|
Abstract:
Many students in Further Education and Training (FET) Colleges of Education have problems comprehending English Second Language (ESL) reading materials and thus cause them struggle academically because English is the medium of instruction. To some extent, methods of teaching second language reading contribute to students' reading failure. The purpose of this study was to determine what reading strategies Level 2 ESL learners use; what reading strategies should be taught; what the effect of an implemented reading strategy programme is on their reading comprehension and what the effect of an implemented reading strategy programme is on the reading comprehension. Two intact cohorts of Level 2 students were randomly assigned to a control and intervention group. A reading strategy questionnaire and a reading comprehension test were used to examine the relationship between strategy use and level of comprehension. A quasi-experimental pretest-post- test control group design was used. A t-test was used to determine whether the mean scores of the experimental and control group differed statistically from each other. A statistical software package was used to analyze data. A discrepancy emerged between the responses of the participants and their actual performance in reading text. The intervention group showed significant gains in strategy use and reading comprehension after the six-week intervention period. Recommendations are that a treatment period of much longer than twelve weeks is required for possible better retention of RSI. Also, a sustained period of intensive instruction and practice in reading strategies seems to be required.
|
