Text Complexity and
Academic Vocabulary
Tully 7-12
Catie Reeve
Phyllis Litzenberger
March 21, 2014
Common Core Literacy Shifts
1. Balancing Informational & Literary Texts (Grades PK-5)
2. Knowledge in the Disciplines (Grades 6-12)
3. Staircase of Complexity
4. Text-based Answers
5. Writing from Sources
6. Academic Vocabulary
Common Core Literacy Shifts
1. Building Knowledge Through Content Rich
Nonfiction
2. Regular Practice with Complex Text and Its
Academic Language
3. Reading and Writing Grounded in Evidence
From Text, Both Literary and Informational
Current Understanding
In your grade level teams,
discuss your current
understanding of the Staircase
of Complexity and Academic
Vocabulary shifts.
On your tables…
• Common Core Learning Standards
• Appendix A
• Supplemental Information for Appendix A
• Why Complex Texts Matter- David Liben
• Selection of Authentic Texts for Common Core Instruction:
Guidance and a List of Resources for Text Selection
Know/Need to Know
What questions do you have?
What are you wondering about
the role of text complexity and
academic vocabulary within a
common core aligned
curriculum ?
Common Understanding
Create common grade-level
definitions of the Staircase of
Complexity and Academic
Vocabulary shifts and record
them on chart paper.
Why complex texts?
Why complex texts?
Appendix A
• Research indicates that:
• … while the reading demands of college, workforce training
programs, and citizenship have held steady or risen over
the past fifty years or so, K-12 texts have, if anything,
become less demanding.
• Too many students reading at too low of a level. (Less than
50% of high school graduates can read sufficiently complex
texts.)
• What students can read, in terms of complexity, is greatest
predictor of success in college (2006 ACT study)
Increasing the staircase of
Complexity
Standard 10:
Read and comprehend
complex literary and
informational texts
independently and
proficiently.
Standard 1:
Read closely to determine
what the text says explicitly
and to make logical
inferences from it…
What Kinds of Complex Text?
Literature
Story grammar:
characters,
setting,
plot – problem,
important events,
solutionand theme
Fictional
Narratives
Poetry
Text Genres
Grades 6-12 ELA and
Literacy in History /
Social Studies, Science
and Technical Subjects
_________________
Balancing Informational and
Literary Texts
Informational
Text
“…the Standards demand that a
significant amount of reading of
informational texts take place in
and outside the ELA classroom …
Because the ELA classroom must
focus on literature … as well as
literary nonfiction, a great deal of
informational reading in grades 6–
12 must take place in other
classes.”
Predominantly
expository structures
with: print features
and captions, table of
contents, index,
diagrams, glossary,
and tables
~New York State P-12 Common
Core Learning Standards for ELA
and Literacy (p. 5)
Drama
Narrative
Structures
Expository
Structures
The standards emphasize
arguments and other literary
nonfiction, built on informational
(expository) text structures,
rather than narrative literary
nonfiction that are structured as
stories (such as memoirs or
biographies)
Created by Denise Alterio, Judy Carr, and Lynn Miller, Sullivan County BOCES, June 2012
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Short Stories 
Novels 
Myths/Fables/Tales 
Sonnets 
Free Verse 
Limericks 
Haiku 
Comedy 
Tragedy 
Melodrama 
Farce 
Biography
Autobiography
Memoir
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Description 
Sequence or Time / Order 
Compare and Contrast 
Cause and Effect 
 Problem / Solution 
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Essays 
Speeches 
Opinion Pieces 
Journalism 
Historical, Scientific and Other
Documents for a Broad Audience 
Measuring text complexity:
The three-part model
Quantitative
• Computer Software
Qualitative
• Human Reader
Reader and Task
• Our students and what we ask of them
Quantitative measures
• Readability formulas that measure…
• Word frequency
• Word length
• Sentence length
• Text length
• Text cohesion
ANYTHING THAT CAN BE COUNTED!
Text complexity bands
Text Complexity Grade
Bands in the Standards
Old Lexile Ranges
Lexile Ranges Aligned to
CCR expectations
K-1
N/A
N/A
2-3
450-725
420-820
4-5
645-845
740-1010
6-8
860-1010
925-1185
9-10
960-1115
1050-1335
11-CCR
1070-1220
1185-1385
www.lexile.com
Quantitative Measures
Remember, however, that the quantitative
measure is only the first part of the text
complexity triangle. Quantitative measures
should never be used in isolation!
