The Effect of Familiarity with Content Knowledge on Iranian Medical Students’ Performance in Reading Comprehension Texts: A Comparative Study of Medical and TEFL Students

Abstract

This study considers the effect of relevant background knowledge (schema) on reading comprehension in a group of Iranian medical students. The participants were selected using random sampling from two different groups: thirty students enrolled in an MA course in TEFL, and thirty medical students in years 4 to 7 of a seven year medical course. The selection requirement for all participants was an IELTS score of between 6 and 7. All participants were asked to respond to two texts. The first was an academic text with a tendency towards using sub-technical medical terms (e.g. asthma, air ventilation), and which was part of a sample text for an IELTS reading skill test. The second text contained highly technical or subject-specific medical terms from neurology as a specific area of medicine. Both texts were selected by a medical specialist who had also taught English for Medical Purposes (EMP) for several years in medical colleges in Iran. After reading each text, students were asked to answer questions based on the text. The results obtained from an analysis of the scores using SPSS indicated that background knowledge plays an important role in text reading comprehension for medical students in Iran (p< 0.05). The study also considered the three phases of reading (pre-reading, reading, and post-reading) and ways to build and activate background knowledge (schema) to achieve better reading comprehension.