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ESL/EFL Students Lack the Skills to Cope with Reading Comprehension Tests
Nellie Deutsch
University of Phoenix
June 27, 2005
Action Research Project
English is a very important school subject for second language learners. In an effort to get high scores, students feel anxious when taking reading comprehension tests.
This action research project studied the reasons for the anxiety ESL/EFL grade 9 students feel. It researched ways of helping them deal with the situation so that they could raise their academic performance on the reading tests.
Students learned to apply test taking and reading techniques to prepare them for reading comprehension tests. Reading and test taking skills provided ESL/EFL students with the tools to cope with reading comprehension tests. After applying reading strategies and relaxation exercises, students scored higher on the tests.
Evaluation Assessment for Collaborating and Finishing the Task
Comparison of Student Scores Before and After Implementation
ESL/EFL Students Lack the Skills to Cope with Reading Comprehension Tests
The problem was that English as a second and foreign language students in grade nine lacked the skills to cope with reading comprehension tests. Students did not have the tools to achieve high scores in reading comprehension tests. They did not have effective reading strategies to guide them on their reading comprehension tests.
The purpose of this study was to determine the causes of this problem and provide a workable curriculum program for grade nine students on the skills they lacked and improve student scores on reading comprehension tests within a particular junior high school setting. ESL/EFL learners found reading for information easy in their first language but more difficult in a second or foreign language. Reading comprehension tests caused anxiety and a sense of failure for students who did not have the skills to cope with the tests. Reading in a second language was not easy but taking tests made it even more difficult.
Reading comprehension tests make up over 60% of the overall final mark of English in the national "Bagrut" test. Students take the test at the end of high school. ESL/EFL students lack the skills to cope with reading and taking a test in a foreign language. They display symptoms of anxiety and score poorly on their reading comprehension tests. The aim of the study was to develop a curriculum program to improve students' reading and test taking skills.
The population in the district has been experiencing a rapid transition from an agriculture-based community to an urban community. Only 10% of the population still works on the farmland. The other 90% work in the surrounding cities. The schools in the district used to have specialized curriculum that included agriculture as a core subject. The agricultural school district administration is in the process of merging with the city districts. Each rural school district will join the nearest city for its new urban district administration.
There are approximately 10,000 students in the rural district administration. There are 3000 students studying in 4 comprehensive junior and high school buildings under the jurisdiction of the regional municipal council. One of the schools is a religious boarding school. Each of the regional schools has both a junior high and a high school building. The council employs about half of its 600 teachers. The Ministry of Education pays for the other 300 posts.
There has been a transition from the cities to the area. Many families have moved away from the nearby towns in pursuit of better living conditions and educational opportunities for their children. The area resembles suburbia since most of the people commute to the cities. Very few families work the farmland.
The socio-economic situation is excellent for most families who invest money in after school activities and private tutoring for their children in English and mathematics. Most parents pay additional fees for extra curriculum activities organized by the regional council after and during school hours. Parents participate in many after school events organized by the school buildings.
The school district focuses on academic excellence in ESL/EFL reading comprehension programs for all students. One of the schools uses an online English website to facilitate student reading (Snunit, 2004). The Ministry of Education conducts standardized testing in grades 8 and 12. All the schools in the district prepare their students for these examinations. The results are very high for the district when compared to other districts in the country.
English (ESL/EFL) and mathematics are the two most prestigious subjects in school. Many students take extra tutoring in these throughout the year. Academic achievements and grades are top priority for most families in the district. Success in school for many parents correlates with high grades in English. There is parental pressure on students to get high marks in ESL/EFL on the final national "Bagrut" examination at the end of grade 12.
In order to meet the standards of the national "Bagrut" exam in ESL/EFL, the Ministry of Education rural school district has started adding reading comprehension tests to the schools' curriculum program to prepare students for their final national ESL/EFL exams. Practicing reading comprehension tests may be a partial solution to improving students' marks in the final exam. Students may need reading and test skills to benefit from these drill, and practice tests.
The community views the national ESL/EFL "Bagrut" examination as an indicator of success in school and life. On the English section of the “Bagrut” exam, 60% consists of reading tests while the remaining 40% includes writing, speaking, and listening. English is compulsory at every university and community college in the country. High marks in English guarantee acceptance to higher schools of learning and better paying jobs.
