Effectiveness of Reading Strategies for EFL students of Pre-Intermediate Level

         SD =

         SD = = =6.3

         After experimenting the fifth strategy Vocabulary Development Activities, the researcher decided not to make any test because the strategy turned out inappropriate to the goal of the research.

         So, the learners had only five tests instead of six ones, and the results of the last strategy Peer-Facilitated Activities are vividly shown in the Table № 14.

         Table №14, The Results of The Diagnostic test 5

Name	Score
Muazzam	36
Nilufar	30
Suhrob	54
Nasiba	51
Hilola	30
Odina	21
Zarnigor	51
Lobar	27
Gulbahor	57
Nargiza	24

 
 

         Table №15, Frequency Distribution for Diagnostic test 5

Score Value	Frequency
57	1
54	1
51	2
36	1
30	2
27	1
24	1
21	1

 

                The most frequent scores are:

                 “51”and “30”

         The mean of the diagnostic test 5 is:

         (57+54+51+51+36+30+30+27+24+21)/10= 38.1

         As it is seen in the Table 15, there are two modes: 51 and 30. That is why the mode is bimodal as has two frequently occurring scores.

         Median is (36+30)/2

         Median is 33

Mean	38.1
Mode	51 and 30
Median	33

 

         The Range is: x= (highest score-lowest score+1)

         57-21+1=37

         Table №16

Name	Score	Mean	Difference	Difference Squared
Muazzam	36	-38.1	-2.1	4.41
Nilufar	30	-38.1	-8.1	65.61
Suhrob	54	-38.1	15.9	252.81
Nasiba	51	-38.1	12.9	166.41
Hilola	30	-38.1	-8.1	65.61
Odina	21	-38.1	-17.1	292.41
Zarnigor	51	-38.1	12.9	166.41
Lobar	27	-38.1	-11.1	123.21
Gulbahor	57	-38.1	18.9	357.21
Nargiza	24	-38.1	-14.1	198.81

         SD =

         SD = = =13.01 
 
 
 
 

         Discussion

         As it was already mentioned above, the goal of the research is to identify the most effective reading strategy that can help to enhance student’s reading comprehension. There were explored six reading strategies: 1) Reciprocal Teaching, 2) Think-Aloud, 3) Questioning Practices, 4) Retelling Practices, 5) Vocabulary Development Activities, 6) Peer-Facilitated Activities. The researcher studied a group of students from English Philology Faculty, it was the only source for the statistical study of the paper so the learners were asked to be very active and follow attentively all instructions that were given. After getting necessary information about students’ interests and their reading proficiency in English, the researcher tried the strategies by the use of various techniques during the lessons.

         The first strategy was Reciprocal Teaching. Students were explained the theoretical part before reading the material and asked to make clarification, summarization and prediction. The results of the experiment were good but not successful, though the teacher explained everything beforehand.

         The second strategy was Think- Aloud. Before trying this strategy, the researcher believed that it would be the most effective one, but predictions were not as it seemed. Students were required to make notes while reading and then to draw posters and present them. The presentations were nice but they were based more on students’ feelings and emotions rather than on the meaning itself.

         The third one was Questioning Practices. It was the most difficult experiment for the researcher because students had problems in distinguishing types of questions. The teacher had to explain it till the learners understood. But surprisingly, almost all students successfully managed with the test on this strategy.

         The fourth strategy was Retelling Practices. The technique that used in the experiment was quite original; students had to make recordings with their retellings. It was effective strategy because students were well prepared to record themselves and the task was done successfully. The results on the test were nice.

         The fifth strategy, Vocabulary Development Activities, the researcher decided to omit; the reason was that the strategy turned out inappropriate to the aim of the research.

         And the last experiment was with the strategy Peer Facilitated Activities. The higher-achieving students were combined with the lower-achieving students in a tutoring situation. The experiment was effective during the class because they worked in pairs and supported each other, but on test they worked individually and the lower-achieving learners were embarrassed, so the results were not as good as it was expected.

         After gathering all necessary data, the researcher looked through the results. She compared them and found out that according to the central tendency and dispersion, the most effective strategy for reading comprehension was Questioning Practices. The students got the most successful marks on the test of this strategy. By their answers it was clear that the learners deeply understood the text. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Final Reflections

            It was the first experiment when I was involved in writing this type of research paper. However, I am quite satisfied with the work that I have performed. I believe that the research will be helpful for the teachers who deal with reading comprehension skill.

      Before starting to write my qualification paper there was a problem with the choice of the topic. I had hesitation about idea what topic to choose. But then I decided to make the research about effectiveness of reading strategies for struggling readers, because I came across with such problem last year during my teaching practice. The process of writing statistical study was very interesting and involving in spite of some difficulties that I dealt with during the research. The scientific adviser was really helpful supporting me with lots of ideas, samples and explanations, so the structure how to write the paper was clear from the beginning. Certainly, not everything was as easy as it seemed to me, during the process of the research I came across such problems like lack of time and creating the tests for each strategy. As I had a teaching practice at our university this year, my subjects for the research were the philology students. They enthusiastically participated in my experiments and shared with their thoughts and opinions. Moreover, they tried not to miss my classes and had taken all tests that were given, so they became good learners and the only source for my statistical study process. Also, I would like to mention that writing qualification paper was really useful for developing my professional teaching skills. During the research I discovered various reading strategies and techniques that can be used for improving reading comprehension skill and I am going to use them in my future teaching life.

      In conclusion, I would like to say that writing qualification paper was really hard and at the same time fascinating process. I sincerely believe that it will become my contribution in the constantly developing teaching skills.  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

References 
 

Flood, J., and Lapp, D. (1990). Handbook of Research on Teaching Literacy through  the Communicative and Visual Arts. Mahwah: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. 

Gambrell, P., and Koskinen, R. (1991).Reading in a Second Language. Rowley, Mass.: Newbury House. 

Henderson, M., (1995). Reading and Language Processing. Mahwah: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. 

Klingner, J. K., & Vaughn, S. (1996). Reciprocal teaching of reading comprehension strategies for students with learning disabilities who use English as a second language. Elementary School Journal, 96(3), 275-293. 

Lehr, F., and Osborn, J. (1996). Reading, Language, and Literacy. Hillsdale: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. 

Rosenshine, J., and Meister, G. (1994). Reading English for specialized purposes: discourse analysis and the use of students informants. TESOL Quarterly 13(4): 551-564.[ Reprinted as Chapter 11 in this volume] 

Singer, M., and Ferreira, F. (1995). Reading and Language Processing. Mahwah: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

  

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APPENDIX 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Appendix 1

Questionnaire

1. What is your name?