scholarly journals A Case for Improved Reading Instruction for Academic English Reading Proficiency

2008 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Glenn Ole Hellekjær
Keyword(s):  
Reading Instruction ◽  
English Language ◽  
Reading Proficiency ◽  
Testing System ◽  
Academic English ◽  
School Students ◽  
Academic Reading ◽  
English Reading ◽  
Upper Secondary ◽  
International English

This article presents a study of the academic reading proficiency in English of 217 senior level Norwegian upper secondary school students who upon graduation are considered qualified for higher education. Testing with an International English Language Testing System (IELTS) Academic Reading Module revealed that two thirds of the 178 respondents with ordinary EFL courses did not achieve the equivalent of the IELTS Band 6 score minimum that is usually required for admission to British and Australian universities. In comparison, two thirds of a sample of 39 respondents with a single, sheltered Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) subject achieved a Band 6 score or better. Closer analysis indicates that the poor test scores can be attributed to weaknesses in current English as a Foreign Language (EFL) instruction where reading is neglected, where students do not learn to adjust how they read to reading purpose, and where they do not learn how to handle unfamiliar words to avoid disrupting the reading process. The article ends with suggestions on how to improve EFL instruction, in Norway and elsewhere.

scholarly journals Strategy-Based Reading Instruction Utilizing the CALLA Model in an ESL/EFL Context

2012 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
pp. 199-212
Author(s):  
Young-Mee Suh
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Reading Instruction ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Lesson Plan ◽  
Strategy Instruction ◽  
Reading Proficiency ◽  
Instructional Model ◽  
School Students ◽  
Post Secondary ◽  
English Reading

This paper describes four English reading instruction approaches which are primarily used in ESL/EFL reading classes: ExperienceTextRelationship, the Reciprocal Teaching Approach, Transactional Strategy Instruction, and the Cognitive Academic Language Learning Approach. Each reading approach is based on reading strategy instruction, and students are considered active learners in these paradigms. The CALLA model in particular puts emphasis on both language and content development while teaching strategies explicitly. Considering that the CALLA model is based on promotion of language and content at the same time, it can be a desirable instructional model in ESL/EFL reading classes. Targeting post-secondary school students whose English reading proficiency levels are in between intermediate and highintermediate, this paper illustrates each stage of the CALLA instructional model and provides a sample lesson plan. ESL/EFL teachers may utilize the demonstration or the lesson plan in a real teaching situation to help learners be successful ESL/EFL readers while increasing their content knowledge and language proficiency.

IELTS READING AND SOME TECHNIQUES TO IMPROVE IELTS READING SKILLS FOR STUDENTS

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Dinh Thi Bac Binh ◽  
Dinh Thi Kieu Trinh
Keyword(s):  
English Language ◽  
Reading Skills ◽  
Language Testing ◽  
Training Institution ◽  
Testing System ◽  
Time Saving ◽  
International English

The International English Language Testing System (IELTS) is recognized as an accountable tool to assess whether aperson is able to study or train in English. Every year, thousandsof students sit for IELTS. However, the number of those who arerecognized to be capable enough to take a course in English issomehow limited, especially for those who are not major inEnglish at their universities.IELTS Reading is considered as a discerning skill and it is of theequal importance to listening, speaking and writing in obtainingthe objectives of IELTS of band 6 or 6.5. Being teachers of Englishat a training institution, the authors recognize that students canmake time-saving improvements in their reading command undertheir teachers’ insightful guidance.

scholarly journals Knowledge, Education, and Attitudes of International Students to IELTS: A Case of Australia

2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
pp. 488-500
Author(s):  
Abe W Ata
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
English Language ◽  
Language Skills ◽  
Considerable Effect ◽  
Testing System ◽  
Language Test ◽  
Negative Attitudes ◽  
Testing Environment ◽  
Language Learning Motivation ◽  
International English

The main objective of this study is to determine the knowledge, education and attitudes of Chinese, Indian and Arab speaking students in Australia towards the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) test. A questionnaire was administered to 200 students at six university language centers to investigate their overall response towards the four components of the IELTS test i.e. listening, reading, writing, and speaking. It was hypothesized that having positive or negative attitudes toward a certain language can exert considerable effect on the learners’ performance on a language test. The effect of variables such as testing environment, test rubric, and broader demographic factors on attitudes of the three national groups were investigated. Significant differences were found on students’ misconceptions of language learning, motivation and the degree to which it may have hindered their progress in attaining language skills.

Online English Reading Instruction in the ESL Classroom Based on Constructivism

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 39-49
Author(s):  
Yan Liu ◽  
Hongbing Liu ◽  
Yan Xu ◽  
Hongying Lu
Keyword(s):  
Reading Instruction ◽  
Reading Proficiency ◽  
Internet Technology ◽  
Student Interest ◽  
Innovative Methods ◽  
Underdeveloped Area ◽  
English Reading ◽  
Online Methods ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Interest And Motivation

With the development of Internet technology, teachers are constantly seeking innovative methods to match the potential of enhanced technology. Although many studies have been conducted before on this subject, they are not enough in this field. The purpose of this article is to explore innovative designs to change traditional modes of teaching and examine the impact of online English instruction of reading, based on constructivism. The research study was carried out at the Number 9 middle school of Bengbu, an underdeveloped area of China. In the study, online methods were compared with traditional textbook literature methods to improve the reading proficiency of students. A questionnaire survey was designed specifically for this study and it was administered to the students at the end of a semester, and the data was analyzed. The outcome of this study indicated that students considered online method as effective and that they gained more knowledge. This method helped them in improving their reading skills, aroused student interest and motivation, and exam performance of the students has been improved significantly, and thus, it created a positive learning situation.

