Foreign Language Reading Research Articles

Relationship among EFL reading comprehension, silent reading rate, vocabulary, and reading motivation

As a subset of the large-scale research on several issues related to EFL reading comprehension and instruction, this study investigates the potential relationship among English as a Foreign Language (EFL) reading comprehension, silent reading rate, vocabulary knowledge (i.e., receptive and productive vocabulary knowledge), and reading motivation (i.e., intrinsic and extrinsic reading motivation), as well as the relative contribution of each of these factors to EFL reading comprehension. Data were collected through a reading comprehension and rate test, receptive and productive vocabulary tests, and a reading motivation questionnaire administered to university level EFL learners enrolled in a state university in Turkey. Findings indicated a positive, moderately significant correlation between receptive and controlled productive vocabulary knowledge (p < 0.05) and a weak but significantly positive correlation between silent reading rate and reading motivation (p < 0.05). Findings also showed that silent reading rate and intrinsic reading motivation significantly predicted EFL reading comprehension (p < 0.05). Implications for pedagogy and suggestions for future EFL reading research are discussed.

Investigating the relationship between learning anxieties and learning strategies used by EFL teachers and students

This research has investigated the relationship between learning anxieties and learning strategies and has explored the effect of learning anxieties on learning strategies used by B.A EFL student of the Islamic Azad University of Ardabil branch. Overall, 103 students participated in this investigation, and two questionnaires were used for collecting data. To this end, Foreign Language Reading Anxiety Scale (FLRAS) was utilized to measure the learning anxiety of students and to investigate the le

Going beyond the Text: Interactional Competence in Reading Comprehension Class

Drawing on the principles underlying conversation analysis (CA), this paper is a single case analysis of interaction in an English as a foreign language (EFL) reading comprehension classroom in Saudi Arabia. It looks at learning from a sociocultural perspective and uses constructs from this theoretical perspective. It focuses on Classroom Interactional Competence (CIC) (Walsh, 2013), showing classroom interaction features that are considered CIC. The paper reflects how an understanding of the concept can lead to more dialogic, engaged learning environments. The paper also connects CIC to teachers’ ability to manipulate simple classroom interactional resources to make the teaching process more effective. The paper demonstrates how teachers can induce CIC by utilizing interactional techniques, such as relaxing the mechanism and speed through which turns are taken or given, use of active listenership devices, extending wait time, and use of open-ended questions to expand topics under development. The paper argues that those techniques will help teachers, as evidenced from the cited examples, further enhance classroom participation so that it is convergent with their pedagogical goals. Finally, the paper has pedagogical implementations as it sheds light on techniques that help promote classroom interaction as an indication of learning among students with limited linguistic resources.

Do EFL Teachers Reduce the Reading Gap in Qatar? A Study of Strategy Instruction in Government Schools

Teachers’ instructional practices are crucial to students’ achievement in reading comprehension. Students’ low English reading competence in Qatar’s government schools raises concerns about not only reading comprehension strategy instruction, but also, subsequently, learning as a natural outcome of teachers’ praxis. This quantitative survey investigated English as a foreign language (EFL) reading comprehension strategy instruction of a broad cross-sectional sample of (1-12) EFL teachers (n=754) of government schools in Qatar. The study examines teachers’ most frequently used strategies and explicit strategy instruction. To relate the findings of an exploratory data analysis, descriptive statistics, including means, standard deviations, and frequencies, were calculated for each 5-point Likert scale questionnaire item using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS-Version 24) statistics software. Results revealed that participant teachers reported a generally moderate and high frequency of using comprehension strategies (lowest mean 3.56 and highest mean 4.52). The seven most used strategies (mean score ≥4) were: Identify main ideas, set purpose for reading, predictions, preview text, monitor comprehension, prior knowledge activation, and handle unfamiliar words. Conversely, the five strategies reported a comparatively lower use frequency (mean score ˂4) were: Text structure, questioning, visualizing, summarizing, and think aloud. The major findings on explicit strategy instruction indicated that teachers ignored the gradual release of responsibility to students. The implications of these findings suggest that EFL teachers demonstrate moderate use of reading comprehension strategy instruction. Further recommendations for the Ministry of Education, school principals, and teachers are offered.

