000085606 DEVELOPING READING COMPREHENSION AND FLUENCY BY USING REPEATED READING: AN ACTION RESEARCH STUDY AT BACNIΝΗ VOCATIONAL COLLEGE OF ELECTROMECHANICS AND CONSTRUCTION IN VIETNAM ( PHÁT TRIỂN KHẢ NĂNG ĐỌC HIỂU VÀ TRUYỀN THỐNG BẰNG PHƯƠNG PHÁP ĐỌC LẶ

000085606 DEVELOPING READING COMPREHENSION AND FLUENCY BY USING REPEATED READING: AN ACTION RESEARCH STUDY AT BACNIΝΗ VOCATIONAL COLLEGE OF ELECTROMECHANICS AND CONSTRUCTION IN VIETNAM ( PHÁT TRIỂN KHẢ NĂNG ĐỌC HIỂU VÀ TRUYỀN THỐNG BẰNG PHƯƠNG PHÁP ĐỌC LẶP LẠI: MỘT NGHIÊN CỨU HÀNH ĐỘNG TẠI TRƯỜNG CAO ĐẲNG NGHỀ CƠ ĐIỆN VÀ XÂY DỰNG BACNIΗ, VIỆT NAM)

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING

HANOI UNIVERSITY

NGUYEN THI PHUONG

DEVELOPING READING COMPREHENSION AND FLUENCY BY USING

REPEATED READING: AN ACTION RESEARCH STUDY AT BACNINH VOCATIONAL COLLEGE OF ELECTROMECHANICS AND CONSTRUCTION IN

VIETNAM

SUBM ITTED IN PA R T IA L FU LFILM EN T

O F TH E REQ U IREM EN TS FOR TH E DEGREE

OF M A STER IN TESO L

HANOI N O V EM B E R 2014

M IN ISTRY OF ED U CA TIO N A N D TR A IN IN G

HANOI UNIVERSITY

NGUYEN THI PHUONG

DEVELOPING READING FLUENCY AND COMPREHENSION BY USING REPEATED READING: AN ACTION RESEARCH STUDY IN BACNĨNH

VOCATIONAL COLLEGE OF ELECTROMECHANICS AND

CONSTRUCTION IN VIETNAM

SU BM ITTED IN PA RTIA L FU LFILM EN T

O F TH E R EQ U IREM EN TS FOR TH E DEGREE

OF M A STER IN TESO L

THƯVIẸNĐAI HOC HANOI

HAN 이 UNIVERSITY LIBRARY

SU PERV ISO R: N G U Y EN TH A I HA, M Ed.

H A N O Ị N O V EM B E R 2014

First and foremost, I w ould like to express my gratitude to all those who gave me the possibility to complete this thesis I want to thank the Department o f Postgraduate Studies o f Hanoi University for giving me permission to commence this thesis in the first instance and to do the necessary research work

I owed deep gratitude to Ms Nguyen Thai Ha, M E d，my respectable supervisor and lecturer fo r her continuous support，guidance, suggestions, patience，and m otivation throughout the entire process o f conducting the research and w ritin g this academic report Her wide knowledge, professionalism, seriousness, and enthusiasm have become sources o f great inspiration to me The valuable lessons she gave me have been not only useñil for me in the completion o f the research but also beneficial to

my life teaching career

I w ould also like to say thank you to the Dean o f Вас N inh Vocational College o f Electro mechanic and Construction School gives me this opportunity to study Master o f English in Hanoi University, to teach and apply this study fo r one semester on a class o f English at the college

I w ould like to acknowledge the enthusiastic participation o f all the survey subjects, my beloved students for their efforts Their authentic inform ation was o f great help

F inally, my wholehearted appreciation goes to my beloved fam ily: my parents who have always stood by my side，encouraging me to overcome all the challenges and my husband whose endless care, support，and useful suggestions have helped me complete the research

STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP

I declare that this thesis represents m y ОМ П work, except where due acknow ledgem ent

is made, an d that has not been previously included in a thesis, dissertation or report subm itted to any institutions for a degree, diplom a or other qualifications.

Signature:

15th N ovem ber 2014

TABLE O F CONTENTS

A C K N O W LED G EM EN TS I STA TEM EN T OF A U T H O R S H IP II

TA BLE O F C O N T E N T S Hi

A B S T R A C T VI LIST O F A B B R E V IA T IO N S VII

CH APTER 1: IN TR O D U C TIO N 1

1 1 B a c k g r o u n d TO THE S TU D Y 1

1 2 A i m s o f t h e s t u d y 3

1 3 T h e r e s e a r c h q u e s t i o n s 3

1 4 S c o p e o f t h e s t u d y 3

1 5 S i g n i f i c a n c e o f t h e s t u d y 4

1 5 O u t l i n e o f t h e t h e s i s 4

CH A PTER 2: LITE R A TU R E R E V IE W 6

2 1 D e f i n i n g R e a d i n g F l u e n c y 6

2 2 T h e C o m p o n e n t s o f R e a d i n g F l u e n c y 8

2 2 1 Flu e n cy a n d W o rd A c cu ra cy 8

2 2 2 Flu e n cy a n d Reading R a t e 9

2 2 3 Flu ency a n d P ro so d y 10

2 3 B a s i c a p p r o a c h e s t o r e a d i n g 1 5 2 3 1 B o tto m -u p M o d e l 16

2 3 2 Top-dow n M o d e l 그 6 2 3 3 In tera ctive M o d e l 17

2 4 R e p e a t e d R e a d i n g i n F i r s t L a n g u a g e R e a d i n g / L I S E T T IN G 1 8 2 5 R e p e a t e d R e a d in g i n S e c o n d /F o r e ig n L a n g u a g e R e a d i n g 19

2 6 S t r a t e g i e s o f R e p e a t e d R e a d i n g 2 2 2 6 1 S tu d e n t-a d u lt re a d in g 23

