10.2 Morphology

When and Where did I find the word: I found this word in the article that Carrie and Meghan assigned to the class this week. The word can be found on page 137 of the article. 

Citation: Kieffer, M. J.  & Lesaux, N. K.  (2007).  Breaking down words to build meaning:
                            Morphology, vocabulary, and reading comprehension in the urban classroom.
                            The Reading Teacher, 6(12), 134-144. 


What is means: The authors state that "the word morphology can be broken down (morphologically) into two meaningful parts (known as morphemes): morph- meaning shape and ology-meaning the study of.  Thus, morphology, in its most generic form is the study of shape.  In language and reading morphology refers to the study of the structure of the words, particularly the smallest units of meaning in words: morphemes" (p. 137). 

Level of Familiarity: I am familiar with this word.  I have heard this word a lot during my graduate work. 

Do I Want to Know This Word Well and Why?  As a literacy specialist and as an educator I think that it is imperative that I know this word, not only for myself but for my students. Like the authors of the text say, knowing how to break down words and look at prefixes or suffixes is important when it comes to building vocabulary which ultimately helps to aid in comprehension of the text.  Students need to be aware of morphology and how to break down words into smaller root parts. 

Do I Think Others Should Know This Word Well...if so WHO and WHY?: I think that everyone should have a knowledge of this word.  Morphology is important for students in their vocabulary development.  The authors state that "effective word-learners attack unknown words, break them into their meaningful parts, hypothesize meanings against the context of the text as well as their own background knowledge" (p. 135).   As educators we need to stress the importance of morphology to our students.  Students need to be able to break down words in order to succeed.