This Is AuburnElectronic Theses and Dissertations

A Study of the Use of Wordmapping in Ninth-Grade Remedial English Classes

Date

2007-12-15

Author

Steinen, Nancy

Type of Degree

Dissertation

Department

Curriculum and Teaching

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to examine the effectiveness of using wordmapping with struggling learners between the ages of 13 and 15. An experimental group (the wordmapping group) and a treated control group (the vocabulary group) studied the same lists of words each week. The researcher taught students in the wordmapping group to divide the words into syllables, count the phonemes in each syllable, and write the letters corresponding to each phoneme. The classroom teacher taught the vocabulary group the meanings of the words. Data on spelling, reading comprehension, and reading decoding, was collected from 20 students, 14 in the wordmapping group and 6 in the vocabulary group. There was a statistically significant difference (p < .05) on the posttest scores of the two groups on two measures of spelling. No significant differences were found in the posttest measures of reading comprehension or reading decoding. The study provides support for using wordmapping to help older students improve their spelling skills