Grant: Master's Award: Canada Graduate Research Scholarships - Master's program

Growing Vocabulary:The role of dosase in explicit tier-2 vocabulary instruction for minority-french language settings. The acquisition of Tier-2 vocabulary is crucial for early language development and later academic success. However, children from minority-languge backgrounds often have fewer opportunities to encounter and practice this vocabulary, which can limit their learning. This project addresses this inequality by implementing a storybook reading intervention program based on explicit vocabulary instruction, specifically designed for preschool french language settings. This project will investigate how dosage, or the frequency of interactive reading sessions, affects vocabulary learning. The objective is to evaluate the extent to which increased exposure influences immediate word learning and contributes to long-term retention. 40 children will take part in this study (n=40, SD=5). During the pre-reading intervention, children will be tested with standardised and project specific measures designed to evaluate both the depth and breadth of vocabulary acquisition. Participants will then be randomly divided into two groups: one will receive eight reading sessions (twice weekly, over four weeks) and the othe will receive 16 sessions ( four times a week, over four weeks). After the intervention, they will be re-assessed using the same measures. One month later, these measures will be repeated to gauge long-term retention. Data collection for the intervention phase is currently underway. The findings from this study will inform evidence based recommendations on optimal dosage for vocabulary intervention in minority french-language contexts, which will strengthen early language outcomes for children in minority francophone settings.