About the Project
Previous studies suggest that knowledge of the smallest meaning-bearing linguistic elements of language, morphemes, has a positive effect on vocabulary development as well as reading and spelling abilities.
This project aimed to develop and test a digital vocabulary intervention based on the following two principles:
- Strengthen the students’ knowledge of common Norwegian derivational morphemes For example "co"- in cooperate and "mis"- in misunderstand
- Use variation in input systematically to facilitate generalization of the linguistic knowledge.
The intervention has been tested in a randomized controlled study with 717 second graders.
(Videoproduction: Shane Colvin, UiO).
Captain Morph
Captain Morph is a self-instructive digital intervention consisting of 40 app sessions targeting knowledge of derivational affixes and compounding in Norwegian. It does not contain explicit definitions, as children are assumed to acquire the meanings and orthographies of the learning targets implicitly by working with each target in a large number of different root word and picture contexts. The app is made for primary school children, and there is audio support for all written content.
Financing
The Research Council of Norway (FRIPRO)
Cooperation
- Jan-Eric Gustavsson, University of Gothenburg
- Catherine Snow, Harvard University
- Charles Hulme, University of Oxford
Sub-projects
- Understanding and enhancing morphological knowledge in children with language minority backgrounds. PhD-project: Siri Steffensen Bratlie
- Affect and behavior in Digital Classrooms. PhD-project: Jarl Kleppe Kristensen