2 6 2 C horal re a d in g 23

2 6 3 Ta p e-a ssisted re a d in g 24

2 6 4 P a rtn e r re a d in g 24

2 6.5 R e a d e rs' t h e a t r e 25

CH A PTER 3: M E T H O D O L O G Y 29

3 1 RESTATEMENT o f r e s e a r c h q u e s t io n s 29

3 2 A c t i o n r e s e a r c h a p p r o a c h 2 9 3 2 1 Rational f o r the Research D esign 29

3 3 S u b j r c t s 31

3.4 D a t a c o l l e c t io n in s t r u m e n t s 32

3 4 1 Te sts 32

3 4 2 Reading S p ee d Chart 33

3 4 3 Q u e stio n n a ire 33

3 5 A c t i o n R e s e a r c h P r o c e d u r e f o r t h e S t u d y 3 4 3 5 1 Identifying a Problem A rea , G athering a n d Interpreting D a ta 34

3 5 2 Analyzing Data and G enerating h yp o th esis 35

3 5 3 Planning and im plem enting an action p la n 36

CH A PTER 4 : RESULTS AND D ISCU SSIO N 41

4 1 ANSWERS TO THE FIRST RESEARCH Q UESTION 4 1 4 1 1 S tu d e n ts' reading s p e e d 41

4 1 2 S tu d e n ts' reading co m p re h e n sio n 43

4 2 A n s w e r s t o t h e s e c o n d r e s e a r c h q u e s t i o n 4 5 CH APTER 5 : CON CLUSIO N 48

5 1 C o n c l u s i o n 4 8 5 2 RECOM MENDATIONS 4 9 5 2 1 To s tu d e n ts 49

5 2 2 To English te a ch e rs 50

5 3 L i m i t a t i o n s a n d s u g g e s t i o n f o r f u r t h e r s t u d y 5 2 R E F E R E N C E S 0

A PPEN D IX 1: TH E P R E T E S T 5

A PPEN D IX 2: T H E PO STTEST 5

A PPEN D IX 3: READING SPEED C H A R T 5

A PPEN D IX 4 : Q U ESTIO N N A IR E 5

A PPEN D IX 5: TH E RESULTS OF TH E PRE- READING COM PREHENSIO N T E S T 5

A PPEN D IX 6: T H E RESULTS OF TH E PRE- READING SPEED T E S T 5

A PPEN D IX 7: READ IN G SPEED REPORT.

A PPEN D IX 8: TH E RESULTS OF TH E PRE- Q UESTIO N N AIRE

A PPEN D IX 9 : TH E READING M A TER IA LS

A PPEN D IX 1 0 : RESU LTS OF TH E POST- READING COM PREHENSIO N TEST

A PPEN D IX 12: RESU LTS OF TH E POST- Q UESTIO N N AIRE

This action research aims at describing and investigating the effects o f

"the Repeated Reading method on developing reading fluency The purpose o f helping students at C Đ ĐT3K42 as w ell as the students in at Вас N inh Vocational College o f Electro mechanic and Construction School improve their reading fluency and comprehension skills

To reach the aims，the researcher has carried out an action research at Вас

N inh Vocational College o f Electro mechanic and Construction School,

w ith 18 students The Repeated Reading Program lasted 05 weeks with

15 lessons.，They were taken pre-tested to know their reading fluency and comprehension scores prior the beginning o f the experiment A t the end o f the experiment，the participants have been，again，post tested via the same test used in the pre-test, and students express positive attitudes towards reading

The analysis o f the data reveals that the Repeated Reading Method helped participants have considerably increased in influence and comprehension

w ith the students express positive attitudes towards reading learning with the Repeated Reading method

On the basis o f the conclusions drawn from this experiment, the researcher propose some pedagogical implications for English as Foreign Language teachers who want to embed Repeated Reading Method in their teaching courses The researcher conclude this research w ith suggestion for ftiture research

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

This chapter provides an overview o f the research by firstly presenting its background, the aims and the research questions o f the study Then the scope o f the study and significance is discussed • The organization o f the thesis ends the chapter

1.1 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY

Founded in 1971 - Вас Ninh Vocational College o f Electro mechanic and Construction School (ВЕС) is located in Вас N inh city，which is one

o f leading vocational training institution in Vietnam that train human resources effectively serving the industrialization - modernization o f the country Students from the school are trained to become workers When they graduate they are expected to be able to communicate in English in daily life situations as w ell as to read job-related materials such as drawings, names o f equipment，manuals and the like In other words they are expected to be able to read a lot to get information from the materials Reading plays an important role in their w ork For this reason, those undergraduates are required to learn 120 compulsory periods o f English and target to get the TOEIC test scores o f 400 points when they finish their course at the college The 120 periods o f English are divided into two terms, the first and second, o f the first year o f their 3-year course at the college The course books are 'English for the Global Workplace， o f tw o levels, beginning- elementary，pre- intermediate In each unit o f the course book, students are offered a variety o f activities including speaking, grammar, pronunciation, listening and reading N orm ally，in a reading lesson, students are expected to read

a text o f about 100 -250 words w ith 5-15 new words) on a variety o f topics and answer questions after reading to develop their reading skills

However, the students often get very bad marks for reading skill in their reading tests The big problem is that they read very slowly, their word recognition skills are not good that is the reason why they read a little Such a little reading may discourage them from understanding o f the text meaning and practicing reading It is d iffic u lt for them to read So they do not like reading.

Many authors prove that optimal reading rate for L2 readers should be around 250- 300 word per minutes (W P M ) (Alderson，1984; Anderson, 1999; Nation, 2005; Nuttall, 1996; Rayner, 1998) • The authors agree that L2 readers need to reach this rate to be able to read w ith full comprehension

According to LaBerge and Samuels (1974) theorized that reading fluency problems stem from reader’ poor decoding skills When decoding is too slow, a “ bottleneck” is created that impedes the flo w o f thought and hampers comprehension Poor readers often spend a great deal o f their cognitive resources on decoding and have little left for comprehension Fluent readers, on the other hand, decode words quickly and accurately, thus retaining many resources they can use for comprehension

Reading rate improved by a number o f approaches for developing word recognition skills the most common is to have the reader read a great amount o f material so that automaticity in word recognition skills may be achieved naturally, through practice Although this is the approach that many L2 reading teachers encourage their students to take (Day & Bamford，1998)，it takes time and effort on the part o f L2 readers beforetheir word recognition skills are adequately developed and automatized

The problems discussed in the literature here appear to be applicable to the students at the Вас Ninh Vocational College o f Electro-mechanic and Construction School.

