A Case Study on Improving Reading Fluency at a University in the UAE

Abstract

Students native to the Arabian Gulf region often struggle with reading skills. The purpose of this study was to explore the reading habits and reading culture of Emirati undergraduate students and to investigate the use of a particular reading strategy (Listening While Reading) on undergraduate Emirati students reading rate and comprehension. This case study was conducted through a mixed method research design. It was carried out with sixty-one SLL (second language learners) undergraduate students. By assigning them into two groups, the experimental group (28 students) was given books with an auditory component, while the control group (33 students) was given the same books but without the auditory component. both positive and negative reflections from teachers and students on different aspects of the LWR experiences are discussed. Qualitative findings revealed more contextualized results related to the lack of comprehension improvement such as, lack of reading habits. Additionally, quantitative results indicated that the performance of students in reading rate and accuracy improved over time. However, reading comprehension did not improve. Additionally, implications in terms of the use of the LWR in English language classes for practitioners are discussed as well as recommendations for future studies.

The Effectiveness of Visual Mind Mapping Strategy for Improving English Language Learners' Critical Thinking Skills and Reading Ability

“…Most previous studies, however, focused on mind mapping in general, with little research into the use of visual mind mapping strategies to improve undergraduate students' critical thinking skills and reading ability in the UAE. It has also been observed that Emirati undergraduate students struggle with reading skills (Eppard et al, 2020). Because of the facts stated above, critical thinking may be regarded as a necessary component contributing to students' success in learning English skills.…”

Using Repeated- Reading and Listening –While- Reading via Text-To- Speech APPs. in Developing Fluency and Comprehension

“…A similar result was found in the line of researches by (Kim & Wagner, 2011& 2015. On the contrary, the study by Eppard et al (2020) indicated that LWR improved students' reading fluency, accuracy, and rate but it did not develop reading comprehension.…”

“…Studies investigated the effectiveness of LWR and RR on learner's reading fluency (e.g., Blonder et al, 2019;Eppard, Baroudi, & Rochdi, 2020;Friedland, Gilman, Johnson, & Demeke, 2017;Hawkins, Marsicano, Schmitt, McCallum, Musti-Rao, 2015;Winn et al, 2006). Results affirmed that RR and LWR are two significant techniques that develop learners' reading fluency and comprehension.…”

A Literature Review of Adult Students' Reading Comprehension: Inputs for Distance Education in Costa Rica

“…Solo dos de los estudios contemplaron el uso de las tecnologías de la información y comunicación (Eppard et al, 2020;Ricciardi y Di Nocerab, 2017). Era esperable encontrar mayor uso de aplicaciones digitales tales como Reading A-Z (LAZEL, 2022), para realizar este tipo de investigaciones; no obstante, pocos documentos analizados las tomaron en cuenta y los casos que se emplearon, se requiere el pago para su uso óptimo, lo que puede explicar su poca utilización.…”