Optimizing graphic organizers to improve students’ reading comprehension

As an English Teacher, I found some students’difficulties in reading comprehension: 1 students have difficulty to identifyexplicit information in a text; 2 students have difficulty to co

In teaching and learning English, there are four micro language skills,they are speaking, listening, reading and writing One of those components,reading is regarded as a decoding skill, that is interpreting codes into ideas.Through reading, people can get the information entire the world withoutgoing anywhere Furthermore, people can get the information from variousmedia of communication such as internet, television, radio, newspaper,magazines and also books As an English Teacher, I found some students’difficulties in reading comprehension: (1) students have difficulty to identifyexplicit information in a text; (2) students have difficulty to comprehend thetext as they lack of vocabulary; (3) students are unable to find the main idea

in a paragraph; (4) and students are unable to infer the meaning of the text.The activities for reading skills in the book English are good, however, forstudents who are eager for new knowledge and various activities, changingthe activities to make them more interesting is necessary which can contribute

to the success of the lesson as well as the final results

Based on these reasons, I am interested in conducting a study on “Optimizing graphic organizers to improve students’ reading comprehension”

2 Aims of the study

This study aims at determining how graphic organizers can help toimprove students’ reading comprehension

3 Research questions

From the explanation above, the research questions in this study can beformulated as follows:

1 How effective is graphic organizers in students’ reading comprehension?

2 How is the situation when Graphic organizers are used in the readingclass?

4 Scope of study

There might be many different ways to improve students’ readingcomprehension For the limited time within the scope of this study, I limit theparticipants to grade 11th students at Trieu Son I high school in the academicyear 2016 More specifically, the total time for this study is 10 months, thenumber of students is 76, and I would try to focus on choosing the activities:using graphic organizers in reading lessons, evaluating the results and giveimplications

5 The methodology

The research will be conducted by using Experimentalmethod Experimental method is an observation in order toknow the effect of Graphic organizers on students’ achievement inreading comprehension, where the sample is divided into twogroups: experimental group and control group Theexperimental group is the group that receives treatment byusing Graphic organizers strategy, while the control group isthe one that receives the treatment by using the traditionalmethod

consists of 38 students, so the total of students in the schoolyear were 76 students The class A2 is experimental groupand the class A6 is control group

5.2 Instrument

The instrument which is used to collect the data ismultiple-choice test multiple-choice test is effective formeasuring and its objective scoring is quick, easy andconsistent it also encourages the students to develop acomprehensive knowledge of specific facts and the ability tomake fine discrimination among them

The test consists of 10 items to measure students’ readingcomprehension Each item of test consists of four optionsnamely, a, b, c, and d I realize that multiple choice test is themost widely used and highly regarded among the selectiontype of items for test development The test could bedesigned to measure the recall understanding and applying

of specific concepts, or principle because the students cananswer a large number of such questions in short time, alarge sample of items can be incorporated in that test Theywere used in pre-test, and post-test instrument

To collect opinion of my students about using graphic organizers, I alsogave students a questionnaire (appendix A) The questionnaire was composed

of questions to evaluate the students’ attitudes towards graphic organizersafter the intervention period They asked how the students felt about usinggraphic organizers and how the use of them affected their attitudes andgrades

II Factual basis.

Before making the topic, I had a test to examine the quality of thestudents’ reading comprehension Both experimental group andcontrol group are given the same pre-test The pre -test has

10 questions including typical types of readingcomprehension questions: identifying the main idea, findingsupporting details, making interferences, answeringquestions about vocabulary, fact and opinion This test isused to find the students’ reading comprehensionachievement of both groups The result of the tests would becompared to find out the effect of applying Graphicorganizers Strategy on the students’ reading comprehensionachievement

The table 1 below is the result of the pre-test:

Types of Questions Experiential groups

Class A2 (38 students)

Control groups Class A6 (38 students)

