The relationship between cultural knowledge and reading fluency a study on high school efl students

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING VINH UNIVERSITY Student’s name: NGUYỄN NGÂN NGỌC Thesis title: THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CULTURAL KNOWLEDGE AND READING FLUENCY: A STUDY ON HIGH SCHOOL EFL STUDENTS MASTER’S THESIS (IN MAJOR OF ENGLISH TEACHING METHODOLOGY) Long An, 2018 MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING VINH UNIVERSITY Student’s name: NGUYỄN NGÂN NGỌC THESIS TITLE: THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CULTURAL KNOWLEDGE AND READING FLUENCY: A STUDY ON HIGH SCHOOL EFL STUDENTS Major: English Teaching Methodology Code: 1660140111840024 MASTER’S THESIS IN ENGLISH TEACHING & RESEARCH METHOD SUPERVISOR: Dr Tran Thi Ngoc Yen Long An, 2018 ABSTRACT This research aimed to examine the relationship between cultural knowledge and reading fluency An experiment was carried out among forty students at a high school in Long An province A pre-test and post-test were utilized to measure the participants’ reading comprehension and reading speed A test of cultural knowledge was also administered During the treatment, the experimental group was provided with cultural knowledge development activities The results showed that cultural knowledge plays an integral role in EFL learners’ reading comprehension and there is a correlation between these two variables It was also found that better knowledge of culture will boost learners’ confidence Based on the findings, some implications for teaching the reading skill are recommended i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to express my deep gratitude to my superior, Doctor Tran Thi Ngoc Yen for her valuable guidance, constructive comments, precious orientation and warm encouragement from forming the first basic structure of this manuscript till the completed thesis I wish to express my sincere thanks to my students I worked with in order to gather the data for my study I would also like to thank my colleagues and my friends for proofreading the first draft of the thesis Finally, I would like to delicate this work to my family, whose great support and encouragement have helped me a lot in the production of this study ii TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACTS …………………………………………………………… i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS …………………………………………… iii TABLE OF CONTENTS ……………………………………………… iv CHAPTER INTRODUCTION ………………………………… 1.1 Rationale …………………………………………………………… 1.2 Research aims and objectives ……………………………………… 1.3 Research questions ………………………………………………… 1.4 Research methods …………………………………………………… 1.5 Thesis design ……………………………………………………… CHAPTER LITERATURE REVIEW …………………………… 2.1 Cultural knowledge 2.1.1 Definition ………………………………………………… 11 2.1.2 Important factors of cultural knowledge …………………… 11 2.1.3 Cultural knowledge in high school English curriculum …… 14 2.2 Reading comprehension 2.2.1 Definition …………………………………………………… 31 2.2.2 The importance of reading comprehension ………………… 31 2.2.3 Factors affecting reading comprehension …………………… 33 2.2.4 Assessing reading comprehension …………………………… 34 2.3 Reading speed 2.3.1 Definition ……………………………………………………… 35 2.3.2 Factors affecting reading speed ……………………………… 36 2.3.3 Measuring reading speed …………………………………… 37 2.4 Difficulties ELF students have in reading English texts ………… 38 2.5 Methods to develop EFL reading fluency ………………………… 43 iii CHAPTER METHODOLOGY 3.1 Research questions ……………………………………………… 46 3.2 Participants ……………………………………………………… 46 3.3 Materials ………………………………………………………… 47 3.4 Procedures ………………………………………………………… 47 CHAPTER FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION 4.1 Results 4.1.1 Results on the cultural knowledge test …………………… 50 4.1.2 Pre-test results 4.1.2.1 Reading speed ……………………………………… 52 4.1.2.2 Reading comprehension …………………………… 52 4.1.3 Post-test results 4.1.3.1 Reading speed ……………………………………… 55 4.1.3.2 Reading comprehension …………………………… 55 4.2 Discussion 4.2.1 Relationship between cultural knowledge and reading speed … 57 4.2.2 Relationship between cultural knowledge and reading comprehension …………………………………………………………… 60 CHAPTER CONCLUSION 5.1 Summary and conclusion …………………………………………… 69 5.2 Limitations of the study …………………………………………… 70 5.3 Recommendation for further research ……………………………… 71 iv REFERENCES ……………………………………………………… 73 APPENDIX A ……………………………………………………… 76 APPENDIX B ……………………………………………………… 78 APPENDIX C ………………………………………………………… 80 APPENDIX D ………………………………………….