The quantitative
measure may be
validated, influenced, or
even over-ruled by our
examination of
qualitative measures
and the reader and task
considerations.
Qualitative Measures
“…those aspects of
text complexity
best measured or
only measurable
by an attentive
human reader…”
CCSS, Appendix A,
p. 4
• Density and
Complexity
• Levels of meaning
• Explicitly or
implicitly stated
purpose
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Figurative language
Familiarity
Vocabulary
Sentence structure
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Meaning
and
Purpose
Structure
Language
Knowledge
Demands
Simplicity
Conventionality
Genre
Organization
Narration
Text features and
graphics
•Life Experience
•Cultural Knowledge
•Content Knowledge
•Intertextuality
Literary rubric
Informational rubric
Qualitative features of text
complexity explained
Group work
• Get into groups of 3 or 4. Make sure your group contains
at least one member from each discipline (ELA, Science
and Social Studies).
• Discuss the qualitative features of text (Purpose,
Structure, Language, Knowledge Demands). What
questions do you have? Attempt to answer them within
your group.
• What specific qualities make a text more complex within
each feature?
Evaluating text
• With a partner practice using the rubrics by
analyzing at least one text from the selection in the
folder at your table.
• Discuss your results with your table group.
ACADEMIC VOCABULARY
Importance of Vocabulary
Other Factors
26%
Vocabulary
74%
Up to 74% of a student’s reading comprehension
depends his understanding of the vocabulary.
Academic Vocabulary
Tier One
• Words of everyday speech
Tier Two
• Not specific to any one academic area
• Generally not well-defined by context or explicitly
defined within a text
• Wide applicability to many types of reading
Tier Three
• Domain specific
• Low-frequency
• Often explicitly defined
• Usually heavily scaffolded
• Knowledge of the language of a discipline is
necessary for student success in a subject.
• Words work differently in different disciplines (e.g.,
“function,”)
• Each discipline has their own set of words to
represent their valued concepts and literacy
processes.
EngageNY.org
Academic Language
Antonacci & O’ Callaghan (2011)
27
Academic Vocabulary in ELA
Tier 3
Words
28
Tier 2
Words
archetype
summons
epic poetry
affirmative
mythology
titanic
Odyssey
disintegration
Academic Vocabulary in History
Tier 3
Words
29
Tier 2
Words
abolition
inclined
radical
aggressive
secede
sublime
martial law
convictions
Academic Vocabulary in Science
Tier 3
Words
30
Tier 2
Words
cell
membrane
buzzes
cell wall
crammed
nucleus
shuttling
cytoplasm
cranking
How to Build Academic Language
• Make It Intentional
• Make It Transparent
• Make vocabulary instruction explicit through effective questioning,
modeling, and instruction that builds understanding of the word AND
the text.
EngageNY.org
• Select high-leverage, meaningful vocabulary for explicit, studentcentered, instruction.
• Make It Useable
• Provide regular opportunities for students to practice with highleverage vocabulary in writing tasks and in discussion about text.
• Make It Personal
• Provide a volume, and variety of independent reading that includes
both fiction and non-fiction texts.
(adapted from Fisher, 2008)
31
Two Aspects of Vocabulary
Amount of Instructional Time
• Words that need more time: abstract, have multiple
meanings, and/or are a part of a word family
• Words that need less time: concrete or describe
events/processes/ideas/concepts/experiences that are
familiar to students
EngageNY.org
32
Context
• Words students can figure out from content
• Words for which the definition needs to be provided
Misconception Alert!
• Spending time on words doesn’t mean copying
dictionary definitions
• Commit to text-based word work
34
• Select words critical to understanding the text.
• Select words critical to the disciplinary thinking
we do with text.
EngageNY.org
• License to ignore some words doesn’t mean
ignore ALL words.
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• Vocabulary Analysis of an text.
• Read the excerpt.
• Annotate for vocabulary words potentially
challenging to your students.
• Share your list with a partner.
• In pairs, prioritize your words by placing your
annotated words on the blank Academic
Vocabulary Quadrant Chart.
EngageNY.org
Try This: Text Analysis
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Open-ended
Text-dependent
Analyzes word relationships
• Explicit modeling of textual analysis.
