The use of cognitive and metacognitive strategies in collaborative strategic reading for comprehension an investigation among first year students in felte ulis

i VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHER EDUCATION GRADUATION PAPER THE USE OF COGNITIVE AND METACOG

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VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI

UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

FACULTY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHER EDUCATION

GRADUATION PAPER

THE USE OF COGNITIVE AND METACOGNITIVE STRATEGIES IN COLLABORATIVE STRATEGIC

READING FOR COMPREHENSION: AN

INVESTIGATION AMONG FIRST-YEAR STUDENTS

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ĐẠI HỌC QUỐC GIA HÀ NỘI

TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC NGOẠI NGỮ KHOA SƯ PHẠM TIẾNG ANH

KHÓA LUẬN TỐT NGHIỆP

CHIẾN THUẬT NHẬN THỨC VÀ SIÊU NHẬN THỨC TRONG HOẠT ĐỘNG HỢP TÁC ĐỌC HIỂU: MỘT NGHIÊN CỨU VỀ SINH VIÊN NĂM NHẤT KHOA SƯ PHẠM TIẾNG ANH, TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC NGOẠI NGỮ-ĐẠI HỌC QUỐC GIA HÀ NỘI

Giáo viên hướng dẫn: Thạc sĩ Phạm Hoàng Long Biên

Sinh viên: Nguyễn Thanh Hoa Khóa: QH2011.F1.E2

HÀ NỘI – 2015

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Signature of Approval:

Supervisor:

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ACCEPTANCE PAGE

I hereby state that I: Nguyễn Thanh Hoa (QH2011.F1.E2), being a candidate for the degree of Bachelor of Arts (TEFL) accept the requirements of the University relating to the retention and use of Bachelor‘s Graduation Paper deposited in the library

In terms of these conditions, I agree that the origin of my paper deposited in the library should be accessible for the purposes of study and research, in accordance with the normal conditions established by the librarian for the care, loan or reproduction of the paper

Signature

Date

May 6, 2015

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

In completion of this thesis, I would like to express deepest gratitude to my supervisor, Mrs Phạm Hoàng Long Biên (M.A) for her experienced guidance, valuable comments and enthusiastic advice throughout my work

My sincere thanks should go for all the lectures at University of Languages and International Studies, Vietnam National University-Hanoi for their knowledge, experience and enthusiasm in lectures during my 4 years at the university

My deeply thank should go to Mr Nguyễn Chí Đức (Ph.D candidate) – lecture of Faculty of English Language Teacher Education, ULIS, VNU for his valuable sharing and advice

I am grateful to the first-year students in Faculty of English Language Teacher Education for their enthusiastic and responsible participation, who spent their valuable time to answer the questionnaire and take part in the observation

This completion of this study would not be possible without the encouragement and support of my family and my friends

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ABSTRACT

Cognitive and metacognitive strategies are often claimed to have significant influence on learner‘s language learning process, especially reading comprehension The effect is also the same with collaborative strategic reading Recognizing the stunning effect of these strategies on reading comprehension, the author would like to investigate the current use of cognitive and metacognitive strategies in collaborative strategic reading for comprehension This research mainly figures out the frequency in the use of cognitive and metacognitive strategies in collaborative strategic reading and the effect(s) of those strategies on comprehension

First-year students in FELTE, ULIS are chosen to take part in this research After completing a questionnaire about their language learning strategies, six students are selected for observation One student which has high tendency in using cognitive strategies partners with one with high frequency in using metacognitive strategies Together, they accomplish a reading task with seven reading comprehension questions The result reveals that (1) cognitive strategies tend to be used more often than the metacognitive strategies and the most widely-used strategies is highlighting; and (2) student‘s comprehension of the reading task is good and there is a change in their strategy use during the reading collaboration

