Reading Skills Course Research Articles

Challenges and Benefits of Blended Learning in University EFL Reading Comprehension: A Mixed-Method Study

This study investigates the challenges and benefits experienced by students in the implementation of blended learning (BL) in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) reading classes. The research focuses on exploring the experiences of first year university students engaged in BL-based reading comprehension. Using a mixed-method approach, data was collected from 36 participants enrolled in a noncredit reading skills course integrated with a BL platform over 16-weeks. Participants completed a 16-item questionnaire, and a subset of ten students engaged in a focus group discussion to delve deeper into the challenges and benefits of BL. Descriptive statistics (e.g., frequency, percentages) were employed for quantitative data analysis, while qualitative data were analyzed through thematic identification. The findings revealed significant challenges including technology issues, language barriers, and initial confusion with BL tools. Participants emphasized the critical need for reliable technology infrastructure, support for digital literacy, and language assistance to mitigate these obstacles. Despite these challenges, participants acknowledged BL's advantages, particularly its flexibility and accessibility in enhancing reading comprehension. Recommendations arising from the study advocate for personalized learning paths, collaborative activities, clear communication, and ongoing assessment to optimize BL implementation. Thus, this research underscores BL's potential in improving reading skills, highlighting the imperative of tailored support to effectively address implementation challenges. The study could also become more thorough and broadly applicable to other Ethiopian universities by increasing the sample size and extending the intervention period.

Raising L2 readers’ awareness of English as a Lingua Franca in a language classroom

A growing body of research has examined the incorporation of English as a Lingua Franca (ELF) into Second Language (L2) instruction in various settings. Despite pedagogical innovations in L2 classrooms, little research has embodied retrospective explorations of the impact of ELF interventions with concrete instruments to measure the exact change in learners’ attitudes, awareness, and knowledge. This study investigated how the ELF intervention can be integrated into an L2 classroom at a university to engage pre-service teachers in L2 reading and to increase their ELF awareness. Participants were divided into an experimental group (n = 35) and a control group (n = 26). The experimental group underwent a 12-week ELF intervention, including ELF awareness-raising readings and discussions in the Reading Skills course. The control group received instruction based on the Reading course content. This study adopted a collective case study design using the data from reading comprehension tests, reflection papers, focus group interviews, and an open-ended questionnaire. The results revealed that the experimental group outperformed the control group in L2 reading comprehension. The ELF intervention had a significant impact on the experimental group’s conceptualizing of the ELF paradigm, developing attitudes, raising linguistic and cultural awareness, and increasing L2 reading motivation.

Korelasi Kebiasaan Membaca dengan Membaca Pemahaman

This study aims to determine the relationship between reading habits and students' reading comprehension. The method used is quantitative research through a correlation approach. Sampling was carried out using the theory of Non-Probability Sampling with the Sampling technique. The research instrument used questionnaires and multiple-type objective tests. The study results show that the students' reading habits are categorized as special, with an average score of 80, at the mastery level of 76-85%. Students' reading comprehension results are classified as good, with an average count of 73, which is on a scale of 66-75%. The tcount obtained is 2.36 and ttable 2.056. In conclusion, there is a relationship between reading habits and reading comprehension of students of the Indonesian Language Education study program who take the Reading Skills course at Bung Hatta University.
 Keywords: Reading Habit, Reading Comprehension

Yabancı Dil Almanca Öğrencilerinin Okuma Becerileri Dersinde Kullandıkları Okuduğunu Anlama Stratejilerine İlişkin Görüşleri

Okuma becerisi, bireyin okuduğunu anlaması, eski bilgilerini yeni bilgileri ile bütünleştirebilmesi açısından oldukça önem taşıyan zihinsel bir süreç gerektirir. Bu nedenle üniversitelerin Yabancı Dil Eğitimi Bölümlerinde yer alan “Okuma Becerileri” dersinin amacı ise özgün metinlerle öğrencilere yeni bilgiler kazandırarak genel kültürlerini geliştirmek, hem alan bilgisine hem öğrenilen kültüre yönelik kuramsal yeni bilgiler edindirmektir. Öğretmen adaylarının okuma stratejileri hakkında yeterli bilgi ve donanıma sahip olmaları hem öğrenci olarak kendilerini geliştirmeyi hem de öğretmen olduklarında öğrencilere bu becerileri kazandırmaları açısından oldukça büyük önem taşımaktadır. Bu nedenle bu araştırmanın amacı öğrencilerin YÖK’ ün Yabancı dil Almanca eğitimi ve öğretimi programında bulunan, zorunlu derslerden olan “Okuma Becerileri” dersi kapsamında kullandıkları okuma stratejilerine ilişkin görüşlerini belirlemektir. Araştırma tarama modelinde desenlenmiş ve veriler nitel yöntem aracılığıyla toplanmıştır. Araştırmanın örneklemini 2019-2020 öğretim yılında Anadolu Üniversitesi Eğitim Fakültesi Yabancı Diller Eğitimi Bölümü Almanca Öğretmenliği Lisans Programında öğrenim görmekte olan 64 1. sınıf öğrencisi oluşturmuştur. Araştırmanın verileri içerik analizi ile analiz edilmiş, 1. sınıf öğrencilerinden alınan görüşler kodlanarak doğrudan alıntılarla sunulmuştur. Araştırmadan elde edilen bulgular öğrencilerin okudukları metni daha kolay anlayabilmek adına okuma öncesi, okuma esnası ve okuma sonrası stratejilerinin hepsini farklı düzeylerde kullandıklarını göstermektedir. Öğrencilerin büyük çoğunluğunun okuma öncesi stratejileri sıklıkla kullandıkları ve bunu sırayla okuma esnası ve okuma sonrası stratejilerinin takip ettiği araştırmadan elde edilen bir diğer sonuçtur.

