Welcome to the AERA Vocabulary SIG!

I am so glad to be serving as Chair of the SIG for the next two years. Our SIG has a membership of excellent scholars who are passionate about all aspects of vocabulary. And, we are committed to helping researchers connect with each other and to communicating the importance of vocabulary research and practice.

We welcome all researchers with an interest in vocabulary, both on its own, and in relation to other important topics, like equity, cognition, comprehension, and achievement. If you are interested in how words work, how word knowledge develops, and how word knowledge relates to any number of important topics, our SIG will give you opportunities to connect and learn from other researchers.

We’d love to have your involvement in the Vocabulary SIG. To get involved, you can:

• showing your commitment to vocabulary research by becoming a member of the SIG,
• submit proposals to the SIG for AERA annual meetings
• nominate a colleague or student for one of our awards,
• and support SIG efforts by volunteering to serve on a committee.

Also, please consider sending your proposal for a paper or symposium session to the SIG, and encourage your graduate students to do the same. The more voices we have sharing work on vocabulary and related topics, the better! Also, our viability as a SIG is related to our membership and the number of the number of papers submitted. We really want to hear from you to keep our SIG a vibrant and valuable resource for you.

In addition to sponsoring events at the annual meeting, we send out a biannual newsletter that compiles a list of vocabulary-related publications by members. This is a great way to keep up-to-date on the latest vocabulary research. Please email me to share your latest publications.

As Chair of the Vocabulary SIG, I look forward to seeing you at the annual meeting. We are making plans for an innovative and dynamic set of sessions. In the meantime, feel free to contact me with any questions or comments you may have. I hope you will help us continue to grow the Vocabulary SIG this year!

Warm Regards,

Dianna Townsend

dtownsend@unr.edu

Chair, Vocabulary SIG