Discussion and implication of the research are also included in this research

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT v

ABSTRACT vi

TABLE OF CONTENTS vii

LIST OF TABLE AND ABBREVIATIONS x

CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION 11

1 Statement of the problem and rationale for the study 11

2 Aims and objectives 12

3 Significance of the study 13

4 Scope of the study 13

5 Organization 14

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW 15

1 Language learning strategies (LLS) 15

1.1 Definition 15

1.2 Classification 16

2 Definition of the key terms 17

2.1 Cognitive strategies 17

2.2 Metacognitive strategies 17

2.3 Collaborative strategic reading 17

3 Cognitive strategies and metacognitive strategies 18

3.1 Cognitive strategies 18

3.2 Metacognitive strategies 19

3.3 Relationship between cognitive and metacognitive strategies 20

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4 Collaborative strategic reading (CSR) 20

5 Previous studies 22

CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY 24

1 Context of the study: The curriculum of FELTE, ULIS 24

2 Selection of subjects 24

3 Research instruments 25

4 Procedures of data collection 30

5 Procedures of data analysis 31

CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION 32

1 Data analysis 32

1.1 Data analysis of observation 32

1.1.2 Pair 2 33

1.1.3 Pair 3 34

1.2 Data analysis of reading task 36

1.2.1 Pair 1 36

1.2.2 Pair 2 37

2 Findings 40

2.1 Research question 1 40

2.2 Research question 2 41

3 Discussion 42

3.1 The frequency in use of cognitive and metacognitive strategies during the time students cooperate and do the reading task 42

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3.2 The effect of cognitive and metacognitive strategies in collaborative

strategic reading for comprehension 44

CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION 47

1 Summary of the findings 47

2 Implications of the findings 48

3 Limitation of the study 49

4 Suggestions for further study 50

REFERENCES 51

APPENDICES 55

APPENDIX 1 55

APPENDIX 2 58

APPENDIX 3 62

APPENDIX 4 63

CSR Collaborative Strategic Reading

EFL English as Foreign Language

FELTE Faculty of English Language Teacher Education

LLS Language learning strategies

SILL Strategy Inventory for Language Learning

ULIS University of Languages and International Studies

VNU Vietnam National University

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CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION

1 Statement of the problem and rationale for the study

Over the years, language learning strategies have become the interest of numerous scholars because they can be very beneficial in fostering the learning progress and help individuals achieve a successful learning result Oxford (1990, p.8) once mentions language learning strategies as ―specific actions taken by the learners to make learning easier, faster, more enjoyable, more self-directed, more effective, and more transferable to new situations‖ Recognizing the importance of this area, many researchers have investigated the process that individuals approach and control their own language learning (Rubin & Thompson, 1982; Skehan, 1989; O'Malley and Chamot, 1990; McDonough, 1995) It can be clearly seen that if language learners have knowledge of learning strategies and apply them into their learning process, the results will be significantly improved Therefore, it is essential to equip learners with different strategies so that they can utilize and achieve success in their language learning Among many different language learning strategies proposed by many scholars such as Rubin (1981), Dansereau (1985), Oxford (1990), Stern (1992), cognitive and metacognitive strategies are often claimed to accelerate the language learning process This remarkable impact

is once mentioned in the research of Beckman (2002, p.3) Each type of these two strategies both facilitates and creates a sequence in students‘ learning process Cognitive strategies assist students to reach a specific goal (e.g., understand a reading text) then metacognitive strategies will confirm whether students reach that goal (e.g., how students understand the text) Together, they make learners conscious of their strong and weak points so that they can have some adjustments

in their learning process

Another effective approach in learning process, especially in reading comprehension is Collaborative Strategic Reading (CSR) According to Klingner

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and Vaughn (2000), CSR creates the interaction when learners work together and cooperate in tasks Students feel more comfortable in discussing and accomplishing the tasks with their peers in a low anxiety atmosphere CSR can also be beneficial to linguistically diverse students as they can be assisted by their friends in their mother tongue (students in this case are bilingual) While working together in dealing with the tasks given, students learn from each other and attain knowledge in their learning process

