READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
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RAE
1. TIPO DE DOCUMENTO: Trabajo de grado para optar por el título de Licenciadas en Educación
Básica con Énfasis en Lengua Inglesa
2. TÍTULO: Obtener comprensión de lectura a través de Predecir, Examinar y Escanear
3. AUTORES: Ángela Gonzales Sánchez, Alejandra Araujo Correa y Yamileth Montes Zapata
4. LUGAR: Bogotá, D.C.
5. FECHA: Noviembre de 2013
6. PALABRAS CLAVE: Comprensión Lectora, Estrategias de Lectura, Lectura en una lengua Extranjera,
Predecir, Examinar y Escanear.
7. DESCRIPCIÓN DEL TRABAJO: El objetivo principal de este proyecto es la comprensión de lectura,
porque observamos el bajo nivel de comprensión lectora que los estudiantes de ingeniería tenían,
verificándolo a través de la aplicación de pruebas sencillas. En el contexto colombiano, esta prueba es
importante porque permite comprobar conocimiento de los estudiantes y las instituciones educativas en la
educación superior. Así mismo este proyecto se centra en la comprensión de lectura en una adquisición de
pruebas Saber Pro Lengua Extranjera, que mide la capacidad de los estudiantes para comprender un texto
sencillo, responder preguntas específicas acerca de la información proporcionada. Por otra parte, el
vocabulario es esencial para que los estudiantes comprendan lo que están leyendo, y luego, las estrategias
(predicción, examinar y escanear) pueden dar a los estudiantes la flexibilidad y la velocidad que
necesitan para tomar los exámenes estandarizados, teniendo en cuenta este tipo de pruebas tienen un
tiempo limitado. Por esta razón, hemos decidido poner en práctica algunas estrategias para la
comprensión lectora. Este proyecto tiene como objetivo ayudar a los estudiantes a obtener un mejor
resultado en la prueba de pro Saber.
8. LÍNEAS DE INVESTIGACIÓN: Línea de Investigación de la USB: Formación y Práctica Docente
9. FUENTES CONSULTADAS: Anderson, M. J. (1990) The American Census: A Social History
Bethoff, A,E (1981) The making of Meaning. Montclair. NJ;Boyton/cook, Harmer, J (1998), How to teach
English; Longman; 1st edition, Borg, W. R., & Gall, M. D. (1989). Educational research:An Introduction
New York: Longman; 5th edition, Hubbard,R.,Miller,B (1999). Living the questions: A guide for
teachers-researcher.York, ME: Stenhouse , Kamil,Michael L (2007). Vocabulary assessment: What we
know and what we need to learn, Stanford University, California, Kemmis,S.,& McTaggert, R., (1990).
The Action Research Planner Geelong: Deakin University Press, 5., Pinsonneault, A., & Kraemer, K. L.
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
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(1993). Survey research methodology in management information systems: An assessment. Journal of
Management Information Systems, 10, pp 75-105., Roberts, K., & Taylor, B. (2002). Research Process:
An Australian perspective. (2nd ed.). Victoria: Nelson Australia Pty Limited., Smith, N.B. (1965).
American reading instruction. Newark, DE: International Reading Association., Vaughan & Estes (1986).
Interactive Notation System to Effective Reading and Thinking., Saber pro test (n.d.). Retrived from
http://www.icfes.gov.co/examenes/saber-pro/informacion-general/objetivos , The website for the National
Council of Teachers of English mentioned skills in the overview of the Standards for the English
Language Arts (n.d). Retrieved from http://www.ncte.org/, CreswellJ.Research design: qualitative,
quantitative and mixed methods approaches. 2nd ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 2003., Onwuegbuzie, A.
J. (2003). Expanding the framework of internal and external validity in quantitative research. Research in
the
Schools,
10,
71.90
;
https://www.teachers.cambridgeesol.org/ts/digitalAssets/117394_Cambridge_English_Key__KET__for_
Schools_Handbook.pdf (handbook), www.icfes.gov.co/.../5882-saber-pro-principales-result. (Saber Pro
2011)
10. CONTENIDOS: Comprensión de lectura es una habilidad básica para cualquier estudiante de una
lengua extranjera. Esto lleva a entender e ir más allá de un texto. La lectura permite a los estudiantes a
establecer una relación entre, sus conocimientos previos y la nueva información, y esta relación se
manifiesta a través de los alumnos la capacidad de reflexionar en función de sus experiencias personales.
Del mismo modo, la lectura es un proceso mental activo que mejora la concentración, el enfoque y da la
capacidad cognitiva para abrir la mente a los estudiantes. El objetivo es ayudar a los estudiantes a
desarrollar los conocimientos, habilidades y experiencias. Los participantes deben ser lectores
competentes y entusiastas en lo que pueden mejorar su calidad de lectura, ya sea para su propio placer o
un objetivo profesional.
11. METODOLOGÍA: Es de Investigación- acción, con base en el estudio de estrategias de lectura para
mejorar la comprensión lectora
12. CONCLUSIONES: En términos generales, nos dimos cuenta de que los estudiantes entienden el
propósito de las tres estrategias de lectura predicción, la lectura rápida donde, la predicción fue el más
utilizado. La segunda estrategia más utilizada por los alumnos fue desnatado. Y la estrategia menos
utilizada por los estudiantes estaba escaneando. Estas estrategias han ayudado a los estudiantes a
reconocer un nuevo vocabulario y estructuras gramaticales, lo que les llevó a identificar los temas e ideas
principales de los textos y las diferencias entre ellos. Además, estas estrategias que facilitan hacer una
rápida lectura con el fin de buscar información específica.
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Logros y resultados de los estudiantes al utilizar predicciones, la lectura rápida, a través del aprendizaje
ejecuciones registros y las notas de campo en el que se observó que mejoran de manera significativa su
nivel de comprensión.
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Getting Reading Comprehension through Predicting, Skimming and Scanning Strategies
Yamileth Montes Zapata. Angela González Sánchez y Alejandra Araujo Correa
Universidad de San Buenaventura. Facultad de Educación
Licenciatura en Básica con Énfasis en Lengua Inglesa
Formación y Práctica Docente
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Contents
Abstract 7
Getting Reading Comprehension through Predicting, Skimming and Scanning Strategies 8
Project Identification 8
Project Description 9
Research Question 10
Rationale 10
Objectives 12
Theoretical Framework: 13
Methodology 19
Data Collection Instruments 20
Instructional Design 22
Mixed Research Approach 25
Data Analysis ¡Error! Marcador no definido.
Conclusions ¡Error! Marcador no definido.
Limitations and Further Research 39
References 41
Appendixes 43
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List of Figures
Figures 1. Recollection and data analysis 51
List of Appendices
Appendix A. Howard Bonnier Generated by CamScanner 44
Appendix B. Test 2 Reading and writing Generated by CamScanner 45
Appendix C. Test 2 Paper 1 part 4 Generated by CamScanner 46
Appendix D. School of Communications Authorization Practices 47
Appendix E. Learning Log 48
Appendix F. Survey 49
Appendix G. Recollection and data analysis 50
Appendix H. Readings sample results 51
Appendix I. First, Mid and Final test 52
Appendix J. Timetable 53
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Abstract
This research project was focused on reading comprehension in a Foreign Language Acquisition
in order to prepare students to take the Saber Pro test which measures the students’ ability to
comprehend a simple text, answering specific questions about the information given. The
project was developed with a group of students of Electronic Engineering Technology from
Escuela de Telecomunicaciones (ESCOM) in Facatativa Cundinamarca. The research proposal
consisted in guiding the students on the use of the three reading strategies: predicting, skimming
and scanning, in order to increase the level of students’ in reading comprehension to take the
Saber Pro test (2013); and at the same time motivate students towards reading in English as a
Foreign Language.
Key words: Reading Comprehension; Reading Strategies; Predicting; Skimming; Scanning;
Saber Pro test; Reading in Foreign Language.
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Getting Reading Comprehension through Predicting, Skimming and Scanning Strategies
Understanding a written text means extracting the required information from it as efficiently as
possible. By means of a sample test (taken from Saber Pro 2012) we observed the low reading
comprehension level that engineering students had. We decided to apply three different reading