Mobile-assisted or paper-based? The influence of the reading medium on the reading comprehension of English as a foreign language

The issues of whether mobile-assisted English as a foreign language (EFL) reading is effective have become increasingly important for EFL teachers and policy-makers. However, empirical studies investigating EFL students’ reading comprehension performance on mobile phones and students’ perceptions of these reading formats are lacking. The present research employed questionnaire surveys and semistructured interviews to investigate whether differences exist between mobile-assisted and paper-based EFL reading in terms of participants’ reading comprehension accuracy, reading speed, and reading strategy used (i.e. general, problem-solving or support strategies) and explore EFL learners’ perceptions of mobile-assisted EFL reading. A sample of 81 first-year college students participated in a quasiexperiment, 6 participants participated in a semistructured interview, and a sample of an additional 10 students participated in a pilot study. The analyses, including qualitative descriptions, mixed-design analysis of variance (ANOVA), paired-sample t-tests, and independent-sample t-tests, indicated that participants achieved superior reading comprehension accuracy when reading from printed paper compared to reading from mobile phones. Superior reading speed from paper was observed only when participants were instructed to read and complete the comprehension test the first time, while no difference in speed between the two reading media was observed the second time. Additionally, participants’ use of reading strategies during mobile-assisted EFL reading was not as effective as that during paper reading. Regarding participants’ preferences, most participants (79%) preferred reading from paper over mobile phones because hard copies provided a better reading experience and promoted active reading engagement. However, participants held positive attitudes toward mobile-assisted EFL learning and wanted to continue to read from mobile phones to assist their foreign language learning due to their convenient built-in functions and portability. The implications for the use of mobile devices to assist language pedagogical practice are discussed.

Foreign Language Reading Comprehension in the Context of Internet Use

Reading comprehension is a complex mental performance of an individual, which is strongly influenced by the modern phenomenon of the use of the Internet. The main goal of the study is to examine the relationship between foreign language reading comprehension (in English and German) and the Internet use (time spent on the Internet, the Internet addiction). The results of the research confirmed negative relationship between the time spent online and reading comprehension in German. Internet addiction is positively correlated with reading comprehension in English, this relationship is influenced by demographic variables of students’ gender and the type of school attended.

Examining the effectiveness of online resources in developing English as a Foreign Language (EFL) reading skills autonomously

The purpose of this mixed methods study is to investigate the effectiveness of online resources in developing English as a Foreign Language (EFL) reading skills autonomously among undergraduate students at the Faculty of Letters and Humanities Fes-Agdal as a representative of the socio-cultural and higher education system of Morocco. The sample consisted of an experimental group and a control group. The experimental group consisted of 120 students that were exposed to three main online tools (Newsela.com, mrnussbaum.com, and rewordify.com) and virtual meetings and instruction provision using Facebook. The control group consisted of 120 students that benefited only from the university’s regular reading courses. The experimental intervention period was followed by interviews with a sample of 25 students from both groups providing a qualitative perspective. The overall results show that online resources had a positive effect on the development of metacognitive skills. Students tended to appreciate the inclusion of online resources in the classroom without devaluing the role of their EFL teacher – the students did not expect online resources to fully replace the role of their teachers.

FOREIGN LANGUAGE READING ANXIETY AMONG THEOLOGY DEPARTMENT STUDENTS: CONTRIBUTING FACTORS AND ALLEVIATING STRATEGIES

The study investigated factors contributing to English for Theology students’ Foreign Language Reading Anxiety (FLRA) and their strategies to alleviate it. This study was the continuation of a quantitative study involving 63 Theology student participants which found that their FLRA was significantly correlated with their reading achievement negatively. It was also conducted to fill the void in the FLRA literature in the Indonesian university context especially in Theology department necessitating learners to read a lot of passages in English, possibly quite anxiety-provoking for learners. Four selected participants from the previous quantitative study were interviewed and the data were analysed using Thematic Analysis. The study found that low self-confidence, lack of peer support, low self-perceived language competence, low motivation, and unfamiliar vocabulary increased learners' FLRA. Teachers' various methods, emphasising group activities were found to reduce their FLRA whilst whole-class reading activities tended to increase their FLRA. Furthermore, the uses of various reading strategies taught in class to comprehend texts were reported to reduce their FLRA to a certain extent depending on the degree of success of learners in using the strategies. Implications, limitations, and suggested directions for future studies were mentioned in light of the study's findings.