The benefits that cognitive strategies, metacognitive strategies as well as collaborative strategic reading bring to learners in their learning achievement are incontrovertible A positive correlation between the cognitive, metacognitive strategies and reading comprehension is figured out in the research of Phakiti (2003) The efficacy of collaborative strategic reading (CSR) in reading comprehension is also mentioned in the doctoral thesis of Al-Roomy (2013) With the recognition that the effect of two sets of strategies (cognitive strategies, metacognitive strategies versus collaborative strategic reading) in reading comprehension has not been widely discussed and remains a fairly novel concept, the author would like to conduct research on ―The use of cognitive and metacognitive strategies in collaborative strategic reading for comprehension‖ This research will discover the effects of those strategies that might affect students‘ reading comprehension in the Faculty of English Language Teacher Education (FELTE), University of Languages and International Studies (ULIS)

2 Aims and objectives

This research mainly investigates the current situation of how learners employ cognitive and metacognitive strategies in collaborative strategic reading for comprehension To be more specific, it involves the frequency in the use of students and the effect(s) of those strategies on reading comprehension outcomes

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The present research attempts to find answers to the following questions:

a How frequently do EFL students use cognitive and metacognitive strategies

in collaborative strategic reading for comprehension?

b How might these strategies affect their comprehension?

3 Significance of the study

Although this small-scale study may not be generalized in other contexts, it is hoped that the result could reflect the current situation of students‘ using cognitive and metacognitive strategies in collaborative strategic reading for comprehension Thanks to this, teachers in ULIS can consider the combination of the two sets of strategies in teaching reading comprehension This research can also be beneficial

to students in a way that it can provide them useful strategies in enhancing their reading comprehension ability and it might change their perception on pair work and group work

4 Scope of the study

The population of this research is first-year students in the Faculty of English Language Teacher Education (FELTE), ULIS First of all, they are new in the English learning environment at university First-year students therefore might not have learning strategies or use them effectively Moreover, it is convenient for the author to access the first-year students and collect data The author has a chance to work with them in her teaching practicum From two reasons above, it is essential

to implement research on those students with the aim of gaining more valuable insights on their use of cognitive and metacognitive strategies in collaborative strategic reading for comprehension

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5 Organization

The research is composed of five chapters

Chapter 1: Introduction presents the rationale, aims, methods, scope,

significance and design of the research

Chapter 2: Literature review provides theoretical background about cognitive

strategies, metacognitive strategies and collaborative strategic reading

Chapter 3: Methodology describes participants, data collection instruments, data

collection procedure and data analysis

Chapter 4: Findings and discussion analyzes and discusses findings from the

data collected

Chapter 5: Conclusion summarizes the major findings, presents limitations of the

research and gives some suggestions for further research

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CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW

1 Language learning strategies (LLS)

1.1 Definition

Since 1960s, LLS has been put into investigation and become the interest of many experts all over the world As a result, the definition of LLS has been identified in different ways because each researcher has defined this term within the context of their own research Learning strategies are defined in a very broad way at the early stage by Rubin (1975, p.43) At that time, learning strategies are considered as

―techniques‖ or ―devices‖ that learners utilize in attaining knowledge O'Malley and Chamot (1990, p.1) view learning strategies in their work more specifically as

"the special thoughts or behaviours that individuals use to help them comprehend, learn, or retain new information" The definition of learning strategies is narrowed down from ―techniques‖ or ―devices‖ to ―special thoughts or behaviours‖ The researchers underline the role of these learning strategies in learner‘s learning process These strategies are also clarified as ―specific actions, behaviours, steps,

or techniques that students (often intentionally) use to improve their progress in developing L2 skills These strategies can facilitate the internalization, storage, retrieval, or use of the new language Strategies are tools for the self-directed involvement necessary for developing communicative ability‖ (Oxford, 2002, p.124) The outstanding benefit of these strategies is acclaimed once again in this definition

From these definitions above, it can be seen that there is one common feature in the way of identifying this term: the focus is on the function, the beneficial aspect

of language learning strategies LLS play an important role in helping learners develop their second language skills (listening, writing, reading and speaking) Learners use LLS either intentionally or unintentionally (Oxford, 2002) in their

of classification is proposed by Rubin (1981) The system is divided into two main types which directly affect learning (such as clarification/verification, monitoring, memorization, guessing/inductive inferencing, deductive reasoning, practice) or indirectly contribute learning process (such as creating opportunity for practice, production tricks)