…………… 82 APPENDIX E ……………………………………………………… 84 APPENDIX F ………………………………………………………… 86 APPENDIX G ……………………………………………………… 89 APPENDIX H ……………………………………………………… 92 ……………………………………………………… 94 APPENDIX J ………………………………………………………… 96 APPENDIX K ……………………………………………………… 99 APPENDIX I v LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS EFL: English as Foreign Language L2: Second language RT: Reading Text wpm: words per a minute LIST OF CHARTS Chart 4.1.1 Students’ reading speed - Textbooks ……………… 50 Chart 4.1.2.2 Students’ reading comprehension –Reference Books … 53 Chart 4.1.3.1 Reading speed between post-tests …………………… 55 Chart 4.1.3.2 Students’ cultural knowledge ……………………… 56 LIST OF TABLES Table 1: Reading speed scores (wpm) on reading texts in Textbooks …… 51 Table 2: Reading speed scores (wpm) on reading texts in Reference books…54 Table 3: Scores on students’ cultural knowledge in textbooks and reference books …………………………………………………………………… 57 vi CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION English is considered as an international language all over the world English is also a compulsory subject in National High School Graduation Examination It is regarded as a tool of communication and plays a more significant part in the modern society as well as in educational field English has become the core target for High School students to conquer so that they can achieve good results in their coming exams and even succeed in their future job Mastering English helps them overcome many problems in their study on different fields and feel more confident to get their achievement in such an integrated society Having been aware of the importance of teaching English for my students, I have wondered several better ways to assist them to study English better Skills on teaching a foreign language or cognitive ability of students can influence on effects of providing better education in English subject, which attracts my concern My experiences on teaching a foreign language show me that both of them are believed to be indispensible Especially, reading fluency plays an important role in acknowledging a foreign language If grammar is the structure of studying a foreign language, reading ability can help students fill in that structure with lively and useful background of knowledge In order to gain the best benefits in comprehending reading texts easily, cultural knowledge of students about countries’ customs is likely to be very necessary Reading fluency and cultural knowledge have close-knit relationship They contain mutual interaction Reading is a comprehending process which combines the known information with the unknown information Possessing the related culture background knowledge will contribute to the students' accurate understanding of the texts as more known information can promote comprehension Comprehending a text is an interactive process between the reader's background knowledge and the text Text cannot be understood correctly without cultural background knowledge Therefore, in English teaching, we should try to make students understand the language in its cultural context Students can never be expected to learn English well without learning and understanding the culture of the native English speakers In the EFL classroom in high schools, teachers should attach English lesson to cultural factors in the language learning process and integrate cultural knowledge and information into the teaching curricula Besides, teachers should not only improve personal qualities to teach the cultural background knowledge more accurately, comprehensively and widely, but also help improve students' cultural awareness and lead the students to attach importance to cultural language learning Meanwhile, students should also lay emphasis on the cultivation of their cultural background knowledge on their initiatives They can accumulate and enrich their background knowledge through the English text-supplementary materials (such as workbooks, and reading passages in the collection of practice tests) as well as the other readings (for example, English novels, stories, newspapers and journals), try to make full use of the Internet and make themselves more contact with the foreign cultural knowledge In conclusion, students' reading comprehension competence will have great improvement if they are well known of the cultural background knowledge (Lia, 2001) APPENDIX F Reading Text Read the text and then choose the correct answer: The livelihood of each species in the vast and intricate assemblage of living things depends on the existence of other organisms This interdependence is sometimes subtle, sometimes obvious Perhaps the most straightforward dependence of one species on another occurs with parasites, organisms that live on or in other living thongs and derive nutrients directly from them The parasitic way of life is widespread A multitude of microorganisms (including viruses and bacteria) and an army of invertebrates – or creatures lacking a spinal column (including crustaceans, insects, and many different types of worms) – make their livings directly at the expense of other creatures In the face of this onslaught, living things have evolved a variety of defense mechanisms for protecting their bodies from evasion by other organisms Certain fungi and even some kinds of bacteria secrete substances known as antibiotics