Learning English for Technical Purposes

2011 ◽  
pp. 169-190 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne Dragemark
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
English Language ◽  
Language Skills ◽  
School Students ◽  
Self Assessment ◽  
Online Tutoring ◽  
Upper Secondary ◽  
Research Findings ◽  
Learning Development ◽  
Learning English

This chapter presents some research findings in the area of self assessment,obtained from the European Leonardo Project: Learning English forTechnical Purposes (LENTEC), carried out 2001–2003. In this project,upper-secondary vocational students solved problem-based learning casesin a virtual environment. The project aimed at stimulating upper-secondaryvocational school students from six different European countries to improvetheir English-language skills. It also aimed at helping foreign-languageteachers to develop their skills in online tutoring. A validation study wasundertaken and the results underscored that students need time andpractice to assess their own results. According to students and teachers, amajority of the students became more aware of their own language-learning development. The teachers in the project developed a new teacherrole where some of the responsibility for assessment moved from them to thestudents themselves. This not only motivated the students but also gave themadded time for actual language learning.

Apprenticing Adolescent Readers to Academic Literacy

2001 ◽  
Vol 71 (1) ◽  
pp. 79-130 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cynthia Greenleaf ◽  
Ruth Schoenbach ◽  
Christine Cziko ◽  
Faye Mueller
Keyword(s):  
Reading Instruction ◽  
Standardized Test ◽  
Academic Literacy ◽  
Remedial Reading ◽  
The United States ◽  
Student Survey ◽  
School Students ◽  
Academic Reading ◽  
Adolescent Readers ◽  
Literacy Course

Throughout the United States, concern is growing among educators about the numbers of students in secondary schools who do not read well. In response, committed and well-meaning educators are increasingly advocating remedial reading courses for struggling adolescent readers. In this article, Cynthia Greenleaf, Ruth Schoenbach, Christine Cziko, and Faye Mueller offer an alternative vision to remedial reading instruction. The authors describe an instructional framework — Reading Apprenticeship — that is based on a socially and cognitively complex conception of literacy, and examine an Academic Literacy course based on this framework. Through case studies of student reading and analyses of student survey and test score data, they demonstrate that academically underperforming students became more strategic, confident, and knowledgeable readers in the Academic Literacy course. Students in Academic Literacy gained on average what is normally two years of reading growth within one academic year on a standardized test of reading comprehension. Student reflections, interviews, and pre-post surveys from Academic Literacy revealed students' new conceptions of reading for understanding, their growing interest in reading books and favorite authors, their increasing repertoires of strategies for approaching academic reading, and their emerging confidence in themselves as readers and thinkers. They argue for investing resources and effort into demystifying academic reading for their students through ongoing, collaborative inquiry into reading and texts, while providing students with protected time for reading and access to a variety of attractive texts linked to their curriculum. This approach can move students beyond the "literacy ceiling" to increased understanding, motivation, opportunity, and agency as readers and learners. These findings challenge the current policy push for remedial reading programs for poor readers, and invite further research into what factors create successful reading instruction programs for secondary school students.

scholarly journals An Empirical Study of Application of Multimodal Approach to Teaching Reading in EFL in Senior High School

2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (02) ◽  
pp. 98
Author(s):  
Xuequan Pan ◽  
Zhixin Zhang
Keyword(s):  
High School ◽  
High School Students ◽  
Teaching Method ◽  
Reading Proficiency ◽  
Teaching Experiment ◽  
Senior High School ◽  
Teaching Approach ◽  
School Students ◽  
English Reading ◽  
Reading Teaching

English Reading skill is one of the most important skills for senior high school students who learn English as a foreign language (EFL). However, the present ELF teaching method is still teacher-centered which neglects students’ learning interest and their participation in the process of teaching. In 1990s, Western scholars proposed multi-modal theory which suggests that semiotic resources (sound, images, video, animation, motion, color, facial expressions, etc.) can be used to stimulate different senses of students so as to improve their learning efficiency. The present study is intended to apply the multi-modal approach to EFL reading teaching in senior high school and tries to find out whether the multimodal teaching can stimulate students’ interest in English reading and improve their reading proficiency. In this study, with students of a high school in Anhui in China as the research subjects, an English reading teaching experiment was carried out. The analysis of data collected from reading tests and questionnaires indicates that the application of multi-modal teaching approach in high school EFL reading teaching can stimulate students’ interest in English reading and improve students’ English reading proficiency, and that most students take a positive attitude towards multimodal teaching approach.

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