Exploring relationships between oral reading fluency and reading comprehension amongst English second language readers in South Africa

2016 ◽  
Vol 29 (7) ◽  
pp. 1449-1471 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth J. Pretorius ◽  
Nic Spaull
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Second Language ◽  
Reading Comprehension ◽  
Reading Fluency ◽  
Oral Reading ◽  
Oral Reading Fluency ◽  
English Second Language ◽  
Second Language Readers

scholarly journals Examining oral reading fluency among Grade 5 rural English Second Language (ESL) learners in South Africa? An analysis of NEEDU 2013

2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 34 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kim Draper ◽  
Nic Spaull
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Second Language ◽  
Reading Fluency ◽  
Oral Reading ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Oral Reading Fluency ◽  
Esl Students ◽  
Grade 5 ◽  
English Second Language

The ability to read for meaning and pleasure is arguably the most important skill children learn in primary school. One integral component of learning to read is Oral Reading Fluency (ORF), defined as the ability to read text quickly, accurately, and with meaningful expression. Although widely acknowledged in the literature as important, to date there have been no large-scale studies on ORF in English in South Africa, despite this being the language of learning and teaching for 80% of ESL students from Grade 4 onwards. We analyze data provided by the National Education and Evaluation Development Unit (NEEDU) of South Africa, which tested 4667 Grade 5 English Second Language (ESL) students from 214 schools across rural areas in South Africa in 2013. This included ORF and comprehension measures for a subset of 1772 students. We find that 41% of the sample were non-readers in English (<40 Words Correct Per Minute, WCPM) and only 6% achieved comprehension scores above 60%. By calibrating comprehension levels and WCPM rates we develop tentative benchmarks and argue that a range of 90-100 WCPM in English is acceptable for Grade 5 ESL students in South Africa. In addition we outline policy priorities for remedying the reading crisis in the country.

scholarly journals Examining oral reading fluency among Grade 5 rural English Second Language (ESL) learners in South Africa? An analysis of NEEDU 2013

2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kim Draper ◽  
Nic Spaull
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Second Language ◽  
Reading Fluency ◽  
Oral Reading ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Oral Reading Fluency ◽  
Esl Students ◽  
Grade 5 ◽  
English Second Language

The ability to read for meaning and pleasure is arguably the most important skill children learn in primary school. One integral component of learning to read is Oral Reading Fluency (ORF), defined as the ability to read text quickly, accurately, and with meaningful expression. Although widely acknowledged in the literature as important, to date there have been no large-scale studies on ORF in English in South Africa, despite this being the language of learning and teaching for 80% of ESL students from Grade 4 onwards. We analyze data provided by the National Education and Evaluation Development Unit (NEEDU) of South Africa, which tested 4667 Grade 5 English Second Language (ESL) students from 214 schools across rural areas in South Africa in 2013. This included ORF and comprehension measures for a subset of 1772 students. We find that 41% of the sample were non-readers in English (<40 Words Correct Per Minute, WCPM) and only 6% achieved comprehension scores above 60%. By calibrating comprehension levels and WCPM rates we develop tentative benchmarks and argue that a range of 90-100 WCPM in English is acceptable for Grade 5 ESL students in South Africa. In addition we outline policy priorities for remedying the reading crisis in the country.

scholarly journals Predictors of Latino English Learners’ Reading Comprehension Proficiency

2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Theresa A Grasparil ◽  
David A Hernandez
Keyword(s):  
Reading Comprehension ◽  
Reading Fluency ◽  
Oral Reading ◽  
English Learners ◽  
Oral Reading Fluency ◽  
Reading Program ◽  
Vocabulary Knowledge ◽  
Literacy Achievement ◽  
Academic Vocabulary ◽  
Latino English Learners

Poor literacy achievement among English learners has contributed significantly to their high dropout rates, poor job prospects, and high poverty rates. The National Literacy Panel on Language Minority Children and Youth has suggested that English learners benefit from the same direct, systematic instruction in the five essential components of reading shown effective for native-English-speaking students: phonemic awareness, phonics, oral reading fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. Implementing effective reading instructional practices for English learners may reduce the literacy achievement gap between English learners and native English speakers. In this study, we used multiple regression to examine data for 1,376 third-grade Latino English learners to determine the strength of oral English proficiency, oral reading fluency, and academic vocabulary knowledge as predictors of reading comprehension proficiency. Findings of this study indicate a mismatch between English learners’ instructional needs and a widely used reading program component, assessment of words correct per minute (as a measure of oral reading fluency). Significant conclusions of this study suggest that educators seeking to promote the reading comprehension proficiency of Latino English learners consider using WCPM assessments and activities cautiously and strive to allocate more time for instruction and assessment of the prosodic dimension of oral reading fluency and academic vocabulary knowledge and skills.

Does growth rate in oral reading fluency matter in predicting reading comprehension achievement?

2010 ◽  
Vol 102 (3) ◽  
pp. 652-667 ◽  
Author(s):  
Young-Suk Kim ◽  
Yaacov Petscher ◽  
Christopher Schatschneider ◽  
Barbara Foorman
Keyword(s):  
Growth Rate ◽  
Reading Comprehension ◽  
Reading Fluency ◽  
Oral Reading ◽  
Oral Reading Fluency

scholarly journals Assessment of English Oral Reading Fluency Rates for Grade seven English Second Language Learners in Tanzania

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 150
Author(s):  
Sadiki Moshi Feruzi
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Reading Fluency ◽  
Oral Reading ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Difficulty Level ◽  
Non Fiction ◽  
English Second Language ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Study Context

This study aimed at assessing reading rates for learners in grade seven English second language (ESL) in Morogoro region, Tanzania. A total of 220 participants were randomly selected and assigned two grade appropriate English texts to read so as determine their reading rates. Fluency scale test was used to assess pupils’ reading fluency rates and the data was statistically analysed using SPSS software. It was necessary to asses pupils’ reading rates in the study context because there are no established fluency rate norms set for grade seven pupils in the country. In this case the current study serves as a reference for improvement. Results show that grade seven pupils in Morogoro region had an average reading fluency rate of 101words per minute (WPM) for fiction text and 95WPM for non-fiction text. The difference in the two texts can be due to the length of words and difficulty level in non-fiction text against fiction text. The scored rate is below the adopted benchmarks which implies that these pupils are at risk in reading fluency, consequently, calling for immediate interventions.  

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