strategies: Predicting, skimming and scanning; which can give students the flexibility and speed
that they need when taking a standardized test.
This project aims to help the students to get a better score in the Saber pro test and at the
same time motivate students towards reading in English as a Foreign Language. The project
process was taken from workshops which included two readings from the Saber Pro Test (2012)
putting into practice the strategies mentioned. Data was gathered through teacher’s observation
notes, a survey, learning logs and students’ artifacts.
Project Identification
Title of the Project
Getting Reading Comprehension through Predicting, Skimming and Scanning Strategies
Faculty and Program
Faculty of Education – Licenciatura en Educación Básica con Énfasis en lengua Inglesa
Institutional Research Line
Formación y Práctica Docente
Topic
Reading Comprehension Strategies
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Thesis Director
Alejandra Garcia León
Main Researchers
Yamileth Montes, Ángela González and Alejandra Araujo
Project Description
Statement of the problem:
Our project is focused on reading comprehension because we observed the low reading
comprehension level that engineering students had, verified through the application of simple
tests. Likewise this project is only focused on the reading comprehension in a Foreign Language
Acquisition Saber Pro test, that measure the students ability to comprehend a simple text,
answering specific questions about the information given Furthermore, vocabulary is essential
for students to comprehend what they are reading; then, strategies (predicting, skimming and
scanning) can give students the flexibility and speed they need to take standardized tests, taking
into account these kinds of tests have a limited time.. Within the Colombian context, SABER
PRO test is important because it allows checking students’ knowledge and educational
institutions at Higher Education level. For this reason, we decided to implement some strategies
to the reading comprehension. This project pursues to help the students to get a better score in
the Saber pro test.
Our contribution to this problem consists in guiding the students on the use of the reading
strategies: predicting, skimming and scanning; and at the same time motivate students towards
reading in English as a Foreign Language.
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Research Question
What do predicting, skimming and scanning inform us, about the reading comprehension process
of students of Electronic Engineering Technology, evaluated by the Saber Pro test?
Rationale
Colombia is a country where people do not read very much. Sixty-five percent of Colombia’s 42
million people stay a long way away from books, according to researcher Germán Rey, co-author
of the study “Reading Habits, Use of Libraries and Book Purchasing in Colombia, 2006″, which
was launched on Dec. 14 in Bogotá’s venerable National Library.
Rey states, the proportion of readers in the population has fallen in the last five years,
while Internet users have increased: Reading is an important tool for a successful development in
any culture. For this reason, as researchers we saw the need to act upon such important issue in
order to develop students’ reading comprehension ability in a foreign language.
Teachers could enhance reading comprehension strategies with role plays, oral
presentations, written assignments, vocabulary activities, etc. These strategies can enrich
students’ ways to comprehend, understand and analyze. Furthermore, the objective of this project
was to motivate the students not only towards reading but also towards English as an important
tool in general by improving their levels of comprehension towards a formal assessment.
Reading Comprehension is a basic skill for any student of a foreign language. It leads to
understand and go beyond a text. According to Aebersold and Field (1997), “Reading is what
happens when people look at a text and assign meaning to the written symbols in that text. The
text and the reader are the two physical entities necessary for the reading process to begin. It is,
however, the interaction between the text and the reader that constitutes actual reading”. (p.15)
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Reading enables students’ to establish a relation between, their previous knowledge and the new
information; this relation is manifested through students’ capability to reflect according to their
personal experiences. Similarly, reading is an active mental process that improves concentration,
focus and gives the cognitive ability to open students’ mind. The goal is to help students to
develop knowledge, skills, and experiences. Learners must be competent and enthusiastic readers
in thus they can improve their reading quality either for their own pleasure or a professional
objective.
Moreover, students can use reading strategies in order to feel confident with different
tests. (Saber Pro, Standardize Tests, English Tests, etc.). This project searches for meaningful
reading process to allow students to feel comfortable and motivated. Finally, reading will be
important in their future careers or jobs because, they have the domain to understand texts in
English and, consequently, be successful.
Setting
This research took place in Escuela de Telecomunicaciones which is located in Facatativa,
Cundinamarca. The institution’s mission is to “Train, educate and specialize integrally staff of
the national and international forces and civilian personnel in the area of electronics,
telecommunications and informatics, supporting the generation and updating of the doctrine to
form legitimate leaders with a unswerving military training”. And their vision is to create a
modern unit, innovative and competitive, in the formation, training and specialization in the area
of electronics, telecommunications through the study and continue application of the science and
technology in order to satisfy the customer.
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The institution is monolingual. Students’ receive, 10 hours of English per week. They do
different activities in the class such as; workshops, reading comprehension, grammar activities,
among others. The purpose of the institution is to help learners become skilled in English as a
foreign language.
Participants
This action research project was conducted with 26-37 year old students from sixth semester.
The number of participants is 32 students involved in this study. When we selected the learners
we took into consideration a group which had the necessity of presenting standardized tests in
order to improve their reading strategies. During the intervention the students participated
actively.
Three researchers managed this project. During the interventions of the study, one
researcher wrote the field notes while the other two researchers conducted the workshops.
Objectives
General objective. To apply the strategies predicting, skimming and scanning within the
process of the reading comprehension in Saber pro test, to analyze the impact on the results
obtained by the students of Electronic Engineering Technology
Specific Objectives: To analyze students’ reading process taking into account the results of
the sample test readings that were applied to them during the project implementation.
To examine students’ achievements and results when using Predicting, Skimming and
Scanning, through learning logs’ executions.
To account for students reflection upon their reading process.
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Theoretical Framework:
As reading strategies proposed in this study account students reading comprehension in a
standardized test, the most important constructs are: Reading strategies: Predicting, Skimming
and Scanning, reading comprehension in a Foreign Language and standardized tests, specifically
saber pro test.
Reading strategies:
The International Reading Association & National Council of Teachers of English (1996)
mentioned that “Students apply a wide range of strategies to comprehend, interpret, evaluate, and
appreciate texts. They draw on their prior experience, their interactions with other readers and
writers, their knowledge of word meaning and of other texts, their word identification strategies,
and their understanding of textual features (e.g., sound–letter correspondence, sentence structure,
context, graphics). (n.p.). Students will use these strategies in order to practice speed, find
specific information, flexibility, and accuracy, in choosing the answers. All mentioned are to be
