SAT Vocabulary Instruction for High School Students with Learning Disabilities

A teacher wanted to know whether mnemonic strategies would be useful for high school students with learning disabilities. Over a 6-week period, this teacher taught the students SAT vocabulary words using either a traditional instructional approach or pictorial mnemonic keyword strategies she had developed. At the end of the instructional period, the students had learned 92% of the words under mnemonic instruction but only 49% of the words under the more traditional approach. Implications for vocabulary instruction of high school students with learning disabilities are discussed.