Contributions of language-specific and metacognitive skills to science reading comprehension of middle school English learners

Abstract

ABSTRACTThis nonexperimental study examined academic performance profiles and contributions of language-specific and metacognitive skills to science reading comprehension of Grade 7 students of varied English proficiency. The sample included 204 regular education students, most of whom were English learners (ELs; 35 non-ELs, 86 current ELs, and 83 former ELs). Results of descriptive analyses highlighted strong academic performance by former ELs. Their overall academic profile was closer to that of non-ELs than to that of current ELs. Results of regression models indicated that, regardless of EL status, science vocabulary was the biggest predictor of science reading comprehension; academic vocabulary was not a significant predictor of science reading comprehension of current ELs above and beyond science vocabulary. Further, the results from the former EL model showed a marginally significant benefit of memory strategies above and beyond language-specific skills (R2 = .06, p < .05). These findings suggest that an instructional focus on science-specific technical vocabulary is needed and that bilingual learners at different proficiency levels may draw on different skill sets to support their reading comprehension. Implications for practice, theory, and future research are discussed.