reading attitude

This research aimed at reporting two consecutive studies on the effects of extensive reading on reading comprehension and attitudes of Ethiopian second cycle primary school students . An intervention and a control group, selected from two intact grade 8 sections, were included in each study. The intervention group was exposed to extensive reading for 6 weeks and 12 weeks in the first and second study respectively. To collect data, reading comprehension tests and attitude questionnaires were used. The results revealed that there was no significant difference between the intervention and the control group in reading comprehension and attitudes toward reading when the time was restricted and only reading was used in the intervention. However, the intervention group scored significantly better than the control group in reading comprehension and attitudes toward reading when the time for reading was extended and motivating activities were included. Implications are deduced for time allocation and use of motivating activities in the implementation of an extensive reading programme in input-poor EFL settings like Ethiopia.

The literature on foreign language reading instruction has witnessed a significant bulk of research reporting the effectiveness of strategy instruction in improving reading outcomes. However, few studies have investigated the effects of reading strategy instruction on reading affective variables among young English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of teaching second language (L2) reading strategies on young Iranian EFL learners’ reading self-efficacy and reading attitudes. To this end, a sample of 48 Iranian EFL learners, aged 11-13, was recruited through convenience sampling and randomly assigned to an experimental group (N = 25) and a control group (N = 23). Using a quasi-experimental design, the researchers employed an experimental group that received a 12-week reading strategy instruction and a control group that were taught with the regular method without any strategy instruction. The Reading Self-Efficacy Questionnaire (RSEQ) and Reading Attitude Questionnaire (RAQ) were administered to measure the reading self-efficacy and reading attitudes of the participants as pre-test and post-test of the study. The strategy instruction intervention for the present study was based on Cognitive Academic Language Learning Approach (CALLA). The findings of the study indicated that the learners in the experimental group significantly outperformed those of the control group in terms of L2 reading self-efficacy. However, it was revealed that there was no significant difference between the reading attitudes of the two groups at the end of the semester. Overall, it may be concluded that EFL practitioners can incorporate teaching of reading strategies into their classrooms in order to help learners to gain both confidence and competence to address reading tasks more effectively.

The purpose of this study was to explore the effects of 2 modes of instruction (Short-block versus Long-block) on Iranian EFL learners' reading motivation and reading attitude. For this study, 60 pre-intermediate level students who were studying in an English language institute in Ahvaz were selected. They took part in a homogeneity test (OQPT) to determine their homogeneity level. Then they were randomly divided into two groups, 30 learners each included, namely short-block instruction group and long-block instruction group. Then the two groups were given a reading motivation questionnaire and reading attitude survey as the pre-test before treatment to determine the participants’ reading motivation and reading attitude. During the eleven-session treatment, the long-block group was taught the reading comprehension in an intensive 75-minute session, while the short-block group was taught in three short sessions (twenty-five- minute session). After the treatment sessions, the participants were given a reading motivation questionnaire and reading attitude survey as a posttest. Data were analyzed through descriptive statistics and one-samples t-tests and the findings showed a significant difference between the groups. The short-block group outperformed the other groups in both reading motivation and reading attitude post-test. Implications of this study could be a hint for both EFL teachers and learners that teaching through short-block instruction is more effective than long-block instruction in teaching reading comprehension.