Oxford (1990) invents a self-assessment classification scheme called Strategy Inventory for Language Learning (SILL) Like Rubin‘s system, Oxford‘s taxonomy is classified as direct and indirect strategies with 6 subcategories as shown in the table below

Direct strategies

(directly involve the target language)

Memory strategies Cognitive strategies Compensation strategies

Indirect strategies

(provide indirect contribution for

language learning)

Metacognitive Strategies Affective Strategies Social Strategies

This one is considered as the most eminent taxonomy among the classification systems of other researchers A study of Hsiao and Oxford (2002) is conducted

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with the aim at comparing the three aforementioned sets of classification and it brings to a conclusion that the six-type taxonomy proposed by Oxford is the most comprehensive and detailed one among three taxonomies

2 Definition of the key terms

2.1 Cognitive strategies

In the book ―Principles of instructional design‖ by Gagne, Brigg and Wagner (1988), cognitive strategies are defined as the ―internal processes by which learners select and modify their ways of attending, learning, remembering and thinking‖ (p.67) These strategies relate to learning process in which they are aimed at helping to organize, store the knowledge and aid in using the knowledge when needed The description is also added by Van Dijk and Kintsch (1983) Cognitive strategies in their view are mental procedures that help learners to reach

a specific goal or solve a problem

2.2 Metacognitive strategies

Brown et al (1983) coin one definition of metacognitive strategies as the skills that help learners in managing, directing, regulating and guiding their learning process Metacognitive strategies are considered as indirect strategies (Oxford, 1990) They involve in the learning process, especially in the way that a learner plans for their learning, supervises that process and is able to evaluate the result after a learning activity is accomplished

2.3 Collaborative strategic reading

Collaborative strategic reading (CSR) is presented thoroughly in the thesis of Roomy (2013) CSR teaches learners to use the comprehension strategies when they work together These four reading strategies are (1) preview (before reading),

Analyzing and reasoning Reasoning deductively

Analyzing expressions Analyzing contrastive across languages Translating

Transferring

Creating structure for input

and output

Notes-taking Summarizing Highlighting

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In 1995, Ehrman and Oxford discover the close-knit relationship between the cognitive strategies and language proficiency in the Strategy Inventory for Language Learning (SILL) category These strategies help build up a link between the new knowledge and the already known one; they also do have great impact on language proficiency outcomes It is very useful for learners in their learning process, doing assignments or storing the knowledge in a long term Thus, cognitive strategies are important for all learners

3.2 Metacognitive strategies

According to Oxford (1990, p.20), metacognitive strategies include three types as

in the table below

Centering your learning Over viewing and linking with already known

material Paying attention Delaying speech production to focus on listening

Arranging and planning

Seeking practice opportunities

Evaluating your learning Self-monitoring

Self-evaluating

Metacognitive strategies supervise one‘s cognition through centering; arranging and planning; evaluating a learning process Many studies are carried out to identify the importance of those strategies Motevali (1997) and Azami (2005)

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figured out the same outstanding effect of metacognitive strategies on comprehension, reading and learning speed of learners (as cited in Gazorkhani, Mashhadi & Yousefi, 2014)

3.3 Relationship between cognitive and metacognitive strategies

As aforementioned, cognitive strategies are employed to help learners reach a specific goal while metacognitive strategies are used to check and ensure whether learners reach that goal or not Thus, metacognitive strategies are used to control cognitive performances They help learners be fully aware of the strengths and weaknesses in their cognitive performances and guide them as well

4 Collaborative strategic reading (CSR)

In Al-Roomy‘s (2013), collaborative strategic reading is considered as a fascinating technique for teaching students in reading comprehension, building vocabulary and working together in meaningful tasks

CSR consists of four strategies (preview, click and clunk, get the gist and up)

wrap Preview (before reading)

In this strategy, learners are required to brainstorm about the given topic, to express the knowledge they have already known and make further predictions about the upcoming text This strategy helps to link the students‘ prior knowledge

to the new knowledge in the passage, create the interest and make students more active in reading (Ziyaeemehr, 2012)