into their external environment These substances are capable of killing or inhibiting the growth of various kinds of bacteria that also occupy the area thereby eliminating or reducing the competition for nutrients The same principle is used in defense against invaders in other groups of organisms For example, when attacked by disease-causing fungi or bacteria, many kinds of plants produce chemicals that help to ward off the invaders Members of the animal kingdom have developed a variety of defense mechanisms for dealing with parasites Although these mechanicals vary considerably, all major groups of animals are capable of detecting and reacting 86 to the presence of “foreign” ells In fact, throughout the animal kingdom, from sponges to certain types of worms, shellfish, and all vettebrates (creatures possessing a spinal column), there is evidence that transplants of cells or fragments of tissues into an animal are accepted only if they come from genetically compatible or closely related individuals The ability to distinguish between “self” and non-self”, while present in all animals, is most efficient among vertebrates, which have developed an immune system as their defense mechanism The immune system recognizes and takes action against foreign invaders and transplanted tissues that are treated as foreign cells What does the passage mainly discuss? A How parasites reproduce B How organisms react to invaders C How antibiotics work to cure disease D How the immune systems of vertebrates developed According to the passage, some organisms produce antibiotics in order to A prevent disease in humans B aid digestion C fight off other organisms D create new types of nutrients The phrase “ward off” in the second paragraph probably means _? A attack B drive away C let off D protect The word “they” in the third paragraph refers to _? A worms and shellfish B vertebrates C individuals D transplants 87 A transplant of tissue between genetically incompatible organisms will result in the transplanted tissue A becoming a parasite B being treated as an invader C altering its genetic makeup D developing anew immune system The ability to distinguish between “self” and”non-self” ebables vertebrates to A accept transplanted cells B detect and react to invasion C weaken their immune system D get rid of antibiotics All of the following are defined in the passage EXCEPT _ A parasites (para.1) B invertebrates (para 1) C nutrients (para 2) D vertebrates (para 3) The paragraph following the passage most probably discusses A how the immune system invertebrates fights off foreign cells B different types of bacteria and other parasites C how vertebrates and invertebrates differ D examples of different groups of organisms 88 APPENDIX G Reading Text Read the text and then choose the correct answer: The hit movie Finding Nemo follows a clownfish that is scooped up from the Great Barrier Reef In real life, a clownfish are among the thousands of colorful sea creatures that call the Great Barrier Reef home Stretching 1,250 miles among Australia’s northeastern coast, the Great Barrier Reef is the longest reef in the world A coral reef is a living underwater structure But these days, the Great Barrier Reef has found itself in trouble Overfishing, pollution, and high temperatures are harming its health That’s why the government in Australia is trying to help rescue the reef While coral may look like a plant, it is actually made up of tiny sea animals Those sea animals are called coral polyps As polyps die, they leave hard shells behind Other polyps grow on top of the shells Over thousands of years, they form a coral reef in warm water that is not very deep In many ways, the Great Barrier Reef resembles an underwater garden Coral can be hard or soft It forms in different colors and in strange shapes Some coral looks like hardened brains Other coral looks like fans and lettuces The reef bursts with schools of tropical fish, darting among gaps in the coral The reef supplies food and shelter to creatures living in and around the coral Turtles, sharks, sea horses, and crabs are among its many inhabitants While the reef is important to ocean life, it helps humans, too People rely on the reef for both food and jobs It also provides medicine used to treat 89 disease Each year, the Great Barrier Reef contributes about $975 million to the economy through tourism and fishing Is it surprising, then, that the Great Barrier Reef is under too much stress? Fishing nets and ships break off sections and damage the reef Air and water pollution are also doing harm At the same time, warmer sea temperatures have caused coral bleaching on half of the reef The high temperatures cause the coral to turn white, often killing it In an effort to help save the reef, the government has limited fishing to two-thirds of it That plan increases the number of “ green zones” Those are areas that are off-limits to fishermen and boats However, tourists