ARMY POLYTECHNIC SCHOOL
DEPARTMENT OF LANGUAGES
APPLIED LINGUISTICS IN ENGLISH CAREER
THEME:
ACTIVE STRATEGIES TO DEVELOP COMPREHENSIVE
READING IN AN EFL CLASSROOM WITH CHILDREN OF
SEVENTH YEAR OF BASIC EDUCATION AT “UNIDAD
EDUCATIVA EXPERIMENTAL LA LLAMA DEL VALLE”,
DURING THE SCHOOL YEAR 2010-2011.
By Susana A. Andrade P.
ADVISORS:
DIRECTOR:
CODIRECTOR:
MSc. María Eugenia Arcos
Msc. Olga Cárdenas
SUMMARY
The lack of Reading comprehension of children
of seventh year of B.E. at the “U.E.E. La Llama del
Valle” led to design some strategies which will
help them improve this skill.
Furthermore, it has been developed upon the
modality of a feasible project, which was
developed in two facets.
• The diagnostic and
• The pedagogical proposal
ANALYSIS OF THE CAUSES AND EFFECTS OF THE PROBLEM
CAUSES
PROBLEM
EFFECTS
Contact with English
texts just in class
time.
Not
enough
opportunities
for
reading practice in
class.
Students continually use
the dictionary to translate
into their L1 the words that
they don’t understand.
Teachers know mostly
traditional strategies
for reading
comprehension.
LACK OF STRATEGIES TO COPE WITH THE READING
COMPREHENSION SKILL IN CHILDREN OF THE SEVENTH
YEAR OF BASIC EDUCATION FROM THE “UNIDAD
EDUCATIVA EXPERIMENTAL LA LLAMA DEL VALLE”
Students
don´t
progress in their
reading
comprehension skill.
Students are
prompted
in
comprehension
interpretation
written pieces.
not
the
and
of
Low development of
the comprehension
process of reading.
Teachers
don´t
apply
innovative
reading strategies.
PROBLEM SETTING
MAIN PROBLEM
How does the applying of reading
strategies in the classroom affect
reading comprehension in the
students of seventh year at Basic
Education of “Unidad Educativa
Experimental La Llama del Valle?
SECONDARY PROBLEMS
•
How does the limited contact with adequate English texts affect
students of seventh year of B.E. in their reading comprehension?
• How does the lack of opportunities for reading practice obstruct the
Reading Comprehension of these students?
OBJECTIVES
GENERAL OBJECTIVE
To determine the incidence of
applying active teaching strategies
in order to improve the reading
comprehension
skill
of
the
seventh year of Basic Education at
“Unidad Educativa Experimental La
Llama del Valle”
SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES
•
To characterize some teaching strategies on reading production that facilitate to
get the best benefit from English classes and improve reading comprehension in
the students of seventh years of B.E. at “U.E.E. La Llama del Valle”
•
To provide appropriate activities in order to attain as many opportunities as
possible for reading practice
JUSTIFICATION