Problems of Dyslexia, Dyspraxia and Dysgraphia in the Development of Written Speech of English in Higher Education and Methodological Recommendations for Its Solution

While learning a foreign language is so important to keep fluency and accuracy. Being knowledgeable in any aspects, literacy skills of foreign languages will influence on our personal growth and professional development. Thus, researchers have been intensively investigating the phenomenon of reading and spelling disorders in learning and teaching foreign languages and, the ways of helping them. There many valuable reasons. Namely, it helps to improve self-confidence self-esteem and brain health. Pupils learn how to be confident to make speech around others and it helps to enhance ones knowledge of foreign languages structures and vocabulary. As well as that, pupils and students develop their analytical thinking. In addition, it is very useful for their financial life that they can expand their job and career opportunities and increase their earn power. Of course there some difficulties with learning foreign languages. We can see that problems with learning English there are dyslexia, dyspraxia and dysgraphia. However, we can use valuable methods for struggling with them.

Foreign language reading anxiety and its correlates: a meta-analysis

Foreign language reading anxiety and its correlates: a meta-analysis

Teacher Engagement With Technology-Enhanced Text Adaptation for Reading Assessment

In the assessment of English as a foreign language (EFL) reading proficiency, text adaptation is an important and challenging task for teachers. Although an increasing number of technology tools are available to facilitate text adaptation, research exploring how teachers engage with technology-enhanced text adaptation (TETA) is scarce. Drawing on a three-dimension framework consisting of behavioral, cognitive, and affective criteria of engagement, this case study investigated four Chinese EFL teachers' engagement with TETA facilitated by Eng-Editor, an online text complexity evaluation tool, in preparing reading assessment materials. Data from multiple sources were collected in the study. Firstly, the teachers' original and adapted texts were analyzed to reveal their behavioral engagement. Secondly, individual interviews were conducted with each teacher to unveil their cognitive and affective engagement. Results show diverse characteristics of teacher engagement with TETA along the three-dimension framework; moreover, various factors that influenced their engagement are also revealed. The paper concludes by providing suggestions for designing training programs to support teachers' employment of TETA.

The Complex Effects of Picturebooks on English as a Foreign Language Reading

While effects of picturebooks on reading were examined in higher grades (e.g., high school students) (Ajayi, 2009), little is known about the emerging English as Foreign Language (EFL) Kindergartens to 4th graders (i.e., K-4) students in China. Language institutes are critical phenomena for EFL K-4 education in China (Shi, 2019). Aiming to test the hypothesis that picturebooks have positive effects for reading, this study adopted within-subjects and between-subjects design to examine the effects of picturebooks on EFL reading comprehension of K-4 students in a language institute in China. Thirty-two participants were assigned into two groups to complete multiple choice and ordering tasks. The results showed that students reading with picturebooks outperformed in the two tasks than those who did not, especially on answering literal questions. With pedagogical implication as a goal, we suggest that EFL teachers need to (1) provide scaffoldings in class such as activating students’ prior knowledge, (2) make connections to students’ experience in the reading process. (3) select picturebooks considering the complex relationship between pictures and texts.

The Effect of Pranayamic Breathing as a Positive Psychology Exercise on Foreign Language Learning Anxiety and Test Anxiety Among Language Learners at Tertiary Level.

