VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES ------------------- NGUYỄN HÀ SÂM AN ACTION RESEARCH ON IMPROVING 10th GRADE STUDENTS’ READING COMPREHENSION THROUGH THE TEACHING OF LEXICAL INFERENCE STRATEGY AT HIGH SCHOOL FOR GIFTED STUDENTS, HANOI NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF EDUCATION (NGHIÊN CỨU HÀNH ĐỘNG VỀ VIỆC NÂNG CAO KHẢ NĂNG ĐỌC HIỂU CỦA HỌC SINH THÔNG QUA VIỆC GIẢNG DẠY CHIẾN LƯỢC ĐOÁN NGHĨA CỦA TỪ VỰNG TẠI TRƯỜNG TRUNG HỌC PHỔ THÔNG CHUYÊN, ĐẠI HỌC SƯ PHẠM HÀ NỘI) M. MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS Field: English Teaching Methodology Code: 6014.0111 Hanoi, 2014 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES ------------------- NGUYỄN HÀ SÂM AN ACTION RESEARCH ON IMPROVING 10th GRADE STUDENTS’ READING COMPREHENSION THROUGH THE TEACHING OF LEXICAL INFERENCE STRATEGY AT HIGH SCHOOL FOR GIFTED STUDENTS, HANOI NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF EDUCATION (NGHIÊN CỨU HÀNH ĐỘNG VỀ VIỆC NÂNG CAO KHẢ NĂNG ĐỌC HIỂU CỦA HỌC SINH THÔNG QUA VIỆC GIẢNG DẠY CHIẾN LƯỢC ĐOÁN NGHĨA CỦA TỪ VỰNG TẠI TRƯỜNG TRUNG HỌC PHỔ THÔNG CHUYÊN, ĐẠI HỌC SƯ PHẠM HÀ NỘI) M. MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS Field: English Teaching Methodology Code: 6014. Võ Đại Quang Hanoi, 2014 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com DECLARATION I hereby certify that the minor thesis entitled “An Action Research on Improving 10th Grade Students’ Reading Comprehension through the Teaching of Lexical Inference Strategy at High School for Gifted Students, Hanoi National University of Education” is the result of my own work in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in English Teaching Methodology at Faculty of Post - Graduate Studies, Hanoi University of Languages and International Studies, Vietnam National University.
The research has not been submitted to any other university or institution wholly and partially. Hanoi, 2014 Nguyen Ha Sam LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG downloadi : add luanvanchat@agmail.com ACKNOWLEDGEMENT This thesis could not have been completed without the help and support from a number of people. First and foremost, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Assoc. Vo Dai Quang, my supervisor, who has patiently and constantly supported me through the stages of the study, and whose stimulating ideas, expertise, and suggestions have inspired me greatly through my growth as an academic researcher.
A special word of thanks goes to my students, without whom it would never have been possible for me to have this thesis accomplished. Last by not least, I am greatly indebted to my family for the sacrifice they have devoted to the fulfillment of this academic work. LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG downloadii: add luanvanchat@agmail.com ABSTRACT This study was intended to investigate the impact of lexical inference strategy on 10th grade students‟ reading comprehension ability. More specifically, the researcher strived to (1) examine whether students‟ lexical knowledge had any correlation to their reading ability, (2) whether the teaching of lexical inferencing had a positive effect to enhance tenth grade students‟ reading comprehension, (3) investigate the students‟ attitudes towards the instruction, and (4) propose some recommendations for instructing this strategy to other teachers.
To achieve those abovementioned aims, an action research was conducted with the participation of 46 tenth grade students from a class at High School for Gifted Students, Hanoi National University of Education. The teaching program aimed at instructing the students with lexical inferencing to help them enhance their reading comprehension ability. The study included: (1) pretest and a questionnaire (2) the instruction of lexical inferencing, (3) posttest and a questionnaire, (4) teacher‟s notes and students‟ learning logs. Later, (5) interviews were included to support the findings.
The main findings of the research were as follows: (1) Lexical competence served as good prediction of reading ability in a foreign language. The higher scores students got in vocabulary tests, the higher scores they received in reading comprehension tests. (2) Overall, the instruction of this vocabulary-learning strategy improved their reading comprehension. (3) Most of the students held positive attitudes towards the instruction of lexical inferencing.
(4) The students had a habit of guessing words from context using local clues or information from around the target word. LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG downloadiii: add luanvanchat@agmail.com LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS, TABLES AND FIGURES Figure 1: Action Research Model. 18 Table 1: Classification of Reading Strategies. 7 Table 2: Background Information of the Subjects.
17 Table 3: Procedures of the Study. 26 Table 4: Results of Question 1 in the Questionnaire After the Pretest. 28 Table 5: Results of Question 2 in the Questionnaire After the Pretest. 28 Table 6: Results of Question 3 in the Questionnaire After the Pretest.
28 Table 7: Results of Question 4 in the Questionnaire After the Pretest. 29 Table 8: Results of Question 5 in the Questionnaire After the Pretest. 29 Table 9: Correlation between the Two Tests Before Lexical Inferencing Instruction. 30 Table 10: Correlation between the Two Tests After Lexical Inferencing Instruction.
30 Table 11: Percentage of the Students’ Correct Answers in the Pretest and Posttest. 31 Table 12: Results of Question 1 in the Questionnaire After the Posttest. 33 Table 13: Results of Question 2 in the Questionnaire After the Posttest. 33 Table 14: Results of Question 3 in the Questionnaire After the Posttest.
