Title
: READING FLUENCY, COMPREHENSION, AND VOCABULARY COMPETENCE OF SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS: BASIS FOR READING ENHANCEMENT PROGRAM
Author
: JESEL MAE N. VENTIC, M.A.
Co-author
: EDGAR R. ESLIT, PH.D. ----------o0o---------ORCID No. orcid.org/0000-0001-8072-0486 Email Address:
[email protected] Affiliation: Professor, SMC, Iligan City, Philippines
ABSTRACT Concerns about English language learning and teaching are getting so pervasive. The embodiment of which, as most educators attest, is to intensify the English language teaching process per se. Anchored on the Schema Theory, Social Development Theory, and Affective Learning Theory, the current study dealt on measuring the reading fluency level, reading comprehension level, and vocabulary competence level of the respondents using the standard tools appropriate in a Descriptive-correlational type of research. Such circumstance is appropriate in this study. Using the Demographic Profile, Reading Fluency Test, Reading Comprehension Test, and Vocabulary Test as instruments in data gathering, the researcher purposively used the senior high school students of Iligan City National School of Fisheries (ICNSF) as respondents. To test the mean scores of all variables, the T-Test of two independent sample means and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) were utilized. Salient results attest the veracity of the findings that: there were significant differences on the respondent’s level of vocabulary competence, reading fluency, reading comprehension, and, that the reading fluency of the respondents befalls under frustrated level. Overall, the aforecited theories used in the study were amplified while gaps revealed in the study were finely addressed. Hence, as results and findings of the study disclosed, the researcher highly recommended the proposed Reading Enhancement Program, “Tara Na! Magbasa Ta!” to be utilized in order to address and enhance the reading fluency, comprehension and vocabulary competence of the senior high school students. No. of words: 238 Keywords: Reading Comprehension, Reading Enhancement Program, Reading Fluency, Senior High School, Vocabulary Competence Page 1 of 11
Summary The focus of this study was to ascertain the reading fluency, reading comprehension, and vocabulary competence of the Senior High School Students of ICNSF. Specifically, this study sought to determine (1) the demographic profile of the respondents in terms of age, sex, socioeconomic status of the family, parent’s highest educational attainment, and availability of reading materials at home; 2) the level of reading fluency of the respondents; 3) the significant difference on the level of reading fluency of the respondents according to their profile; 4) the level of reading comprehension of the respondents; 5) the significant difference on the level of reading comprehension of the respondents according to their profile; 6) the level of vocabulary competence of the respondents; 7) the significant difference on the level of vocabulary competence of the respondents according to their profile; 8) the significant relationship on the level of reading fluency, reading comprehension, and vocabulary competence of the respondents; and 9) the proposed reading enhancement program based from the findings of the study. To note, this study has a total respondents of thirty-six (36) Grade 12 respondents from Iligan City National School of Fisheries. The instruments used were: 1) reading fluency test adapted from DIBELS Oral Reading Fluency Progress Monitoring Scoring Booklet edited by Good and Kaminski (2007); 2) reading comprehension test adapted from the study of Ambalong (2011); and 3) vocabulary competence test adapted from the study of Clam and Sundon (2014). Also, the researcher utilized the descriptive method to identify the Page 2 of 11
reading fluency, reading comprehension and vocabulary competence of the students. Moreover, the statistical treatment employed in the study were frequency count and percent, mean and standard deviation, T-test of two independent sample means and analysis of variance (ANOVA), and Pearson- r correlation.
Findings From the data gathered, the following were the findings of the study: 1. Majority of the respondents constituted ages 17- 18. 2. Majority of the respondents were female. 3. Majority of the respondents belong to Class D of socioeconomic status. 4. Majority of the father of the respondents were high school level and high school graduate. 5. Majority of the mother of the respondents were high school graduate. 6. The level of reading fluency of the respondents was frustrated level. 7. There is a significant difference on the level of reading fluency when grouped according to sex, mother’s highest educational attainment, and socioeconomic status of the family. 8. The level of reading comprehension of the respondents was good in the literal level, fair in the interpretive level, poor in the evaluative level, and fair in the applicative level.