The goal : resolve the problem

Tools: strategies for teching reading
according students’ ages

Focus on: reading comprehension

Alternative: to promote the students
motivation to read
THEORETICAL
FRAME
STRUCTURE
INDEPENDENT VARIABLE
ACTIVE STRATEGIES
DEPENDENT VARIABLE
READING COMPREHENSION PROCESS
Goals and Techniques for Teaching Reading
Assessing Reading Proficiency
Strategies to develop reading skills
Reading methodology
Developing Reading Activities
Lesson plan
Using Textbook Reading Activities
RELATION BETWEEN INDEPENDENT
AND DEPENDENT VARIABLES
INDEPENDENT VARIABLE
Goals and Techniques for Teaching Reading
To help students acquire the necessary
language skills
How do you
teach reading
comprehension
strategies?
What are the
key
principles of
reading
instruction?
Reading
mechanic:
Process of
reading:
•Physiology
•Psychology
•The clinical
Pedagogy
•Visualization
•Phonation
•Hearing
•cerebration
Conditions
for the
teaching
of reading
skill
Components for
the Teaching of
Reading
Comprehension
(before, during and after
reading strategies)
Strategies
to develop
reading
skills
Using picture
clues
A visual display helps readers
understand, organize, and
remember thousand words.
Predicting
Using prior knowledge
understand a text
Using prior
knowledge
Making sense of our learning
experience
Guessing
words form
context.
Finding new words
to
Developing Reading Activities
Get involved in Reading
It helps children develop thoughtful
interpretations of what they read
Fundamental Categories
Questioning
Create Connections
Visualization
Make Inferences
Construct Information
Confidence
The activities help children exercise
their brain’s mental skills
Using Textbook Reading Activities
Textbooks play a fundamental role
A source of information
To select the appropriate materials
To choose a textbook, we must take into mind that it
works to promote all kinds of reflection
To use interesting texts
DEPENDENT VARIABLE
Assessing Reading Proficiency
It is provided by the teacher with immediate feedback
A tool for diagnosing areas of strength or areas where
improvement is needed with the core reading strategies.
• Diagnostic assessment
• To measure how much progress has been made
Evaluation criteria
Reading methodology
Reading Comprehension Ability and
Metacognitive Awareness
Reciprocal
Teaching
Main Strategies
Generating questions
Summarizing
Attempting to clarify words
meaning
predicting
Explicit
Instruction
Guided practice
Explicit modeling
Teacher
supports
and
gradually transfers leader’s
role to students
Social Interaction
Teacher and students,
and among students
themselves
Lesson plan

Enabling objectives reading skills

Check up of materials and equipment before class time.

The instruction was divided in three stages
 pre-reading
 while-reading
 post-reading

Classes

Teaching methods

Observations
HYPOTHESIS SYSTEM
Working Hypothesis
The active strategies applied to get a good comprehensive reading in the
EFL classroom will improve the level of reading comprehension to children
of the seventh year of basic education of the “Unidad Educativa
Experimental La LLama del Valle”
Null Hypothesis
The active strategies applied to get a good comprehensive reading in the
EFL classroom won’t improve the level of reading comprehension to
children of the seventh year of basic education of the “Unidad Educativa
Experimental La LLama del Valle”
METHODOLOGY
1.
Research Type and Design
Quasi-experimental design
2.
Population and Sample
56 studets divided in two groups:
Control Group, 29 students (Parallel A)
Experimental Group, 27 students (Parallel B)
3.
Fielding
Two different questionnaires
Pre- Test and Post-Test
4. Instruments for Data Collection
Questionnaire technique
5. Processing and Analysis
It was processed and analyzed by the descriptive statistics
and the graphic representation
ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATIONS
RESULTS OF THE PRE-TEST AND POST-TEST
Pre-Test
Control Group
Sample
n1 = 29
Mean
x1 
i
n1
s1 
2
Standard Deviation
n2 = 27
x
Variance
Experimental Group

286
 9.86
29
 ( xi1  x1 ) 2
n1  1
389.45

 13.91
28
s x1  s1  13.91  3.73
2
x2 
s2
2
x

i
n2
 (x

i2
277
 10.26
27
 x2 )2
n2  1

279.19
 10.74
26
s x 2  s2  10.74  3.28
2
Post-Test
Control Group
Sample
Mean
n1 = 29
x1 
Variance
s1
Standard Deviation
2
Experimental Group
n2 = 27
x

i
n
 (x

i1
296
 10.21
29
 x1 ) 2
n1  1
314.76

 11.24
28
s x1  s1  11.24  3.35
2
x2 
s2
2
x

i
n2
 (x

i2
419
 15.52
27
 x2 )2
n2  1

204.74
 7.87
26
s x 2  s2  7.87  2.81
2
GRAPHICAL EXPOSITION OF RESULTS
COMPARATION BETWEEN THE STUDENTS’ SCORES BEFORE AND AFTER THE
TEST
CONTROL GROUP
EXPERIMENTAL GROUP
t- student calculation
Control Group
Sample
Mean
n1 = 29
T-student