English has a high status for parents who are anxious for their children to get into universities. Parents openly express their concern about English as an important subject in school. Parental pressure on students to get high marks in their ESL/EFL "Bagrut" scores is very high. ESL/EFL starts in elementary school. Usually it begins in grade 4 but in some schools, it starts in grade 1. There is a trend to learn English before elementary school. Some parents send their children to special ESL/EFL private nursery schools and kindergartens so that their children will succeed in learning English from an early age. The community believes that the English language is a good investment in their children's future.
The research project took place at a junior high and high school located in this suburban community. The student population of the district consisted of approximately 1500 students. The cultural make-up of the schools was approximately 60% of European origin, 39% of Eastern origin, and 1% of Ethiopian origin. There were no special education classes in ESL/EFL although the school had diagnosed 30% of the student population as learning disabled. There were two physically handicapped students.
One of the schools was religious. The school had a junior and high school building. The religious school's high school had a live-in boarding school housing facility. Some of the junior high school students also resided in the boarding school.
The schools divided classes (grades 7 to grade 12) into 3 levels of ESL/EFL proficiency. The levels coincided with the levels of the ESL/EFL "Bagrut" examination modules. All students received 4 hours of ESL instruction from grade 7 to grade 12. Students received ESL/EFL instruction according to their proficiency level. The school policy was to remove non-readers from regular class settings during lessons. They received extra help during class hours and in the afternoons.
All ESL/EFL teachers, students and their parents participated in the research project. Parents provided background information on their children's reading habits and test taking preparations. They revealed their attitude towards English and express how they felt when they discovered their child had a reading test. Parents were role models for their children. Parental attitude had a bearing on their children. Parental attitude to ESL/EFL tests helped the writer understand students' display of anxiety during reading comprehension tests.
Students from all three ESL/EFL proficiency levels participated in the study. Non-readers with learning disabilities took the reading comprehension tests by listening to audio cassettes. The principals of both schools knew about the study so that they could help the writer study the problem and implement the improvement program. Their involvement was crucial to its success.
The writer has been teaching ESL/EFL for 30 years. During that time, the writer has observed students in both testing and non-testing situations. It seems that most students score higher under non-testing conditions. They perform better in a more relaxed and non-threatening environment.
The writer has been teaching ESL/EFL in the district for 12 years. The writer's role at the schools is that of an ESL/EFL teacher in four buildings and ESL/EFL coordinator in one of the schools. The writer is responsible for coordinating individual ESL/EFL teachers and monitoring student progress at all levels. The writer consults with the other ESL/EFL teachers, students, paraprofessionals associated with special education and principals on student progress in English as a core subject. The writer administers and monitors academic achievement and testing for all ESL/EFL students in one of the buildings.
The writer has been integrating technology into the ESL/EFL classroom for the past 11 years. The writer has developed learning objects (interactive tools), Web Quests, and lesson plans for teachers and students. The lesson plans implement technology, teamwork, peer teaching (Jigsaw) and class discussions. Students collaborate on projects that utilize the Internet and Microsoft applications such as FrontPage, PowerPoint, and Word. The writer has also built an educational website (Deutsch, 2003) to help integrate technology into the ESL/EFL classroom and enhance learning.
The writer is currently working in an ESL/EFL reading comprehension program called Neta Project headed by the Cisco Systems for underprivileged students. This program teaches reading strategies and tests students' reading comprehension online on a website called Making Waves (Snunit, 2005). The project integrates technology and ESL/EFL learning.
In addition, the writer is a graduate of the advanced Silva Method program and is familiar with various memory and meditation techniques for improved learning and relaxation exercises. The writer has taken courses in Yoga, breathing exercises, Chi Kung and Reiki. The writer believes that stress-relieving techniques enhance learning and lower test taking anxiety.
Chapter II: Study of the Problem
The problem was that ESL/EFL students in grade 9 lacked the skills to cope with reading comprehension tests. Many ESL/EFL students received low or failing grades in English as a core subject because they performed poorly on the reading comprehension parts of the tests. They did much better on oral and listening comprehension.
Every student in Israel must learn English for at least 8 years, from grade 4 to grade 12. At the end of grade 12, there is a final examination called the English "Bagrut" which evaluates 4 skills: reading, listening, writing, and speaking. Most of the final exams consist of reading comprehension passages.