and researchers can still visit them The Australian government says that its plan will help keep the reef safe from some threats Where is the Great Barrier Reef? A in northwestern coast of Australia B in southeastern coast of Australia C in the northeastern coast of Australia D in southwestern coast of Australia Which of the following does not harm to the Great Barrier Reef? A tourists B overfishing C pollution D high temperatures Where can the coral reef usually be found? A in warm deep water B in cold shallow water C in warm shallow water D in cold deep water Which of the following is NOT a creature that lives in the Great Barrier Reef? A coral polyps B turtles C sea horses D whales In paragraph 4, what image does the author most likely want the reader to visualize? 90 A Many fish quickly moving through the coral B Fish moving toward the center, or target, of the coral C Fish exploding when they come into contact with gaps in the coral What does the word “contributes” in paragraph mean? A pays the economy B makes money for the economy C owes the economy D costs the economy What is the passage mostly about? A The causes of reef problems and possible solutions B Coral bleaching, which causes the reef to turn white C Overfishing and higher temperatures D the history of tourism to the Great Barrier Reef According to the passage, which of the following sentences is true? A The clownfish is the only colorful creatures found in the Great Barrier Reef B The Great Barrier Reef is the second longest coral reef in the world C Coral is a kind of plant because it is made up of dead coral polyps D Coral forms in strand shapes and in different colors 91 APPENDIX H Reading speed scores (wpm) and means of the tests (reading texts in reference books) Participants RT RT RT Scores (wpm) Scores (wpm) Scores (wpm) 27 34 40 29 33 38 31 36 41 30 34 40 28 37 41 33 34 40 32 35 40 34 35 42 31 34 42 10 29 34 42 11 30 36 41 12 33 37 43 13 29 33 40 14 30 34 44 15 31 35 40 16 32 34 37 17 28 34 39 18 31 37 39 19 31 33 42 20 30 37 41 21 28 35 39 92 22 30 34 37 23 31 33 41 24 28 35 43 25 32 35 43 26 33 34 41 27 28 36 42 28 31 33 38 29 30 35 40 30 30 35 39 31 29 36 39 32 30 38 38 33 32 34 40 34 31 34 41 35 32 34 41 36 30 35 40 37 31 37 42 38 30 34 43 39 29 33 42 40 32 35 38 N = 40 ∑ X = 1216 ∑ X = 1391 ∑ X = 1619 Mean 33 35 40 93 APPENDIX I Reading Text in Textbook Reading the text and the answer the questions People often use the natural world as inspiration for their inventions By observing animals and plants, they design new products to serve humans Here are some examples Animals can many things humans cannot, like flying or staying underwater for a long time the airplane, with its wings and shape imitating those of a bird, is one of the greatest inventions in our history Thanks to it, people can travel long distances in the air This has helped to developed trade and tourism The submarine, which can travel underwater, imitates a dolphin’s shape Submarines are very useful for scientists to learn about undersea world Plants around us are also great sources of ideas for other wonderful inventions The self-cleaning glass window and the fabric used to make umbrellas are both inspired by the smooth leaves of a lotus plant, with their ability to wash away dirt in the rain Another product is Velcro This hookand-loop fastener was invented after a Swiss engineer observed how the seeds of a plant clung to his clothing He then made two fabrics stick together thanks to the hooks on one surface and then loops on the other Since then, Velcro has gradually become a familiar fastener for shoes, jackets, and even spacesuits It is definitely true that mature has inspired numerous inventions and technologies Scientists and inventors have tried to imitate something in nature in an effort to create better, stronger, safer tools and devices for our everyday life 94 Answer the following questions: What are the inventions that imitate animals? What are the inventions that imitate plants? Why is the airplane considered one of the greatest inventions in our history? What can help scientists to learn about life under the sea? How can a glass window clean itself? Find the words or phrases in the text that can describe an airplane, a submarine and Velcro? 