Abstract
In this digital world, reading habit has
become a rare habit. The lack of reading habits among our students is
hindering their reading skills. Students’ lack of reading habits leads to
incompetency in reading clearly and understanding the text however, Bhutanese
students are still vague about the importance of exhibiting reading habits. Thus,
this research paper focuses on promoting reading habits among class IX “C”
students of Samtse Higher Secondary school. The method of data collection tools used were observation, survey questionnaire, and interview. The pre-data were collected to analyze the situation followed by interventions like guided
reading, compiling book reviews, delivering book talks, and reader’s theatre.
And later, post data was collected to compare and check on the progress and result
of the research. The research showed that students developed some reading habits when they were given an opportunity to choose books of their interest.
Additionally, the research also suggested the importance of
using a variety of reading materials for students to show interest in
reading. Then the role of the library in the provision of books.
Key
ideas: Reading Habits, book review, interest, reader’s theatre, book
talk and guided reading.
Reading is one of the important strands of the English Language and is an important aspect of our learning experience. Reading
in daily life develops an individual as it helps one to build vocabulary and
develops or builds one's cognitive abilities. It creates awareness of the
surroundings and adds knowledge that otherwise won’t be
gained. Besides gaining the realms of knowledge, Reading also plays an
important recreational role as it keeps a reader engaged and entertained.
Promoting a reading culture has been a major
theme in various countries in the world yet the number of active readers is
still very difficult to achieve. On the 13th of
December 2014, His majesty graced the launch of the national reading year
2015 initiated by the ministry of education. The national reading
year was dedicated to His Majesty the fourth Druk Gyalpo's 60th birth
anniversary. The reading year was initiated to cultivate reading habits
among students, The Bhutanese (2014). However, the efforts seem to
be futile as of now as prevailing facilities of mass
media indulge people in it. Therefore, students do not show much interest
in reading.
Besides creating awareness of the importance
of reading, Reading habits among adolescence have been declining unlike in
the past. Students in the olden days freed themselves from boredom by reading books
and those books from the library were the only source of knowledge besides textbooks.
The
paper focuses on the journey of promotion of reading habits among class IX “C”
Students to make it a lifelong hobby. The main aim of promoting a
reading culture was to make reading a habit that is appreciated and
loved and to improve reading skills. During the research, the
preliminary data suggested that the majority of students lacked interest in reading
habits and the lack of reading habits among students was due to lack of
interest, limited varied genre books in the library, and distraction from social
media. As part of a promotion, interesting intervention like book talk and
reader’s theatre was conducted to instigate interest in
students. And then by the end of the semester, post data resulted in an improvement in reading habits among class IX students.
Reconnaissance
Situation analysis
During Teaching Practice, I learned that
Class IX C’s were facing difficulty in the reading textbook during the English period and speaking extemporaneously while interacting in class in
comparison to class XI Arts students. Later, I learned from students that they had poor reading habits owing to limited library books of varied genres provided
in schools. Additionally, I also observed that social media distracted students
from exhibiting reading habits which hindered their competency in performing
well in English subjects. Therefore, I conducted preliminary research through a questionnaire survey to find out about reading habits exhibited by Class IX C
students. The motive behind choosing class IX C was to help them improve
their habits from a young age. As a common saying has it that if you take care of
the root of the tree, the flowering and fragrance will come by themselves.
Schooling needed to take care of young children and nurture them so that they
take the habit lifelong.
Competency
Researcher
I studied an introduction to Action
Research module during the fourth semester whereby I learned about research and the
steps involved in conducting educational action research. Additionally, I
attended a research convention in the college based on the theme “Educational
Innovation and practice”, in the spring semester of 2017 followed by a seminar
conducted by RIGGS (Royal Institute for Governance and strategic studies).
Furthermore, I also attended extensive research titled
“Finding Pema Lingpa”, by Pawo Choying Dorji in
spring semester during Samtse 2020.
