Reading strategy use between Chinese good and poor readers: a think‐aloud study

This study aimed to explore the differences between Chinese good and poor readers in their strategy use by using a think‐aloud method. Eight grade 7 students in Hong Kong, four good readers and four poor readers, received a think‐aloud task and an interview in the study. Consistent with the Western studies, findings of this study indicated that Chinese good readers used more strategies and had better ability and knowledge of strategy use than did poor readers. In addition to the cognitive deficiencies, poor readers were also found to have poorer intrinsic motivation than did good readers. The combined problems of poor reading ability and motivation made them reluctant to process the text at a deeper level and they gave up easily when they encountered reading difficulties. Implications of these findings for studying the reading problems of Chinese students and implementing effective reading instruction in Hong Kong Chinese language teaching are discussed.     

Reading strategy use and motivation among Chinese good and poor readers in Hong Kong

Eighty‐three good readers and 76 poor readers were compared on their ability to use reading strategies in Chinese reading comprehension and on various reading motivation variables. Poor readers scored lower than good readers in using all reading strategies, and especially in using sophisticated cognitive and metacognitive strategies. Poor readers also had lower intrinsic motivation in reading than had good readers. While the ability to use reading strategies had the strongest relation with reading comprehension, intrinsic motivation and strategy attribution might facilitate reading development through their positive relations with strategy use. Implications of these findings for implementing effective reading instruction in Hong Kong Chinese language teaching are discussed.     

以策略训练为基础的阅读教学对阅读水平影响

借鉴西方显性学习策略训练模式,采用书面问卷、策略教学及阅读测试等调查方法,对以策略训练为基础的阅读教学的影响进行探讨和研究。结果表明:系统地接受显性策略训练的学生在阅读成绩方面明显优于对照组;以策略为基础的阅读教学增强了学生的策略使用意识;通过对成功和非成功阅读者的比较,发现策略的运用与阅读水平的提高间有显著相关性。问卷调查显示,学生对策略训练普遍持认同态度,说明这类策略训练活动应用于大学外语课堂阅读教学是可行的、有效的。     

A think‐aloud study of strategy use by EFL college readers reading Chinese and English texts

This study used a think‐aloud approach to compare reading strategy use in the first language (L1) and non‐native language (L2) among 36 English as a foreign language (EFL) college students at different reading levels. The participants took an English proficiency test and participated in two individual sessions in which a reading test and a think‐aloud task were administered separately in Chinese and English. Cross‐language transfer theory and the linguistic threshold hypothesis were used to conceptualise the similarities and differences in L1 and L2 reading strategies. This study found more frequent and diverse strategy use in English than in Chinese. Similar patterns of meta‐cognitive strategy use were evident in both languages. The applications of certain meta‐cognitive and support strategies served as indicators that differentiated more‐proficient from less‐proficient readers. The present study extended previous questionnaire studies and suggested that English reading instruction should be informed by this line of research to provide instruction on effective reading strategy use for EFL learners.     

Promoting strategy generalization through self-instructional training in students with reading disabilities

Twenty Grade 5 and 6 students with reading disabilities, 20 average readers in Grade 3, and 20 average readers in Grades 5 and 6 were taught to use a self-questioning strategy for the identification of main ideas. They were randomly assigned to either a standard instruction or a generalization induction condition. In the latter, informed training and self-instructional training techniques were employed to promote generalization of strategy use. Subjects were posttested under both a cued and an uncued condition in their homerooms. Results indicated that the self-instructional training succeeded in facilitating the identification of main ideas among students with reading disabilities and in helping them to maintain their improved performance when they were no longer prompted to use the strategy in a transfer setting.     