- Click and clunk (during reading)

Learners click and clunk during the time they read the text ―Click‖ gestures refer

to the parts of the text that students can totally understand while ―clunk‖ gestures

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indicate that students do not comprehend one certain part of the text This strategy underlines the supervision of the learners themselves in the reading comprehension process Learners are able to be aware of their reading comprehension, where they understand or fail in understanding

If there is any a ―clunk‖, the ―fix-up‖ strategies are utilized to identify that

―clunk‖ Those strategies were invented by Klingner et al., (1998, p.33) as follows:

(1) Reread the sentence and look for key ideas to help in the understanding of problematic words

(2) Reread the sentence that results in a ‗clunk‘ and the sentences before or after the ‗clunk‘ looking for clues

(3) Look for a known prefix or suffix in a problematic word

(4) Break the word down and look for smaller known words (as cited in Roomy, 2013)

Al Get the gist (during reading)

Learners are required to indicate the main idea of a certain part in the text then restate it in their own words This stage ensures that students completely comprehend the paragraph Clarifying the most important idea helps students in understanding and remembering the text

- Wrap-up (after reading)

Summarizing the ideas in the text is what learners are supposed to do in this strategy By reviewing what they have learned and answering questions from teachers, learners are able to consolidate the knowledge and understanding that they have achieved from the text

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5 Previous studies

Numerous studies have been conducted about cognitive and metacognitive strategies for decades The effect of employing cognitive and metacognitive strategies in EFL (English as a foreign language) reading test performance is investigated by Phakiti (2003) This study presents the positive relationship between the use of cognitive, metacognitive strategies and the reading test performance The result of this one shows a weak influence of cognitive and metacognitive strategies on reading comprehension However, the author also explains that student‘s test result might be affected by many other factors such as language ability, test method effects, etc From this explanation, although in fact the result of two strategies on reading comprehension test is not high, the author still admits that a positive relationship between cognitive, metacognitive strategies and reading comprehension does exist

In another context of employing those strategies, Gazorkhani, Mashhadi and Yousefi (2014) conducted a research to discover the effects of those strategies on learning with the students in TarbiatMoalem of ShahidRajayi of Qazvin This work reveals the outstanding effect of the cognitive strategies teaching These strategies help students have better performance in their educational media course Other researchers believe that these two strategies will accelerate the learning process and there is an urge to investigate the effect of instructing two strategies to students The study of Abdolhosseini, Keikhavani and Hasel (2011) is implemented with the sample of Medical Sciences of Ilam University students A positive effect on students‘ academic performance is found as well The three researchers have a strong belief that this will become an efficient learning method

Collaborative strategic reading (CSR) has also been an interest of many researchers The effect of CSR on reading comprehension at first is proved in the research of (Klingner & Vaughn, 1996) when they implemented CSR on students

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with learning disabilities CSR has positively affected students‘ reading comprehension Four years later, research on utilizing CSR by trained classroom teachers in ESL context (English as a Second Language) among science classes is conducted by Klingner and Vaughn (2000) The significant effect of CSR is once again affirmed when students show a remarkable achievement in their vocabulary through tests (from pre-test to post-test) In 2013, Al-Roomy conducts an action research about CSR in English and reviews the result whether CSR can enhance students‘ reading comprehension outcomes The findings of this research share the same result with other research in terms of students‘ positive development in the learning process Students‘ perception about group work and its effectiveness has been changed through the implementation period of this research

The efficacy of cognitive, metacognitive strategies and collaborative strategic reading (CSR) is undeniable as it is confirmed in many studies However, the effectiveness of the combination (cognitive, metacognitive strategies and CSR) has not been examined Thus, in this present study, the researcher would like to discover the effect on reading comprehension of those strategies in a combination

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CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY

1 Context of the study: The curriculum of FELTE, ULIS

Students are required to achieve both language skills and soft skills to be able to serve the career goal after graduation Following the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages, the curriculum is created with the aim at developing students‘ language skills such as reading, listening, reading and writing The undergraduate program also equips student competencies to work independently and be successful after graduation (―Bachelor Degrees-Mainstream Programs‖, n.d)