taken to help students to have a better performance when reading.
Predicting
According to Thomas Gunning (2007) prediction has two stages; previewing which is “known as
surveying, students read a selection title, heading, introduction, and summary and look at
illustrations to get an overview of the selection” (p.278). This step will allow students to get an
idea of what the reading might be about.
The second stage will help students to predict taking into what they used in the preview
stage, taking into account their knowledge about the topic. Predicting on the other hand,
according to Thomas Gunning (2007) “gives readers a purpose for reading and turns reading into
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an active search to see whether a prediction is correct.” (P.278-279) 1. Encourage students to
base their predictions on their experiences. 2. Look both at the illustration and title .3. Ask
students to make a connection between the illustration and the title. For nonfiction reading it is
vital that the students know the topic. Oczhus (2005) (as cited in the book of Thomas, G,
Gunning, 2007) says: “prompt students to activate prior knowledge by first discussing the title
and having students to tell what they already know…” Activating prior knowledge is very
important. Thomas Gunning (2007) added, “Because comprehension involves relating the
unknown to the known” (p.278). Students must use their knowledge so their predictions become
more objective and they will not become just guesses but informed decisions.
Skimming
Stated by Paul Berg (1955) skimming is a rapid-reading technique which requires careful
attention to the structure and content of the individual paragraphs. The purpose is for the student
to associate ideas between paragraphs in order to get a general idea of the reading. Moreover
skimming increases flexibility and perspective, because the reader “uses the field of vision that
lies outside his normal reading span” (p. 32); this implies that the reader “stretches” the brain in a
way that it is not normally used.
This technique has the following steps, stated by Eric De Leeuw;
1. There is no conscious direction of the eyes, 2 the attention is open and takes in the
whole width of the page. 3. There is a left-right movement to cover the horizontal extent
of the page, 4.Within this general movement our eyes, as far as we can judge. 5, if a word
strikes us forcibly, we explore the area round it.6.The speed of skimming various
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enormously. 7, If the meaning of the word (for example) is obvious, we skip the part that
is not useful for now and read it later.8, If we want to skip and be reasonably, sure of our
ground. We often read the first sentence of each paragraph. 9. The outcome of this
strategy is for students to announce conclusions and propositions (p.105). We choose this
strategy because students can associate ideas between paragraphs in order to get a general
idea of the reading and can answer the some of the questions without reading in detail.
Scanning
As reported by Paul Berg, scanning means, “looking very quickly over a piece of reading matter
to find the answer to a specific question” (p.53) This skill is in accordance with the
standardized tests because it helps the student to seek for specific information (question and
answer). The student will have to have the questions in mind in order for this skill to be easier to
use. This strategy has the following steps: 1. Keep in mind exactly what you are searching for.2.
The purpose does not require that all the words be understood.3.let your eyes move very rapidly
over the sentences until you come to the sentence that gives you the answer.4. Mark your answer
to the question and circled it.5. Repeat the procedure until you finish (p.54)
Since both of the strategies mentioned above are about speed and seeking for specific
information, the movement of the eyes is essential in an accurate process of reading. It will need
the concentration and awareness of the students of what is being questioned in order to answer in
a more accurate way.
As a component of reading and especially in the strategies mentioned above, the reading
speed is essential so the students become independent and efficient readers. The purpose of the
reading speed is to quickly predict, scan or skim but in an effective way.
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This kind of strategies will definitely allow the students to rapidly comprehend the
general ideas connecting paragraphs and paragraphs into the understanding of the whole text.
The objective of these strategies is to increase efficiency while reading, which means that
students would have the opportunity to use their time more proficiently and at the same time they
will have the tools for a better performance in taking the Saber Pro.
Reading Comprehension in FLA
Robert Lado (1961) said that “Reading in a foreign language consists of grasping meaning in that
language through its written representation. This definition is intended to emphasize two
essential elements in such reading: the language itself and the graphic symbolization used to
represent it” (p.223). Since, we are in Colombia, where English is not the native language, this
can be stated as English as a Foreign Language. If we take the aspects of learning a second
language in a EFL (English as Foreign Language) setting, specifically in reading, students
normally have the following problems; at a basic level the main issue is the difference between
native and foreign language on the graphic representation of the language and the sounds; that is
to say the alphabetic system. Related to this, students have trouble also with “the direction of the
written line, the symbols used to identify word boundaries, sentences boundaries, types of
sentences, stress parts of the sentence, paragraphs…” (Lado, 1962, pp. 224-225).In addition it is
important that the reader has a wide range of vocabulary and how their multiple meanings of this
words adapt in different situations. The fact that the student may not be familiar with the above
mentioned can affect their performance while reading. As we are not immerse in English
environment, students have more difficulties dealing with the different aspects of a language.
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Standardized test:
Various authors agreed that standardized tests “Are machine-scorable instruments that sample
reading performance during a single administration. Standardized tests scores are useful in
making comparisons among individuals or groups at the local, state, or national level” (Jo Ann et
al., 2000,p 138). Based on the two types of standardized test or formal assessment, Saber Pro
test, is a norm-Referenced test.
The latter, takes account the population in order to develop or create norms. This norms
represent “average scores of a sampling of students selected for testing according to factors such,
age, sex, race, grade, or socioeconomic status”(Jo Ann et al.,2000,p 138). These norms allow the
comparison between the students that where sampled (normal level) and the level of the other
students that took the test. In line with the information introduced, the standards can only be
certified after careful assessment and evaluation by an official institution, in Colombian case,
would be the Ministerio de Educación. In addition, “such standards are found by reference to the
mean or average score of other students from the same population (Grant Henning, 1987, p. 7).
The purpose of the standardized test is to measure the education quality. These tests measure the
level of English language learning, also can help the government to evaluate and see how
language education works in the country and generate strategies for improving institutions and
programs taking into account comprehension of sentences, statements, vocabulary and general
understanding of a text in a second language of the education.
Saber Pro test:
The Saber Pro test is a standardized instrument for the external evaluation of the quality of the
higher education. This test gathers processes and actions given by the government to assess and
inspect the quality of the education of the public service. Some of the objectives of this test are to
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evaluate the development of competencies of students of different professional careers. To
present the information provided by the comparison of different programs, educational
institutions and methodologies and the constructions of standards which assess the quality of
programs and educational institutions.