Exploring the relationship between reading strategy use and multiple intelligences among successful L2 readers

Over the years, the multiple intelligences theory (MIT) proposed by Howard Gardner has renewed interest in learners’ use of effective learning strategies and produced interesting results. This MIT-oriented study investigated the role of successful L2 readers’ multiple intelligences in their effective use of reading strategies. To this end, a TOEFL reading comprehension test was administered to a cohort of 135 English as a foreign language students at several universities in the southwest and centre of Iran, and 80 students were identified as successful L2 readers based on the ETS rating scale and their TOEFL scores. Then, they answered an MI questionnaire originally developed by Armstrong and a reading strategies inventory adapted by Singhal. The data were quantitatively analysed using correlations and multiple regressions. The results revealed that linguistic, logical–mathematical and intrapersonal intelligences were the good L2 readers’ most dominant intelligences, while bodily intelligence was the least common type. In addition, they mostly employed metacognitive and cognitive strategies but rarely drew upon affective and compensation strategies while reading. Further, there was a significant positive relationship between linguistic, logical–mathematical, spatial, interpersonal, and intrapersonal intelligences and the use of metacognitive and cognitive reading strategies. Similar relationships were also found between linguistic intelligence and the participants’ use of memory strategy, on one hand, and between interpersonal intelligence and compensation and social strategy use, on the other. Importantly, linguistic and intrapersonal intelligences as well as metacognitive and cognitive strategy use were shown to be the best predictors of reading comprehension. Finally, the theoretical or pedagogical implications of the findings are discussed.     

A comprehension intervention for children with reading comprehension difficulties

Abstract

Many students in Australian schools today experience difficulty understanding read text beyond Year 3 despite early intervention and rich learning experiences. Often the first indications that such students may have reading comprehension difficulties is from poor performance on comprehension tests in fourth grade. After Year 3 the written text becomes more complex and there is an increasing emphasis on reading comprehension. Less skilled comprehenders experience difficulties because they often use inefficient memory strategies and do not normally visualise story content. Readers with comprehension difficulties can be taught to construct mental imagery that will enable them to link verbal and imaginal information more efficiently into their working memory by reducing the cognitive load. The indications are that engaging readers in elaborative questioning and discussion of the text improves reader's own language and mental imagery as well as enhancing comprehension of read text. For readers who have struggled for years and have developed a resistance to reading, a literacy tutoring intervention framework that focuses on a personalised responsive relationship‐based approach to reading, combined with interesting text and student choice of appropriate material, can facilitate improved reading. The Comprehension of the Narrative intervention program is an example of a multiple strategy training intervention program that utilises explicit strategy instruction in a framework of measured stages while also increasing the level and complexity of the reading texts used. It has been shown that participating students are enabled to build on previously mastered skills and develop more effective higher order comprehension outcomes through focused dialogue with trained tutors.     

Strategies and shoes: Can we ever have enough? Teaching and using reading comprehension strategies in general and vocational programmes

This qualitative study examines a reading comprehension strategy use in English as a second language in upper-secondary schools one year after teachers participated in a professional development course. The data comprises observations, teacher narratives, and student interviews. A key finding is that the teachers used a repertoire of strategies from the course, suggesting an impact of the course. A second finding was a clear difference between how students in general and vocational programmes used the strategies taught: the vocational students used them in ways that indicated their relevance to them as learners, while the students in general programmes did not. The findings also suggest how and why students employ strategies. The article discusses implications for strategy instruction and how to enhance the reading proficiency of adolescent readers.     

浅谈新课改背景下中学语文阅读策略教学的改革

阅读策略是读者用来理解各种文章的有意识的可灵活调整的认识活动计划。策略教学就是通过教学提高学生对学习要求的意识,掌握和运用恰当的策略来完成学习任务,阅读策略包括审美策略、批判质疑策略、形象思维策略,改善阅读策略对培养学生阅读能力、提高阅读质量有着重大作用。     

Classroom Observations of Task-Attending Behaviors of Good and Poor Readers

Abstract

The purpose of this observational research was to investigate the task-attending behaviors of good and poor readers during reading instruction. Three aspects of reading instruction were identified for investigation 1) working with the teacher versus working independently ; 2) the nature of the reading task; and 3) the difficulty level of the reading material used for instruction. No difference was found in the task-attending behavior of good and poor readers when engaged in teacher-directed reading instruction and when reading independently. Good readers spent significantly more on-task time involved in contextual reading then poor readers. It is also suggested that good readers are placed in "easy" materials while many poor readers are placed in "difficult" materials for reading instruction, the result being that students in "easy" materials are on-task more often than those in "difficult" materials. Limitations and implications of the study are discussed and recommendations for instructional practice are presented.     

