Improving students reading comprehension through predicting strategy instruction an action research at cao ba quat upper secondary school

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST - GRADUATE STUDIES HOÀNG THỊ KIM QUẾ IMPROVING STUDENTS’ READING COMPREHENSION THROUGH PREDICTING STRATEGY INSTRUCTION: AN ACTION RESEARCH AT CAO BA QUAT UPPER SECONDARY SCHOOL (NÂNG CAO KHẢ NĂNG ĐỌC HIỂU CỦA HỌC SINH THÔNG QUA VIỆC GIẢNG DẠY CHIẾN LƯỢC DỰ ĐOÁN: NGHIÊN CỨU HÀNH ĐỘNG TẠI TRƯỜNG THPT CAO BÁ QUÁT) M.A Minor Programme Thesis Field : English Teaching Methodology Code : 601410 HANOI, 2011 VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST - GRADUATE STUDIES HOÀNG THỊ KIM QUẾ IMPROVING STUDENTS’ READING COMPREHENSION THROUGH PREDICTING STRATEGY INSTRUCTION: AN ACTION RESEARCH AT CAO BA QUAT UPPER SECONDARY SCHOOL (NÂNG CAO KHẢ NĂNG ĐỌC HIỂU CỦA HỌC SINH THÔNG QUA VIỆC GIẢNG DẠY CHIẾN LƯỢC DỰ ĐOÁN: NGHIÊN CỨU HÀNH ĐỘNG TẠI TRƯỜNG THPT CAO BÁ QUÁT) M.A Minor Programme Thesis Field : English Teaching Methodology Code : 601410 Supervisor : Phạm Minh Tâm, M.Ed HANOI, 2011 iv LIST OF TABLES Table 1.1 Language Learning Strategies, O‘ Maley and Chamot, 1990……… ………….… I I Table 1.2 Reading Strategies in O‘Malley and Chamot‘s Scheme………………………… 11 Table 1.3 Reading Strategies Recommended by Teachers at Chinese University of Hongkong ………………………………………………………………………… 11 Table 1.4 Predicting Strategies and Activities to Develop Predicting Strategies………… 12 Table 1.5 Grammar-Translation Method and Communicative Language Teaching……….….13 Table 1.6 Task-based Learning Framework Reproduced by J Willis, 1996…………….…….II Table 1.7 Model of Reading Comprehension Instruction……………………………….…….15 Table 1.8 Models of Reading Strategy Instruction…………………………………….……….15 Table 2.1 Background Information on the Participants…………………………………….…22 Table 2.2 Procedures for Questionnaire Development……………………………………… 22 Table 2.3 Procedures for Test Development………………………………………………… 23 Table 2.4 Syllabus of Predicting Strategy Instruction Course……………………………… 25 Table 2.5 Procedures for Predicting Strategy Instruction Development…………………… 25 Table 3.3 Percentage of the Students‘ Correct Answers in the Pre-test and Post-tests……… 33 Table 3.4 Percentage of the Students‘ Correct Answers to Each Question in the Pre-test and Posttests………………………………………………………………………… 333 LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1.1 Components of Reading……………………………………………………………5 Figure 2.1 Action Research Model………………………………………………………… 2121 Figure 3.1 Students‘ Awareness and Use of Predicting Strategies………………………… 288 Figure 3.2 Students‘ Awareness and Use of Other Reading Strategies………………………2929 Figure 3.3 Students‘ Awareness of Predicting Strategies…………………………………….3131 v TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… i i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS…………………………………………………………………………………………….…… …ii ABSTRACT…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… iii i LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES ………………………………………………………………………………… … iv PART A : INTRODUCTION ………………………………………………………………………….………… 1 Rationale for the Study …………………………………………………………………………………………………… … Aims and Research Questions of the Study …………………………………………………………………….…… Scope of the Study ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 33 Significance of the Study ………………………………………………………………………………………………………3 Research Methodology ………………………………………………………………………………………………………… Organization of the Thesis …………………………………………………………………………………………………… PART B: DEVELOPMENT ………………………………………………………………………………………… CHAPTER : LITERATURE REVIEW …………………………………………………………… …… …… 1.1 The Nature of Reading Comprehension ……………………………………………………………………………… 1.1.1 Definitions of Reading Comprehension………………………………………………………………….4 1.1.2 Reading Models…………………………………………………………………………………………………… 1.1.2.1 Bottom-up Reading Models ………………………………………………………………… 55 1.1.2.2 Top-down Reading Model …………………………………………………………………… 1.1.2.3 Interactive Reading Model …………………………………………………………………… 1.1.3 Schema Theory……………………………………………………………………………………………………….7 1.2 Reading Comprehension Strategies …………………………………………………………………………………… 1.2.1 Foreign Language Learning Strategies………………………………………………………………….8 1.2.1.1 Definitions of Foreign Language Learning Strategies ………………………… 1.2.1.2 Classification of Language Learning Strategies …………………………………… 99 1.2.1.3 The Importance of Language Learning Strategies for Students…………… 1.2.2 Reading Comprehension Strategies…………………………………………………………………… 1010 1.2.2.1 Definitions of Reading Comprehension Strategies ………………………………111 1.2.2.2 Classification of Reading Comprehension Strategies ………………………… 111 1.2.3 Predicting Strategies.