The structure of this test consists on different modules, which are chosen by students
according to their specific undergraduate program. Each module evaluates achievements, which
are considered very important to future graduates in higher education.
Overall this test, evaluates the general knowledge of students in order to observe the
correct professional performance and the specific knowledge of different students of
undergraduate programs.
Saber Pro test evaluates, regarding reading comprehension in a Foreign Language, the
understanding of simple and clear texts and to take this information and apply it in reading
comprehension questions. This particular standardized test is going to help to examine students’
advances regarding their reading comprehension, that’s why it is essential to comprehend and
understand the importance of Saber Pro in students’ life. Consequently, this project focuses on
guiding the students on the use of the reading strategies towards a good reading comprehension
in English as a foreign language.
As the saber pro test “Allows classifying the evaluated on four categories of performance,
according to the European framework”(Saber pro 2011). In this case we found in this project
student have the level between A1-A2 and B1. The competences that evaluate each category are
mentioned as follows, in processing text saber pro evaluates in B1 the student “Can paraphrase
short written passages in a simple fashion, using the original text wording and ordering” also
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“Can pick out and reproduce key words and phrases or short sentences from a short text within
the learner’s limited competence and experience. In student of A2 level “Can copy out short texts
in printed or clearly handwritten format”. In A1 student “Can copy out single words and short
texts presented in standard printed format”. And “Has a sufficient vocabulary to express
him/herself with some circumlocutions on most topics pertinent to his/her everyday life such as
family, hobbies and interests, work, travel, and current events”. On the other hand in vocabulary
range students in B1 level the student “Has sufficient vocabulary to conduct routine, everyday
transactions involving familiar situations and topics”. In A2 the student “Has a sufficient
vocabulary for the expression of basic communicative needs”, and “Has a sufficient vocabulary
for coping with simple survival needs”. In A1 “Has a basic vocabulary repertoire of isolated
words and phrases related to particular concrete situations”. The Saber Pro test is specifically
important for the evaluation of a second language, in this case English, is to measure the level in
which students use the spoken language or communicate (Saber pro 2013)
Methodology
The methodology used in this project was action research. The descriptive and exploratory
studies describe how the data collected helped in resolving the aim of this research. The
instruments and the process for data collection are also stated
Qualitative Action Research
Kemmis and McTaggert (1990) defines action research as, "a form of collective self-reflective
inquiry undertaken by participants in social situations in order to improve the rationality and
justice of their own social or educational practices, as well as their understanding of these
practices and the situations in which these practices are carried out". Action research entails our
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
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project, because through reading comprehension strategies, learners and teachers reflect on their
learning and teaching processes in social and educational situations.
A qualitative Action research was used with an exploratory descriptive design.
Exploration is stated by Stebbins (2001) as a perspective, ‘a state of mind, a special personal
orientation’, toward approaching and carrying out social inquiry. The primary focus of this
exploratory descriptive qualitative study is to explore the impact of predicting, skimming and
scanning reading strategies on engineering students when they read texts in English.
Descriptive studies are aimed at finding out "what is," so observational and survey
methods are frequently used to collect descriptive data (Borg & Gall, 1989). Descriptive
research involves gathering data that describe events and then organizes, tabulates, depicts, and
describes the data collection (Glass & Hopkins, 1984). Furthermore descriptive research will
help to distribute the data collected.
For the process of data collection we used four instruments, such as, students’ artifacts,
field notes, surveys and learning logs and the process of data analysis we followed the mixed
methods research process model by the authors Qnwuegbuzie and Teddlie's (2003).
Data collection instruments
In this project we used four instruments in order to collect data: students’ artifacts, field notes,
surveys and learning logs. These instruments are described as follows.
Field notes. Hubbard and Miller (1999) states the field notes are “Notes or field notes
are descriptions and accounts of events in research context which are written in a relatively
factual and objective style. In addition, he affirms. They generally include reports of non-
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
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verbal information, physical setting, group structures and records of conversations and
interactions between participants.”(p.87)
The field notes help to record information about specific events that can occur on the
intervention about the strategies application and we can observe students’ reaction and not
verbal information that could be relevant for the research. It will be collected in a small
notebook during each intervention. Since the research question, is basically what the
strategies inform us about students reading comprehension process, as researchers we need
record data on how and when students are using these strategies. These field notes are going
to be taken every intervention done.
Survey. Pinsonneault and Kraemer (1993) defined a survey as a “means for gathering
information about the characteristics, actions, or opinions of a large group of people”(p.77)
The survey in this project was conducted through 11 multiple choice questions where we
would obtain information about the general knowledge about reading comprehension and
possible topics for the readings. This survey was to gather information for the needs analysis.
Students’ Artifacts. This instrument is important to our research because, as Hubbard
and Power (1999) state, “it is tangible evidence of what kids are able to do and of the range of
responses kids make to different learning tasks” (p.102). Such samples are going to be part of
the acknowledgment about students reading comprehension learning because they contained
real information that arose from their literacy process. These pieces of work will be collected
once a week by putting them into folders. Some artifacts may be written documentation and
general activities from the reading workshops, and still others may consist of field notes
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conducted by one or more researchers. The pre-analysis review of artifacts will be essential in
planning and conducting our data analysis.
Learning logs. According to Friesner T and Hart M (2005) “Learning logs are an
increasingly popular mode assessment. They record learning, experience and reflection. This
paper considers learning logs as a research method, where researchers wish to gain a deep
understanding of the processes of learning, reflection and experience as they occur in
individuals over a period of time. Techniques are offered for implementing logs as a research
method, analyzing the data and interpreting results” (p.117)
Learning logs are going to be applied in order to collect the students’ feelings,
experiences, thoughts, reflections and the use of the three reading strategies (skimming,
scanning and predicting).
Instructional Design
The instructional design was done, taking into account the purpose of the research question,
objectives and the theoretical framework. Before entering into the process of design, we want to
put the concept of reading comprehension, which according to Aebersold and Field (1997),
“Reading is what happens when people look at a text and assign meaning to the written symbols
in that text. The text and the reader are the two physical entities necessary for the reading process
to begin. It is, however, the interaction between the text and the reader that constitutes actual
reading”