Am ong the various approaches that have been suggested for developing

w ord recognition skills, the most feasible in the context o f the Вас Ninh Vocational College o f Electro-mechanic and Construction School is repeated reading (RR)

1.2 AIMS OF THE STUDY

This study aimed at improving students 4reading comprehension and fluency by im proving the word recognition skills To achieve this aim, the students were asked to take part in a 5-week RR program

1.3 THE RESEARCH QUESTIONS

To achieve the aims o f the study，tw o research questions were asked:

1 To what extent can RR enhance the Вас N inh Vocational College o f Electro-mechanic and Construction School students9 reading fluency and comprehension?

2 What are the students’ attitudes toward Reading in English?

1.4 SCOPE OF THE STUDY

The study is lim ited to the context o f Вас N inh Vocational College o f Electro-mechanics and Construction School, specifically first year non- English major students in Then，the result may be applicable for the students in this college However, the researcher hopes that the findings

w ill also be useful to the students w ith sim ilar characteristics in other colleges or universities

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1.5 S IG N IF IC A N C E O F T H E STUDY

W ord Recognition S kill can be considered as one o f the important skills

in successful reading for students Good W ord Recognition S kill w ill increase students’ reading speed and accuracy which is an important step for EFL students to gain a consider improvement in reading fluency and comprehension, and the reading in general This study is the first hope to

be helpful to both teachers and students at Вас Ninh Vocational College

o f Electro-mechanics and Construction School in suggesting implications for effective EFL instruction in improving the students reading fluency and comprehension Exploring the Repeated Reading activity among EFL learners in Вас N inh Vocational College o f Electro-mechanics and Construction School w ill also provide data that is expected to beneficial

to both teachers and students at colleges and universities w ith similar characteristics Moreover, the research w ill help others increase their understanding about Repeated Reading activity

1.5 O UTLINE O F THE THESIS

The thesis is divided into five chapters

Chapter 1 : Introduction, presents the background, the scope o f the study，

its significance，aims as w ell as research methods

Chapter 2\Literature review, provides a theoretical framework for the study, including defining Reading Fluency，the components o f Reading Fluency, Repeated reading in First Language Reading, Repeated Reading

in second or Foreign Language and Strategies o f repeated reading

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C h a p te r 3: M ethodology, reports the m e th o d o lo g y u se d in th e resea rchquestions, subjects，instruments and procedures fo r data collection and analysis.

Chapter 4: Results and discussion, reports and discusses the major finding

Chapter 5: Recommendations and conclusion, is the last part o f the study，

summarizes what is

draws pedagogical

filrther study

addressed in the implications and

study, point out provides some

the lim itations, suggestions for

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CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW

This chapter provides Literature review, provides a theoretical framework

fo r the study，including defining Reading Fluency, the components o f Reading Fluency, Models o f Reading Acquisition, Repeated Reading in First Language Reading and Repeated Reading in second or Foreign Language and Strategies o f repeated reading

2.1 DEFINING READING FLUENCY

Reading fluency has attracted the attention o f reading researchers and educators since the early 1970s and has become a p rio rity issue in English

as first language ( L I ) settings It has also become a critical issue in English as second or foreign language (L 2 ) settings because the lack o f fluency is considered a major obstacle to developing independent readers

w ith good comprehension skills In recent years，interest in reading fluency development in first language (National Reading Panel

，2000;Kuhn and Stahl ,2 0 0 3 )，and second and foreign language (L2/FL) setting has increased • Reading fluency defined by Samuels ( 2 0 0 6 )，the

ab ility to decode and comprehend text at the same tim e9 is to successful reading Fluent readers are accurate and fast in their ability to recognize words, and in their use o f prosodic and syntactic knowledge to better comprehend text Yet many L2/FL learners read slow ly and laboriously, like ly poor word recognition skills so they need for w ell- developed, automatic lower - level process

First, let us look up the word fluency in some English dictionaries Even though the dictionary definitions are generalizations rather than specifications，it is almost important when studying something to move

6

from general to specific The Collins Cobuild English Language

D ictionary (1987) defines fluency as the ab ility to speak, write and read a language accurately w ith no hesitation In addition, the Collins Dictionary provides us w ith the main characteristics o f a fluent reader, w riter and speaker The fluent reader reads smoothly and rarely stops at unknown words

Sim ilar to the C ollins Dictionary definition，in the Concise Oxford English D ictionary (2001) defines fluency as smoothness, easiness and accuracy in speaking, reading and w riting However，fluency，according

to the Cambridge Advanced Learner’ s dictionary (2005)，is defined in relation to speech It refers to the ability to speak a language easily, w ell and quickly What can be noticed from these definitions is that fluency is viewed as being characterized by smoothness, easiness and accuracy in all the language skills speaking, w riting, or reading

Another definition o f reading fluency regards that this skill refers to the accurate o f words w ith an appropriate speed during the reading activity Reading fluency, according to this definition, refers to the automatic word recognition The influence o f automaticity on the definition o f reading fluency can be seen in Shanahan’s (2006) definition to this concept Reading fluency, according to him，is referred to as “ the ability to read texts aloud w ith sufficient speed and accuracy” Accordingly, both reading speed and accuracy in the identification o f words are the signals

o f fluent reading, and this accurate and rapid identification o f words (the automatic w ord recognition) allows the reader to construct the meaning o f the text

Fluency is thought to consist o f both accuracy and automaticity in word recognition as w ell as the appropriate use o f prosodic and syntactic

