Effects of Context Clue–Based Intervention on Vocabulary Learning in Children With Reading Comprehension Difficulties

Purpose: This study examined the effects of a context-clue–based intervention on vocabulary learning in children with reading comprehension difficulties. Method: Three elementary school students in Grades 4–5 with reading comprehension difficulties participated. A multiple-probe design across participants was employed. The intervention consisted of 11 sessions of context-clue instruction incorporating three strategies: explanation, synonym/near-synonym, and contrast. During the intervention, session-by-session formative assessments were administered, and vocabulary learning was measured across baseline, intervention, and maintenance phases. Changes in progress scores were used to analyze improvement in the ability to infer word meanings. Results: All three participants showed increased scores in vocabulary meaning inference during the intervention phase compared with baseline, and the improved performance was maintained during the maintenance phase, indicating sustained intervention effects. Conclusion: The findings suggest that intervention using contextual clues to infer the meanings of unfamiliar words is effective in improving vocabulary learning and strategic inference abilities in children with reading comprehension difficulties.