………………………………………………………………………………………… 111 1.3 Reading Comprehension Strategy Instruction ……………………………………………………………………1212 1.3.1 Approaches to Reading Comprehension Strategy Instruction …………………………….1313 1.3.2 Model of Reading Comprehension Instruction ……………………………………………………1414 1.3.3 Models of Reading Strategy Instruction …………………………………………………………… 1515 1.4 Related Studies ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 1717 1.5 Summary …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….1818 vi CHAPTER : RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ……………………………………………………………… 19 2.1 Research Context ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 19 19 20 20 21 22 22 23 23 24 25 26 26 26 27 27 2.2 Research Questions …………………………………………………………………………………………………………….20 2.3 Research Approach …………………………………………………………………………………………………………….20 2.4 Participants …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………21 2.5 Data Collection Instruments ……………………………………………………………………………………………… 22 2.5.1 Questionnaire……………………………………………………………………………………………………… 22 2.5.2 Pre-test and post-tests ……………………………………………………………………………………… 23 2.5.3 Teacher’s diary and students’ reflective journal……………………………………………… 23 2.6 Intervention ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 24 2.7 Data Collection Procedures ……………………………………………………………………………………………… 25 2.8 Data Analysis Procedures ………………………………………………………………………………………………… 26 2.8.1 Questionnaires …………………………………………………………………………………………………….26 2.8.2 Pre-test and post-test ………………………………………………………………………………………… 26 2.8.3 Diary and Journals……………………………………………………………………………………………… 27 2.9 Summary …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 27 CHAPTER : RESULTS AND DISCUSSION …………………………………………………………………… 28 3.1 Preliminary investigation ……………………………………………………………………………………………………28 28 28 3.1.2 Students’ Awareness and Use of Other Reading Strategies 29 29 3.2 Evaluation ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 30 3.1.1 Students’ Awareness and Use of Predicting Strategies……………………………………… 28 ……………………………… 3.2.1To what extent students’ readin 3.2.2What are effect the students and the teachers? ………………………………………………………………………… 3.3 Summary …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….41 PART C : CONCLUSION …………………………………………………………………………………………….42 Summary of the Main Findings ……………………………………………………………………………………………42 41 42 42 Pe da go gi ca l I m pl ic ati on s of th e St ud y … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … 42 42 Limitations of the Research ………………………………………………………………………………………………… 44 Suggestions for Further Research ……………………………………………………………………………………… 44 REFERENCES ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 45 APPENDIXES ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… I 44 44 45 I PART A: INTRODUCTION Rationale for the Study Reading is an essential skill for English as a foreign language (EFL) students; and for many, reading is the most important skill to master With strengthened reading skills, EFL readers will make greater progress and attain greater development not only in English but also in all academic areas Therefore, ―reading is the most heavily researched single area of the whole curriculum, and yet, paradoxically, it remains a field in which a good deal of fundamental work has yet to be approached, and one in which a great many teachers would claim to be almost wholly ignorant‖ and secondary teachers ―who have generally had no training at all related to reading but nevertheless feel conscious that the ability to read fluently is the basis for most school learning, and one of the surest predictors of academic attainment‖ (Harrison and Gardner, 1977) Traditionally, attempts to improve the comprehension of texts for EFL students have focused on familiarizing the students with vocabulary needed to comprehend the passage However, within the last 15 years, much of the research conducted in the field of reading comprehension has concentrated on the knowledge and control of reading strategies, and more and more emphasis has been put on the importance of training EFL learners to be strategic readers Studies have revealed that the use of appropriate reading strategies may improve reading comprehension (Olsen and Gee, 1991), and using reading strategies can be of great help to non-native readers because they may serve as effective ways of overcoming language deficiency and obtaining better reading achievement on language proficiency tests (Wong, 2005; Zhang, 1992) However, empirical research indicates that in most reading classrooms, students have received inadequate instruction on reading skills and strategies (Miller and Perkins, 1989) EFL teachers seldom teach a strategy explicitly in class In other words, teachers normally stress on the production of reading comprehension rather than the reading process Reading lessons are more of reading tests, in which teachers ask the students to read the text and complete several reading tasks This problem can be found in many EFL reading classes in the world, and Vietnam is not an exception Vietnamese learners of English, in general, and students at Cao Ba Quat Upper Secondary School in particular, after several years of learning English, turn out to be word-by-word readers; they tend to read very slowly to understand the meaning of every single word When they encounter unfamiliar words or unfamiliar concepts, they feel discouraged and resort to wild guessing to construct the text meaning Some students not understand the main idea of a text even when they have translated every word into their mother tongue Very few students deliberately look at the title of a text to think about its topic before reading Fewer students use their background knowledge to facilitate their comprehension They are completely dependent on the decoded messages from the text, so once their decoding mechanisms fail