The Impact of Blended Instructions on Developing Jordanian University Students’ Morphological Knowledge and Reading Comprehension

This study examines the potential effects of instruction of morphology through blended methods on developing Jordanian university students’ morphological knowledge and reading comprehension. A total of 50 students from two intact sections of Reading Skills course were selected. The participants were first-year university students enrolled in the second semester of the academic year 2018/2019 at a private university in Jordan. The groups were randomly divided into control and experimental; the experimental group (n=26) received blended reading and morphology instruction using a special computer program called smart class; whereas the control group (n=24) received traditional face-to-face instruction. For data collection, the researchers adopted a morphological test from Bataineh and Al-Kofeiri (2018) and designed a reading comprehension test. The results revealed statistically significant development of students’ morphological knowledge and reading comprehension in the experimental group which could be attributed to the blended method of morphological instruction. The results of this study add new insights to the field of language teaching and research.

Perceptions of undergraduates on the relationship between exposure to blended learning and online critical literacy skills

Background: Exposure to a blended experience has the potential to heighten students’ online critical literacy skills, and prepare them to participate in the new online communities that emerge within a networked society. Objectives: This article considered the perceptions of a cohort of third-year undergraduates of the Department of Communication and Language Arts, University of Ibadan, Nigeria, on the relationship between exposure to blended learning (BL) and the development of online critical literacy skills. Method: A BL mode, which took the form of a face-to-face approach and the use of a virtual learning environment, was employed in teaching Critical Literacy, a component of the Developmental Reading Skills course designed for undergraduates of English as a second language. For 4 weeks, 80 students were trained to read web-based information critically and evaluate web pages in the Developmental Reading course, after which their perception of the relationship between exposure to BL and the development of online critical literacy skills was investigated. This work, for which data were obtained through focus group discussion and administration of a structured questionnaire, is grounded in both critical literacy (Janks 2013) and social constructivist theories (McInerney & McInerney 2002). Frequency distribution and Pearson correlation coefficient were employed in analysing the data collected. Results: The results revealed that the students perceived a positive relationship between exposure to BL and the development of online critical literacy skills. Conclusion: Many of the respondents showed a preference for the BL mode, and the benefits they derived from it include: the improvement of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) skills, the acquisition of more knowledge after the class, convenient time to work and ease with self-expression.

Employing Personal Reading Logs through Short Stories to Enhance Students’ L2 Reading Comprehension Achievement

This study aims to investigate whether the use of six selected short stories throughout the duration of a 14-week course could enhance students’ reading comprehension achievement at the end of the semester. Out of the six short stories read, three were chosen as in-class assignments known as ‘Personal Reading Logs’ (hereafter, PRLs). One group of semester two Diploma students taking a reading skills course was selected through a convenience sampling method. A pre-test was conducted by having the students answer a past semester reading quiz of which the results would then be compared to their post-test (final reading exam) results. A paired samples t-test revealed no significant difference in the reading scores of the pre-test and the post-test, t (17) = -.265, p > .05. Since the p-value was bigger than 0.05, this indicated that the mean reading score of the post-test (M = 50.556) was not significantly higher than the mean reading score of the pre-test (M = 49.722). Therefore, the null hypothesis which stated that there was no difference in the mean score of the pre-test and post-test was retained. Overall, the result refuted the findings of other studies promoting the effectiveness of using short stories to enhance L2 reading comprehension achievement.