Improving the reading comprehension of children with dysphonetic and dyseidetic dyslexia using story grammar

Five 8- to 10-year-old children with dysphonetic and dyseidetic dyslexia were given instruction in reading comprehension using a story grammar strategy in which story instruction was differentially designed to match the simultaneous or sequential mental processing strengths of each dyslexia subtype. A multiple baseline, single subject experimental design and statistical analyses indicated that the experimental treatments yielded statistically and clinically significant improvements in the proportion of qualitatively important story elements recalled by the subjects, when compared to baseline traditional remedial instruction. The results suggested that students with dyslexia can increase their reading comprehension with training in metacognitive strategies. The question of whether the results were attributable to the subtype-matched methods per se or to strategy training in general, as well as a number of methodological issues, is being explored in subsequent research.     

The effect of modifying the cognitive tempo of reading disabled children on reading comprehension

The present investigation was concerned with teaching poor readers to use a reflective cognitive style. It was hypothesized that such a strategy would facilitate the reading ability of poor readers. To test this hypothesis, approximately half the poor readers and half the average readers were divided into experimental and control groups. The experimental group of children was taught to delay their responses and to use more efficient search and scanning techniques. All groups were tested before and after training on the Matching Familiar Figures test and the Gates-MacGinitie Reading Test. Poor readers' vocabulary and comprehension scores and level of reflectivity improved following training. It was concluded that imposing slow reading strategies on impulsive children is an important factor in developing educational programs for children with reading disabilities and that teaching poor readers a reflective cognitive strategy may have important consequences on the child's reading performance.     

阅读策略教学与高职英语专业学生阅读效果

基于"高职英语专业学生经过显性阅读策略教学之后,策略的使用情况是否存在差异","高职学生的阅读策略使用频率与阅读测试成绩之间是否相关"2个问题,通过阅读策略教学前后的问卷调查、差异显著性检验和策略使用与CET-4的相关分析,证实阅读策略训练有助于学生培养个性化的阅读习惯,阅读策略训练效果与学生的语言水平有较强的关联。指出阅读策略训练必须遵循从单一训练到综合训练,从指导练习到半指导练习,再到独立练习的原则。     

非英语专业大学生英语阅读策略研究

本研究调查了非英语专业大学生在英语阅读学习三个阶段中阅读策略的使用状况。数据收集采用了书面问卷调查表。调查数据采用描述性统计方法,t检验进行分析。结果显示总的阅读策略使用频率为中等。t检验发现学生使用Pre—reading strategy与Post—reading strategy,During—reading strategy与Post—reading strategy有显著差异,而pre—reading strategy与during—reading strategy没有显著差异。     

Using portfolios: a way to improve performance and self-esteem with poor readers?

The main questions answered by the intervention of using portfolios during reading and spelling lessons were: do poor readers in the intervention condition perform better and do they show a higher self-esteem than poor readers in the control condition? A post-hoc design was used to compare an intervention group with a control group. The independent variable was using portfolios as part of reading and spelling instruction. The dependent variables were literacy skills, conceptual knowledge on reading and writing, and self-esteem. Intelligence score was used as a covariable. The study included 92 students from grade 3 (six to seven-year-olds) from two schools providing regular education. The results on the quantitative measurements indicated that using portfolios did not improve performance with reading and spelling and self-esteem. The qualitative findings with respect to the 14 poor readers of the participating subjects revealed that their reading performance and self-esteem decreased further in both conditions. It is argued that teachers should explicitly use portfolios as a way to evaluate and discuss performance with poor readers so as to better understand the student's level of instruction and feelings of competence, and actually apply that knowledge during instruction.     