Critical Friend
I chose my mentor, Ms. Pema as a critical
friend. She is an English teacher in Samtse Higher Secondary School
and she has worked in the field of research while pursuing a master's
in Rangsit University in Bangkok whereby she worked on
action research. As a critical friend, she helped by reviewing my interview
questions and carrying out interventions to inculcate reading habits
among IX “C” students.
Participants
Class IX C students of Samtse Higher Secondary School
participated in my action research as they lacked reading habits and they
were able to take part as they could read and fill out questionnaires.
Literature
Review
Reading is the ability to understand the
information or meaning from the written text. Reading takes place when we are
mentally involved in the reading materials, analyzing and passing judgment on them. Blaha & Bennett as cited in Erdem (2014) states, “A habit is a characteristic behavioral pattern that is learned and
reinforced in a way realized in every case automatically”. And then the habit
of reading is the basis of lifelong learning and if reading habits are
cultivated from an early age, we follow the same pattern throughout our
lives. Okundu (2005) as cited in Otike (2017) points out
that “inculcating a reading culture introduced at an early age among
children because reading habit developed over a prolonged period of time and an
early promotion will be able to shape them into lifelong readers” (p.5).
Reading can help in personal and
professional development however, the study showed that Reading
books based on an individual’s interest motivate students to read. In
addition, the liberty of selecting books should be given to students
because they tend to read more when it’s their choice. The research also
suggested that the library plays an important role in promoting the reading habits of
students but Social media is a challenge in promoting reading habits as it can
distract readers. Otike (2017) adds that the School library should allow
students to select books from shelves and allow them to read them during library
sessions. By doing so, the student’s freedom to choose books is protected.
Besides giving the right to select their own books, libraries should play a major role in
providing books with varied genres. Taiwo (2011) points out that “Library
should offer books of the varied collection of enjoyable and interesting
genre because it stimulates the development of reading habit” (p.9). Furthermore,
he points out that, If “Libraries provide access to enjoyable reading
materials then students can gain and improve their knowledge and
skill” (p.11). Voluntary reading will also be cultivated in students leading to the development of reading skills and comprehension of textbooks which can further
help students do well in academic subjects.
Besides the promotion of reading through the library, Social media tends to distract students from developing reading habits
as found in the research. Students constantly expressed that they indulge in
online activities and hardly get time for readings besides reading in the
classroom. Chen & Bryer, (2010) as cited in Kojo (2018)
noted that “a prevalence of social media used for private use
and a low percentage of students and educators use them for academic purposes”
(p.4).
In
conclusion, Reading promoted at an early age can help inculcate a prolonged
habit for life, and once a reading habit becomes conditioned, social media can
hardly distract a genuine reader.
Research Question: How can I promote reading habits among class IX C students of Samtse Higher Secondary School?
Research
Objectives
By the
end of the research intervention, students of class IX C should be able to:
ü Enhancing
students’ reading skills with the aid of daily practice.
ü Inculcate
a good reading habit in their daily lives.
ü Class IX “C” students
should be able to read properly with correct pronunciation, intonation, and
pace.
Baseline data
analysis and result
During preliminary research, I observed
that students of class IX “C”, faced difficulty in reading fluently and could
not pronounce words correctly. Most of the students stammered while
reading and hardly could express their understanding of the text. To
confirm the result found from the observation, I used a survey questionnaire and interviewed students. the findings showed
that most of the students of class IX “C”, lacked reading habits.
Another reason behind having poor reading habits was a lack of interest, lack of curiosity, and social media partially distracted them from reading. The following figure 2.1 shows that 9.7% of students strongly disagreed and 35.5% of students disagreed when inquired about the role of curiosity in instigating reading. And during the interviews student shared that they lack curiosity in reading due to the limited time assigned for the library period and also because of limited books of various genres.
On the
other hand, 22.6% of students agreed to some extent that they read out of
curiosity followed by 29% agreed and 3.2 %
strongly agreed. Some students shared during the one-to-one interviews that,
they read out of curiosity when they see articles on social media apps like Any
Book, webtoon, and Facebook pages.
