Mediation in the relationship among EL status, vocabulary, and science reading comprehension

The authors investigated the mediating effects of general academic and science-specific vocabulary on science reading comprehension among English learners (ELs) of varied proficiency. The sample included 169 regular education Grade 7 students (86 current ELs; 83 former ELs) enrolled in 1 urban school in Pacific Northwest region of the United States. The results indicated that both vocabulary types—rarely explicitly taught at the secondary...