A suggested program based on 21st-century skills and its impact on developing Palestinian Ninth Graders' reading Comprehension Skills

Abstract

The study aimed at investigating the effectiveness of a suggested program based on 21st-century skills in improving 9th graders’ reading comprehension skills. The sample of the study was two ninth-grade intact classes each was comprised of (41) students selected randomly from Beach Preparatory School "B" for Palestinian refugees in the West Gaza Area. One class constituted the experimental group while the other represented the control one. To realize the purpose of the study, the researchers implemented two tools: 1) a pre-post achievement test 2) a semi-structured interview. The findings of the study revealed that the suggested program based on 21st-century skills positively affected the 9th graders’ reading comprehension skills. Furthermore, the results showed that the students in the experimental group were able to analyze, synthesize, and summarize the text, connect and relate ideas to their lives, and suggest creative solutions for the problems. It became clear that developing reading comprehension text in light of 21st-century skills upgraded understanding the content as it was greatly related to life and helped them to interact positively in different situations. In the light of the program, EFL Palestinian teachers are recommended teach the reading texts considering 21st-century skills as a means to improve the learners’ reading comprehension skills.