7

k n o w le d g e for b e tter c o m p re h en sio n o f tex t (N atio n al R e a d in g Panel

，2000;Kuhn and Stahl ,2003) That is，fluent readers are able to identify words in text quickly and accurately w ith a m inim al amount o f attention Word recognition is done efficiently and effortlessly and consequently, readers can read connected text silently or orally w ith speed and good comprehension In addition, fluent readers are able to read aloud with appropriate

2.2 THE COM PONENTS OF READING FLUENCY

Reading fluency has been regarded by as multidimensional where each dimension stresses one component o f reading fluency One dimension stresses the importance o f word accuracy in reading; a second dimension focuses on quick and automatic recognition o f words in connected text，

and the third dimension stresses expressive and meaningftil interpretation

o f text Reading fluency，then, is composed o f accurate word recognition known as "accuracy", reading w ith ease or at a conversational rate known as the ,’rate/pace” o f reading, and reading w ith a proper expression referred to as HprosodyM These components according to s are indicators Samuels (2006) o f fluency where they indicate the students* fluency progress In the follow ing we shall shed light on each o f these components

2.2.1 Fluency and Word Accuracy

Accuracy or the correct recognition (identification) o f words during the reading task is almost an important characteristic o f a fluent reader Hudson et al (2005) define word reading accuracy as ” the reader's ability

to recognize or decode words correctly"(p.703) In their explanation to the role o f accuracy in a successful reading comprehension, they see that

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it is the accurate recognition o f words that would facilitate the reader’ s understanding and correct interpretation o f what is being read An inaccurate word recognition or poor reading accuracy，then, would has a negative influence on reading comprehension and fluency They argue that inaccurate word recognition may lead to the misinterpretation

o f what is being read Helping readers to accurately decode words in

a text is insufficient for them to be considered fluent Kuhn and Stahl( 2003) find that it is not enough to recognize words correctly

i f a great deal o f attention is required to do so Accurate word recognition, then，is important in building fluency，but it can never stand alone as the predictor o f a fluent reading To achieve fluency

in reading students should be able to develop the ability o f recognizing written words not only accurately but as quick as possible Fluent reader, then, is someone who accurately and rapidly recognizes words; or rather say it is someone who automatically recognizes words in a text during the task o f reading

2.2.2 Fluency and Reading Rate

Fluent decoding depends on the readers’ ab ility to achieve what reading specialists call ” automaticity” or the accurate and rapid word recognition (Day & Bamford, 1998; Samuels, 1979; Shanahan，2006) According to these reading specialists, a fluent reader is someone who manipulates the speed o f reading; generally, he reads at a conversational rate Hudson et

al (2005) assume that reading rate is a prerequisite for good comprehension They consider that the speed w ith which the inform ation is processed in the w orking memory w ill affect the speed o f reconstructing the meaning o f text Reading rate is not only acknowledged as an integral component o f effective and efficient reading,

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it also reaches the extent o f representing an accurate measure o f reading fluency Hudson et al (2005) compare oral reading rate to a thermometer that can be used to measure the current temperature and ongoing changes

o f the oral reading performance Both rate and word accuracy or the automatic word recognition should be emphasized during reading fluency practice Students should be taught how to combine the accurate recognition o f words w ith the speed o f reading This kind o f assistance is provided by the teacher during the reading instruction In this context, Anderson ( 1999) suggests that the teacher's assistance during the reading activity should keep a balance between increasing both reading speed and word accuracy o f their students, rather than enhancing one aspect

at the expense o f the other because this would have a negative effect

on reading fluency His argument is that "teachers, often in effort to assist students to increase their reading rates, overemphasize accuracy; when this occurs, reading fluency is impeded.” The task o f teachers is, then, to help students to shift from decoding words accurately, but deliberately to the stage o f recognizing words automatically by using the appropriate instructional method that ensures this shift This shift according to Stonovich (2000) allows readers to concentrate on the meaning o f the text, rather than on identifying words Hence, reading fluency is more than reading w ith speed and accurately recognizing words; reading fluency goes further to how does the reader successfully manipulates the prosodic features o f speech on the written passage

2.2.3 Fluency and Prosody

Prosody or reading w ith expression is the third key element o f a fluent reading Prosody as stated by is a linguistic term that describes the rhythmic and the tonal aspects o f speech Simply, it refers to the music o f

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oral language Prosody is the ability to project the tonal aspect o f speech onto print, so that the reader's reading sounds natural as i f he is speaking So, what are these prosodic features? They refer to the variations in pitch (intonation), stress pattern, and duration A ll o f them constitute the prosodic features that contribute to expressive reading o f a text A n expressive reading, argues Richards (2000)，is mainly based

on how the reader projects those rules o f oral speech on a written passage，so that the reader’s reading sounds natural as i f he is speaking Further explain that these features are mainly applied when the reader faces questions, surprises, exclamations and other meanings In these situations the reader must use these combinations o f pitch，duration，

and stress pattern because o f their importance in manifesting his understanding o f the w riter’s message In other words, when readers embed appropriate volume, tone, emphasis， phrasing， and other elements in oral expression，argues Rasinski ( 2004，P.4)，they are giving evidence that the reader is actively interpreting or constructing meaning from the passage

The three different dimensions o f reading fluency: w ord accuracy，

the rapid w o r d ，and prosody stand complementarily to promote an effective fluent reading According to Rasinski ( 2 0 0 4 )，these dimensions are interrelated: accurate and automatic reading creates the conditions for expressive reading A ll three are important as indicators o f fluency progress because fluency is manifested through them (Pikulski & Chard,

2003，p 73) These components are, then，essential in the building o f a fluent reading that results in an effective comprehension Consequently it is almost necessary that all o f them must be taught andmonitored at the same time, and students must be aware that their

progress in oral reading fluency is automatically linked to their progress in these three components.

H ow do readers develop reading fluency? Some F L/L2 researchers and educators indicate the need to find effective methods to help learners develop their w ord using Repeated Reading (RR)

What are Repeated Reading methods?