95 APPENDIX J Reading Text in Reference book Read the text and chose the correct option Many prehistoric people subsisted as hunters and gatherers Undoubtedly, game animals, including some very large species, provided major components of human diets An important controversy centering on the question of human effects on prehistoric wildlife concerns the sudden disappearance of so many species of large animals at or near the end of the Pleistocene epoch Most paleontologists suspect that abrupt changes in climate led to the mass extinctions Others, however, have concluded that prehistoric people drove many of those species to extinction through overhunting In their “Pleistocene overkill hypothesis,” they cite what seems to be a remarkable coincidence between the arrival of prehistoric peoples in North and South America and the time during which mammoths, giant ground sloths, the giant bison, and numerous other large mammals became extinct Perhaps the human species was driving others to extinction long before the dawn of history Human-gatherers may have contributed to Pleistocene extinctions in more indirect ways Besides overhunting, at least three other kinds of effects have been suggested: direct competition, imbalances between competing species of game animals, and early agricultural practices Direct competition may have brought about the demise of large carnivores such as the saber-toothed cats These animals simply may have been unable to complete with the increasingly sophisticated hunting skills of Pleistocene people 96 Human hunters could have caused imbalances among game animals, leading to the extinction of species less able to compete When other predators such as the gray wolf prey upon large mammals, they generally take high proportions of each year’s crop of young Some human hunters, in contrast tend to take the various age-groups of large animals in proportion to their actual occurrence If such hunters first competed with the larger predators and then replaced them, they may have allowed younger to survive each year, gradually increasing the populations of favored species As these populations expanded, they in turn may have competed with other game species for the same environmental niche, forcing the less hunted species into extinction This theory, suggests that human hunters played an indirect role in Pleistocene extinctions by hunting one species more than another What does the passage mainly discuss? A The effects of human activities on prehistoric wildlife B The origins of the hunter-gatherer way of life C The diets of large animals of the Pleistocene epoch D The change in climate at the end of the Pleistocene epoch Which of the following is NOT true, according to the passage? A A lot of prehistoric people were hunters and gatherers B Hunter-gatherers contributed directly to Pleistocene extinctions C The saber-toothed cats were meat-eating animals D Agriculture was probably one cause of Pleistocene extinctions Which of the following is mentioned as supporting the Pleistocene overkill hypothesis? A Many of the animals that became extinct were quite large B humans migrated into certain regions around the time that major extinctions occurred 97 C There is evidence that new species were arriving in areas inhabited by humans D Humans began to keep and care for certain animals The word “Besides” in the passage is closest in meaning to A caused by B whereas C in addition to D in favor of The author mentions saber-toothed cats in paragraph as an example of animals that _ A became extinct before the Pleistocene epoch B was unusually large for its time C was not able to compete with humans D caused the extinction of several species The highlighted word “they” in the passage refers to A human hunters B game animals C other predators D large mammals What is one difference between the hunting done by some humans and the hunting done by gray wolves? A Some humans hunt more frequently and more extensively than gray wolves B Gray wolves hunt in larger groups than some humans C Some humans can hunt larger animals than gray wolves can hunt D Some human prey on animals of all ages, but gray wolves prey on young ans The imbalances discussed in paragraph may have resulted from _ A the effect of climate changes on large game animals B large animals moving into a new environment C older animals not being able to compete with younger ones D humans hunting some species more than others 98 APPENDIX K SCORES ON STUDENTS’ CULTURAL KNOWLEDGE IN TEXTBOOKS AND RWEFERENCE BOOKS Participants Scores on tests Scores on tests in textbooks in reference books 7.0 4.5 7.5 5.5 8.5 4.5 5.5 8.5 5.0 7.0 6.0 7.5 6.0 8.0 5.0 8.0 4.5 10 8.5 5.0 11 9.0 5.5 12 8.5 5.0 13 8.5 5.5 14 8.0 5.5 15 7.5 6.0 16 7.5 4.5 17 7.0 4.5 18 7.5 4.5 19 7.0 5.5 20 7.0 6.0 99 21 8.5 6.0 22 9.0 5.5 23 9.0 6.0 24 8.5 5.5 25 7.5 5.5 26 8.5 5.5 27 8.5 5.0 28 7.5 4.5 29 8.5 4.5 30 9.0 5.0 31 8.5 5.0 32 7.0 5.0 33 7.0 6.0 34 8.5 6.0 35 8.5 4.5 36 9.0 4.5 37 9.0 5.5 38 8.0 6.0 39 8.0 4.5 40 7.0 5.5 N = 40 322 209.5 Mean 8.1 5.2 100 ... National High School Graduation Examination Reading passages are included in National High School Graduation Examination On the other hand, cultural issues are represented in a separated section... then leading to the relationship between cultural knowledge and reading speed, and the relationship between cultural knowledge and reading fluency Chapter is considered conclusion which contains... years in school and four years in secondary secondary school and school and then go on to a vocational years in high school and then school or university go on to a vocational or university A