Effects of schema-based activities on EFL learners' reading comprehension = Ảnh hưởng của các hoạt động hoạt hóa kiến thức nền đối với khả năng đọc hiểu của người học tiếng Anh

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING

QUY NHON UNIVERSITY

NGUYEN PHUONG NGAN

EFFECTS OF SCHEMA-BASED ACTIVITIES ON

EFL LEARNERS’ READING COMPREHENSION

Field: Theory and Methodology of English Language Teaching

Code: 8140111

Supervisor: Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Quang Ngoan

Binh Dinh - 2022

BỘ GIÁO DỤC VÀ ĐÀO TẠO

TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC QUY NHƠN

NGUYỄN PHƯƠNG NGÂN

ẢNH HƯỞNG CỦA CÁC HOẠT ĐỘNG HOẠT HÓA

KIẾN THỨC NỀN ĐỐI VỚI KHẢ NĂNG ĐỌC HIỂU

CỦA NGƯỜI HỌC TIẾNG ANH

Ngành: Lý luận và phương pháp dạy học bộ môn Tiếng Anh

Mã số: 8140111

Người hướng dẫn: PGS. TS. Nguyễn Quang Ngoạn

Bình Định - 2022

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STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP

I declare that the information reported in this study is the result of my

own work and effort, except where due reference is made. The thesis has not

been accepted for any degree and is not concurrently submitted to any

candidature for any degree or diploma.

Binh Dinh, August 2022

Nguyen Phuong Ngan

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

During the process of doing this thesis, I have received invaluable

support, precious ideas and timely encouragements from my supervisor, family

and friends. This paper could not have been successfully completed without

their helps, encouragement and contributions. I take this chance to appreciate

them for their expert advice and wise comments and generous time.

First and foremost, I am grateful to my supervisor, Assos. Prof. Dr.

Nguyen Quang Ngoan, for his amazing supervision. His outstanding

knowledge, professional teaching-related expertise, kind support and

continuous assistances went through the process of doing this thesis. His

encouragement and comment had significantly enriched and improved my

work. I appreciate his accommodating guidelines and suggestions, great

patience, and strong management skills in helping me resolve obstacles when I

carried out my thesis. I feel fortunate to have had him support my work.

This study was made achievable by the presence of the enthusiastic

students at Au Viet Center in Khanh Hoa Province, who devoted their time

taking part in this research. I am also thankful to my colleagues for their

fascinating assistance, support and management during the pilot phase.

Last but not least, a special thank is given to my beloved parents and

sister for their encouragement and support throughout thesis education.

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ABSTRACT

Reading comprehension is one of four important skills in learning any

languages. However, many learners still have difficulties in improving their

reading comprehension. This research aims at investigating the effects of

schema-based activities on EFL learners’ reading comprehension. The research

employed a quasi-experimental method in a mixed-method design with the

participation of 80 EFL tenth-grade learners in an English center in Khanh Hoa

Province. These participants were divided into 2 groups: control group and

experimental group. Three research instruments were two reading

comprehension tests, a questionnaire and a semi-structured interview. The

findings showed that schema-based activities have positive effects on learners’

reading comprehension such as increasing reading speed, motivating interests,

providing real-world knowledge and specific purposes before reading, and so

on.

Keywords: schema activation, schema-based activities, reading

comprehension

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP ...................................................................i

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS..............................................................................ii

ABSTRACT.....................................................................................................iii

TABLE OF CONTENTS.................................................................................iv

LIST OF TABLES .........................................................................................viii

LIST OF FIGURES........................................................................................... x

LIST OF ABBRREVIATIONS .......................................................................xi

CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION ..................................................................... 1

1.1. Rationale................................................................................................ 1

1.2. Aim and objectives of the study ............................................................ 2

1.3. Research questions ................................................................................ 3

1.4. Significance of the study ....................................................................... 3

1.5. Scope of the study.................................................................................. 4

1.6. Definitions of terms............................................................................... 4

1.7. Structure of the thesis............................................................................ 4

CHAPTER 2. LITERATURE REVIEW .......................................................... 6

2.1. Reading comprehension ........................................................................ 6

2.1.1. Definitions...................................................................................... 6

2.1.2. Reading comprehension approaches............................................. 7

2.1.3. Reading comprehension teaching and learning .......................... 10

2.1.4. The importance of English language reading ............................. 12

v

2.1.5. Reading testing and assessment................................................... 13

2.2. Schema Theory.................................................................................... 14

2.2.1. Definitions.................................................................................... 14

2.2.2. Types of schemas.......................................................................... 15

2.3. Schema-based activities and reading comprehension ......................... 17

2.3.1. The effects of schema-based activities on reading comprehension

................................................................................................................ 17

2.3.2. Pedagogical implication of schema-based activities in reading

comprehension ....................................................................................... 19

2.4. Related studies on applying schema activation to teach L2 reading

comprehension............................................................................................ 22

CHAPTER 3. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ............................................ 28

