Rialto High School started the academic year off with a bang, sweeping the Vocabulary.com leaderboard with a back-to-school challenge from English teacher Jennifer Johnston to her AP students: master 100 words every week. She joined them in the 100-word-a-week challenge, putting herself out as the rabbit to beat in the race.
Ms. Johnston's enthusiasm for Vocabulary.com quickly caught the attention of fellow teachers Heather Bartlett and Dante Cabanas. Altogether, about 200 Rialto students mastered 30,400 vocabulary words in August, creating a sense of momentum and making the school a front-runner in the yearlong Vocabulary Bowl that began in September.
Top word learners at Rialto, pictured above, include Robert Cortez (544 words), Wallace Dharman (505 words), David Lozano (430 words), Macy Matsukawa (427 words), Diana Alvarado (422 words), Catherine Roy (422 words), Asahi Cortez (420 words), Tien Dinh (412 words), Jaime Castro (411 words) and Stephanie Alvarez (409 words). Top word learner Cortez, who is also wide receiver for Rialto's football team, attributed his success on Vocabulary.com to the game's addictive power. "You know how you get doing something, you keep on going and keep on going? It keeps your mind there. It's not like [learning vocabulary from a] book where you're like, 'Let me go do something else.'"
Ms. Johnston, pictured with school mascot at right, noted the importance of her own participation in the game. "Part of the success of the challenge is that they are always competing against me. I have to complete the same requirement as them. For instance in the grade book I hold them accountable for 100 words a week, if they finish all 100 words they get all 100 points out of 100 . . . unless I don't complete 100 words. Then their score is 100 [when they reach] whatever number I did complete. This allowed them the opportunity to potentially earn bonus [points] and to taunt me about my progress."
Competition aside, the students loved the flexibility built into the Vocabulary.com game, Ms. Johnston explained, and attributes their enthusiasm to two factors. "They like being in control. They like that they can do it anywhere. One student rides the bus to and from school and she said this keeps her busy. Also, they can practice whatever words they want, so for some of them it was killing two birds with one stone. Complete English assignment and prep for Biology test all at once."
Already, Ms. Johnston can see an increase in her students' engagement with the words. "They are using the words they are learning, making reference to new words, and asking questions," she explained. Student Wallace Dharman, who as part of his participation in Rialto's ROTC program, delivered a speech in a September 11th commemorative ceremony, said he found himself drawing on his newly expanded vocabulary. "I actually used a lot of words I had learned on Vocabulary.com," he said.
Cortez echoed the idea of the learning on Vocabulary.com going deeper than just a competition. "Not only are you beating everybody else, you're also learning," he said. "The words are being absorbed into your mind, into your head."
Ms. Johnston says she won't be surprised if Rialto students win it all in the Bowl. As the school's Vocabulary.com profile page shows, they've already learned more than 20,000 words in September. "They like feeling success and this program does just that for them. It makes them successful," she said, and then added, "I also promised them a big prize at the end of the year if we do win, and they love rewards and prizes."
Update, Sept. 25: Check out some nice local coverage of Rialto's banner win from The Rialto Record.