The readings that were used were taken from practice test of KET exam and Strategic
reading 1 book. The purpose was for students to practice reading comprehension using the
strategies mentioned to present the test Saber Pro and other standardize test in their future.
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
23
During the first stages of the interventions, we are going to make an engaging activity
before the reading to motivate students’. Then give the reading to the students. The first two
sessions would be a tutorial to contextualize students’ with the strategies. After these sessions,
the interventions are dedicated to explore how students’ use these strategies and their reflections
on the reading.
At first we design the general design in light of the ESA (Engage, Study and Activate)
Method developed by Jeremy Harmer. Each of the reading text had an illustration or image. In
the Engage stage, we did a variety of warming up activities. In the Study stage students did the
following steps: Look at the image, graphs or other visual of the text and predict what the
reading is going to be about. Read the first and last paragraphs of the text. Notice the titles and
headings and subheadings. Read the captions of the visuals. Read the first sentence of each
paragraph. In the Activate stage, the students answered the questions about the reading. The data
analysis was based on information gathered from 24 students.
First of all, we applied a sample saber pro test (2012) in order to evaluate the English
student’s level. We took the readings from KET and strategic reading 1 and the sample saber pro
test (2012), to evaluate the strategies used by the students. Second, the researchers explained the
strategies (Predicting, Skimming or Scanning) to the students. Third, for each workshop we did
the following: First, a warming up, second the reading with the corresponding questions, third
the researcher gave the students a learning log, in which students reflected on the reading.
Fourth, while students did the reading, one of the researchers observed and wrote a field note.
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
24
The process of evaluation was based on the test which includes multiple choice questions,
matching and true and false. According students predictions about the reading we noticed their
personal connections.
To evaluate student’s artifacts we used the scale from 1 to 5. Where 5 is higher
performance, 4 is high performance, 3 is basic performance, 1 and 2 are low performance.
To evaluate the learning logs we assessed them with percentage from 1 to 100 %. These
percentages reflected the knowledge of the strategies, the use or the application and the impact of
the strategies mentioned above.
The process carried out in the data analysis was done having in mind mixed research
which means the use of both quantitative and qualitative techniques. In this manner we answer to
the question stated and the results that come from these data collection techniques. As follows,
we are going to show the quantitative results from the sample of saber pro (2012), which were
done as a guided process, a first test, a middle test and a final test.
Population.
This action research project was conducted with 26-36 years old students from 6th semester. The
number of participants involved in this study around 24 students’ of Electronic Engineering.
During the workshops the students participated as actively as possible and accomplished
successfully the process of the study.
Timetable
This project was carried out on 9 workshops. In which 6 were divided in warming-ups and
readings, and three were initial test, mid-test and final test. The time of these interventions was
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
25
one hour and a half. This worksops were done once a week according to the English classes
schedule and it was applied in the first semester of 2013. (see appendix J)
Data Analysis
Mixed Research method approach:
The mixed methods may have several purposes: triangulating or converging findings, elaborating
on results, using one method to inform another, discovering paradox or contradictions, and
extending the breadth of the inquiry (Greene et al,.1989)
For the process of data analysis we followed the mixed methods research process model
by the authors Qnwuegbuzie and Teddlie's (2003).According to these authors there are sevenstage conceptualization of the mixed methods data analysis process. The seven data analysis
stages are as follows: (a) data reduction, (b) data display, (c) data transformation, (d) data
correlation, (e) data consolidation, (f) data comparison, and (g) data integration. These stages are
illustrated as follows:
Stage 1 (data reduction). In this stage, in the qualitative side, we took themes or
categories from the data collected from recurring information that has to do with the questions
and objectives stated. In the quantitative side, we did statistics taken from the results of the
readings and tests done during the workshops
Stage 2 (data display). In this stage, in the qualitative side, we displayed two types of
diagrams, the first is a mind map in which shows the whole process of categorization and the
second a chart in which shows the number of students who used the strategies.
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
26
Stage 3 (data transformation). In this stage, the charts that were collected from the
statistics and results from tests, are put in words in a coherent and qualitative way, writing how
this results answer the question and objectives stated
Stage 4 (data correlation). As in the previous stage, both kinds of methods are transform
(quantitative into qualitative), in this stage this two are compared and put together. Statistics,
rubrics, charts were put together in a written way.
Stage 5 (data consolidation). Both quantitative and qualitative results are combined in
order to give answer to the research question mentioned above.
Stage 6 (data comparison). The data collected is compared from the different sources.
Learning logs, survey students artifacts and field notes.
Stage 7 (data integration). All the data collected was written into a coherent and narrative
way from all sources and supported by theory.
In addition the mixed research method is. “The strategy for mixing methods must be
explicit and justified in terms of the sequence of methods (concurrent, qualitative first, or
quantitative first), the priority among methods (equal, or either method prioritized), and the
nature and timing of integration (full or partial, during data collection, analysis, or
interpretation)” (Creswell,J. 2003) According to the sequence we are going to show first the
quantitative results and from these results we will give the answer to the question stated in
qualitative approach. In this way both methods are going to be involved in the research equally.
With the purpose of validating this data analysis we used triangulation, which is defined by
Freeman (1998) as multiple sources of information or points of view on the phenomenon or
question investigated. Furthermore Lingard (2006) stated “Central to the effectiveness of a
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
27
mixed methods study is a clear and strategic relationship among the methods in order to ensure
that the data converge or triangulate to produce greater insight than a single method could”.
Accordingly, the instruments we used in order to triangulate the data were filed notes, student’s
artifacts and learning logs”. To answer the research question, the outcomes were organized into
four categories: Previous Context Knowledge, Acknowledgement and use of the strategies and
Implications of the strategies in the reading comprehension.
Process of Data analysis
In connection with the questions and the objectives previously mentioned, the data
collected was organized in four categories: Previous context knowledge, acknowledgment the
use of the strategies and outcomes. These categories were chosen in accordance to question as
we wanted to see the impact on the use of these strategies in the Saber pro test. (Appendix G)
Previous Context Knowledge
This category emerged in order to point out the strengths and weaknesses that the group of
student’s had. First, the strengths observed were that the students had a basic level of English.
This gave us, as researchers a base of knowledge to help students increase the English level of
students. Second, the students had the willingness to learn new reading comprehension strategies
and participate during the process of the workshops. Third, the students had enough time to read