2 Selection of subjects

It is proved by many scholars that representativeness is the most important factor

to put into consideration in choosing a sample (Ary, Jacobs & Razavieh, 1990) As mentioned above, the participants in this research are first-year students in FELTE, ULIS As expected, by the time this research having been carried out, first-year students reach the level from B1 to B2- (based on The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages) Those students are selected because of the author‘s easy access to them

Three pairs are invited to engage in this study and their cooperation in accomplishing the task is observed and analyzed They are chosen after completing a questionnaire about language learning strategies In this research, the author chooses three pairs as her participants because it is often seen to be the minimum number to figure out the difference among pairs in observation If the participants are only one or two pairs, it is difficult to point out the difference of the effect(s) of those strategies in reading comprehension In addition, due to time constraints, the research can hardly be implemented with more than three pairs

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3 Research instruments

The results of this research are collected via questionnaires and observations and reading tasks with the participants

Instrument 1: Questionnaire (Appendix 1)

The questionnaires are delivered to students to investigate their language learning strategies This questionnaire is in the form of the Strategy Inventory for Language Learning (SILL) which has been proposed by Oxford (1990) This is considered the most comprehensive inventory in investigating learner‘s strategy use (Oxford

& Burry-Stock, 1995) The SILL has two versions, one for native speakers and one for ESL (English as a Second Language) and EFL (English as a Foreign Language) In this present study, the author will use the latter version which consists of 50 items covering both six language learning strategies (memory strategies – 9 items, cognitive strategies – 14 items, compensation strategies – 6 items, metacognitive strategies – 9 items, affective strategies – 6 items and social strategies – 6 items) The questionnaire is delivered to students in two first-year classes randomly

Instrument 2: Observation

After gathering the questionnaires from two classes, the author chooses six students who show the high tendency of using metacognitive and cognitive strategies in language learning Based on the answers in the questionnaires, a student who claims to frequently use cognitive strategies pairs with whom has high frequency in using metacognitive strategies Students who have different strategies are formed in one pair in order that it will be easier for the researcher to recognize the effect(s) that collaborative strategic reading might bring to reading comprehension result

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Two students are be given a reading task in which they have to answer seven reading comprehension questions When students work together to find out the answer about the reading text, the researcher observes them to know what is happening during the collaboration process The observation is applied to monitor the interactions between students The way students cooperate with their peers is investigated and the results of the tasks is also checked to evaluate the effect of those strategies on students‘ reading comprehension ability In the observation, the researcher figures out the strategies that students use to tackle seven questions in the reading task During the observation, students‘ conversation is recorded and it

is convenient for the researcher in analyzing the data

Instrument 3: Reading text and comprehension questions (Appendix 2)

A reading text is given to three pairs They read the text and answer seven comprehension questions that follow After a careful consideration, the text is chosen for two main reasons The first reason is the in accordance of the text with students‘ language ability The text is not so difficult for students to understand Moreover, it is about 700 words in length – an acceptable one for students at B2- level to read The vocabulary in the text is understandable to students The author also provides the meaning in Vietnamese of some new words that are difficult for students to guess Another reason is the topic of the text It is about cell phone and the effects it brings to life Eventhough it is a social topic, the ideas are quite clear and students have some background knowledge to easily argue and discuss The reading text is evaluated by Coh-Metrix system (a system from the website

http://tool.cohmetrix.com/ to automatically analyze many texts by measuring cohesion, language and readability of the text) Here are the major features of the text by Coh-Metrix:

6 Mean number of words before the main verb of main

clause in

5.089

7 Incidence of causal verbs, links, and particles 32.995

8 Incidence of positive logical connectives 0

9 Incidence of negative logical connectives 0

10 Concreteness, mean for content words 411.104

11 Sentence syntax similarity, adjacent 0.075

12 Sentence syntax similarity, all, across paragraphs 0.063

13 Flesch Reading Ease Score (0-100) 58.693

14 Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (0-12) 9.423

According to Coh-Metrix, the grade level of this text is appropriate for Grade 9, it

is fairly apposite to level B1/B2- of students Another tool is used for validating the appropriateness of the text is CEF-ESTIM Grid (a level estimation grid for

