scholarly journals Reading Comprehension and Reading Speed of University English Language Learners in Ecuador

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (11) ◽  
pp. 11-31
Author(s):  
Fernando Mora ◽  
Rosalva Quito ◽  
Louis Macías
Keyword(s):  
English Language Learners ◽  
Reading Comprehension ◽  
Reading Strategies ◽  
English Language ◽  
Reading Speed ◽  
Research Work ◽  
Sociodemographic Factors ◽  
Reading Tests ◽  
High Level ◽  
The Impact

Reading represents a significant skill for knowledge acquisition. Nevertheless, many people cannot read properly, which may entail a serious limitation to their study, work, or other aspirations. The purpose of this research work is to determine the reading comprehension level and reading speed of English language students at the University of Cuenca, Ecuador, as well as the impact of sociodemographic factors and the use of reading strategies on these levels. The participants were 400 students who were taking English courses during September 2019 to February 2020 semester. The students completed a questionnaire on sociodemographic factors, took reading tests to determine their reading speed and comprehension, and then completed another questionnaire on reading strategies. The results show a high level of reading comprehension in English but a below-average reading speed, in part due to certain external factors. Given these results, research-based intervention is highly recommended to improve reading levels.

scholarly journals A Review of Studies on Cognitive and Metacognitive Reading Strategies in Teaching Reading Comprehension for ESL/EFL Learners

2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (6) ◽  
pp. 94
Author(s):  
Aziza M. Ali ◽  
Abu Bakar Razali
Keyword(s):  
English Language Learners ◽  
Reading Comprehension ◽  
Reading Strategies ◽  
English Language ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Written Information ◽  
Efl Teachers ◽  
Correct Reading ◽  
Efl Students ◽  
Metacognitive Reading Strategies

Being able to read well is important for English language learners. Through the process of reading, the learner becomes an active participant in producing an interaction with the writer of the text through predicting, analyzing, summarizing and using other types of reading strategies. However, building such a connection between the reader and the written information of the text is complex and for English as a second language (ESL) and English as a foreign language (EFL) students, it can be quite difficult for them to apply different types of reading strategies. This article provides a review of literature on 27 studies on the teaching of reading strategies (particularly cognitive and metacognitive reading strategies) for ESL/EFL learners, which reveals that ESL/EFL teachers need to keep updating their teaching methods to meet the ESL/EFL students’ needs, particularly in the use of correct reading strategies. The authors also highlight some of the main issues that prevent ESL/EFL students from improving and developing their reading comprehension. Furthermore, the authors discuss and conclude the article by suggesting to ESL/EFL teachers some teaching strategies to be applied in the reading lesson to improve the ESL/EFL students’ use of reading strategies.

Impact of Supra-segmental Features on Reading Comprehension in First and Second Language: A Comparative Study of Iranian EFL learners

2020 ◽  
Vol 20 ◽  
pp. 19-42
Author(s):  
Fatemeh Mirfatemi ◽  
Amir Sadeghi ◽  
Mitra P Niyazi
Keyword(s):  
English Language Learners ◽  
Reading Comprehension ◽  
English Language ◽  
Speech Communication ◽  
Remedial Program ◽  
English Reading ◽  
Linguistic Comprehension ◽  
English Reading Comprehension ◽  
And Control ◽  
The Impact

Supra-segmental features refer to various forms of intonation and how words and sentences are uttered. Such features challenge meaning and comprehension, too. Despite the importance of these features and their reported association with phonological awareness and linguistic comprehension, their effects on reading comprehension have not been explored. The current work investigated the impact of a remedial program on Persian and English reading comprehension of a group of English language learners (N=30 divided into experimental and control groups). The measurements tested the components of reading comprehension based on the Simple View of Reading (SVR). Additionally, supra-segmental features were assessed by Profiling Elements of Prosody (i.e., supra-segmentals) in Speech-communication (PEPS) in both languages. As a result, English and Persian elision and also Persian listening were affected by teaching supra-segmental features. Assessing the transfer of linguistic skills revealed that Persian listening and knowledge of supra-segmentals, in particular, recognizing short syllables and awareness of stress position in a sentence, contribute to English reading comprehension. It indicates that reading and listening comprehension are affected by similar cognitive processes that may lay in the knowledge of supra-segmentals. The findings also suggest that simpler systems of supra-segmentals are more likely to transfer. Pertinent pedagogical implications were presented, as well.

scholarly journals Towards a Thorough Framework in Strategic Reading Comprehension Instruction

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (12) ◽  
pp. 180
Author(s):  
Asma Dabiri ◽  
Sara Kashefian-Naeeini
Keyword(s):  
English Language Learners ◽  
Reading Comprehension ◽  
English Language ◽  
General Term ◽  
Educational Goals ◽  
Comprehension Instruction ◽  
Strategic Reading ◽  
Reading Comprehension Instruction ◽  
Academic Settings ◽  
High Level

Reading comprehension skill is widely used in EFL settings. English language learners, especially, in academic settings, are provided with a high level of literacy and comprehension of texts, where they are provided with a considerable portion of knowledge fused into written documents. Therefore, the skill of processing texts efficiently with sufficient comprehension gains significance in students’ academic accomplishments. Nevertheless, the concept of reading as a general term and strategic reading as an enabling skill should be differentiated in reading comprehension instruction.  Providing students with written texts without Empowering them to deal with the texts cannot yield fruitful results in designated goals of reading comprehension. In view of that, the present research tried to introduce strategic reading as a holistic concept and endeavored to enlighten each aspect of it using reading models and frameworks presented in the related literature on reading comprehension.  Instructors, with the awareness of strategic reading as an important reading skill, can determinedly instruct and implement it in their classrooms to enable students resourcefully for their educational goals which eventually leads to academic and professional achievements. 