due to their deficient language proficiency, comprehension breaks down With a view to gaining some insight into reading strategies and reading strategy instruction, I chose to study how to improve students‘ reading comprehension through predicting strategy instruction The rationale for my focus on predicting strategies is that they are of key importance in the comprehension process It has been found out that efficient reading often includes the use of predicting strategies (Goodman, 1976; Palincsar & Brown, 1984) Interacting with text, readers use their prior knowledge in concert with cues in the text to generate predictions Although the importance of prediction in comprehending texts has been demonstrated by recent research, much remains to be learned about predicting strategies Aims and Research Questions of the Study The study aims at exploring the impact of predicting strategy instruction on the reading th comprehension of 10 grade students at Cao Ba Quat Upper Secondary School with a view to giving recommendations on how to teach the students to use predicting strategies effectively to improve their reading comprehension The specific aims of the research are as follows:  To examine the impact of the predicting strategy instruction on the reading th comprehension of 10 grade students at Cao Ba Quat Upper Secondary School  To determine effective techniques to teach predicting strategies in reading comprehension in their reading classes, from the teacher‘ and students‘ perspectives In order to achieve the above aims, the following research questions will be addressed (1) To what extent does the use of predicting strategy instruction improve Cao Ba Quat Upper Secondary School’s grade 10 students’ reading comprehension? (2) What techniques are effective to teach these students’ predicting strategy, as perceived by the teacher and the students? Scope of the Study th This study only focuses on the teaching of predicting strategies to 10 grade students at Cao Ba Quat Upper Secondary School, so the teaching of other reading strategies or to other subjects would be beyond the scope Significance of the Study The study examines the impact of the predicting strategy instruction on the participants‘ reading comprehension and suggests effective techniques to teach predicting strategies, so it would be of great value to the teaching of reading skill In the light of the research, teachers can adjust their reading instruction so as to help to train strategic readers Research Methodology In order to achieve these aims, an Action Research was employed to measure the influence of the intervention-predicting strategy instruction-on the students' reading comprehension The data was collected via a number of instruments including a questionnaire, a pre-test, two post-tests, teacher’s diaries and students’ journals After a preliminary investigation had been carried out, a predicting strategy instruction course was designed, and then implemented in the second semester of the school year 2010 - 2011 with the participation of 50 students from Group 10A10 at Cao Ba Quat Upper Secondary School The data was then analysed by means of descriptive statistic devices and content analysis method The results indicated that with the combination of these instruments the study yielded reliable findings Organization of the Study The thesis consists of three main parts: INTRODUCTION which provides an overview of the study, DEVELOPMENT which is the main part and consists of chapters, and CONCLUSION which includes the summary, pedagogical implications, limitations of the study and suggestions for further study Three chapters in the main part are as follows: Chapter 1: Literature Review is review of the literature related to the research topic, which serves as a theoretical foundation of the study Chapter 2: Research Methodology provides information about the research context, participants, research approach, data collection instruments, data collection procedures, and data analysis procedures Chapter 3: Results and Discussion is the main part of the study, which reports and discusses the main findings according to the research questions XIX While You Read 10’  To practice reading for the main idea of the text, using predicting strategy XX 10’  To practice reading for specific using predicting strategy - Read what different people say about their traveling - Listen to the instruction - - Ask the students to work in groups of four and discuss how they did the task and what they decided Listen to the modeling - Work individually, read the headings and look over the pictures to predict what tour is mentioned in each paragraph, then read the text silently to check the predictions and choose the best tour for each person based on the specific information in each passage - Work in groups of four and discuss how the task was done and what the decision was XXI After You Read 5’  To practice writing the title advertisement of XXII Appendix 8: Lesson Plan for the Lesson on Predicting the Main Idea of a Paragraph from its First Sentence, and Using the Background Knowledge of the Content to Predict the Upcoming Information in the Text I Level: 50 students - Pre-intermediate level of English III Aims: At the end of the lesson, … The students can