“ Repeated Reading,， is an instructional method used to develop automatically in reading This methods follow s the principles o f the Automatic Processing Theory o f (LaBerge and Samuels 1974) which claims that w ith m ultiple exposure to the same orthographic patterns, the cognitive focus o f the reader is allowed to shift from decoding and encoding to meaning”

Samuels has worked w ith beginning L I readers，or as he refers to them mentally challenged beginning readers (Samuels, 2006) He asks his students how to become good at sports: They all say that it requires practice Then, he explains to them that becoming a good reader is sim ilar to becoming good at a sport or at any other s k ill，and that they are going to practice how to become good at reading stories He selects a short children’s story which he divides in passages o f about

150 words, then each o f his students would have a copy o f the passages that covers the short story Before asking the students to practice the first passage o f the story，Samuels models a good oral reading for them by reading the passage for his students w ith a proper expression Students, then, practice at their desks First，each student reads the passage to his teacher who records the word per minute reading rate for the story, as

w ell as the word recognition errors A fte r that, the students reread the

150 words passage a number o f times，until each one could reach thecriterion o f 85 W PM (word per minute) Whenever they reach this criterion, the students are given the next passage.

Samuels* (1979) first observation is that w ith each rereading o f the passage the w ord recognition errors are decreasing and the reading rate getting faster He notices that all the students are progressing but at their own pace, meaning that the progress is not the same for all the students Samuels draws his conclusions from what has been observed during the treatment period Then, he describes the Repeated Reading method in an article for the reading teacher in 1979 This has been the birth o f the Repeated Reading method According to Samuels (

2 0 0 6 )，the Repeated Reading Method is an offshoot o f the automaticity theory which marks the beginning o f numerous studies that try to investigate fo r variations o f the repeated reading

Another w ork, sim ilar to Samuels, is done by Chomsky (1976) She uses

a sim ilar method w ith poor readers; her aim is to find a new technique for teachers whose students fail to make an adequate progress in reading In describing Chomsky fs technique， Samuels (2006) states that what Chomsky does, that is different from my Repeated Reading method is to tape record a children’s story，and the children who are having trouble learning to read listen to the tape w hile they look at the words in their story When they have listened to the tape enough times; consequently, they could read the story on their own W ithin several months o f applying this method, Chomsky showed that this procedure helps slow and halting readers in increasing their fluency rapidly and w ith apparent ease Even though, the tw o techniques are different in the application, but what is apparent is that both Chomsky (1976) and Samuels (1979) come upon

methods for helping struggling readers Whereas Samuels used a live model o f reading, Chomsky used an audio taped model o f reading Chomsky’ s method has been used as a variation o f Samuels’ s repeated reading method.

In Samuels1 (1979) Repeated Reading method, an individual student first reads aloud to an adult a passage from a graded selection where the adult gives immediate feedback to the studenti word recognition errors Then students reread the passage silently a number o f times A fter that, each student reads the passage aloud to an adult who recorded the word per minute reading rate o f each passage as w ell as the word recognition errors On the basis o f what has been recorded the teacher decides i f the student can move to a new passage or continue practicing the same passage

This new technique requires the reader to read the same passage repeatedly numerous times until a particular criterion is met，or until the reader is able to read it w ith ease and comfort In this context，the question that may be asked by any instructor is about the number o f times the selected passage should be practiced Anderson (1999) states that the more exposure a student has to language through reading，the greater the possibilities that over all language proficiency w ill increase Likewise Smith (2004) argues that it is usually more effective to read a text quickly，more than once，rather than to plod through it slow ly once only because，according to him， the number o f rereading w ill automatically increase reading speed So it is the number o f the repetitions which predetermines the success o f the repeated reading method

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Researchers find that seven rereading or seven repetitions o f the same passage are sufficient in increasing oral reading fluency because Samuels when he, first，introduces the repeated reading method, he does not precise the number o f the repetitions But, later the number o f repetitions is reduced to only four times，since research by O ’ Shea,

S in d e la r，and O ’ Shea (1985) has shown those four repetitions o f the same text are usually sufficient for a reader to reach automaticity • They points out the follow ing: “ Four readings appear to be optimal since，after four readings, 83% o f fluency increase between one and the seven readings is achieved” ( 0 ，Shea et al., 1985)

Hence，the number o f repetition which is the main criterion the Repeated Reading method provides the reader w ith the chance to improve his reading fluency To evaluate the efficiency o f this method, educators have embedded the repeated reading method w ithin their teaching instructional programs, and then observed the effect o f this method on some predetermined reading skills In other words, empirical investigations have been conducted first in L I setting and, relying on these findings, sim ilar studies have been carried on in L2/FL setting

2.3 BASIC APPROACHES TO READING

There are three different approaches o f reading Gough9s model (1972) is

an example o f Bottom-up model o f reading; Goodman’s model is described as an example o f Top-down model; and lastly (LaBerge & Samuel, 1974) ，Interactive model o f reading Each model，o f course, has different components to focus on in explaining what really happens during the reading process Most o f researchers agree on the fact that the reading process involves tw o separate but highly interrelated areas: word identification (decoding) and comprehension Decoding refers to the

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ability to recognize written representations o f words, whereascomprehension refers to the ability to construct meaning from spoken representations o f language These three on reading are more detail below:

2.3.1 Bottom-up Model

In the Bottom-up processing, the reader recognizes and analyzes perceived linguistic information like letters，words，combination o f words and sentences to construct the meaning o f the text (Hoover & Gough, 2001) So，theories that stress the bottom-up processing focus on how the reader starts from the bottom and moves upward to construct the meaning

o f what has been decoded piece by piece w ith little interference o f background knowledge Therefore the main focus o f Gough's model (1972) is on how the text is processed from the time the eyes perceive the printed word to the moment where meaning is derived from this visual input Good readers，according to this model, are good decoders because the comprehension o f what is being read depends mainly on how w ell the decoding skill is being performed