Besides, using social media app as a platform to exhibit reading habit, also distract them from reading as 32.3% of students as shown in figure 3.1 agreed to some extent with the claim mentioned above. Furthermore, 9.7% of students agreed and 6.7 % of students strongly agreed. On the other hand, of the students who choose to read on social media apps, 19.4% disagreed with the point followed by 32.3 strongly disagreed.
Following
intervention programs were used after preliminary research was
conducted.
1. Reading
session on a variety of genres.
In every English period,
students were presented with short articles, and a reading
style with correct pronunciation was demonstrated. Then students were
made to listen and repeat it. Then students were also asked to select
their own short articles of their interest and read in the class during the English
period. Students were introduced to reading
activities to promote reading through a choice of various
books in a variety of genres. Such a reading session helped students to select
and read articles of their choice and demonstrate their reading
style in front of their classmates. Additionally, it engaged students
in reading sessions on a regular basis as all the students were made to repeat the
readings demonstrated by the reader of the day.
2.
Assigned students to write reviews on completion of reading an article or
book.
During the library
period, I helped students select books based on their interests, and during the reading period, I helped them read and interpreted the meaning of difficult
sentences and words they found. After which I assigned students
to review and comment on the books read by them in their portfolio as a
part of the assignment. These practices of reading and recording helped me study the
abstract ideas like their interest and supplemented as a proof of
reading habit exhibited. Such assignments helped students to improve their
language competency as they will be reading at the same time writing the
reflection.
3. Guided
students to have an effective reading session.
There is a variety
of books, and articles that cater to the student’s interests. During the reading session in the first period every Thursday, I conducted a reading session in the class
and helped students read and also demonstrated some readings. Students were
also given feedback and reinforcement to encourage them to read. At times, I
interpreted the difficult word meanings and sentences. Guided readings helped
students identify their weaknesses and work on them to escalate good
reading skills.
4. Book
Talk:
Besides, writing reviews on books and practicing
reading in class, I also made students deliver book talks in the class
from their portfolios. Students read and described their favorite books and
the best presenter was awarded prizes.
5. Reader’s
theatre
Children love
nothing more than acting and trying out different roles. Since children were
reluctant readers, encouraging them to play a character from a story or novel
with dialogue can help in motivating students to read. Thus, I assigned
students roles from the play and read them aloud. Students were also made to
wear props like false noses to motivate them to read. These interventions motivated students to improve their reading habits.
Students staging reader's theater to enhance reading habits
After the intervention, post-research was conducted and the study showed that the Reading
habit of students improved in comparison to preliminary research. And then
students also shared during one-to-one interviews that they started reading out
of curiosity and interest when they were given chance to choose books or
articles of their interest. Students expressed that their language competency
improves while reading books. However, social media was still a challenge or a
barrier to reading more as it constantly distracted them.
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Figure 4.1 shows the daily reading habit of students habits from post-research. The post-result graph shows that students have started reading more in comparison to the past. 25.8% of students strongly agreed to have reading practices on daily basis, followed by 48.4 % of students who agreed. In conclusion, the interventions were effective in promoting and cultivating reading habits among students of Class IX “C”.
During the one-to-one interview, students expressed that the reason behind the improvement in
their reading habits was due to the liberty of selecting their own articles,
magazine, or books of their interest to write reviews and read. Figure
5.1, it shows that 35.5 % strongly agreed that they read out of curiosity
followed by 38.7% who agreed and 19.4 % of students agreed to some extent.
On other hand, 3.2 % of students strongly disagreed and 3.2 % disagreed with the statement, “I read out of curiosity”.
Additionally, students expressed that they
exhibit readings when they are curious about a new thing that they come across
in their daily lives. For instance, student no. 12 shared, “I read more when I
am interested in reading things that I like. I mostly prefer reading Korean
drama reviews before watching it”, and student number 2 shared, “I read
thriller books and comic only when I have to”. On the other hand, Student
number 1 said, “I only read when I have to, otherwise I don’t read”.