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teachers to estimate the level of any text) Both two tools above give the researcher a result that the reading text is suitable for students at level B1/B2-

The reading task also comes along with a detailed guidance to help students aware

of some basic points in the observation such as the language, the interaction between two students, etc The author asks them to plan their work before doing the reading questions and evaluate their work after finishing the task Planning for

a task and evaluating the work belong to metacognitive strategies Students might know these strategies but they might not use during the time they accomplish the task so the author would like to remind them of using those strategies

The seven comprehension questions are designed based on Bloom‘s taxonomy Each question is related to one level in the Bloom‘s taxonomy It helps researcher identify the students‘ level in comprehending a reading text (Bloom, Mesia & Krathwohl, 1964) Bloom‘s taxonomy is utilized in the research due to its convenience for measuring level of students‘ understanding However, the researcher would like to employ the revised version of Bloom‘s taxonomy which

is developed from the original version to be corresponding to the educational context of 21st century All the action verbs are stated clearly in each level of the taxonomy, thus the researcher can easily see the effect those strategies bring to students based on the answers to seven questions

Here are the six levels in revised Bloom‘s taxonomy (Anderson & Krathwohl, 2001)

List of action verbs Level 1 Remembering Choose, define, find, how, label, list, match, name,

omit, recall, relate, select, show, spell, tell, what, when, where, which, who, why

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Level 2 Understanding Classify, compare, contrast, demonstrate, explain,

extend, illustrate, infer, interpret, outline, relate, rephrase, show, summarize, translate

Level 3 Applying Apply, build, choose, construct, develop,

experiment with, identify, interview, make use of, model, organize, plan, select, solve, utilize

Level 4 Analyzing Analyze, assume, categorize, classify, compare,

conclusion, contrast, discover, dissect, distinguish, divide, examine, function, inference, inspect, list, motive, relationships, simplify, survey, take part in, test for, theme

Level 5 Evaluating Agree, appraise, assess, award, choose, compare,

conclude, criteria, criticize, decide, deduct, defend, determine, disprove, estimate, evaluate, explain, importance, influence, interpret, judge, justify, mark, measure, opinion, perceive, prioritize, prove, rate, recommend, rule on, select, support, value

Level 6 Creating Adapt, build, change, choose, combine, compile,

compose, construct, create, delete, design, develop, discuss, elaborate, estimate, formulate, happen, imagine, improve, invent, make up, maximize, minimize, modify, original, originate, plan, predict, propose, solution, solve, suppose, test, theory

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4 Procedures of data collection

As is stated, three instruments are used in this research

In terms of the questionnaire, the SILL of Oxford (1990) is selected to apply in

order to investigate students‘ language learning strategies After the researcher

approaches participants, copies of the questionnaire are handed out to them and

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The second instrument is observation It is conducted with three pairs of students After receiving the questionnaires from students, the researcher chooses students which have high tendency of using metacognitive and cognitive strategies

They are given a reading task when working collaboratively In the meantime, the author records and takes notes the details needed for research findings All strategies used by the participants are noted down and help the researcher to find out the answer for the two research questions about the frequency in the use of those strategies and the possible effect of those strategies on students‘ reading comprehension

The third instrument is a reading task A task is given to students in the observation Students accomplish seven comprehension questions in the task while researcher observes their interaction

5 Procedures of data analysis

The method of data analysis from the observation is qualitative analysis

strategies Here are some basis steps that Taylor-Powel and Renner (2003) listed out basis steps to analyze the qualitative data:

Step 1: Get to know the data

Step 2: Focus the analysis

Step 3: Categorize information

Step 4: Identify patterns and connections within and between categories

Step 5: Interpretation – Bringing it all together

Based on the results from these instruments, the answers for two research questions are figured out

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CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION

1 Data analysis

1.1 Data analysis of observation

After receiving questions from two classes in FELTE, ULIS, the researcher continues to carry out the observation with 6 students among 44 students In order

to observe the cooperation of two students in language learning, researcher prepares a reading task including seven comprehension questions During the observation, the strategies that students use in accomplishing the task are noted down to find out the frequency of using cognitive and metacognitive strategies in collaborative strategic reading