3.1. Research aim and hypotheses.............................................................. 28

3.1.1. Research questions....................................................................... 28

3.1.2. Hypotheses................................................................................... 28

3.2. Research design ................................................................................... 29

3.3. Participants .......................................................................................... 30

3.3.1. Teacher......................................................................................... 30

3.3.2. Students........................................................................................ 30

3.4. Material and time frame ...................................................................... 31

3.4.1. Material and lesson plan ............................................................. 31

3.4.2. Time frame ................................................................................... 32

3.5. Instruments .......................................................................................... 32

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3.5.1. Reading comprehension tests....................................................... 33

3.5.2. The questionnaire......................................................................... 34

3.5.3. The semi-structured interview ..................................................... 34

3.6. Data collection procedure.................................................................... 35

3.7. Validity and reliability......................................................................... 36

CHAPTER 4. FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION ............................................ 37

4.1. Students’ achievement in reading comprehension between the control

group and experimental group before and after the intervention ............... 37

4.1.1. Students’ achievement in reading comprehension between the two

groups before the intervention............................................................... 38

4.1.2. Students’ achievement in reading comprehension between the two

groups after the intervention.................................................................. 39

4.2. Students’ achievement in reading comprehension within the

experimental group before and after the intervention ................................ 41

4.2.1. Students’ reading comprehension difference between the pre-test

and post-test ........................................................................................... 41

4.2.2. Students’ reading comprehension detailed score in the pre-test and

post-test .................................................................................................. 42

4.2.3. Students’ performance in each part of the reading comprehension

tests......................................................................................................... 43

4.3. Students’ attitudes towards the use of schema-based activities in

learning reading comprehension................................................................. 45

4.3.1. Students’ time of practicing reading comprehension outside the

class........................................................................................................ 46

vii

4.3.2. Students’ preferences for each activity........................................ 47

4.3.3. Students’ attitudes towards the use of schema-based activities in

learning reading comprehension ........................................................... 49

4.3.4. Differences in male and female students’ attitudes towards the use

of schema-based activities in leaning reading comprehension............. 56

4.4. Students’ understanding of using schema-based activities in learning

English reading comprehension - its benefits, challenges and suggestions57

CHAPTER 5. CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATIONS................................. 63

5.1. Summary of the findings..................................................................... 63

5.2. Pedagogical implications..................................................................... 65

5.3. Limitations of the study....................................................................... 66

5.4. Suggestions for further studies............................................................ 67

REFERENCES................................................................................................ 68

APPENDICES................................................................................................. 76

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LIST OF TABLES

Table 3.1. Background of the participants............................................ 30

Table 3.2. General lesson plans for teaching two groups..................... 31

Table 3.3. Reading comprehension tests format................................... 33

Table 4.1. Reliability of the pre-test and post-test of the two groups... 37

Table 4.2. Students’ achievement in reading comprehension between the

control and experimental group before the intervention....................... 38

Table 4.3. Difference in the pre-test between the two groups.............. 38

Table 4.4. Students’ achievement in reading comprehension between the

control and experimental group after the intervention.......................... 39

Table 4.5. Difference in the post-test between the two groups............. 40

Table 4.6. Difference between the pre-test and post-test within the experimental

group...................................................................................................... 41

Table 4.7. Mean score of each part of the pre-test................................ 43

Table 4.8. Mean score of each part of the post-test .............................. 44

Table 4.9. Reliability of all items in the questionnaire ......................... 46

Table 4.10. Time students spent practicing reading comprehension outside

class....................................................................................................... 47

Table 4.11. Students’ preferences for schema-based activities............ 48

Table 4.12. Mean score of students’ preferences for each schema-based activity

............................................................................................................... 48

Table 4.13. Overall mean score of students’ attitudes towards the use of

schema-based activities in learning reading comprehension................ 50

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Table 4.14. Students’ overall affective attitudes towards the use of schema￾based activities in learning reading comprehension ............................. 50

Table 4.15. Students’ positive affective attitudes towards the use of schema￾based activities in learning reading comprehension ............................. 51

Table 4.16. Students’ detailed affective attitudes towards the use of schema￾based activities in learning reading comprehension ............................. 51

Table 4.17. Students’ cognitive attitudes towards the use of schema-based

activities in learning reading comprehension ....................................... 52

Table 4.18. Students’ positive cognitive attitudes towards the use of schema￾based activities in learning reading comprehension ............................. 53

Table 4.19. Students’ detailed cognitive attitudes towards the use of schema￾based activities in learning reading comprehension ............................. 53

Table 4.20. Mean score of male and female students’ attitudes towards the use

of schema-based activities in learning reading comprehension............ 56

Table 4.21. Difference between male and female learners’ attitudes towards the

use of schema-based activities in learning reading comprehension ..... 56

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LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 4.1. Summary of participants’ reading comprehension before and after

the intervention ............................................................................ 40.........

Figure 4.2. Detailed score in the pre-test of the participants in the experimental

group...................................................................................................... 42

Figure 3. Detailed score in the post-test of the participants in the experimental

group...................................................................................................... 42

xi

LIST OF ABBRREVIATIONS

ELF: English as a Foreign Language

ESL: English as a Second Language

MOET: Ministry of Education and Training

L2: second language