Number ofstudentscan answer

Percentage

Numberof

studentscan

answer

Percentage

III Solution

1 Definition of Graphic Organizers

A graphic organizer is a visual representation of knowledge thatstructures information by arranging important aspects of a concept or topicinto a pattern using labels (Bromley, et al., 1995) There are numerous kinds

of graphic organizers called maps, graphs, charts, diagrams or clusters Each

of these patterns can be expressed in different lay outs but they have a similarpurpose that depicts the relationships between facts, terms, and or ideaswithin a learning task Using graphic organizers gives students alternatives tothese inefficient methods of reading or comprehending a passage In contrast

to their usual approach to reading or comprehending a passage, they classifythe content of the passage and then try to decode it This study explores howclassifying a reading passage using graphic organizers has shown betterresults compared with reading a passage without using these organizers

2 Why to use graphic organizers

In order for a learner to understand the information they have read, theymust be able to comprehend the text Teachers can begin by talking about thestructure of the text that will be studied There are a variety of graphicorganizers that can be used to do this, and they can be done at any timeduring a lesson in order to help students understand what they have read Learning is extremely effective when students can connect new informationwith past experiences It is important to have a selection of learning strategiesthat can be used to master a new topic or skill Teachers may use graphicorganizers to prepare students for reading Graphic organizers are effectivetools for thinking and learning as they help students to: 

- Represent abstract ideas in more concrete forms,

- Depict the relationships among facts and concepts,

- Organize ideas

- Store and recall information

Graphic organizers enable teachers to show and explain relationshipsbetween content and sub content and how they in turn relate to other contentareas On the other hand, through the use of the organizers, students can makemore abstract comparisons, evaluations, and conclusions In short, graphicorganizers allow students an active role in their learning Graphic organizershave many forms and provide students with visual information thatcomplements the class discussion or text After carrying out extensiveresearch on the effect of graphic organizers on student readingcomprehension, Fisher (2002) says that students who belonged to theexperiment group consistently reported that the graphic organizer is the mosthelpful strategy that they employed Many teachers believe that it is not hardfor good readers to symbolize key concepts and the core value from the text

or to depict the given information in different ways regardless which genres

or formats the comprehension task is presented in However, they are nottotally sure that what kinds of formats can stimulate student learningmodalities, and which techniques can promote student critical thinking skillsWith the mentioned benefits, teachers should use graphic organizers tohelp students prepare themselves for reading, to explore the text with a deeperunderstanding, to externalize their thinking, and to promote effectivelearning Appropriately use, graphical organizer instructions can significantlyreduce the amount of time required to achieve the objective of a readinglesson for both the teacher and learners However, the appropriate choice oforganizers for the reading lesson depends on the teacher’s knowledge of thetopic presented in the passage, knowledge of pedagogical content thatrequires the teacher to plan and conduct an effective lesson with a supportivelearning environment, and knowledge of language learners in order todevelop students’ creativity and critical thinking

3 When to Use Graphic Organizers

Graphic Organizers can be used to facilitate students’ activation of

background knowledge and to create anticipation for future learning at the

beginning of a unit They can also be effective ways to facilitate review of previously taught materials In a reading lesson, Graphic Organizers are oftenused in pre-reading, note-taking and summarizing.

Pre-reading: graphical reading guides showing sequences and relationships

prepare students for the important themes or concepts they will encounter intheir assigned readings

Note-taking: codifying information in graphical form (such as a two-column

compare and contrast chart), while reading, helps students lock down andretain pertinent concepts, facts, figures, etc

Summarizing: summarizing information (such as cause and effect factors) in

a cause/effect diagram helps students follow processes, make inferences and draw conclusions

4 How to use graphic organizers

Graphic organizers can have various forms, from representations ofobjects to hierarchical and cyclical structures Although their use in learningactivities is preferred by people who have a visual style of learning, graphicorganizers are extremely useful to different learners Graphic organizers areknown by different names such as semantic map, structured overview, web,concept map, semantic organizer, story map, graphic organizer, etc no matterwhat the special name, a graphic organizer is a “visual” representation ofknowledge The following description of six basic graphic organizers, namelyVenn diagram, sequencing Time-line, problems & solution map, compare &contrast matrix, and network tree These visual representations are followed

by specific samples taken from the new English textbook for grade 11 inVietnam but adapted for a better use in English reading classrooms