and answer the questions related to English texts. Fourth, the students had enough resources
(visual aids) which contribute to create a comfortable learning environment (Lado, R 1964)
“visual aids, in teaching are well established. Their usefulness in second language teaching needs
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
28
no defense. They can be attached to almost any language and to many structures of the same
language”.
Other advantage in this research was that we as researchers take into account topics
selected by students in the survey we did at the beginning (annex survey); this motivated
students into reading. Additionally, as seen in the learning logs students took the general idea
from key words they already know. This is known as positive transfer where according to Brown
(2007) is when “the prior knowledge benefits the learning task”. “las palabras desconocidas trate
de darles un sentido con las palabras que ya sabía de la lectura” (student 1) “por las palabras que
conozco la conexion que ise entre mis conocimientos y la lectura fue en comprenderlos bien”
(student 3)
Since students had strengths, they had some weaknesses as well; first, as observed in the
field notes, students had a low grammar knowledge and limited vocabulary, which made difficult
to understand readings in a second language. They constantly looked for words in the dictionary
and asked the teacher-researcher or other peers. Likewise, we noticed that students constantly
search the words meaning by dictionaries, computer or their classmates for the explanation of
vocabulary doing translation all the time. Agreeing with the field notes observations students had
problem with the verbs tense because they asked the observer about the translation of verbs that
they knew. For example, students understood the verbs in present, but when the same verb
appeared in other tense they could not understand (he last saw, has been, was found.
Subsequently, students confronted some difficulties such as; “There can be a multitude of
problems facing students in reading for translation purposes, beginning with unfamiliar words,
difficult collocations, or difficult structure on the phrase and clause levels” (Baker 1992). The
answer of some students when they translated were: “Tratar de traducir el significado de otras
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
29
palabras” (Student 14) “Tratar de ir traduciendo y enlazando la idea” (Student 16). Students
translated in order to be familiar with the meaning of the text and increase their lexicon.
Thus, vocabulary and grammar are important in the reading process for this reason; both
tools should be implemented in order to get growth in reading power because, they increase
clarity and appreciation of the words meanings. From the theory of vocabulary by Michael L
Kamil (2007) said that “Vocabulary occupies and important position in learning to read. As a
learner begins to read, vocabulary encountered in texts is mapped onto the oral vocabulary that
the learner brings to the task. That is, the reader is taught to translate the (relatively) unfamiliar
print words into speech because it is expected that the speech forms are easier to comprehend
because they are familiar”
Second, from the learning logs analysis we found that, there was interference between L1
and L2, which is defined by Grosjean (2008) “dynamic as it refers to elements of another
language that incidentally slip into the output of the language being spoken/written (as in the
case of occasional pronunciation errors)”. The students mother tongue may have influence in
comprehending English texts as there were frequently translating words they didn’t know. For
example some students thought that dinner meant “dinero” and parents meant “fathers”.
Acknowledgement of the strategies use
This category will describe the application and use of the three reading comprehension
categories proposed in this study, which is reflected in students’ reading comprehension in a
standardized test. They were predicting, skimming and scanning. Additionally, during each
workshop the warming-up was always focused on the reading vocabulary and the topic. Then,
we applied the strategies:
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
30
Predicting gives a previewing idea of what the reading might be about it. Skimming gives
rapid-reading where students associate ideas between paragraphs in order to get a general idea of
the reading and scanning permits to look very quickly over the reading to find the answer to a
specific question.
First, the predicting strategy was explained with examples and each reading had an image
and title. The students were instructed to identify the previewing idea taking as reference the
reading illustration and tittle encouraging students to make connections and predictions with
their experience in order to predict what the reading is about it. When they got familiarized with
the strategy, most of them express that they understood how to interpret the title and the
illustration and they guessed easily the reading topic. The 98 percent of students applied
predicting (images and titles), for getting the general idea of the text. Many students wrote that
“miro primero las imagines y el titulo y me hago a una idea general de la lectura” (student 1).
“Lo primero que hago es ver el dibujo y los titulos” (student 2). Therefore, they could apply the
strategy and identify its purpose.
Second, skimming strategy was explained by steps; if the students don’t understand a
word, they should explore the general idea. If the meaning of the word is clear, students should
skip the part that is not useful for now and read it later. Often read the first sentence of each
paragraph. The outcome of this strategy is for students to announce conclusions and general idea
of the reading. Some students applied this strategy to get the main idea. “normalmente leo
primero el título y paro a realizer una lectura global, pero no a fondo más bien superficial para
captar la idea general de que esta trata” (student 4) “una vista rápida luego un escaneo al
detalle”(student 5) “leer la primera frase de cada párrafo y sacar una idea general, después hago
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
31
una relación general de la lectura” (student 1). Students by using skimming could state the main
or general idea of the reading.
Third, Scanning was explained by some instructions such as the student should have the
questions in mind in order to be easier to use. This strategy has the following steps: 1. Keep in
mind exactly what you are searching for.2. The purpose does not require that all the words be
understood.3.let your eyes move very rapidly over the sentences until you come to the sentence
that gives you the answer.4. Mark your answer to the question and circled it.5. Repeat the
procedure until you finish.
It is possible to say that students were enrolled in the process because, they implement
this strategy for the purpose of answer the reading questions. “miro las preguntas y busco la
respuesta” (student 2) “primero miro las imagines y luego las preguntas” (student 2).” “Si
scanning, porque puedo deducir el vocabulario que no conozco y las preguntas, para su respuesta
me lo exigen al analizarlas” (student 20). We observed that student’s accomplish the strategy
with the purpose of answering the reading questions.
During this stage some difficulties were present all the time, like we mentioned before;
the low grammar knowledge, which was observed in the understanding of verb tenses. As a
result, some students were blocked because they do not know the meaning of words, from the
observations we could see frustration, for instance one of the student wrote in the learning log “a
pesar que trato de seguir las estrategias me bloquea mucho el hecho de conocer muchas
palabras” (student 16). In the field notes some students expressed that they wanted to give up the
readings. Other difficulty observed in the process was the types of questions. Students couldn’t
differentiate the meaning between the choices of the questions wrong and doesn’t say. This
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
32
happened every session where there was confusion about these types of questions because
frequently the students guessed the answers instead of doesn’t say answer. E.g. one of the
readings said “the dog was found by Japan coast guard crew”. The question stated was “the dog
was found by soldiers from the army”, so students thought that the answer was “doesn’t say”, but
the correct answer was “wrong”, because they assumed that the army was the same as the coast