predict the main idea of a paragraph after reading its first sentence The students can use their background knowledge to predict the upcoming information in the text IV Assumed Knowledge: Students have some idea of the topic ―The Future of Online Shopping‖, and some words and phrases related to this topic V Anticipated Problems: Students may not have enough vocabulary and background knowledge related to the topic VI Teaching Aids: Articles about the topic ―Shopping‖, prediction worksheets VII Procedures: Stage Time  To 1.Warm-up 7’ students lesson and to the predicting strategy Ai mo to XXIII Lead -in 1’  To lesson introdu XXIV Before You Read 7’ 5’ While You Read 15’  To students‘ knowledge topic and words and phrases  To review what the text is about through pictures  To practice reading for the main idea of a paragraph, XXV predicting strategy XXVI 10’  To practice reading for specific using predicting strategy - Reread the predictions about the future of shopping - Listen to the instruction - Listen to the modeling - Work individually, read the predictions, read the text to locate the information and then decide whether the prediction is true or false - Work in groups of four and discuss how the task was done and what the decision was - Report in front of the class - Review the process of reading for specific idea in the text XXVII After You Read 5’  To practice writing the title advertisement of XXVIII Appendix 9: Lesson Plan for the Lesson on Using the Background Knowledge of the Content and of the Textual Structure to Predict the Upcoming Information in the Text I Level: 50 students - Pre-intermediate level of English II Time Allowance: 90‘ III.Aims: At the end of the lesson, the students can predict what to come next in the text they are reading, using their background knowledge of the content and of the textual structure IV Assumed Knowledge: Students have knowledge of the topic ―Changing Families‖ and vocabulary related to this topic, and knowledge of different textual structures V Anticipated Problems: Students may lack knowledge of the topic ―Changing Families‖ and vocabulary related to this topic, and knowledge of different textual structures VI Teaching Aids: Prediction worksheets, A3 paper worksheets VII Procedures Stage Time  To 1.Warm-up 7’ students lesson and to introduce the predicting strategy Ai mo to XXIX Lead -in 1’ Before You Read 15’ 7’  To lesson  To students‘ knowledge topic words and phrases  To the topic from the title and pictures and review review XXX - Do the task individually, predicting what the text is about 15’ - Ask the students to share their predictions with their partner - Ask the students to report the topics predicted and write these topics on the board - Ask the students to read the introduction paragraph of the text to consider their prior predictions about the topic of the reading text - Ask the students to report their predictions, and write them on the board Task 4: Making outlines for the reports for an international conference on “Changing Families” - Divide the class into smaller groups of four students, and assign each small group a name; Group Africa, Group Americas, Group Asia and Group Europe - Ask the students that at the conference about the topic ―Family‖, they are representatives for their continents and had to make a report on ―Changing Families‖ in their continents - Ask each small group to discuss how families in their continent are changing, and then make an outline for the report on the changing aspects of the family in their continent - Look at the title of the reading text, and the pictures and headings in the text to predict the topic of the text that they are going to read - Share the predictions with partner - Report the anticipated topics - Read the introduction paragraph to consider the anticipated topic of the text - Report the answer about the topic of the text - Make up the working groups - Listen to the instruction - Work in groups of four, discuss how families in their continents are changing and make an outline for the report on the issue XXXI While You Read 15’  To practice reading for main predicting the topic from the title the main idea of a paragraph from its first sentence ide an XXXII 25’  - Check the answer - Listen to the instruction - Watch the modeling To practice reading for specific using knowledge of the content and of structure - Work individually, read up to certain spot, make predictions for the upcoming information, then read on to check the predictions - Work in pairs, check the predictions - Report the results and how to get these results XXXIII After You Read 5’  To practice writing the rest of the paragraph ... students at Cao Ba Quat Upper Secondary School, and to identify effective techniques to teach predicting strategies, an action research was carried out in the researcher‘s own class at this school. .. Group 10A10 at Cao Ba Quat Upper Secondary School The data was then analysed by means of descriptive statistic devices and content analysis method The results indicated that with the combination of... aims at exploring the impact of predicting strategy instruction on the reading th comprehension of 10 grade students at Cao Ba Quat Upper Secondary School with a view to giving recommendations