DESIGNING AND DELIVERING A PROGRAMME OF READING SKILLS CLASSES TO POSTGRADUATE STUDENTS

Exclusively teaching the receptive skill of reading texts in a foreign language with no training in language production might seem to be a pedagogical relic and to contradict the communicative approach in foreign language teaching. However, it is a much-needed pedagogical tool for equipping postgraduate researchers with the necessary skill of reading academic literature in a foreign language. The aim is to enable learners who frequently have no prior knowledge of the language in a short period of time to independently read texts specific to their research.This article aims to illustrate the challenges of developing face-to-face as well as online courses for the specific purpose of teaching reading skills in German and other languages to postgraduate students at Durham University and to discuss the underlying pedagogy thereof.After giving a short history of how these courses were set up at Durham University, we will state the aims and intended learning outcomes of a reading skills course and describe the pedagogical peculiarities and challenges that such courses entail, underpinned by educational theory. We will discuss the issue of vocabulary acquisition, offering practical solutions, and give concrete examples of the materials used, including online resources and materials specifically created by the tutors, as well as pointing out the strengths and weaknesses of the German textbooks currently available. We will share our experience in the classroom, with online teaching as well as our provision for self-study. At the end of the paper we will include links to some free online resources for primarily German and French.This paper aims to contribute to the continuing dissemination of good practice in the teaching of reading skills in German, which can also be transferred to other Western European languages.

Evaluation of the Methodology of an ESP Reading Skills Course for Undergraduate Medical Students: Outsider Perspective

Abstract This study examined the methodology of a compulsory, assessed, intensive reading course at a Turkish university for undergraduate students who were going to study Medicine in Bulgaria. An outsider evaluation was conducted through a structured observation checklist followed by a post-observation interview with the practitioner. The checklist was also used as the semi-structured interview tool for data triangulation. The results showed that the dominant methodology was text-based and lexical. The practitioner as a facilitator provided immediate feedback and used activities focusing on text analysis. Although teaching of lexicon and translation of texts might sometimes be criticized, the interview data showed that the methodology matched students⿿ needs.

Using Short Stories in Reading Skills Class

Using literature to teach language has several advantages such as contributing to a better linguistic understanding, a development of creative skills, an authentic model of language use with its rich potential (Ramsaran, 1983; Collie & Slater, 1987). Short story seems to be the most suitable one since it is short, and aims at giving a ⿿single effect⿿, there is usually one plot, a few characters; there is no detailed description of setting. Also, research on short stories in EFL classrooms state that they can be a good indicator of increased motivation, increased interest in reading and improved reading skills (Vural, 2013; Saka, 2014; Pardede, 2011). This study aims to find out the thoughts and attitudes of the first year students in Bulent Ecevit University English Language and Literature Department towards the short stories covered in Reading Skills course in 2015- 2016 fall term. The data gathered via a questionnaire was analyzed using frequency tests. The results indicated that studying short stories has a number of benefits for the students such as broadening their perspectives, enabling them to think about the reasons rather than the result, showing them different life styles, providing them with a comparison between their own culture and other cultures, increasing their appreciation for literature and making them read more short stories.

The Introduction of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer to the Students of Independent University, Bangladesh, to Develop Their Reading Habit

Abstract In today's world a student's free time is taken over by fruitless recreations. They hardly read anything other than their text messages. In order to encourage their reading habit the students of the English Reading Skills course were assigned to read Mark Twain's The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. This paper will focus on the matter how the particular book had been an appropriate choice to encourage the students to read additional material. After the completion of the project it was found that the students not only got acquainted with Mark Twain but also enjoyed the contents of the book, as they could relate their adolescence (which they had just left behind) with the acts of Tom in the book. This project surely encouraged extensive reading among the students.

Students’ attitudes towards integration of ICTs in a reading course: A case in Turkey

The purpose of this paper is to investigate students’ attitudes towards the use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in a reading skills course offered at Middle East Technical University, Ankara, Turkey. To this end, 30 first year students of the foreign language education (FLE) department followed a four-week component of an ICTs-integrated reading skills course. To examine the students’ attitudes towards the course and the new learning environment at the end of the teaching period, an attitude questionnaire was administered and interviews were conducted. The findings indicate that despite the difficulties they faced, the students were satisfied overall with the application of ICTs in their reading course and developed positive attitudes towards online courses.

Do Reading Skills Courses Help Underprepared Readers Achieve Academic Success in College?

Student enrollment in colleges and universities has increased markedly during the last three decades. Between Fall 1970 and Fall 2000, enrollment in all degree-granting institutions rose from 8.5 million to about 15.1 million students. Simultaneously, there has been a proliferation of developmental skills programs in higher education institutions, largely in response to an increasing proportion of underprepared college students. This paper presents some empirical evidence of the effectiveness of three reading skills courses offered at a midwestern, regional, four-year state university. Regression analysis is used to explore possible determinants of students' academic performance in college. The study's findings suggest that underprepared readers' success in college is directly and significantly related to taking and passing a reading skills course.

Designing an ESP reading skills course

Designing an ESP reading skills course

A Reading Skills Course for Science Students

A Reading Skills Course for Science Students

Correspondence of Self-Concept Measures with Levels of Reading Achievement

This investigation, utilizing 227 incoming college freshmen as subjects, was designed to determine differences in measured self-concept among college freshmen grouped by demonstrated reading ability, by sex, and by enrollment in a reading skills program. It was found that there were significant differences in measured self-concept between the various groups; the greatest differential being between those that did and those that did not enroll in a reading skills course.