Exploring the Challenges of Reading Comprehension Teaching for English Proficiency Test Preparation Class in Indonesia

Abstract

As one of the tested skills within popular English proficiency tests in Indonesia such as IELTS and TOEFL, good command of reading comprehension skill is pivotal for the test takers. The nature of reading skill in testing circumstances, however, demands precision in decision making. Enabling test taker candidates with such precision in test preparation class, then, dictates the teaching of the skill consequently. This paper discusses the commonly found challenges in teaching the skill for the test preparation class with known diverse students age and background. The primary aim of the study is to provide insightful information about those challenges which may, then, contribute to better teaching of the skill. The critical analysis of the relevant literature suggests that the challenges are comprised of three domains: students’ unequal linguistic competence, different level of students’ critical thinking, and also their motivation. The paper concludes by re-emphasising the crucial role of pre-test for the test taker candidates prior to commencing the preparation class, especially for instructors to map and to anticipate these challenges with more reflective and equitable teaching approach which is informed by the pre-test result.

Unpacking the challenges and accommodation strategies of Omani English-Major students on IELTS academic reading tests

“…The main difficulties had to do with time management, using appropriate reading strategies, working out the meaning of lexical items from the context, and the lack of background knowledge about the exam topics and genres. These findings seem to be consistent with other findings in the literature (e.g., Ahmadian, Poulaki, & Farahani, 2016;Alghail & Mahfoodh, 2016;Chalmers & Ian Walkinshaw, 2014;Chowdhury, 2018;Feng & Chen, 2016;Guntur & Pordanjani, 2019).…”

“…Effective reading comprehension is associated with critical reading skills and the appropriate strategy choice (Marzban & Barati, 2016). However, effective readers face challenges as they read since they keep reading to get the most out of what they read (Guntur & Pordanjani, 2019). An insufficient educational background was also reported as one of the difficulties that affect students' reading comprehension negatively (Alghail & Mahfoodh, 2016).…”

Omani Students’ Familiarity with IELTS-based Reading Exam Format and Strategies: A Qualitative Phenomenological Study

“…Reading comprehension is crucial to these skills and requires critical thinking and strategy choices (Marzban & Barati, 2016). However, even skilled readers face challenges as they read, striving to get the most out of their reading (Guntur & Rahimi, 2019). Moreover, an inadequate educational background is one factor that negatively affects students' reading comprehension (AliAlghail & AliMahfoodh, 2016).…”

Reading anxiety in online classroom among Malaysian university learners: Lessons from pandemic to post pandemic era

“…Reading anxiety has been widely studied by many researchers in the past as it is known to have debilitating impacts on most second language learners especially in relation to their reading comprehension (Al-Jarrah & Ismail, 2018;Guntur & Rahimi, 2019), reading competence (Aldhanhani & Abu, 2020;Ramirez et al, 2019), and influence learners' preferences in choosing the reading strategies that work best for them (Kim, 2021;Tai & Tang, 2021;Tien, 2017). However, what is mostly known about reading anxiety so far is via circumstances in a fully face-to-face or physical language classroom, as the learner has direct contact with both the instructor and the peers.…”