Deciphering the text does not guarantee understanding. Students struggle with the text due to cultural differences between English speaking nations and Israel. Israeli students often lack background information to comprehend the reading passage.
Reading comprehension tests are very difficult for most learners because of Hebrew interference and lack of worldly knowledge. The questions are very tricky and demand more than knowledge of the English language. They require a broad knowledge of world events and of different cultures. Most students find the questions very ambiguous.
One of the reasons for this is Hebrew interference. Hebrew is very different from English. It reads from right to left the letters are completely different since it does not use European letters. ESL students of Hebrew are at a disadvantage just like other learners of eastern languages. There is a tendency for ESL learners to translate the questions. The technique of translating the questions makes understanding very difficult. It frustrates students during the exams. Once learners feel discomfort, anxiety and fear take over. It becomes very difficult to perform well on reading comprehension tests under stress.
The writer has observed ESL/EFL students taking reading comprehension tests for 30 years. They move around in their chairs and show signs of discomfort. When interviewed and asked, students mentioned anxiety and lack of motivation as factors that prevented them from starting or focusing on the reading. It appears that ESL/EFL students do not know how to manage test anxiety during reading tests.
They lack the skills to relax and not worry during the reading comprehension test. They feel anxious but do not have the techniques to apply stress relievers. They benefit from techniques on how to relax so that they can read more efficiently.
Reading efficiently needs practice. ESL/EFL students do not receive instruction on how to improve their reading so that it is efficient. Instead they waste time aimlessly looking for the wrong answers. They lack the skills needed to cope with the reading. Students do not have reading comprehension strategies to access information. They need guidelines on how to search for the relevant answers.
It is important to teach students reading techniques to facilitate their reading comprehension especially under testing conditions. Students are unaware of reading strategies such as skimming and scanning that could help them access information. They feel lost and frustrated because they lack the tools necessary to succeed in reading comprehension tests. Teachers do not equip ESL/EFL students with the necessary tools to take reading comprehension tests.
The writer conducted two online (Deutsch, 2004a, and b) and one off-line surveys (see Appendix A) to find out how ESL students, their parents, and teachers feel about reading comprehension tests. There were some inconsistencies about what students claimed and what parents and teachers observed about their reading comprehension test taking skills.
Teachers and parents claim that students lack the skills to cope with reading comprehension tests (see Deutsch, 2004c). ESL/EFL students do not read effectively. Teachers and students report low and failing grades on reading comprehension tests. ESL/EFL students speak English with greater ease than they read. Reading does not come as easily to them as speaking. They hear English more than they read it. Most Israeli students are very proficient in speaking English but less so in writing and reading. They do not read for pleasure even in their first language. ESL/EFL students spend a great deal of their free time watching television programs and listening to music in English.
When questioned, 47% of ESL/EFL students reported having knowledge of reading comprehension strategies such as KWL, scanning, and other skills when taking reading comprehension tests, 35% were undecided as to what those skills were, and 18% said they did not use any reading strategies (Deutsch, 2004a). Their parents and teachers felt differently. On an average 69% of the parents claimed that their children lacked reading strategies, 14% were neutral, and 17% disagreed.
When interviewed, parents of ESL/EFL students expressed concern over their children's low marks in reading comprehension tests. Parents felt that because English is an important subject, (100% agreed that it is important), it should receive more attention. As much as 66% of the parents claimed the tests were very difficult for their children. When asked how they reacted when they found out their children had a reading test, 21% felt anxious and 17% suggested tutoring lessons, 28% asked about the content of the test. Only 34% did not react. This clearly indicates parental involvement in English as a core subject. It also shows that parents are anxious about their children's success in English. They obviously feel that English is an important subject.
Only a minority of the students reported feelings of discomfort while waiting for the tests, during and before receiving the results. Their parents had a different story: 59% claimed their children were anxious when there was a test, 23% were neutral, and 18% disagreed.
While waiting for the tests 35% claimed they felt uncomfortable, 23 % felt they knew nothing, 26% felt fine and 16% felt they were going to do well. When asked how they felt after the test 33% said they needed more time and 41% wished they had prepared themselves better. When asked what thoughts went through their minds during the test, 39% mentioned the fear of not having enough time, 14% wished they could be somewhere else, and 26 % wished they had prepared themselves better. Only 21% said they were doing great. When asked how they felt after the test 51% claimed they worried about the grade they would receive, 13% did not want to see their grade, 8% felt uncomfortable, and 28% felt fine.