4.1 Sequencing Time-line

Description

A sequencing time-line is  a type of graphic organizer that shows specificevents in sequence, usually with dates, in a linear fashion Time-lines areparticularly useful for studying or reviewing history, because the time-line

will visually display major events over a period of time Storyboard that addsanother dimension beyond dates and descriptions, by making it easy toillustrate important events Using Sequencing Time-line helps students putevents in chronological order, show progress or change, chronicle historicalevents

Procedures:

1 Copy the blank sequencing time-line template for students

2 List the topic of the organizer

3 Ask students to conclude the main events in sequential order using thistime-line template while reading a passage

4 Discuss the events with students

Application: Unit 12: The Asian Game - reading (English 11, textbook, page 136, 137)

Sequence of time

4.2 Venn diagram

Description

The 1st Asian games began

in New Delhi, India.

Boxing, shooting and wrestling were added at The 2nd Asian Games in Manila, the Philippines

Tennis, volleyball, table

tennis and hockey were

added at the 3rd Asian

Games held in Tokyo, Japan

Squash, rugby, fencing and mountain biking were introduced at the 13th Asian Games in Bangkok, Thailand.

1951

1954

1958

1998

The 14th Asian Games were

held in Busan, Korea. 2002

Venn Diagram is the simple of Graphic Organizer Strategy Venndiagram is used to promote the development and a refinement of students’knowledge One of the ways to develop students’ knowledge of something istrough comparison Venn diagram is used to compare two concepts, topics orprocedure By using the comparison, students will be helped to organize theirthought therefore, they can understand the reading passage

During reading a text, the Venn diagram allows students to help them tostructure the way they “think” about the similarities and differences betweenconcepts What they have compared will be put in the visual term namelycircle They work best when the students complete them, instead of havingthe teachers do it for them It has endless possibilities for adaptations and can

be used in all content areas

Procedures:

1 Copy the Venn diagram template for students

2 Identify and label above each circle the two people, places or things tocompare and contrast

3 Discuss the similarities and differences with students

4 Record shared traits or characters in the overlapping section of the circle

5 Record unique traits and list them in the appropriate circle

Application: Unit 3: a Party (English 11, textbook, page 33)

VENN DIAGRAM

Activities

Birthday party wedding anniversary

/

4.3 Problem & solution map

- Blow the candles

- Eat cakes

- Give gifts

- Husbands and wives give flowers and gifts

to each other

- People says “ happy anniversary”

- People gives toys

and clothes to the

girl having the

party

- People sing

“happy birthday”

song

Procedures: 1 Have students identify the problem in the text and write it in

the diamond at the top of the template labelled “problem”

2 Ask student(s) to find out what specifically makes this a problem Have thestudents write the given evidence for defining this as a problem in the boxlabelled “evidence”

3 Let students list each of the solutions presented in the text in the boxlabelled “solutions”

4 Have students predict and write the results expected from the chosensolutions in the box labelled “results” (optional)

5 Students then have presentation about the discussed topic, using thetemplate as a guide Remind students to use the key organizing words to helpconnect ideas

Application: Unit 10: reading (English 11, textbook, page 114,115) Nature in danger

1 Copy the compare and contrast matrix template for students

2 Help the students create headings for major concepts on the vertical andhorizontal axis

3 Walk around as the students read the text together and think aloud

4 Discuss the similarities and differences with them if necessary

5 Make sure the students are recording details from the text in appropriateplaces on the matrix graphic organizer

- destroying the air by adding

- Many organizations have been set up and money has been raised

to save rare animals.

- Thousands of national parks have been established.

- Laws have been passed to

If people interfere less with the environment

- More species will survive and produce offspring.

- The Earth will be a happy planet