversely, the study suggests that negative engagement in the classroom shapes vocabulary learning. The authors say their findings are an important step forward given that ‘a small change in children’s skills and experiences’ early on can ‘improve or impair’ their chance of academic success long-term.

To access the findings please see here.