This study investigated the impact of pranayamic breathing (PB) as a positive psychology exercise on mitigating foreign language anxiety (FLLA) and test anxiety (TA) of undergraduate English students studying at a Turkish university. Additionally, the study examined the effects of PB on academic achievement in listening and reading comprehension skills of the participants as well as exploring learners’ and their instructor’s perceptions of using PB techniques in their classrooms. The sample consisted of 140 sophomore English language learners. Two intact classes, each comprising 70 participants, were selected as the experimental and the control group using convenience sampling. Two basic PB techniques, Nadi Shodhana Pranayama and Bhramari Pranayama, were implemented to the experimental group on a weekly basis for a total of 7 weeks. In this mixed-method study, the quantitative data were gathered using English Language Learning Anxiety Scale, Foreign Language Test Anxiety Scale, and listening and reading achievement pre- and post-tests, while the qualitative data were collected using semi-structured interviews, and the teacher’s reflective journal. The findings revealed that the implementation of positive psychology technique of pranayama breathing mitigated the FLLA and TA levels significantly and also improved listening and reading comprehension skills of the participants to a considerable extent. The findings also demonstrated that both the students and their instructor perceived PB implementation as a useful and a practical medium in alleviating the anxious feelings, promoting the general class atmosphere and regulating daily habits despite the implementational challenges shared by the instructor.

The Relationship between Reading Anxiety and Reading Performance: A Comparison Study of Chinese Postgraduates in China and in the UK

This study investigated three aspects that related to Foreign Language (FL) reading anxiety: the FL reading anxiety levels; the relationship between FL reading anxiety and reading performance; the main sources of FL reading anxiety. With both quantitative and qualitative research method, the total amount of 47 Chinese postgraduates took part in a paper questionnaire including Foreign Language Reading Anxiety Scale (FLRAS) and reading test, Cambridge Advanced English (CAE). According to the FLRAS scores, 12 of them had one-to-one semi-structured interviews. The results shows that most Chinese postgraduates experienced a moderate level of English reading anxiety, and that international students have higher reading anxiety than domestic students. No statistically significant relationship was found between FL reading anxiety and the reading test. After thematic coding analysis, the main sources of English reading anxiety among international students were found to be ‘demanding text feature’ and ‘different class settings in the UK’. For domestic students, limited English exposure was the main source. Recommendations for teachers and for both groups of students are provided, and the limitations of the present study and suggestions for future research are discussed at the end of the paper.

Effects of multidimensional foreign language reading anxiety on achievement in Japanese EFL classrooms

A fine-grained understanding of individual differences in reading in English as a foreign language (EFL) is critical because a significant amount of EFL reading is essential for successful EFL learning. This study examined the effects of multidimensional EFL reading anxiety on learners’ achievement in EFL classrooms. In a preliminary study, an item pool comprising approximately 150 statements was compiled and tested with multidimensional item response theory for the assessment of cognitive, metacognitive, and classroom aspects of perceived EFL reading anxiety. The main study provided evidence of the replicability of the multidimensionality of EFL reading anxiety and its differential effects on EFL reading proficiency and course achievement. The results showed that cognitive anxiety influenced EFL reading proficiency negatively, but not course achievement. Classroom anxiety inhibited EFL course achievement more strongly than did reading proficiency. Metacognitive anxiety was a significant predictor of both EFL reading proficiency and course achievement. Mediation analysis revealed that although the anxiety scales partly reflected learners’ levels of EFL reading proficiency, the direct effects of EFL reading anxiety on course achievement were still significant. Theoretical, methodological, and pedagogical implications are discussed with respect to the multidimensional model of EFL reading anxiety.

Students' progressive behavioral learning patterns in using machine translation systems – A structural equation modeling analysis

The study investigated the motivation and anxiety of 681 undergraduate students from a medical university who used machine translation systems to read textbooks written in English. Questionnaires were collected from Mandarin Chinese speakers who were not English majors. Technology Acceptance Models were developed to illuminate the relationships among perceived usefulness of machine translation systems, perceived ease of use, learning motivation for English, and foreign language reading anxiety. The results showed that overall, using machine translation systems produced benefits, including increasing the students' motivation to learn English and further decreasing their anxiety when it comes to reading textbooks written in English. Also, when the students become more familiar with using machine translation systems, they gain a better understanding of the systems' possibilities as well as their limitations. The greater the ease of use and the more usefulness that students experience while employing the systems, the stronger the impact of the systems on increasing students’ motivation to learn English and decreasing their learning anxiety.