However, among genuine readers, about 6.5 % strongly disagreed that social media is a
distraction followed by 6.5% of students with similar views who disagreed with the prior
mentioned point. Student number 16 and 11 shared that they like reading on
social media since it is less time-consuming and materials on social media are
interesting. On the other hand, student number 12 shared that she read Korean
drama reviews on Facebook and google chrome. Student number 2 said, “I read on
ANY BOOK since I can find a variety of interesting books on an app called ANY BOOK.”
Discussion
The findings of the study revealed that reading can
be promoted among adolescence by taking into consideration of
their interest. During interviews, students expressed that they read based on
their interest and curiosity about a subject. When students are given the opportunity to select books or articles that interest them, they can read and
vice versa.
A graph shows the comparison between
students' habits of reading on daily basis during preliminary research and post-research. The graph depicts that preliminary research showed that
35.5% of students strongly disagreed and 35.5 % disagreed when asked about
their reading habits. However, the post-result graph shows that
students have started reading more in comparison to the past. 25.8% of students
strongly agreed to have a reading habit on daily basis, additionally, 48.4 % of
students agreed. In conclusion, the interventions were effective in promoting
and cultivating reading habits among students of Class IX “C”.
A Student expressed
their interest in reading comics and memes on social media platforms like
Facebook, Instagram, and webtoon over textbooks and library
books since it is convenient as the accessibility of reading
materials is high. According to Kojo (2018), “Social media
provides easy access to virtual space whereby students can explore online”
(p.11). However, many students shared that social media distract them from
reading. Choney (2010) states as cited in Akussah (2015)
that “Facebook and other social media websites are consuming more time of
students due to the society's increasing reliance on computers and thus,
students neglect reading” (p.8) similarly, students have shared that they are
engaged in playing online games on social media.
Limitation
and scope of future research
The study conducted could not prove or conclude about the impact
of reading habits on language competency. Although students agreed to have
improved their language competency due to reading, the study could not measure
it or obtain concrete evidence like the results of their annual exam to
prove that reading improves the language competency of students. The reason for not being able to obtain the evidence was due to time constraints as the
research was conducted for four months and the collection
of evidence requires a long duration.
The graph and tables show that most students have agreed to have
improved their English language as a result of reading habits however, due to
the lack of concrete evidence like marks obtained during their examination, it
could not be validated.
Therefore, there is the future scope for
the same research to find out more about the positive effect of reading on
improvement in the English language.
Recommendations
· Future
researchers can use observation and record the progress of students in terms of improving the English language through reading habits.
· Abstract idea about the impact of reading
on language competency can be validated by finding out the test score of
students in English subject as evidence to prove that reading helps
improve the language of a student.
Conclusion
Reflection
Learning theoretical knowledge
on action research was an easy task. But doing it in a field was both enriching and challenging. Carrying out action research gave me an opportunity
to apply my theoretical knowledge which helped me learn about ways
involved in conducting research and extended my knowledge about action research.
Firstly, I learned that Action Research must be conducted properly by
doing on time without delay to keep track of the progress. And while doing so,
we can get data and validate the data without missing out on any
details. Secondly, I learned the skill of interviewing participants and refining my research by using an application like SPSS and excel worksheets.
On the other hand, carrying out research
in a real field with little experience and time was difficult. With little
experience, I had to seek help from critical friend constantly. And I had little knowledge about the usage of SPSS and making graphs. However, I overcame
the hurdle by browsing in internet and by seeking help from my module tutor and
critical friend. Additionally, the time constraint was another challenge
as I could not find a proper and accurate measuring tool to prove
students' opinions about reading helping them improve their language competency
as the research was carried out till June before the examination and
obtaining examination results of English subject was difficult. So, I realized
that I would have been able to know and include the impact of reading on the language of students if I had a longer duration of time to carry out my
research.
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