Comprehension and study strategies reported by university freshmen who are good and poor readers

Self-report ratings of the use of fifteen text-learning strategies were obtained from college freshmen who are good and poor readers. The data were factor analyzed, and factor scores of the two groups were compared. A factor which had heavy loadings from certain comprehension strategies was a powerful discriminator. Other factors which had heavy loadings from study strategies, however, failed to discriminate the good readers from the poor readers. The results suggest that poor readers in the present study may rely heavily on study strategies without first having completely understood the text materials to be studied. Based on this difference between the strategy profiles of good and poor readers, it is suggested that an emphasis in remedial reading instruction on study strategies may not apply the correction where it is most needed. Instead, an emphasis on certain comprehension strategies which have in common an active search for meaning-enhancing relationships, and which clearly discriminated the good from the poor readers, is recommended.Preparation of this article was supported by a grant from the Basic Skills Research Program, University of California, Davis. The author gratefully acknowledges the assistance of Carolyn Turner and Lynn Thomas in the data collection, and of Julius Sassenrath for comments on a draft of this article.     

Perception of reading instruction and self-regulated learning: A comparison between Chinese students in Hong Kong and Beijing

Based on the theoretical framework of self-regulated learning (SRL), the study aimed to examine whether the proposed relationship between classroom environment and students’ SRL was applicable in the case of Chinese readers. In this study, a questionnaire measuring students’ perception of reading instruction, strategy use, and reading motivation was completed by 1,654 Hong Kong and 2,006 Beijing students from grade 10. By comparing students from two different Chinese cities, the study also attempted to understand the learning attitudes and behaviors of students who share the same Confucian cultural backgrounds but experience different educational environments. The findings of this study indicated that the positive effects of perceived reading instruction on Chinese students’ SRL mainly came from strategy and metacognitive-based instruction, teacher support, and the nature of task. While both Hong Kong and Beijing students demonstrated a positive attitude towards their reading instruction as well as a positive degree of strategy use and reading motivation, significant area differences were found in nearly all measured variables. These findings have been discussed in the light of the contextual environments of the two Chinese cities. The study provides useful insights for understanding Chinese learners and Chinese classrooms from the perspective of SRL.     

Metacognitive online reading strategy use: Readers' perceptions in L1 and L2

This study aimed to explore whether first‐language (L1) readers of different language backgrounds would employ similar metacognitive online reading strategies and whether reading online in a second language (L2) could be influenced by L1 reading strategies. To this end, 52 Canadian college students as English L1 readers and 38 Iranian university students as both Farsi L1 and English L2 readers were selected. After completing three reading tasks on the Web, their perceptions about their use of strategies were assessed via a survey of reading strategies. Analyses of the data, using an analysis of variance and the Scheffé post hoc test, revealed certain differences. The Canadian readers perceived themselves to be high‐strategy users employing mostly a top‐down approach, whereas the Iranian readers in both Farsi and English appeared to be medium‐strategy users, favouring mostly a bottom‐up approach. Additionally, the correlation between readers' perceived use of strategies and their reading scores was statistically significant.     

英语阅读中的元认知策略训练

有关元认知的理论和实验研究表明,元认知策略的培养是提高阅读教学的有效途径之一。要提高学生英语阅读的能力,教师应该在平时的阅读教学过程中对学生进行元认知知识的讲授和策略的训练。     

非英语专业学生阅读理解中词典使用的认知过程及策略培训

文章就非英语专业学生阅读理解中双语词典的使用做了小规模的研究。调查了词典使用者在查阅词典时的认知过程,为了获得更有效的策略,是否需要对使用者进行培训。研究表明许多不恰当的策略往往导致查阅词典的失败,说明学习者在使用词典时需要系统的策略指导,并提出了三个方面的策略培训。