guard. From to the book, Key English Test (KET) for Schools CEFR Level A2 which explains
task type and format of the questions “In Part 4,
The questions (Right/Wrong/Doesn’t say) in this part may be multiple-choice
comprehension questions (with three options) or alternatively, candidates may be asked to
decide whether, according to the text, each one of a set of statements is correct or incorrect, or
whether there is insufficient information in the text to decide this”. Observing the students’
performance according to this type of questions and what this kind of question seeks, we could
analyze that the student’s English level is basic in order to understand and answer this type of
question. (See appendix A)
On the other hand, the use of new vocabulary was a positive result in the process. From
the students view we noticed that some of them express joy and satisfaction of their
improvement and knowledge of new words and the use of the reading strategies. Some of them
showed their gladness in the warming-ups when they learned a new word especially with the use
of image in order to know the word meaning. E.g: “Hoy aprendí nuevo vocabulario y conocí algo
de la historia de Macy Gray” Student 12.
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
33
Outcomes of the Data Analisys
This chapter will show the results of the data analysis research. Students used the strategy,
predicting when; for example, student said, “Lo primero que hago es ver el dibujo y los titulos”
(student 2). The student had a clear idea how to use the predicting strategy because he used the
illustration and titles to get an overview of the reading, according to Thomas Gunning (2007).
The students used skimming for example, one student said “normalmente leo primero el título y
paro a realizar una lectura global, pero no a fondo más bien superficial para captar la idea general
de que esta trata” (student 4). This student used skimming strategy as he used the rapid reading
technique in order to get the main idea according to Paul Berg (1955). And the least used by
students was scanning. For example an student said, “Si scanning, porque puedo deducir el
vocabulario que no conozco y las preguntas, para su respuesta me lo exigen al analizarlas”
(student 20). The student applied the scanning strategy when he looked for specific information
to answer the questions.
Students’ achievements and results when using Predicting, Skimming and Scanning,
were show through learning logs executions. For example, “Yo aprendo más fácil una palabra
cuando me muestran la imagen”. This is part as one of the objectives of the predicting strategy.
The several meanings of words in different contexts. The students were glad to learn new
vocabulary as one student said “Me gusto aprender los diferentes significados que tienen las
palabras porque asi entiendo más facil la lectura”. This was reflected as The International
Reading Association & National Council of Teachers of English (1996) stated that for
understanding reading strategies is necessary the knowledge of word meaning.
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
34
The students’ reflected upon their reading process. The findings are from (see
appendixes H and I) . The interpretation of the first graphic, the first test that we applied
illustrated the basic level of English, they reflected anxiety as they had limited vocabulary and
limited grammar knowledge (taken by the field notes and learning logs), the students had a
predisposition to take the saber- pro test as some students said “yo no entiendo porque tengo que
estudiar ingles si yo estudio para ser ingeniero de telecomunicaciones” (student 7) (taken from
the field notes). The anxiety and nervousness of students when presenting a test “no supe
deducir de que se trataba la lectura, me bloquie y no pude continuar” (students 10). The middle,
only half of the students passed.. The final test shows how the students shows that the majority
of students passed the test. They expressed joy and satisfaction as they saw that the strategies
helped them to answer the questions. The acquisition of new words reduced the anxiety to take
the test. E.g. “ayy profe ahora me siento más seguro porque ya tengo idea de cómo es el examen
y se mas vocabulario” (field note).
The second graphic (see appendix H) demonstrates the process of the readings results that
students had.
During the workshops we asked students to translate the main idea of each paragraph and
they were successful.
The majority of the students participated during the whole process. For instance, as one
of the observer teacher noted that all of them did the readings and some expressed their joy with
the activities specially the warming ups
On the reading comprehension process students developed metacognitive skills which is
established by Alderson, Charles (2000) “recognizing the more important information in text;
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
35
adjusting reading rate; skimming; previewing; using context to resolve a misunderstanding;
formulating questions about information; monitoring cognition; including recognising problems
with information presented in text or an inability to understand text. Self-regulation strategies
like planning ahead, testing one’s own comprehension, being aware of and revising the strategies
being used are also said to be typical reading strategies of fluent readers”. Some students
answers were; “La idea principal de la lectura es basada en un perro que sobrevivió a un
Tsunami y su dueña lo vio por televisión” (Student 3). Some of them associate ideas between
paragraphs in order to get a general idea of the reading. For example “Vistazo rápido y luego
escaneo al detalle” (Student 5).When students had questions they asked about the meanings to
their classmates or teacher. (Taken from field notes) From the learning logs they also recognize
their own weaknesses. An example of the field notes was: La verdad ”sí” porque habían muchas
palabras que no comprendía y esto hacia que no entendiera la lectura hasta que pedí la ayuda a
un compañero que se le facilita mas” (Student 6). Students were aware and recognized their
problems regarding text information.
On the other hand the student had enough time to do the readings but some of them
couldn’t finish on time, (Taken from field notes and students’ artifacts), because they blocked
themselves and they didn’t do activities until they got the main idea from the text.
Additionally, metacognition is referred to “comprehension is a complex interactive
process in which readers play as active-constructive role in bringing meaning to the text”
Williams and Burden (1997). Students evaluated themselves within the process of using the
strategies. Moreover the strategies mentioned above are part of the metacognitive strategies,
which according to Williams and Burden (1997) “Learners stepping outside their learning, as it
were, and looking at it from outside. Include an awareness of what one is doing and the strategies
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
36
one is employing, as well as the actual process of learning”. Students demonstrated their
“awareness” by using the word “aprendi” in which meant they were conscious about their
reading process. This is an example of the student answer “Uy teacher hoy aprendí todo el
vocabulario porque para mí es más fácil aprender las palabras si veo la imagen, ojala todas la
clase fueran con imágenes, esas palabras nunca se me van a olvidar” (taken from field notes and
learning logs)
Furthermore, we could see in the learning logs and field notes that students made
personal connections with the readings, as they compared their real experiences with the
readings. This connections with the readings, ended in a better reflection and understanding of
English texts. According to Wall (1978) “When a pupil who speaks another language is learning
to read English, he brings to the learning task his prior language experiences”, this is taking into
account vocabulary, grammar structures and background knowledge, which will affect the
meaning or images of the reading texts.
Ultimately students wrote in the learning logs and the field notes also reflected how the
strategies impact on their reading comprehension. As seen in the readings and field notes, we
saw other methods used by students to comprehend the texts, such as translating words, putting a
circle or underlining the words or vocabulary they didn’t know, understanding through key
words, understanding from the context. This is in accordance with Hudson (2007) “the reader
employs numerous monitoring strategies throughout the reading process as facilitating aids for a