The Relation of Metacognition, Personality, and Foreign Language Performance

Metacognition is a significant predictor of learning and academic performance, including foreign-language performance. However, variations in metacognitive competence can be observed due to several factors, potentially including personality. Analytic survey research methods were implemented to examine the relation between metacognition and personality traits and their interaction with foreign-language performance. Data were collected from 244 participants via the Turkish Metacognitive Awareness Inventory, Basic Personality Traits Inventory, and records of foreign language performance grades. Spearman's correlation and multiple linear regression tests were used for data analysis. Results confirmed that Conscientiousness, Openness to Experience, and Agreeableness explained 20% of metacognitive knowledge, and 16% of metacognitive regulation was attributed to Conscientiousness and Openness to Experience. Compared to other language skills, it was merely reading performance correlating with metacognitive knowledge and metacognitive regulation. On the other hand, language use was positively correlated with metacognitive regulation. Regression analyses identified that only personality traits but not metacognition predicted foreign-language performances. Conscientiousness and Extraversion predicted reading performance, and Conscientiousness and Openness to Experience were significant predictors of language use performance. These findings may suggest that personality influences foreign language reading performance, language use performance, and metacognition. Therefore, pedagogical implications may reflect individual differences, especially when delivering foreign language instruction or metacognition training modules.

Examining the domain-specificity of language mindset: a case of L2 reading comprehension

ABSTRACT Purpose: The present study investigated the domain-specificity of language mindset with a focus on foreign language (L2) reading mindset. We further examined whether L2 reading mindset could predict several L2 reading-specific outcomes, including L2 reading achievement and L2 reading emotions above and beyond general language mindset.Design/methodology/approach: We gathered data from 489 Iranian university students during regular classroom hours. Participants completed the questionnaire which included L2 reading mindset, general language mindset, L2 anxiety, and L2 enjoyment items. They further took an L2 reading comprehension test. Findings: Results of the confirmatory factor analysis supported a two-factor solution for both L2 reading mindset and general language mindset scales, corresponding to the fixed and growth categories. Furthermore, the findings of hierarchical multiple regressions indicated that adding L2 reading mindsets significantly added to the explained variance in L2 reading anxiety, L2 reading enjoyment, and L2 reading achievement. Originality/value: Findings of this study supported the incremental validity of L2 reading mindset as it could predict L2 reading outcomes above and beyond general language mindset. This finding empirically supports the domain-specificity of language mindset. Therefore, both L2 researchers and teachers should be aware of the unique role that L2 reading mindset plays in L2 reading skill.

Effects of online flipped classroom on foreign language classroom anxiety and reading anxiety

In this study, we aimed to integrate the flipped classroom model into “Advanced Reading and Writing” course and to investigate the effect of the flipped classroom model on pre-service English language teachers’ foreign language classroom anxiety (FLCA) and foreign language reading anxieties (FLRA). This study involved two groups (34 in the flipped group and 32 in the non-flipped group) of first-year English language teachers in Turkey. Within this framework, Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale and Foreign Language Reading Anxiety Scale were employed to determine pre-service English language teachers’ FLCA and FLRA levels before and after the treatment in the flipped and the non-flipped groups comparatively. There was a significant decrease in the FLCA and FLRA levels in the flipped group. However, there was no significant change in the non-flipped group. Supplemental data for this article is available online at https://doi.org/10.1080/09588221.2021.1950191 .

Online Collaborative Kit-Build Concept Map: Learning Effect and Conversation Analysis in Collaborative Learning of English as a Foreign Language Reading Comprehension

Online Collaborative Kit-Build Concept Map: Learning Effect and Conversation Analysis in Collaborative Learning of English as a Foreign Language Reading Comprehension