Strengthening Vocabulary to Improve Students’ Grades and Overall Expression in English

What if your students write grammatically correct sentences — but still struggle to expand their vocabulary?

This action research explored whether targeted vocabulary-building strategies could improve middle school students’ grades, comprehension, and overall written and spoken expression, not just memorisation of meanings.

PROBLEM IN
CONTEXT

What the Data Revealed

At Liberty Campus, Lahore, middle school students (Grades 7 and 8) were struggling to use grade-level vocabulary in their writing and speech. Even when students understood the topic, their expression remained basic, repetitive, and often lacked the subject-specific and academic vocabulary needed for stronger performance in assessments and communication.

Why it Mattered

This gap mattered because vocabulary is directly linked to comprehension, clarity of expression, and academic achievement. Without strong word knowledge, students struggle to understand complex texts, articulate ideas effectively, and meet the expectations of written tasks and oral presentations. Since vocabulary development affects performance across the English curriculum, it became important to address it through planned instruction rather than leaving it to chance.

This challenge raised an important question for the teaching team: If students can complete English tasks, why do they still struggle to express themselves using appropriate vocabulary? To explore this systematically, action research was used to examine whether strategies like Word Wall, Word of the Day, word associations, contextual practice, and paragraph writing could strengthen vocabulary usage and improve grades.

A performance target was established: students would show visible improvement in vocabulary usage and demonstrate stronger performance in class assessments and written/oral tasks.

Research Question

How vocabulary building strategies impact students’ grades and communicative competence in English?

Objective 01

Strengthen Grade-Appropriate Vocabulary

To ensure students consistently use age-appropriate and meaningful vocabulary in written and spoken communication.

Objective 03

Improve Expression and Communication

To support clearer, richer expression in paragraph writing, assignments, and oral presentations through active vocabulary use.

Objective 02

Improve Grades Through Vocabulary Growth

To examine whether better vocabulary knowledge leads to improved performance in CATs, exams, and classroom tasks.

Objective 04

Increase Comprehension and Confidence

To help students understand texts more effectively and feel more confident using new vocabulary in academic settings.

INTERVENTION TIMELINE AND ACTIVITIES

Phase 1 – Baseline Identification (Mid-Term)

  • Average-performing students were selected anonymously for monitoring

  • Baseline vocabulary gaps were observed through classwork and assessment performance

Phase 2 – Strategy Implementation (Ongoing Classroom Practice)

Vocabulary strategies applied across lessons for Grades 7 & 8:

  • Word Wall + Word of the Day

  • Word Association (Frayer model / links to prior knowledge)

  • Context-based practice using reading material

  • Paragraph/story writing using assigned vocabulary

  • Games and activities (charades, spelling bee, exit tickets, vocabulary theatre)

  • Extra reading + vocabulary lists shared on Google Classroom

Phase 3 – Assessment Checkpoints

  • Progress reviewed through Feb CATs, Bifurcation exam (Grade 8), and April CATs (Grade 7)

  • Vocabulary assessment results compared over time

FINDINGS AND IMPLICATIONS

Vocabulary Strategies Led to Steady Improvement Over Time

Across both grades, results showed gradual improvement after sustained practice. In Grade 7, scores improved steadily from baseline through multiple assessment checkpoints, alongside noticeable improvement in vocabulary understanding.

Grade 8 Performance Remained Strong with Upward Shifts

Grade 8 results stayed mostly consistent but showed improvement patterns across assessments. Many students scored within a 70–91 range, with some students showing marked gains (e.g., one student reaching 91 in the Bifurcation exam), indicating vocabulary instruction supported stronger academic outcomes.

Students’ Expression Improved, But Took Time to Appear in Writing

Teachers observed stronger vocabulary recognition and understanding quickly, but transfer into writing was slower. With repetition and contextual usage tasks, students began using richer vocabulary more confidently in assignments and presentations.

The Most Effective Strategy Was “Context + Visibility”

The strongest impact came when vocabulary was taught in context first and then kept visibly available through the Word Wall/Word of the Day. This improved recall and encouraged students to reuse words in daily communication.

If you’re interested to learn more about the intervention, methodology, resources or the results, click on the relevant button below to access the full research report.

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Here’s the report podcast if you’re interested.

Sidrah Qaiser

Teacher

Sidra teaches English to Grade 7 and has a strong research background, with two articles published in HEC-approved journals. She believes that research provides deeper insight into daily teaching practices and supports informed, impactful decision-making. As a researcher, she consistently stays ahead of emerging trends, anticipating and responding effectively to the evolving needs of modern learners.

Isbah Naeem

Subject Lead

Isbah teaches Grade 8 English at this prestigious institution. As a researcher, she explored vocabulary development through engaging, activity-based strategies, finding the experience both enriching and reflective. She believes that research strengthens instructional practices, deepens student learning, and empowers teachers to make informed and impactful classroom decisions.

Shehla Zaib

Teacher

Shehla teaches Grade 8 English, and her research focused on vocabulary enhancement. Through this work, she explored effective strategies to strengthen her students’ vocabulary and equip them with the linguistic tools needed for advanced communication and academic success. As a result, students demonstrated measurable improvement through more accurate usage and clearer, more confident expression.