A review of students' test scores indicated that many ESL/EFL students taking the ESL/EFL reading comprehension tests were receiving low grades. Teachers' grade rosters showed that ESL/EFL students received low marks when they were anxious. Teachers compared students' work before and after they learned to apply relaxation exercises and reading techniques. Grade rosters indicates an improvement in marks when students used stress relievers and relaxation exercises before reading comprehension tests
Reading strategies helped students focus on the reading and access relevant information. Reading the questions carefully, scanning, and finding the main and supporting ideas helped students read more efficiently and improve their scores. Teachers' rosters showed a significant improvement in students' reading comprehension tests.
Teachers' grade rosters indicated that when students heard the reading of the comprehension tests, they performed better. Students found it easier to follow a text when they heard it than when they had to read it on their own. They struggled with the words. Once they heard the sound of the words, they recognized them much faster. Most students preferred to hear the word for recognition and not use a bilingual dictionary because it took time.
Teachers and parents agreed that ESL/EFL students did not have the skills to cope with reading comprehension tests.
The literature review summarized the research done on the problem that ESL/EFL students lacked the skills to cope with reading comprehension tests. The study focused on what it meant for ESL/EFL students to take a reading comprehension test without any tools to guide them. The research demonstrated that students lacked the skills to read effectively.
The literature covered the symptoms that ESL/EFL students exhibited because they lacked the skills needed to perform well on reading comprehension tests. The literature also reviewed studies on motivation, attitude, meta-cognition, first language interference, prior world knowledge, cultural differences, and other variables that cause difficulties in ESL/EFL learning.
Junior and high school ESL/EFL students experienced problems when taking reading comprehension tests. Reading in a foreign language causes anxiety and poor language achievement "in conjunction of students' levels of reading anxiety and general foreign language anxiety" (Saito, Thomas, & Horwitz, 1999, p. 202). Unfamiliar scripts, writing systems, and unfamiliar cultural material cause ESL/EFL reading anxiety (Saito, et al, 1999, p. 215). "Low language proficiency and teacher diversity may be causing an emotional block" (Zhang, 2000, p. 31) in ESL/EFL students when they take a reading comprehension test. Foreign and second language students have irrational beliefs that cause anxiety and affect language achievement (Tittle, 1997).
"Anxiety is a basic human emotion [that] consist [s] of fear and uncertainty" (Sarason, 1988, p. 19). Anxiety has its good and bad sides. On the one hand it helps avoid dangerous events that can be life threatening. On the other hand, it causes people to freeze as they avoid non-dangerous situations. The mind cannot distinguish between what is life threatening or just a stressful situation. "One such event [that causes minds to freeze but is not dangerous], is testing" (Harris & Coy, 2003, p. 1). Testing is not a dangerous situation. What can a learner do to trick the mind into believing that testing is not dangerous? "The aim of stress management is to break the link between irrelevant stress reactions (diffused attention, fear, etc.), and academic tasks" (Rubenzer, 1988, p. 2). This research review will explain the relationship between anxiety and academic reading performance on English as a second language comprehension tests.
"Foreign language anxiety and irrational beliefs" (Tittle, 1997, p. 3) are important issues that need consideration for a better understanding of what ESL students experience in the ESL classroom. Mathew Tittle claims that ESL students "experience [a kind of] anxiety that is related [to] test anxiety, fear of negative evaluation, and communication apprehension"(1997, p.1). His studies do not conclusively indicate that there is a correlation between foreign language anxiety and irrational beliefs in learners of foreign languages. There seems to be a correlation when it comes to Russian ESL students. Eleni Pappamihie conducted a similar study on ESL language anxiety in Mexican girls. The study concluded that ESL "girls are significantly more anxious about using English in their mainstream classes"(Pappamihiel, 2001, p. 1). The study used English Language Anxiety Scale based on Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale to examine the fears and intimidation ESL students feel when confronted with the option of moving into a larger and higher level classroom. This is a very important point to consider when determining ESL class size. How ESL students feel is very important. It has a direct connection to the way they perform in the ESL classroom. "The emotional discomfort of worry, [students'] feelings of being overwhelmed, and unpleasant physical sensations of anxiety distract attention from subtle cognitive tasks" (Rubenzer, 1988, p. 2). ESL students cannot perform under pressure.