Rater variation in pragmatic assessment: The impact of the linguistic background on peer-assessment and self-assessment

2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 67-85
Author(s):  
Sunni L. Sonnenburg-Winkler ◽  
Zohreh R. Eslami ◽  
Ali Derakhshan
Keyword(s):  
English Language Learners ◽  
Speech Acts ◽  
English Language ◽  
Rating Scale ◽  
Peer Assessment ◽  
Self Assessment ◽  
Native Languages ◽  
Social Rules ◽  
Language Background ◽  
The Impact

AbstractThe present study investigates variability among raters from different linguistic backgrounds, who evaluated the pragmatic performance of English language learners with varying native languages (L1s) by using both self- and peer-assessments. To this end, written discourse completion task (WDCT) samples of requesting speech acts from 10 participants were collected. Thereafter, the participants were asked to assess their peers’ WDCTs before assessing their own samples using the same rating scale. The raters were further asked to provide an explanation for their rating decisions. Findings indicate that there may indeed be a link between a rater’s language background and their scoring patterns, although the results regarding peer- and self-assessment are mixed. There are both similarities and differences in the participants’ use of pragmatic norms and social rules in evaluating appropriateness.

Extending the efficacy of Collaborative Strategic Reading (CSR) in teaching reading strategies: A socio-cultural emotional perspective

2021 ◽  
pp. 136216882110115
Author(s):  
Ali Amjadi ◽  
Seyed Hassan Talebi
Keyword(s):  
Reading Comprehension ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Reading Strategies ◽  
Multiple Choice ◽  
Strategy Instruction ◽  
Teaching Reading ◽  
Social Emotional ◽  
Reading Tests ◽  
Strategic Reading ◽  
Collaborative Strategic Reading

Implementing social-emotional learning skills into Collaborative Strategic Reading (CSR), the current study intended to extend the efficacy of CSR for teaching reading strategies when applying it to students in rural areas from a working-class community. To this purpose, forty-four students who made the comparison and the experimental groups were taught reading strategies through CSR and ECSR (Extended Collaborative Strategic Reading), respectively. A reading comprehension test with different question types was implemented to the students as pretest and posttest, and an interview was given at the end of the study to investigate the perception of the students toward reading strategy instruction through CSR and ECSR. Analysis of data indicated that only the ECSR group improved significantly in overall reading comprehension, but the componential analysis of the reading test showed that despite the fact that the CSR group showed no significant improvement in the reading tests in four formats (true–false, multiple-choice, matching, and cloze), the ECSR group improved significantly in reading tests with multiple-choice and cloze test formats. Moreover, although the students in both groups showed a positive view toward the interventions, the students in the ECSR group improved in social-emotional and communication skills. It seems that CSR can be improved to be effective by implementing the emotional component to it.

Group Counseling for English Language Learners to Promote Academic Navigational Capital

2020 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 2156759X2097956
Author(s):  
Adonay A. Montes ◽  
Erika Ramos
Keyword(s):  
English Language Learners ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Group Counseling ◽  
English Language Learner ◽  
English Language ◽  
Language Learner ◽  
Ell Students ◽  
Academic Settings ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Minimal Research

The purpose of this study was to explore the impact of an 8-week academic navigational capital group with English language learner (ELL) students. Minimal research exists examining ELL students’ acquisition of navigational capital skills (skills needed to navigate and succeed in academic settings) in school. We used a pre- and postintervention survey to measure the impact of the group. Results showed growth in the academic navigational capital skills of all participants. Such increases represent a starting blueprint to consider when working with ELL students.

Impact of inquiry-based English teaching through digital applications on primary schoolchildren's reading comprehension and autonomy in pandemic situation

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (S3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ekaterine Pipia ◽  
Irina Chikovani
Keyword(s):  
Academic Performance ◽  
Reading Comprehension ◽  
English Language ◽  
Language Teaching ◽  
English Language Teaching ◽  
Autonomy Development ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Quantitative Manner ◽  
The Impact

Considering the urgency of integrating technologies in the contemporary classrooms, the aim of the presented study has been shaped to outline the impact of inquiry-based English language teaching through digital applications on primary learners’ reading comprehension and autonomy development during a pandemic outbreak of COVID-19. The research context has been designed in a quantitative manner to analyze experiment results and compare control and treatment group learners’ reading comprehension and academic achievement levels as well as to measure primary schoolchildren’s level of autonomy before and after the treatment. The subjects’ autonomy level, curiosity and interest in reading through digital applications before and after the experiment have been evaluated through pre and post-experimental questionnaires. Learning processes of two experimental and two control groups were compared to create four research contexts for the study. Discrepancy between inquiry-based teaching through a digital library and a traditional way of teaching reading has been emphasized in the study results. The obtained data has been analyzed using SPSS to compare the academic performance results. The study revealed that inquiry-based English language teaching through digital applications highly enhanced the primary learners’ academic performance in reading and increased their motivation level to study independently.

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