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9. There is a significant difference on the interpretive level of reading comprehension when grouped according to their father’s highest educational attainment. 10. There is a significant difference of the respondent’s evaluative level of reading comprehension when grouped according to the available reading materials such as science books and devotionals. 11. There is a significant difference of the respondent’s applicative level of reading comprehension when grouped according to the available reading materials such as religious books, novels, mathematics books and science books. 12. The respondents’ level of vocabulary competence is average. 13. There is a significant difference of the respondent’s level of vocabulary competence when grouped according to their father’s highest educational attainment. 14. There is a significant difference of the respondent’s level of vocabulary competence when grouped according to the socioeconomic status. 15. There is a significant difference of the respondent’s level of vocabulary competence when grouped according to the available reading materials such as literature books, sports books/magazines and biographies. 16. There is a significant relationship between the respondent’s reading fluency and the evaluative level of reading comprehension. 17. There is a significant relationship between the respondent’s reading fluency and vocabulary competence. Page 4 of 11
18. There is a significant relationship between the respondent’s vocabulary competence and the applicative level of reading comprehension.
Conclusion Issues concerning the reading fluency level, comprehension level, and vocabulary competence level can be minimized if not totally be eliminated. It will, however, take time, money, and a combined effort on the part of many individuals involved in the process.
It can be gleaned from this research
objective that it intended to measure the reading fluency level, reading comprehension level, and vocabulary competence level of the respondents. Based on the findings, it was deduced that the reading fluency of the respondents are frustrated while the reading comprehension is poor in the evaluative level but good in the literal level and fair to interpretive and applicative levels. The questions under the evaluative level had responses that are directly stated, induced, or require other information. This proved that currently, the students are slow readers with poor comprehension when it comes to critical reading. Moreover, their vocabulary competence level is average. This means that the students have enough vocabulary that enables them to read with comprehension and fluency. However, being a Grade 12 student, the result should have been higher since they belong to the highest grade level in secondary school. Thus, on these premises, if the proposed Reading Enhancement Program will be utilized, it will address and enhance the reading fluency, comprehension Page 5 of 11
and vocabulary competence of the senior high school students of Iligan City National School of Fisheries while paving the way for the amplification of the theories used in this study. Recommendation In view of the findings and conclusion of the study, the following recommendations were drawn: To the School Heads 1. Help adopt the reading enhancement program to help increase the reading fluency level, reading comprehension level, and vocabulary competence of the students who are entering senior high school. 2. Help provide classrooms with interesting reading materials for reading reinforcement purposes. 3. Ensure that the library must be accessible and suitable to the needs of the students. 4. Establish a library day for both teachers and students. 5. Support and promote the proposed remediation program. To the Teachers 1. Implement the DEAR (Drop Everything And Read) program in their English Classes. 2. Introduce and recommend new interesting books. 3. Plan daily lessons and integrate new strategies suitable for the learners’ needs and interests.
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4. Plan a monitoring schedule on tracking the students’ reading progress through one-on-one sessions. 5. Implement the “Tara Na! Magbasa Ta!” reading enhancement program. To the Future Researchers 1. Conduct future researches related to this topic to a wider population. 2. Focus on monitoring the progress of the students after conducting the reading enhancement remediation program. 3. Point out the role of the teacher in facilitating the learning and progress of the students by focusing on their trainings and continuous education. 4. Point out the significance of the setting or place and availability of reading materials to which the students spend their time reading.