Feelings of discomfort and anxiety in the classroom do not enhance learning of any kind. Cristina Sanz has written a research paper on the relationship between reading, anxiety, and reading comprehension in foreign language learners (1999). Unfortunately very "little research has been conducted to date on the role of anxiety in reading comprehension" (1). She conducted her research studies on Spanish and not on ESL. In another reading comprehension research done on Japanese ESL students, Cristina Sanz tried to find the relationship between foreign language classroom anxiety scales and foreign language reading anxiety scales. It seems that the two are not related. The two measure completely different components (Saito et al., 1999. p. 202). It would be interesting to repeat the research in another setting where English is the foreign language and Hebrew is the first language. Foreign language anxiety only increases students' problems with "decoding of a text and the actual processing of textual meaning" (Saito et al., 1999. p.215). The research implications concede that there may be differences between beginners and advanced ESL students. "In the case of beginning students confronted with unfamiliar phonology and scripts, the anxiety might be more immediate" (Saito et al., 1999. p.215).
In the case of Hebrew ESL learners, unfamiliar phonology is an important variable to consider. The latter may cause undue anxiety with regular and learning disadvantaged students who may still be struggling with the phonetic skill of decoding English. "Processing difficulties" may cause "reading avoidance" (Saito et al., 1999. p.215). ESL students will just give up if they are unable to process the words. The graphic system of Hebrew is difficult to learn. Does that mean that English is, therefore, problematic for Hebrew ESL learners? If so, how do disadvantaged students cope with it?
Dealing with phonetics and reading comprehension is difficult for ESL learners. A study done on the phonological working memory and reading in test anxiety situation, demonstrated that "anxious subjects showed poorer comprehension than non-anxious subjects" (Calvo, 1996, p. 291). What the researcher also found was that "high-anxiety subjects produced overt articulation more frequently than low-anxiety subjects" (Calvo, 1996, p.291). This information is relevant for ESL teachers. It can help them identify students who articulate as anxious. The study indicates that there is an "interaction between anxiety and interference on [reading] comprehension performance" (Calvo, 1996, p. 289).
Anxiety and reading comprehension performance can be misleading. Sometimes many other variables enter the picture. Many ESL learners also have reading disabilities. According to Karen Woodman, a linguistics professor at the University of New England in Australia, the challenge teachers need to face "is deciding when a student's problem relates to learning English, and when it is a disability" (SER, 2001, p. 2). Marjolaine Limbos and Esther Geva have conducted a study on accuracy of teacher assessments of second language students at risk for reading disability. The study sets out to "examine the accuracy of various teacher assessment methods for screening children for reading disability" (Limbros & Geva, 2001, p.136).
Anxiety over tests makes parents nervous. Children acquire this anxiety by the way their parents "react to [their] performance on tests" (Anderson, 2002, p. 1). Parents are models for their children. Parents should "make sure [their] child doesn't equate …grades on a specific test with [being] … smart" (Anderson, 2002, p. 1). Tests don't evaluate how good a student or person is…efforts and [confidence do]". "Test taking doesn't have to lead to test anxiety" (Jackson, 2001, p. 1), but it does.
"Anxious language learners may focus their attention on their perceived inadequacies, the potential for failure, and the consequences of that imagined failure, rather than concentrating on the task itself" (MacIntyre, Noels, & Clement, 1997, p. 269). Fear of failure is what stops students from performing well on tests. It is a vicious circle. "The test-anxious person generally believes that not succeeding on a test means [he] will be judged unworthy. This feeling of unworthiness translates into increased test anxiety "(Jackson, 2001, p. 1). Furthermore, "many students are afraid of failure in any effort they might make to read. This anxiety prevents their willingness to begin reading (Adams, 1996, p. 1). Fear and anxiety hinder ESL/EFL students from coping on reading comprehension tests.