smooth and efficient reading activity”. The students not only used the strategies provided by the
teacher-researchers but also used their own to further understanding of the texts.
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
37
Conclusions
In general terms, we noticed that the students understood the purpose of the three reading
strategies predicting, skimming and scanning where, predicting was the most used. The second
strategy most used by the students was skimming. And the least used strategy by students was
scanning. These strategies have helped the students’ to recognize new vocabulary and grammar
structures; this led them to identify topics and main ideas of the texts and differences between
them. Also, these strategies facilitated them to do a rapid-reading in order to look for specific
information.
The students’ achievements and results when using Predicting, Skimming and Scanning,
through learning logs executions and the field notes in which we observed that they improve in a
meaningful way their comprehension level.
The students’ reflection upon their reading process of the use of the three reading
strategies would appear to be good tools to help students improve their level of reading
comprehension, enhanced students’ self-esteem and became more confident with the samples of
the standardized test (Saber pro test) and so, decreasing anxiety.
Along the process, we observed that most of the students understood and put into
practice the three strategies. They were enrolled in the practice because according to the field
notes; at the end of the training they enjoyed it and could identify not only the strategies but, also
managed better attitude and increased the vocabulary.
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
38
The tests answers of the readings showed that the students’ level of reading
comprehension did not improve much (See appendix H). In the other hand it was observed
during the process that students test their own comprehension and improvement in reading texts
in English.
Students used their own strategies in order to understand the readings, such as,
summaries, underlining or circling unknown words, translating or understanding through key
words.
Some of the difficulties observed overall were, some students said that despite of
understanding the reading, sometimes they blocked themselves to continue reading because of
new vocabulary, or grammar structures. Therefore, we can say that reading can be a result in
vocabulary improvement because students’ went through the common reading process. This
process occurs, regardless students’ low vocabulary and grammar knowledge. As mentioned
before students had problems with the verb tenses, because they understood the verb in present
but when the same verb was in other tense. They also had difficulties in understanding. the type
of question used by Standardized test and were confused as they had a low level of English,
which requires a better understanding in a second language.
During the development of the project we found positive and negative aspects. Students
improve their reading comprehension but our suggestion as regards the necessity to keep
working with reading strategies and take advantage of their use in order to develop reading
abilities in a second language.
During the development of the project students improve their reading comprehension but
our suggestion as regards the necessity to keep working with reading strategies and take
advantage of their use in order to develop reading abilities in a second language.
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
39
The topics for the workshops were based on the diagnostic survey applied to the students
at the beginning. It helped a lot to the motivation process because; it was possible to identify
their preferences regarding the topics (famous people, science, biographies, technology, real
facts, etc.). Also, it brought as a consequence the students’ interests in the three strategies and
their implementation.
The strategies helped them understand the different texts read during the workshops and
the texts done by the teacher-researchers. These were organization, speed-reading, increasing of
vocabulary. Organization in terms of arranging the text to comprehend the reading; Title and
image, main ideas of the text, general idea of the whole text.
Limitations and Further research
According to our research project we found some limitations, during the process.
To begin with, the time that we had to implement our project was not enough because we were
running out of time as students had to present the saber pro test.
Another limitation that emerged during the data collection process was the number of students
that participated in the study because some of them missed the classes frequently. This was a
main constraint in the sense that not all students carried out the thirteen workshops implemented
but only partially accomplished the tasks proposed.
We propose for further research the following suggestions that may contribute to reading
comprehension processes. First, how to reduce anxiety in a standardized test. Second, future
researchers should consider applying different reading strategies to help students understand and
comprehend texts in English. Third, motivate students to create the habit of readings different
types of text in English and Spanish. Fourth, implement extracurricular English classes for the
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
40
students who cannot be in class and for those who are at a low level of English. Finally, we
recommend the Escuela de Telecomunicaciones to create and select the students in different
levels of English to have homogeneous groups.
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
41
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the Standards for the English Language Arts (n.d). Retrieved from http://www.ncte.org/
CreswellJ.Research design: qualitative, quantitative and mixed methods approaches. 2nd ed.
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Onwuegbuzie, A. J. (2003). Expanding the framework of internal and external validity in
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https://www.teachers.cambridgeesol.org/ts/digitalAssets/117394_Cambridge_English_Key__KE
T__for_Schools_Handbook.pdf (handbook)
www.icfes.gov.co/.../5882-saber-pro-principales-result. (Saber Pro 2011)
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
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APPENDIX
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
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Appendix A
Howard Bonnier Generated by CamScanner
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
45
Appendix B
Test 2 Reading and writing Generated by CamScanner
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
46
Appendix C
Test 2 Paper 1 part 4 Generated by CamScanner
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
47
Appendix D
School of Communications Authorization Practices
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
48
Appendix E
Learning Log
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
49
Appendix F
Survey
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
50
Appendix G
Recollection and Data analysis
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
51
Appendix H
Readings sample results
READINGS SAMPLE RESULTS
100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
0%
16%
33%
53%
47%
33%
47%
38%
63%
88%
45%
25%
12%
22% 22%
10%
44%
22%
56% 56%
41%
16% 59% 56%
78%
45%
43%
19% 22% 13%
9%
35% 35%
28% 43% 46%
9%
22% 22%
9%
9%
9%
PASS
FAIL
MISSING
Appendix I. This table shows the results taken from the readings done in each workshop
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
52
Appendix I
First, Mid and Final test
MID- TEST
FIRST TEST
12,5
%
0%
PASS
0
87,5
%
9,38%
28,13%
FAIL
28
21,88
%
18,75 PASS 6
%
FAIL
19
MISSING
7
59,38
%
FINAL TEST
PASS
FAIL
20
9
MISSING 3
62,50%
Appendix I. Sample Pro Test results. First test, Mid-test and Final test.
READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES
53
Appendix J
Timetable
Fecha
Test/Workshop
1st april /2013
Initial test
10 may/2013

Robot Birds

Intelligent pills

It’s a dog’s life

Dartmoor ponies

Japans most famous dog

Japanese Tsunami dog

Howard Bonnier

Tamara
31 may/2013

Mid-Test
3 June/2013

The ring and the fish

The soul music
5 June/2013

Joey the clown
17 June/2013

Final test
April 1st to June 17/2013

Data collection
April to September 2013

Theoretical framework
August to September 2013

Analyzing data
17 may/2013
24 may/2013
29 may/2013
Appendix J. Timetable of dates, recollection of data and analysis