d
 d  142

 5.26
n2
27

Standard
Deviation
n2 = 27
 d  10

 0.34
n1
29

d
Experimental Group
d 
( d  d ) 2
n1  1


62.55 7.91

 1.49
28
5.29

d
 0.34  0.34  0.34
t



 1.24
d
1.49
1.49
0.27
5.39
n1
29
d 
(d  d ) 2
n2 1

207.19 14.39

 2.82
28
5.1

d
 5.26  5.26  5.26
t



 9,68
d
2.82
2.82
0.54
5.19
n2
27
t-student value with a
t-student value with a
significance level at 95% and 28 significance level at 95% and 26
of freedom Degrees = 1,7011
of freedom Degrees = 1,7056
tobs < ttab it is accepted the H0
tobs > ttab it is accepted the Ha
Control Group
It is accepted the null hypothesis using t- students test
by Tobs < Ttab
A slight increase of 0.35 points and the standard
deviation decreases by 2.67
Experimental Group
It is accepted the working hypothesis using t-student
test being Tobs> Ttab
An increase in the average of 5,26 points and the
standard deviation decreased with 0,47.
CONCLUSIONS
AND
RECOMMENDATIONS
CONCLUSIONS
The Pretest
The mean of both groups are similar and
very low
A low use of reading comprehension
strategies
The Posttest
The performance of the experimental group
was higher
The strategies
Using picture clues
Predicting
Using prior knowledge
Guessing words form context
RECOMENDATIONS
To create reading areas
To facilitate workshops to the teachers
To use learning strategies in each
academic area
Teachers should try different
methodologies and test their progress
statistically
Always consider the students´
academic level and their knowledge
about the foreign language
To teach Students that reading is a
powerful learning tool.
To remember that reading is to
understand messenges
PROPOSAL
A HANDBOOK BASED ON ACTIVE STRATEGIES TO
DEVELOP THE READING COMPREHENSION SHARING
AMONG ENGLISH TEACHERS IN A SEMINAR AT “UNIDAD
EDUCATIVA EXPERIMENTAL LA LLAMA DEL VALLE”
 DESCRIPTION
 JUSTIFICATION
 THEORETICAL FOUNDATION
 OBJECTIVES
 OPERATIVE MODULE
OBJECTIVES

To let teachers be aware of the importance of applying innovative
reading strategies

To have practical experience in learning/teaching according to this
approach

To gain knowledge in the approach of English reading teaching/
learning based on appropriate strategies for all students’ levels
DEVELOPMENT OF THE PROGRAM
TEACHING STRATEGIES FOR READING COMPREHENSION
1. Reading Competence

Introduction of the Seminar

Goals of this Seminar

A review of approaches for EFL teaching

Analysis of the three types of language learning Principles: Cognitive, Affective and Linguistic.
2. Reading Comprehension Teaching Approach

Characteristics and Objectives of Applying Active Teaching strategies

Developing of the active strategies

Brief Description of each Strategy Approach

Comparison among the different types of strategies
3. Cooperative learning

Selection of Methods to elevate the Reading comprehension level

Teachers’ Role

Techniques and Activities
4. Interactive Classroom activities

Teachers’ Role and Application

Practice through demonstrative classes

Techniques and Activities
5. Developing of Classroom activities

Reading zone

Reading game

Samples of Active Techniques and Strategies

Application of Active Techniques

Assessment
DIDACTIC UNIT 2
Subject: Seminary on reading strategies
Topic: Reading Comprehension Teaching Approach
Responsible: Miss. Susi Andrade
Period: Three hours (60 minutes)
CONTENTS
ACTIVITIES
OBJECTIVES
-Characteristics and
Objectives of
Applying Active
Teaching strategies
-To know the theory and
principles of the Reading
Comprehension
Teaching
Approach.
-Developing of the
active strategies
-Brief Description of
each Strategy
Approach
-To review the strategies of
the Reading Comprehension
Teaching method.
-Comparison among
the different types of
strategies
-To make teachers value the
principles of
Reading
Comprehension Teaching
-Tasks and activities
for students
-Scrambled
Sentences
-Picture Strip Story
-Grammar game
-Strategies
to
motivate students to
read effectively
-Ludic activities and
pastimes
-Assessment
techniques
which
may be used before,
while and after the
reading
Year: 2010- 2011
RESOURCES EVALUATION
-Story sheets
with pictures
-Cards
-Pencils
-Authentic
Materials
-Stimuli-response
-Class
performance in a
written and orally
form
-Attitudinal
-Teachers will
answer some
question
-Individual
Participation
-Group work