Pauline Jackson warns that parents can double their children's chances of being anxious unless they learn how to manage their own anxieties. "The best predictor of how a child will cope with stress is how the parents cope" (Stolberg, 2002, p. 2). Parents can be role models for their children. Their reactions and attitudes can teach their children stress management or mismanagement. "If a stressed mother slams the door and throws down her keys, she is teaching her child one way to relieve stress…If she goes out for a jog, mediates or practices yoga, she is teaching other ways" (Stolberg, 2002, p. 1).
"Test anxiety affects every student; at least occasionally" (Toronto Star, 2003, p. 1). The research has stated a few reasons why ESL learners exhibit anxiety when doing reading comprehension tests. This literary research has provided the writer with a better understanding of the variables that influence ESL students' anxiety. The variables are test anxiety, second language anxiety and reading comprehension testing anxiety.
The second aspect of the literature review summarized students' reading attitudes and the strategies they used to cope with reading comprehension tests. According to research findings, learners' first language influence second and foreign language reading strategies and motivation (Yamashita, 2004, p. 10). "Readers with different levels of second language proficiency; make use of their first and second language to different events in their attempts to make sense of a text they are reading" (Upton, 1997, p. 18). "The students [language] learning strategies have a powerful impact on the students' [EFL] learning outcome (Lengkanawati, 2004, p. 1).
The findings on first and second language showed that "EFL readers' meta-cognitive knowledge of reading strategies had close links to their EFL proficiency" reading (Zhang, 2001, p. 268). "Accomplished readers in their first language tend to use many of the same strategies that successful native English-language readers do—skimming, guessing in context, reading for the gist of a text—when they are reading in a second language" (Drucker, 2003, p.1).
Learners' attitude and feelings played an important role in ESL/EFL learning. Motivational problems affect ESL/EFL reading proficiency (Lynch, 1999). "An awareness of individual differences in learning develops students' potentials in ESL and EFL learning"(Kang, 1999). "An awareness [of] personal learning process, contributes [to] effective learning, and raises self-esteem" (Ozmen, 2004, p.1).
The final aspect of the literature reviewed studies on reading comprehension strategies and prior world knowledge. ESL/EFL learners did not have the reading strategies to cope with the reading tests. Reading comprehension strategies are tools that students use to help them determine the meaning of what they read. Reading strategies enable students to understand and answer questions on the text. Many ESL/EFL students lack these reading skills in their first language.
The problem was that students who lacked reading skills were at a disadvantage. Their reading was ineffective in ESL/EFL. "Reading strategies are activities that readers deliberately engage … to understand or acquire information from a text" (Steiner and Garb, 2002, p. 1). Those who lack reading skills are inactive readers (Pressley, 2000). They are unable to comprehend and answer questions on the text.
Prior background information about culture and world knowledge influenced ESL/EFL students' understanding of the text. Many researchers stressed the importance of prior knowledge on students' comprehension of the text. Michael Pressley claimed, "Reading comprehension can be enhanced by developing reader's prior knowledge" (Pressley, 2000, p. 5). Ely and Lea Kozminsky examined "the relationship between general knowledge, skills in applying reading strategies, and reading comprehension for ninth-grade students at varying educational levels … in Israeli comprehensive schools" (2001, p. 187). McNamara and Kintsch also conducted an experiment on the "effects of prior knowledge and text coherence" (1996, p. 247). They concluded that prior knowledge was important in enhancing student understanding of the text.
There is a connection between first and second language reading habits. "Accomplished readers in their first language tend to use many of the same strategies that successful native English-language readers do—skimming, guessing in context, reading for the gist of a text—when they are reading in a second language" (Druker, 2003, p. 1). Lawrence Jun Zhang's research showed that "readers' metacognitive knowledge of reading strategies [in their first language] had close links to their EFL proficiency" (Zhnag, 2001, p. 268). Mokhtari and Sheorey developed an instrument that "measures adolescent and adult ESL students' metacognitive awareness and perceived use of reading strategies" (Mokhtari & Sheorey, 2002, p. 1). They called the instrument "Survey of Reading Strategies (SORS)". The writers believe that there is a strong research support for the positive relationship between students' metacognitive awareness of reading processes and their ability to read and excel academically" (Mokhtari & Sheorey, 2002, p. 1).
