Browsing by Subject "strategic reader"

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Open Access
The effect of combined strategy instruction on reading comprehension
(2007) Arpacıoğlu, Esra Banu
This study investigated (a) the effectiveness of combined strategy instruction on reading comprehension, (b) students’ perceptions of combined strategy training in reading instruction, and (c) teachers’ perceptions about combined reading strategy instruction and their experiences during strategy instruction. Four upper-intermediate classes (two as control groups and two as experimental groups) participated in the study. The experimental group received four-week long combined strategy instruction while the control group followed the current reading syllabus without strategy instruction. During the four-week study, Chamot and O’Malley’s (1994) strategy instruction model, Cognitive Academic Language Learning Approach (CALLA), was followed for the most part. Prior to and after the four-week study an International English Language Testing System (IELTS) reading test was given to the students to assess their reading comprehension. Retrospective think-aloud protocols were used after the post-reading test in order to gather evidence on the use of strategies during the post-test. Following the treatment, a questionnaire was administered to the experimental group students in order to explore their perceptions of the strategy instruction program. Finally, the instructors of the experimental classes were interviewed about their experiences during the treatment period. The data analysis showed that the experimental group showed significantly greater improvement on the reading test after the four-week study. Furthermore, the retrospective think-aloud protocols demonstrated that experimental group students employed a broad range of strategies during the post-reading test. The analysis of the questionnaire and interviews revealed that combined strategy instruction had a positive impact on both teachers and students.
Open Access
Evaluation of reading strategy instruction in an EFL reading textbook and teachers' perceptions of that reading strategy instruction
(2003) Yetgin, Emine
Strategic reading abilities are one of the major components of fluent reading, thus, developing strategic readers should be a focus of academic reading instruction. In such instruction, materials and teachers play a crucial role. The objective of this study was to evaluate reading strategy instruction in www.dbe.off-line.readings2, the intermediate-level reading textbook used in the Department of Basic English (DBE), at Middle East Technical University. Additionally, the study aimed at determining DBE teachers’ perceptions of strategy instruction in the textbook. In the first part of the study, a Textbook Evaluation Instrument and a Reference Sheet including 30 of the most frequently mentioned reading strategies in the literature were prepared. Then, these instruments were used to identify explicit/implicit strategy explanations and strategy practice opportunities in the textbook. Data collected from the textbook evaluation were analyzed quantitatively using frequencies and percentages. In the second part of the study, a questionnaire was administered to 44 intermediate-level DBE teachers to obtain data about their perceptions of the strategy instruction included in the book. Data collected from the questionnaire were analyzed quantitatively by employing descriptive statistics, such as frequencies, percentages, means, and standard deviations. Results of the study revealed which strategies receive explicit and/or implicit strategy instruction in the textbook. Teachers’ perceptions of the strategy instruction in the book are generally in conformity with the results of the textbook evaluation. The findings of the study might guide teachers in the design of supplementary reading materials to augment strategic reading instruction.