Overview
Membean has three word lists for students. Students are assigned to a word list based on their grade level and their performance during our calibration process. Students in grades 5-8 will be assigned to either the Lower Middle School or Middle-High School List. Students in grade 9-12 will be assigned to the High School List, with the exception of those marked Extra Help (these students will be assigned to the Lower Middle or Middle-High list). This article will explain our word lists and how students progress through them.
Word Lists
| List Name | Words | Levels | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lower Middle School | 500 | 3 | Students in grades 5-8 will either be assigned to this list or the Middle-High School list, depending on their calibration performance. Students marked as Extra Help (or belonging to a class marked Extra Help), as well as middle schoolers who need a little help with their vocabulary are typically placed on Level 1 of this list. |
| Middle - High School | 1630 | 5 | Students in grades 5-8 will either be assigned to this list or the Lower Middle School List, depending on their calibration performance. Since some middle school students have a robust vocabulary, the upper levels of this list overlap significantly with the High School List (as shown in the graphic below). Therefore, it's okay for incoming high school freshman who used Membean in middle school to stay on this list until they have reached level 5. They will still be learning "high school" words (just like their peers), and will be automatically moved to the High School List when they are ready. |
| High School | 2156 | 6 | Many high school students (including 12th graders) will calibrate at Level 1 on this list. The lower levels of this list overlap with the Middle-High School List. Struggling readers or or ESL/ELL students will generally be placed on the Lower Middle School or Middle-High School List instead of this list if the teacher utilizes the Extra Help setting. |
Word Lists and Grade Levels
The levels within each word list do not correlate with grade levels. Levels are simply groupings of words within each list based on progressive difficulty.
If you feel that one of your students has been placed on the wrong word list, you can email [email protected], and we will look into the account for you.
How Does A Student Progress Through Word Lists?
Once a student has worked their way through a word list, they will automatically progress to the next word list as illustrated below.
When a student has completed the Lower Middle School List, they will automatically be moved to Level 1 of the Middle-High School List. When a student has completed the Middle-High School List, they will automatically be moved to about halfway through Level 3 of the High School List. This is because there is significant overlap between the Middle-High School and High School Lists.
Don't worry, Membean is very sensitive to gaps in vocabulary knowledge that may arise from our initial calibration process and ensures that students do not progress to another word list until we are confident that they are proficient in the words from the previous list. You can read more about how students work their way through the levels in each word list here.
Will Students Still Review Words from Previous Lists?
Absolutely. Once a student is promoted to a new word list, they will still periodically see words from the previous lists. Membean is a long-term learning tool, and it takes a lot of review to ensure that words are retained properly. Regardless of which word list a student is currently on, they will still continue to see words from their past training, ensuring that all the words they have learned on Membean will stay active in their memory.
Will Quizzes Have Questions from Previous Lists?
Yes. All the words that a student has ever studied on Membean are fair game on a quiz. Words on lower word lists are treated just like every other word in a student's memory. If a word is deemed "quizzable" by Membean, it can appear on a student's quiz.