Many ESL/EFL students are proficient readers in their first language but choose not to read. These students are "aliterate" (Alvermann, 2003, p. 1). Alvermann defines "aliteracy [as] the capacity to read but electing not to do so" (Alvermann, 2003, p. 1). Many of the writer's students struggled in their native Hebrew language "with school-related reading" (Alvermann, 2003, p. 1). They did not engage in reading in their first language. This attitude to reading seemed to be prevalent with today's adolescents: "They opt not to get their information through traditional print sources" (Alvermann, 2003, p. 5). This made reading in ESL/EFL very difficult.
Another kind of first language reader chooses not to read because of "failure" (Adams, 1996, p. 1). "Students [who] are afraid of failure [will not] begin reading" (Adams, 1996, p. 1). Some students who have dyslexia, ADD/ADHD and other disorders may be reluctant to cope with reading comprehension tests.
Diverse learning styles and personality traits are variables that determine ESL/EFL learners' reading proficiency (Kang, 1999). Very little research appeared on reading strategies for differing learning styles in ESL/EFL students and at risk students. Limbos and Geva conducted research studies on "early identification of learning disabilities in second-language learners" (2001, p. 136). Developing assessment tools to detect reading disability in ESL/EFL learners in junior high would provide teachers with valuable information on reasons for student anxiety and poor scores on reading comprehension tests.
ESL/EFL students in grade nine lacked the skills to cope with reading comprehension tests at a junior high school. Their grades showed that they were performing at a low level. Getting high grades in English indicated high status and an opportunity to enter any university in the country. Students felt anxious about English tests because they realized their importance to their future. The drive to succeed caused them to use ineffective reading strategies and to score low. This lack of direction and skills during tests caused anxiety.
Many of the causes that led to student anxiety during the ESL/EFL reading comprehension tests involved parents, and teachers. Parents and teachers could encourage students to learn about learning styles and reading strategies to become proficient readers. ESL/EFL students did not have effective reading comprehension skills and strategies necessary to cope with reading comprehension tests. They lacked the strategies and skills needed to access information and the appropriate reading skills to do well on reading comprehension tests. A reason for this was that students had not received instruction in reading comprehension skills and strategies.
Reading strategies provided helpful guidelines on how to approach the reading passage. They helped the reader organize the passage into main and supporting ideas for a better understanding of the test. Scanning and skimming for relevant cues such as number and capital letters made the reading less threatening and more readable. Reading strategies should be an integral part of the curriculum for ESL/EFL learners. Students lacked direction on how to cope with reading comprehension tests.
Students required meaningful drill and practice in both test-taking strategies and stress management. ESL/EFL students, who were anxious, did not receive good grades on reading comprehension tests. The problem was that students were not proficient in test strategies. They had not developed test anxiety management skills.
Parents pressured students to get high marks in ESL/EFL reading comprehension tests. Parents did not have information on test stress management. Parents did not know how to help their children relax on the day of the test. Parents expected their children to have high grades on ESL/EFL reading comprehension tests. They did not understand why their children were receiving low and failing marks in ESL/EFL reading comprehension tests.
Teachers also contributed to the problem of ESL/EFL students lacking the skills to cope with reading comprehension tests. ESL/EFL teachers did not consider test anxiety when giving reading comprehension tests. They were not aware of how students feel and did not provide them with direction and ways of dealing with stress because of tests. ESL/EFL teachers did not instruct students in test taking stress management strategies and relaxation exercises.
ESL/EFL teachers did not practice relaxation exercises in class in preparation for the test. They did not encourage students to use stress-relieving techniques before and during reading comprehension tests. This would have helped students relax so that they could use all the reading skills they acquired.
ESL/EFL teachers did not practice reading comprehension skills and strategies for reading comprehension tests. They thought it was a waste of time to practice reading comprehension skills and strategies. ESL/EFL teachers were not aware of the importance of preparing students for reading comprehension tests. Many ESL/EFL teachers believed students applied the same strategy they used in their first language. Teachers should not depend on this since students did not always have reading strategies in their first language. The techniques may be similar but they are not the same in every language. Hebrew does not have capital letters or special forms for the passive. Teachers should teach reading strategies appropriate to English. They should not take it for granted that students know about reading skills.
The causes for the problem that ESL/EFL students did not have the skills to cope with reading comprehension tests stemmed from parents, students, and teachers. The solutions lay with the students and teachers. Students must learn and practice reading and test taking strategies so they are proficient enough to receive higher scores on their reading comprehension tests.