33 Table 15: Results of Question 4 in the Questionnaire After the Posttest. 34 Table 16: Results of Question 5 in the Questionnaire After the Posttest. 34 Abbreviations T: Teacher S1: Subject 1 in the interview S2: Subject 2 in the interview S3: Subject 3 in the interview HNUE: Hanoi National University of Education L2: second language LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG downloadiv: add luanvanchat@agmail.com TABLE OF CONTENT DECLARATION……………………………………………………………………….iii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS, TABLES AND FIGURES………………………………iv TABLE OF CONTENT……………………………………………………………. Rationale for the Study.
Aims of the Research. Objectives of the Research. Scope of the Research. Significance of the Research.
Structural Organization of the Thesis. 5 Chapter 1: Literature Review. Definition of Reading Comprehension. Reading Comprehension Strategies.
Lexical Inference Strategy. Definition of Lexical Inference Strategy. Value of Lexical Inference Strategy. Factors that Affect Lexical Inferencing.
Review of Previous Studies Related to the Research Area of the Thesis .15 Chapter 2: Research Methodology. Data Collection Instruments. Pretest and Posttest. Vocabulary Multiple-Choice Tests.
Reading Comprehension Tests. Teacher‟s Notes and Students‟ Learning Logs. Intervention: Instruction of Lexical Inferencing in Class .22 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG downloadv: add luanvanchat@agmail. Steps of the Instruction in Lexical Inferencing.
Data Collection Procedures .27 Chapter 3: Findings and Discussions. Results from Pretest and Posttest. Results from Questionnaire After the Posttest. Results of the Interview.
Limitations of the Research. Suggestions for Future Research. 43 APPENDICES……………………………………………………………………………I LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG downloadvi: add luanvanchat@agmail.com PART A: INTRODUCTION 1. Rationale for the Study In the last few decades, second/foreign language vocabulary acquisition has been an increasingly interesting topic of discussion for researches, teachers, curriculum designers, theorists and others involved in second language learning.
All consider vocabulary as being a very important element in language, especially in reading skills. When mentioning the relationship between vocabulary and reading comprehension, Nation (1990) claimed that vocabulary knowledge is one of the best predictors of reading ability and the ability to acquire new information from the text. As a result, it can be said that the threshold for reading comprehension is, to a large extent, lexical. Lexical problems will, therefore, hinder successful comprehension.
In fact, second/foreign language readers often cite lack of adequate vocabulary as one of the most common obstacles to text comprehension. Kim‟s (1995) study also shows that learners‟ lack of vocabulary knowledge or their being unfamiliar with words is a major problem affecting readers‟ reading comprehension. Many readers have claimed that they would like to read more, but when they encounter unknown lexis they lose their interest. From observations, the researcher also realize that Vietnamese learners of English, in general, and grade 10 students at High School for Gifted Students (HNUE), in particular, after several years of learning English, turn out to be word-by-word readers.
They tend to read very slowly to understand the meaning of every single word. Students feel insecure when they read without the aids of glossing or dictionaries. When they encounter a new word in the reading context, they simply do not show any effort to guess its meaning. The reason is that they always rely on the glossing of Vietnamese translation of unfamiliar words in reading texts, or resort to using dictionaries immediately.
Yet, this habit was proved to be a bad habit and affect students‟ reading comprehension (Dechant, 1991). The results are limited vocabulary knowledge and inadequate reading ability. One possible explanation for the abovementioned problem can be found in Miller and Perkins‟ study (1989), in which the researchers indicated that in most reading classrooms, students have received inadequate instructions on reading skills and LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download1: add luanvanchat@agmail. Teachers normally stress on the production of reading comprehension rather than the reading process.
Therefore, a better way of teaching and learning reading skills, as many researchers have suggested, is to equip students with the strategy of guessing word meaning from context and to help them become independent readers. Particularly, 10th grade students may have not been taught any reading strategy before. They have acquired a range of vocabulary and grammar after five to seven years of learning English. Now it is urged that they be taught learning strategies to become better and more efficient learners.
With a view to gaining some insight into reading strategies and reading strategy instruction, I chose to study how to improve students‟ reading comprehension through the teaching of lexical inference strategy. The rationale for my focus is that lexical inference strategy plays a critical role in successful reading (Sullivan, 1978). Although the importance of lexical inferencing has been highlighted in a number of empirical studies, much remains to be learned about it. Aims of the Research The study aimed at improving reading comprehension ability of 10th grade students at High School for Gifted Students (HNUE) through lexical inference strategy instruction, and giving recommendations on how to teach students to use lexical inference strategies effectively to enhance their reading abilities.
Objectives of the Research The specific objectives of the research were as follows: Examine whether there is a correlation between lexical knowledge and reading comprehension. Apply the teaching of lexical inference strategy to improve reading comprehension ability of 10th grade students at High School for Gifted Students. Explore the students‟ attitudes towards lexical inference strategy instruction. Give recommendations to other teachers of English on how to teach the students to use lexical inference strategy effectively to improve their comprehension in reading classes.
LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download2: add luanvanchat@agmail. Research Questions In this investigation, the following research questions were addressed: 1. Is there a correlation between students’ lexical knowledge and their reading comprehension ability? 2. To what extent does the teaching of lexical inference strategy have impact on the students’ reading comprehension? 3.
What are the students’ attitudes towards the lexical inference strategy instruction? 1. Scope of the Research This study only focused on the teaching of lexical inference strategy to grade 10 students at High School for Gifted Students, so the teaching of other reading strategies or to other subjects would be beyond scope. Significance of the Research This study focused on investigating the effect of the vocabulary learning strategy - lexical inferencing - on students at High School for Gifted Students, especially on tenth graders. For students in the tenth grade, exposure to a large amount of reading and learning new words in reading can develop good habits in terms of English learning as they begin high school.
Thus, as mentioned above, if the instruction of lexical inferencing leads to good results, it can be put to use in wider scale.