2.3.2 Top-down Model

In this model the stages involved in the reading process are higher up and the success o f this process does not depend on the readers ability to identify words，but rather on his ab ility in to get the meaning o f words from what can be predicted and inferred from them in relation to the readers prior knowledge This model places m inim al attention to word recognition skill and focuses on what is called “ higher order* source o f inforination" (Davies, 1995) In the top-down model，the flow o f information proceeds from top down-ward and the process o f word identification is dependent first on meaning where the reader has to rely

on his background knowledge, and on all what he can derive as information about the topic to forni hypothesis about which word he w ill encounter and, then，test his hypothesis For example, the reader may spend less time on "beach" in the sentence "M y fam ily spent the summer holidays in the beach o f Annaba nthan in the sentence" last weekend my fam ily and I went to the beach.” Because the activation o f "summer holidays” w ill automatically activate all the activities done on such occasion including going to the beach So, the guesses and the predictions that the reader gets engaged in ，that are based on his prior knowledge about the topic，must f it the sense o f the sentence.

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component in the reading process Skilled readers, for the Interactive theorists, do not rely on context cues to guess the meaning o f what is being read since they have developed an automatic visual recognition o f words (recognizing words by sight) that enables their fìlli attention to be focused on getting the meaning o f the text Consequently, no one can deny the importance o f lower level processing as the top-down theorists

do or just rely on it as bottom-up theorists do Thus a combination o f both higher level processing (comprehension) and a lower level processing (decoding) is essential for the success o f the reading activity In this case, good (fluent) reading can result only from an interaction between top- down and bottom-up processing as it is required by the LaBerge and Samuels’ s model (1974) According to this model, the main characteristic

o f fluent and skilled readers is their ability to perform both decoding and comprehension at once

The three models presented thus far represent the three most prominent theories or positions about reading acquisition Many decisions and ideas about beginning reading and fluency development are based on these models

2 4 REPEATED READING IN FIRST LANGUAGE READING/ LI SETTING

Since the development o f this method, the R.R method has been extensively studied in English as First Language contexts (L I setting); there upon，studies have shown that the R.R method is effective in developing reading fluency and comprehension o f monolingual readers o f English (Panel, 2000; Samuels, 1979) • In their description to R.R method states that this method which involves

m ultiple oral readings o f connected discourse; aims at making the decoding o f this later automatic，which w ill increase fluency, and frees

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the reader's attention to comprehension o f the passage So, this method is useful for enhancing reading fluency; it gives students the opportunity to practice a text over and over until the text becomes more and more

fa m ilia r to be decoded automatically As a result, more cognitive capacity

w ill be focused on comprehending what is being read Most o f the studies undergone in this field agreed on the efficiency o f the R.R method in increasing automatic word recognition，reading rate and word accuracy •

In addition to that，this method yields other benefits: As increasing the reader’ s comprehension o f the selected passage and im proving his oral reading expression “ prosody” (Richards, 2000) “ R.R method increases rate, w ord accuracy which then transfer to new texts [•••] This method may also lead to increased comprehension o f the selected text as a result

o f m ultiple exposures (Richards，2000)

M ost o f the studies that have been carried in L I setting have been gathered and analyzed by the National Reading Panel For such reason，it

is better to conclude using the NRP’ S summaries According to the Reports o f Panel ( 2 0 0 0 )，the researchers conducted in L I setting have demonstrated that repeated reading improves simultaneously reading rate,

w ord accuracy, reading w ith expression (prosody) and reading comprehension

2 5.REPEATED READING IN SECOND/FOREIGN LANGUAGE READING

The importance o f developing fluency in reading w ithin L2/FL learners has become an important issue for pedagogy in L2 setting (Nation, 2001) Especially, that researcher in L I setting has provided L2/FL educators

w ith proofs on the effectiveness o f the R.R method on the overall reading proficiency There have been few empirical studies that investigated the effect o f the RR method in L2/FL setting In a series o f studies on the

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effect o f RR on reading rate and comprehension，Taguchi, Gorsuch, and their research colleagues have attempted to demonstrate the relationship

by showing whether improved reading rates (as a result o f RR treatments)

w ould also lead to improved reading comprehension，as suggested by

A utom aticity Theory In 1997，Taguchi worked w ith Japanese slow beginning learners o f English over a ten-week, 28-sessionstudy For each session the participants read an easy 500-word passage silently seven times, three o f those times while listening to an audio model o f the passage (assisted RR) Taguchi found that the learners’ average silent reading rates increased significantly even at the seventh reading on the practiced passages, and that the lowest-level readers in the study showed

a significant improvement in their oral reading rate o f new, unpracticed passages

To focus on the relationship between increased reading rate and comprehension，used open-ended item comprehension tests by and conducted the study w ith L2/FL learners at the University o f Japan They examined the effects o f RR on English oral and silent reading rates o f 15 Japanese university students learning English as a Foreign Language In their study, the participants complete 28 in-class R.R sessions which cover 10 weeks In each session, they read a passage silently seven times three o f which while listening to an audio taped model o f the passage Taguchi and his colleague notice that silent reading rate increases，o f course w ithin the practiced texts However，when the participants are asked to silently read or read aloud new passages, they do not transfer their gains in reading rate to the new passages In this study, Taguchi and Gorsuch (2002) want to confirm i f R.R method really promotes the transfer o f new acquired reading skills to a new unpracticed passage It is not the case, but he only exception in this study is that

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lowest-level readers show a significant improvement in their oral reading rate o f the new passages In interpreting the results o f their study, Taguchi and Gorsuch (2002), consider that the lack o f transfer effects o f reading rate and comprehension o f the RR group is due to the shortness o f the treatment period (only ten weeks).