Chapter III: Outcomes and Evaluation
The goal of the study was for ESL/EFL students at the junior and high school level to receive passing grades on reading comprehension tests in English. Teachers were to equip students with strategic tools to make their reading more effective. They were to guide them on how to apply relaxation and breathing techniques to help them cope with test taking anxiety.
ESL/EFL students were to learn how to use reading techniques and relax during the test. Students were to learn to feel confident during the tests. They were to become proficient with reading and test taking strategies so that they could cope with reading comprehension tests.
Several specific outcomes were to result from teaching students how to apply reading skill strategies and relaxation exercises during reading comprehension tests. The immediate outcome was higher scores in the tests. ESL/EFL students were to receive passing grades on reading comprehension tests in English.
The following were the expected outcomes of the implementation phase:
1. 90% of all ESL/EFL students would receive passing grades (60% or above) on reading comprehension tests in English
2. 90% of all ESL/EFL students would receive passing grades on classroom reading assignments (Pass/C or above) in all their ESL/EFL tasks
ESL/EFL students were to complete their reading assignments on a regular basis:
1. 90% out of all ESL/EFL students would complete an average of 75% of their reading assignments (extensive reading and textbook reading) either at home or at school
2. 90% out of all ESL/EFL students would earn a passing grade in classroom reading comprehension tests based on classroom reading
3. 90% out of all ESL/EFL students would earn a passing grade (55 or above) in reading comprehension tests.
The writer conducted two preliminary online (Deutsch, 2004c) and offline (see Appendix A) surveys to acquire a better understanding of how students felt about taking ESL/EFL reading comprehension tests. The online survey was available from May 20 to November 20, 2004 to the public or anyone who randomly found the link on the writer's website (Deutsch, 2003). The population included parents, teachers, and students of ESL/EFL.
In addition, the writer conducted interviews and questionnaires (see Appendixes C-F) for students in grade nine. ESL/EFL students answered all the questionnaires before the three-month implementation period to get a wider perspective of the problem. The writer used qualitative methods to evaluate the interview responses (see Appendix C).
The writer wanted to learn if there was a correlation between the offline and online surveys. For this purpose, the writer conducted an offline survey on an all boys grade nine class from a religious school (see Appendix A). The writer counted the number of yes, no and undecided answers and added the data to Microsoft Excel for the percentages (see Appendix B). A comparison of both surveys showed a strong correlation on how ESL/EFL students felt when taking a reading comprehension test (QuestPro, 2004).
The results of both the online and offline surveys and the individual interviews helped the writer prepare a program to teach students reading and test taking strategies. The writer used quantitative methods to analyze the results of the online questionnaires for parents, students and teachers of ESL/EFL students (QuestionPro Survey Software, 2004).
The students received two reading comprehension tests before and after the 12-week implementation program in which they practiced reading strategies and test taking skills. After twelve weeks of training (see Appendix G), they took a reading comprehension test. The writer compared the test scores before and after the implementation program.
The study used quantitative methods to evaluate and compare student progress before (see Appendixes D-F), and after the program for reading strategies (Appendixes I-L), and relaxation exercises (See Appendix H).
The writer compared the pre- (See Appendixes D-F) and post-implementation survey responses and individual interviews (see Appendix C) to see if the students changed their attitude about the reading tests after the implementation period.
The questionnaires provided the writer with a more comprehensive view of what happened to ESL/EFL students during reading comprehension tests. The quantitative measurement of student surveys did not provide an accurate enough picture of the problem since teachers and students' answers did not coincide. Interviewing students gave a better perspective of the situation.
The author published the results of the online survey on Nellie's English Projects (Deutsch, 2003).
The problem was that ESL/EFL students in grade nine lacked the skills to cope with reading comprehension tests. Students did not have the tools to succeed in reading comprehension tests. They did not have effective reading strategies and test taking techniques to guide them on their reading tests. As a result, ESL/EFL students became anxious and received low and failing grades on their reading comprehension tests.
A number of solutions appeared in the literature that included general ideas about reading and test taking techniques relevant to a first language, reading strategies for ESL/EFL learners and specific reading problems for Hebrew speakers. "Skilled comprehension requires … the sounding out and recognition of individual words to the understanding of sentences in paragraphs as part of much longer texts. There is instruction at all of these levels that can be carried …