MISCONCEPTION ALERTS: Questioning and modeling
aren’t “transmitting.” Students must do the work
of learning.
(Marzano & Pickering 2005; Nagy, 1989; Nagy & Scott, 2000; Paribakht & Wesche, 1997)
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• Effective questioning of the language in the
text:
EngageNY.org
Transparent Approaches
Useable Approaches
• Use high-leverage vocabulary in discussion tasks
• Discuss language use
MISCONCEPTION ALERTS: Writing and talking about
vocabulary does not mean writing and reciting
definitions. Use vocabulary to think, write, and talk
about the text.
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• Quick write prompts, collaborative writing tasks,
assessments
EngageNY.org
• Using high-leverage vocabulary in writing tasks
In Action…
• Teaching Academic and Scientific Vocabulary- Common Core
Literacy
Vocabulary Strategies
•Frayer Model
•Semantic Mapping
•Semantic Feature Analysis
•Linear Arrays
Frayer Model
Semantic Mapping
Semantic Feature Analysis
Linear Arrays
WRITING FROM SOURCES
SUBSHIFTS
Common Core Literacy Shifts
1. Balancing Informational & Literary Texts (Grades PK-5)
2. Knowledge in the Disciplines (Grades 6-12)
3. Staircase of Complexity
4. Text-based Answers
5. Writing from Sources
6. Academic Vocabulary
Writing from Sources
Subshifts
Subshift A
Work with sources
Subshift B
Grapple with complex text and content; leverage academic
vocabulary
Subshift C
Emphasize questioning, inquiry, and explaining understanding
rather than defense
Subshift D
Follow inquiry process:
questions, sources, information, scope and plan product
Subshift E
Use technology and other minds
Subshift F
Repeat
Writing from Sources
Writing needs to emphasize the use of evidence to
inform or make an argument rather than personal
narrative or decontextualized prompts.
Writing from Sources
While narrative still has an important role, students
develop skills through written arguments that
respond to the ideas, events, facts, and arguments
presented in the texts they read.
ELA/Literacy Shift 5:
Writing from Sources
Our Students Need to…
• Generate more
informational text
• Organize evidence to
support a claim
• Compare evidence from
multiple sources
• Make arguments using
evidence
So We Need to…
• Spend less time on personal
narrative
• Present opportunities to write
from multiple sources
• Give opportunities to analyze
and synthesize ideas
• Develop student’ ability to
argue a point with evidence
• Give students permission to
reach their own conclusions
about what they read and
articulate those conclusions
Writing Progressions
50 EngageNY.org
Productive Inquiry
Productive Inquiry
“In essence, the standards and the
tests that will assess them are
expecting that students become
researchers – not graphic organizer
filler-in-ers, not text copiers, but
independently thinking, curious ,
and rigorous researchers…”
“…Taking time to teach students to
research well is taking time to
teach them the skills of the
standards. Teaching students to
research well is teaching them to
learn well.”
Christopher Lehman, Energize Research Reading & Writing, p.3
All roads lead to research!
Why do Core Research?
Our students need to
be able to find,
evaluate, and apply
information now.
More importantly, the
ability to research and
to express an
understanding of it are
authentic college and
career ready skills.
How is Core Research different?
The focus is on inquiry-based research.
It’s about research to help students deepen their
understanding of a topic and support them as they express
that understanding.
It’s not about searching for information to support
conclusions we’ve already made.
How is Core Research different?
Inquiry
Coverage
• Attitude of question and
reflecting with cognition
• Start with a question
• Investigation is open
• Center is within student
• Answers involving building
ideas
• Messy, recursive
• Open-ended
• Teacher selection and
direction
• Assigned topics and isolated
facts
• Student as information
receiver
• Reliance on a textbook
• Hearing about a discipline
• One subject at a time
From Barbara K. Stripling “Inquiry-Based Learning.” Curriculum Connections through the Library
From Barbara K. Stripling “Inquiry-Based Learning.” Curriculum Connections through the Library
Inquiry Skills and Strategies
• Connect: Initiate Inquiry
• Wonder: Generate Questions
• Investigate: Gather Information
• Construct: Deepen Understanding and
Finalize Inquiry
• Express: Develop and Communicate
Evidence-Based Perspectives
• REFLECT
Thank you!
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great weekend!