1.1.1 Pair 1

From the notes and the recording of observation, the researcher tries to code those into certain strategies

―I think we should skim the text first

Let‘s see what is it about‖

They read through the text for its main

idea

Getting the idea quickly  Receiving and sending messages  Cognitive strategies

Planning for a language task  Arranging and planning their learning

 Metacognitive strategies

To make sure the meaning of the phrase

―stem from‖, after guessing, a student

uses dictionary to check the meaning

Using resources for receiving and sending messages  Cognitive strategies

―I see the preposition ―from‖ so I think Reasoning deductively  Analyzing

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it means ―original‖ and reasoning  Cognitive strategies

When finding the answer for question

1, they highlight the sentence and agree

that it is the answer for question 1

When reading the question, they also

underline the key words

―Underline this example‖

―Let‘s highlight this one‖

―Let‘s underline this‖

Highlighting  Creating structure for input and output  Cognitive strategies

―I think first we need an opening

sentence… We have four sentences for

Here are strategies they use when accomplishing the reading task

Notes or students’ sayings Strategies

―I think the second paragraph is about

the benefits of cell phone on kids‖

Getting idea quickly  Receiving and sending messages  Cognitive strategies

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They highlight the answer of question 1

and question 3

―We need to highlight this‖

Highlighting  Creating structure for input and output  Cognitive strategies

When finding out the meaning of

phrase ―stem from‖, student said that

she read the whole sentence and try to

guess

Reasoning deductively  Analyzing and reasoning  Cognitive strategies

―I think first we should look through all

the text to understand the structure and

content Then we read again carefully to

answer each question‖

―I think we should read the sentence

and find the context to guess‖

Planning for a language task  Arranging and planning their learning

 Metacognitive strategies

Two students focus on completing

seven reading questions

Paying attention  Centering their learning  Metacognitive strategies

―What do you think about the seven

questions?‖

Evaluating their learning  Metacognitive strategies

1.1.3 Pair 3

Strategies students use are listed in the table below:

Notes or students’ sayings Strategies

35

―The paragraph is about advantages‖ Getting idea quickly  Receiving and

sending messages  Cognitive strategies

They highlight the answer of question

1, question 3 and question 5

―Let‘s highlight this‖

Highlight  Creating structure for input and output  Cognitive strategies

When doing question 4, two students

guess the meaning of the phrase ―stem

from‖ based on the meaning of the

sentence that contains that phrase ―This

sentence shows the cause‖

Reasoning deductively  Analyzing and reasoning  Cognitive strategies

In question 6, student 6 (S6) wants to

use but does not know how to express

the word ―dọa nạt‖ in English She asks

student 5 (S5) then uses this word to

complete the sentence

Translating  Analyzing and reasoning

 Cognitive strategies

―The text is quite long so I think you

should read the questions first‖

―About 5 sentences, so the topic

sentence and two sentences about the

disadvantages of cell phone and two

supporting sentences‖

Planning for a language task  Arranging and planning their learning

 Metacognitive strategies

Two students pay attention while

completing seven reading questions

Paying attention  Centering their learning  Metacognitive strategies

36

―How do you think about our work?‖ Evaluating their learning 

Metacognitive strategies

1.2 Data analysis of reading task

The answers to seven questions from reading task help the author evaluate the effect(s) of those strategies in reading comprehension

For question 3, they figure out one disadvantage of cell phone use by child first then find out the examples to illustrate that disadvantage They do not meet any difficulty in this question

When it comes to question 4, two students can easily find out the meaning of the phrase ―stem from‖ in the paragraph Firstly, they guess the meaning of this phrase

by reading all the surrounding words Then they check the dictionary on mobile phone to make sure that their guess is right

Question 5 is also easy for them They immediately find the examples in the same paragraph as the previous question The answer to this question is highlighted

Question 6 takes most of their time They do have a very clear plan when doing this question First of all they decide the topic sentence then decide the two main