Two years later, as a follow -up to the study o f Taguchi and Gorsuch (2002)，another experimental study is carried on at the same university by (Taguchi，Takayasu-Maass & Gorsuch 2004) The main objective o f their study is to explore the effects o f Assisted Repeated Reading on silent reading rate and reading comprehension This time the treatment period is longer than the previous one (from 10 to 17 weeks where the number o f the RR sessions increase from 28 to 42 sessions) In their study，they compare tw o instructional methods, the Repeated Reading and the Extensive Reading method M ainly the Extensive Reading has been proved as an effective method in developing silent reading fluency and comprehension in L2/FL settings (Day & Bamford，1998) • The control group follow s the extensive reading instruction and the treatment group; however, follows the R.R instruction In this study，the focus is on whether and how assisted repeated reading w ith an auditory reading model enhances EFL readers’ fluency They find that the assisted repeated reading significantly increases the reading rate; and in addition to that，

students transfer the gains in reading rate to new unpracticed passages As far as gains in reading comprehension, however, they do not detect any transfer o f these gains In addition to the quantitative data obtained in this study, Taguchi et al (2004) investigate on the effectiveness o f the two different instructional methods used in their study through a qualitative data which is based on the participants1 perceptions on the efficiency o f two methods This qualitative data is collected using a questionnaire

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where the participants report that both methods have increased their motivation to read and increased their opportunity to deal w ith unknown words Taguchi et al (2004) conclude that RR method is a promising method as Extensive Reading for enhancing second and foreign Language readers* fluency.

It would be better to end this discussion w ith Anderson’s view on the efficacy o f the R.R method He concludes that R.R method helps empower 2nd Language readers and strengthens their meta-cognitive awareness o f faster reading rates ( Anderson，1999) This means that the

RR method helps both L2 and EFL learners to move beyond word by word reading level to a more advanced level in which words are recognized almost automatically For ( Anderson, 1999)，this method enables the reader to read in chunks rather than word by word in order to gain greater fluency in reading

2 6 STRATEGIES OF REPEATED READING

As it has been said in Samuels ( 1979) original method called for readers

to reread a series o f short passages orally until they were able to read it at

a word per minute level that vary according to the level o f proficiency o f the reader Chomky (1976) in his turn used a sim ilar method to that o f Samuels w ith the only difference that instead o f using a live model，she used a tape recorded model o f reading Relying on Samueles repeated reading method, currently, there are many variations o f the repeated reading method The RR method can be presented and practiced in different ways These variations in practicing orally the repeated reading

o f texts includes student-adult reading，choral (or unison) reading, tape- assisted reading，partner reading, and readers' theatre

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2 6.1 Student-adult reading

Student-adult reading is a type o f reading where the reader listens to a model o f a fluent reading provided by his/her teacher or the adult reader First, the reader reads the same passage aloud and the teacher or the adult provides help as needed, to help the reader in identifying problem words The reader, then, rereads the passage more times until he/she can read it comfortably w ith ease and few errors (until the reading is quite fluent) The number o f the rereading varies according to the reader's level o f proficiency and to the level o f d iffic u lty o f the text This should take approximately three to four rereading because for four rereading are sufficient for the reader to achieve fluency

2 6.2 Choral reading

In choral, or unison reading, students read along as a group w ith their teacher the same text saying each word together To do so, students must

be able to see the same text that their teacher is reading So, the teacher

has to provide the students w ith the same text that he is reading Either the students fo llo w along as their teacher read from a big book, or they read from their own copy o f the book (O’Shea et al., 1985) Moreover, it

is required to choose a book which is at the independent reading level o f most students In choral reading the teacher begins by reading the book aloud as he/she models a fluent reading Then he/she rereads the book this time he invites students to jo in in as they recognize the words he/she

is reading The rereading practice should continue to more than three，

until the students become able to read the book independently In choral reading the re-reading practice can take more than one session depending

on the length o f the book Rasinski (2003) points out the benefits o f choral reading: Choral reading is also a wonderful way to build

community in the classroom For example, each morning as students read and recite the same book, they are declaring their unity as a community o f learners This routine also provides support for those who are not yet fluent Choral reading is used in many contexts such as rehearsing poetry, practicing roles in plays

fo llo w along w ith the tape, pointing to each word in her o r his book as the reader reads it Next, the student should try to read aloud along w ith the tape Reading along w ith the tape should continue until the student is able

to read the book independently, without the support o f the tape

2 6.4 Partner reading

Partner reading，or paired reading is a type o f reading where pairs o f students take turns reading and rereading aloud the same passage to each other For partner reading，more fluent readers can be paired w ith less fluent readers In other words，the stronger reader reads the passage first，

providing a model o f fluent reading; then, the less fluent reader reads the same passage aloud The stronger student gives help w ith word recognition and provides feedback and encouragement to the less fluent

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partner The less fluent partner rereads the passage, until s/he can read it independently According to Koshinen and Blum (1986) this technique

o f repeated reading requires the student to read a short passage to a partner who’s in turn gives feedback when needed Then，the partners switch roles to avoid frustration For more appropriateness o f this technique the pairs should be selected as follows: the above-level readers

w ith on-level readers，and on-level readers w ith below level readers The purpose o f this strategy is to provide the opportunity for all the students

to read orally, so that less fluent readers can gain self-confidence Moreover, this strategy o f repeated reading lessens the burden from the teacher; and thus，gives him the opportunity to guide and observe the performance o f the pairs; and at the same time, provide guidance and feedback when needed

2 6.5 Readers1 theatre

Readers1 theatre or script reading is another type o f reading in which students rehearse and perform a play for peers or others In describing this strategy，Rasinski ( 2003) points the follow ing: In reader's theatre, students stand in front o f an audience，usually made up o f their classmates and reads from script Rasinski ( 2003) Students read from scripts that have been derived from books rich in dialogues They play characters who speak lines or a narrator who shares necessary background information The fact that students have to stand in front o f the audience, students are provided w ith a legitimate reason to reread text and to practice fluency According to Shanahan( 2006) the different R.R strategies (paired R.R, Assisted R.R, Choral reading ) share in between some common point, in that all o f them require oral reading that start with

a model o f a fluent reader, feedback (teacher’s assistance), and most

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importantly they require repetition o f the reading until the text can be read well by the students: read accurately w ith an appropriate speed, and

w ith a proper expression In other words，what it is common w ith this variety o f strategies o f repeated reading is that all o f them require: modeling, rereading from the student，and immediate feedback