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Online Materials An, S. (2013). Schema theory in reading. Retrieved September 2, 2017 fromhttp://www.academypublication.com/issues/past/tpls/l03/19.pdf David, L. (2014). Learning theories: social development theory (Vygotsky). Retrieved from https://www.learning-theories.com/vygotskyssocial-learning-theory.html Eslit, E. (2017). ENGLISH LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY SKILLS: TOWARDS A PROGRESSIVE SPEECH IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/321015996_ ENGLISH_LANGUAGE_PROFICIENCY_SKILLS_TOWARDS_A_PROGRESS IVE_SPEECH_IMPROVEMENT_PROGRAM Hasbrouck, J. (2012). Understanding and assessing fluency. Retrieved September 12, 2017 from http://www.readingrockets.org/article/ understanding-and-assessing-fluency Kumon. (2012). The importance of developing reading skills from the earliest opportunity. Retrieved September 3, 2017 from http://www.kumon.co.uk/blog/the-importance-of-developing-readingskills-from-the-earliest-opportunity/ Liu, F. (2010). Reading abilities and strategies: a short introduction. Retrieved May 9, 2017, from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ EJ1065868.pdf Lopez, F. (2012). The reading skills. Retrieved September 1, 2017 from https://www.slideshare.net/fernanlopez/the-readi skills?next _slideshow=1
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Morin, A. (2017). Reading skills: what to expect at different ages. Retrieved September 1, 2017 from https://www.understood.org/en/learningattention-issues/signssymptoms/age-by-age-learning-skills/reading-skills-what-toexpect-at-different-ages Pappas, C. (2014). Instructional design models and theories: schema theory. Retrieved from https://elearningindustry.com/schema-theory Pardede, P. (2006). A review on reading theories and its implication to the teaching of reading. Retrieved September 1, 2017 fromhttps://parlindunganpardede.com/articles/languageeaching/ a-eview-on-reading-theories-and-its-implication-to-the-teaching-ofreading/ Philippine Statistics Authority. (2018). Philippine standard classification of education (PSCED). Retrieved from http://nap.psa.gov.ph/activestats/psced/expnotes.asp Rasplica, C. & Cummings, K. D. (2013). Oral reading fluency . Retrieved September 3, 2017 from https://www.council-for-learningdisabilities.org/what-is-oral -reading-fluency-verbal-reading-proficiency Rere, T. K. (2012). Reading comprehension. Retrieved September 1, 2017 from http://www.literacyandnumeracyforadults.com/ resources/354679 Sanopao, J.P. (2016). The effect of reading fluency and comprehension remediation in learning English as second language (ESL). Retrieved September3, 2017 from https://www.google.com.ph/url?sa=t&rct= &q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=5&cad=rja&uact= ved=0ahUKE wjEqPDVsYjWAhUMp5QK SQ2BqYQFggSmith, W. P. (2016). K12 reader: Reading instruction resources. Retrieved September 1, 2017 from http://www.k12reader.com/what-is- readingcomprehension/ Strategic Marketing and Retails, Inc. (2013). Factors affecting reading ability in school age children. Retrieved from September 1, 2107 Page 10 of 11
fromhttp://www.evancedsolutions.com/wp-content/uploads/ 2015/01/Factors_ Affecting_Reading_Ability_White_Paper.pdf Wilson, K. & Lianrui, Y. (2007). A social constructivist approach to reading turning the rhetoric into reality. Retrieved from http://www.celea.org.cn/teic/71/71-51.pdf
teaching
Wilson, L. O. (2018). Three domains of learning- cognitive, affective and psychomotor. The Second Principle: Church WordPress Theme. Retrieved February 25, 2018 fromhttps://thesecondprinciple.com/ instructional-design/threedomainsoflearning/ Unpublished Theses Ambalong, M. A. (2011). Factors affecting the reading comprehension level among the first year students (2nd shift) of Iligan city national high school (Unpublished master’s thesis). St. Michael’s College, Iligan City Asis, S. D. (2008). The reading interest associated with the reading achievements of grade VI pupils of Sapad district, division of Lanao del Norte: basis for a proposed reading program (Unpublished master’s thesis). St. Michael’s College, Iligan City. Batoy, C.B. (2016). Efficacy of collaborative strategic reading: basis for a reading module (Unpublished graduate thesis). St. Michael’s College, Iligan City. Clam, Z. S. & Sundon, L. A. E. (2013). The vocabulary skills of grade IV pupils and its correlates to their learning environment (Unpublished undergraduate thesis). Mindanao State University- Iligan Institute of Technology, Iligan City. Gales, K. S. & Tagolimot, J. M. (2011). Evaluation of the reading ability of the grade III pupils of Echavez elementary school in Barina-ut, San Roque, Iligan city during school year 2010-2011 (Unpublished undergraduate thesis). Mindanao State University- Iligan Institute of Technology, Iligan City.
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