Abstract
This study is an attempt to investigate impact of using a technique, namely, genre-based approach on improving reading ability on Iranian EFL learners' achievement. Therefore, an attempt was made to compare genre-based approach to teaching reading with traditional approaches. For achieving this purpose, by administering the Oxford Quick Placement Test (OQPT) 80 female EFL learners were chosen. We assigned the participants to an experimental and a control group randomly. A reading test was administered on the whole population as the pretest. 10 reading passages were taught using the tenets of genre based instruction, while the same reading passages were taught to the participants in the control group traditionally. After 10 sessions of instruction when all the passages were taught, the participants sat for a posttest. The research hypothesis according to which using genre-based approach to teaching reading does not significantly improve reading ability of Iranian EFL learners was rejected at 0.05 level of significance. Differently stated, using genre-based approach to teach reading can improve EFL learners’ performance in their reading classes. The result also showed that there is a meaningful difference between the performance of students who go under a traditional approach in teaching reading comprehension and those who are instructed using genre-based approach. The outcomes of this study can be used by English language teachers to consider the importance of a genre-based instruction. Keywords : Genre-Based Instruction (GBI), Reading comprehension, Iranian EFL learners, Reading comprehension
Highlights
Instructing reading skills to the students is one of the most important purposes of any language course
The results show that genre-based pedagogy affects the reading comprehension of the English for specific purpose learners significantly
As the topic of this study suggests, this research was going to study any possible impact of using genre-based approach on improving reading comprehension of Iranian EFL learners; in order to make sure of the homogeneity of the participants in terms of their reading comprehension, a reading test was run among them
Summary
Instructing reading skills to the students is one of the most important purposes of any language course. Reading comprehension is one of the crucial skills fundamental for any language learner including the high school students. The students need to make their reading comprehension better to further their studies in higher education or many projects that the teachers ask them. A number of methodologies have been introduced in teaching English language in general and reading comprehension in particular. Among various approaches in teaching reading comprehension (e.g. critical reading, critical discourse analysis, skill model, etc.) genre analysis seems to be prominent. Review of literature shows that implementing a genre-based instruction in teaching reading skill influences the reading abilities of the students positively Review of literature shows that implementing a genre-based instruction in teaching reading skill influences the reading abilities of the students positively (e.g. Shishehsaz, 2006)
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