In order to more effectively capture changes in L2 learners’ reading comprehension as a result o f doing RR, Gorsuch and Taguchi (2008) investigated RR w ith low-intermediate Vietnamese English learners using short-answer and recall tests as more sensitive measures o f comprehension A fte r the 16-week RR treatment, the experimental group significantly outperformed the control group on both comprehension measures, w hile reading at about the same silent reading rate as the control group on the posttest As for RR treatment passages，the experimental (RR) group increased their first reading rate from an average o f 163 wpm at the beginning o f the treatment to 217 wpm at the end o f it One interesting finding, gleaned from participants’ posttest comments, suggested that in the posttest condition, the experimental group read more slow ly and careftilly because they knew they would be answering questions after reading, and wanted to do w ell Gorsuch and Taguchi (2008) )•

Carrying on w ith the study o f Gorsuch and Taguchi (2 0 0 8 )，in 2이 0 Gorsuch and Taguchi (2010) offered additional evidence in the form o f open-ended, post-reading student reports written over the length o f an 11- week RR treatment for 30 young adult EFL learners in Vietnam Iterative analyses o f over 200 pages o f student reports provided nuanced evidence

o f the positive effects RR has on FL learners’ reading fluency and comprehension development， and general language development

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ᄂearners’ comments revealed information that suggested a meaningful role for extended experience w ith RR to increasing use o f learner meta­cognition in reading strategy use, and growing awareness on the part o f learners o f (1) the relationship between fluency and comprehension, (2) the u tility o f developing fluency as a stand-alone skill, and (3) RR as a causal agent in the development o f listening, w ritin g ，and speaking skills.

In current study Gorsuch，Taguchi, Takayasu- Maass，and Snipp ( 2012) ，

they attempted to reveal the inner process o f L2 reading fluency development through RR for an advanced-level L2 reader who was a 34 year-old Japanese housewife called uNaomi” (pseudonym) Naomi earned her В A in international political economy at a university in Tokyo，

Japan Using a diary study approach comprising more than 70 RR sessions over the course o f 14weeks, the current study investigated an L2 reader w ith good comprehension skills engaging in RR This study was designed to investigate specifically how her reading fluency developed and how her comprehension changed during the course o f the treatment They found that A pronounced practice effect is shown in how N aom i7S

mean reading rate increased from the first to the fifth and sixth readings

as averaged across the entire course o f the RR treatments ( 131.44 wpm to 178.79wpm) RR enhances overall comprehension o f passages. Naomi’s comments suggested that RR helped her comprehend the story passages better She reported that her level o f comprehension o f the passage was generally low after the first reading in each session, and that this was especially so when a new session began w ith a new chapter in the text，

where she had less background information about the new chapter However, her initial poor comprehension was improved by subsequent repeated readings

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In the recent 2013, Another study by Chang and M ille tt ( 2013) they investigated changes in rate, reading comprehension and students9 towards RR w ith thirteen English as foreign language students read 26 passages during a 13- week period Each passage were read five times and the students answered comprehension questions after the first and the fifth reading Another 13 students read the same number o f passages

w ithout repetition and only answered the comprehension once A ll students were tested based on tw o practiced texts and one unpracticed text before and after intervention The result o f the reading rate showed that the RR students increased 47 words and 45 words per minute in the practiced and unpracticed texts respectively, but the control group increased 13 -7 only The comprehension levels o f the experimental group improved 19% and 17% while this was 5% -3% for the other group

In conclusion，all the authors agree that Repeated Reading has positive effect on im proving reading comprehension and fluency Thanks to these methodologists and researchers，more knowledge o f the subject matter to improve teaching methodology was gained, which can be applied suitably

fo r the researcher’ s particular situation

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CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY

This chapter w ill report the methodology used in the research including research questions, the action research design, subjects, instruments and the procedures for data collection and analysis

3.1 RESTATEMENT OF RESEARCH QUESTIONS

As stated in Chapter 1 the present study investigated the effects o f repeated reading on first-year students’ reading fluency and comprehension at Вас N inh Vocational College o f Electro mechanics and Construction School Especially，it aimed at answering the questions as follows:

1 To what extent can repeated reading enhance the students9 reading fluency and comprehension?

2 What are the students’ attitudes toward reading in English?

3.2 ACTION RESEARCH APPROACH

Action research approach was chosen for the conduct o f my research The reasons why I selected this methodology and its detailed procedure w ill

be presented in the follow ing sub-sections

3.2.1 Rational for the Research Design

The researcher decided to apply action research design in order to investigate a practical issue in my own class Ferrance ( 2000) defines action research as "a process in which participants examine their own educational practice systematically and carefully, using the techniques o f research” According to Creswell ( 2005) , action research indicates a specific and practical issue and investigates solutions to a problem

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Educators aim to improve their practice o f education by studying problems facing them, reflect on these problems, collect and do analysis

o f data and then implement changes based on their prelim inary findings

Outlines five necessary stages o f conducting an action research study as illustrated in the follow ing cycle:

1 “ Identify a problem area，，: Teachers often have several questions to investigate but lim it the questions to one that should be meaningful, be stated in common language (avoiding jargon)，be concise, be something

o f interest This question may come from a feeling o f discomfort or tension in classroom In addition, that question should not already have

an answer but should be feasible in the confines o f teachers，daily work

2 “ Gather data，，: This is an important step in deciding what action needs

to be taken There are many vehicles fo r collection o f data (i.e interviews, questionnaires，journals，audio tapes，attendance，checklist，

observations, tests ) The selected data should be the most appropriate and well-organized

3 “ Interpret data” : In this stage, teachers analyze and identify major themes They may use classroom data, individual data or subgroup data

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