The implementation of an intensive second language reading intervention program for Arabic L1 learners of English as a foreign language

Authors

  • M. Joan Oakley College of the North Atlantic-Qatar, Doha
  • Judit Kormos Lancaster University
  • Gareth McCray Keele University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1558/isla.18885

Keywords:

reading comprehension, reading instruction, arabic learners, eye-tracking, vowel blindness, textual enhancement, phonological awareness, spelling, word recognition, reading fluency

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of focused reading interventions on the eye movement patterns and reading scores of second language (L2) learners. We compared two groups of proficiency matched Arabic L2 learners before and after an intensive reading intervention program. Two classes received a barrage of reading interventions and two classes served as comparison groups. The intervention program consisted of textual enhancement, phonological awareness training, training in word recognition, spelling instruction and oral text reading fluency. Analysis of reading scores showed a significant improvement over time, but no significant impact of the intervention. Both the intervention and comparison groups showed improvement in their eye tracking measures, but no significant difference in gains between the intervention and the comparison groups was found. The study provides a building block for future studies using focused pedagogical interventions with this particular group of learners.

Author Biographies

  • M. Joan Oakley, College of the North Atlantic-Qatar, Doha

    Dr Joan Oakley taught ESL and was involved in teacher education in Canada at Université du Québec à Chicoutimi, Concordia University and Memorial University. After a move to the Middle East in 2000, she taught EFL at UAE University. In 2006, she moved to Qatar where she has been teaching EFL at the College of the North Atlantic-Qatar, researching how best to help Arabic L1 speakers learn to successfully read in English.

  • Judit Kormos, Lancaster University

    Professor Judit Kormos is a Professor in Second Language Acquisition at Lancaster University. She is the co-author of the book Teaching Languages to Students with Specific Learning Differences with Anne Margaret Smith. She has published widely on the effect of dyslexia on learning additional languages including a book entitled ‘The Second Language Learning Processes of Students with Specific Learning Difficulties’. She is the author of multiple research papers that investigate the role of cognitive factors in second language acquisition.

  • Gareth McCray, Keele University

    Dr Gareth McCray is currently working as a lecturer in biostatistics in the School of Medicine at Keele University. His current research includes modelling child development trajectories in developing countries, test linking, IRT, and the diagnosis of Neurodevelopmental delay in 0–3-year-olds. He has expertise in psychometrics, simulation methods and expert judgement collection and analysis. He worked extensively on the construction of the IYCD (Infant and Young Child Development Indicators) for the WHO. He has also worked as a consultant for Oxford University Press, and The British Council language testing divisions.

References

Abu-Rabia S. (1997) Reading in Arabic orthography: The effects of vowels and context on reading accuracy of poor and skilled native Arabic speakers. Reading and Writing 9: 65–78. https://doi.org/10.24297/jal.v5i2.2848

Abu-Rabia, S. and Siegel, L. (2003) Reading skills in three orthographies: The case of trilingual Arabic–Hebrew–English-speaking Arab children. Reading and Writing: An Interdisciplinary Journal 16: 611–34. https://doi.org/10.1023/a:1025838029204

Akamatsu, N. (2008) The effects of training on automatization of word recognition in English as a foreign language. Applied Psycholinguistics 29: 175–93. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0142716408080089

Alhazmi,K., Milton, J. and Johnston, S. (2019) Examining ‘vowel blindness’ among native Arabic speakers reading English words from the perspective of eye-tracking. System 80: 235–45. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2018.12.005

Alsadoon, R. and Heift, T. (2015) Textual input enhancement for vowel blindness: A study with Arabic ESL learners. The Modern Language Journal 99: 57–79. https://doi.org/10.1111/modl.12188

Apel, K. and Masterson, J. (2001) Theory-guided spelling assessment and intervention: A case study. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in the Schools 32: 182–95. https://doi.org/10.1044/0161-1461(2001/017)

Ashby, J., Rayner, K. and Clifton, C. (2005) Eye movements of highly skilled and average readers: Differential effects of frequency and predictability. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology 58A: 1065–86. https://doi.org/10.1080/02724980443000476

August, G. (2011) Spelling facilitates good ESL reading comprehension. Journal of Developmental Education 35(1): 14.

Browne, C., Culligan, B. and Phillips, J. (2013) The New General Service List. http://www.newgeneralservicelist.org/

Brunfaut, T. and McCray, G. (2015) Looking into Test-Takers’ Cognitive Processes while Completing Reading Tasks (ARAGs Research Reports Online No. AR/2015/001). London: British Council.

Chase, K., Rayner, K. and Well, A. (2005) Eye movements and phonological parafoveal preview: Effects of reading skill. Canadian Journal of Experimental Psychology 59: 209–17. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0087476

Conklin, K., Alotaibi, S., Pellicer-Sánchez, A. and Vilkaite-Lozdiene, L. (2020) What eye-tracking tells us about reading-only and reading-while-listening in a first and second language. Second Language Research 36: 257–76. https://doi.org:10.1177/0267658320921496

Cop, U., Drieghe, D. and Duyck, W. (2015) Eye movement patterns in natural reading: A comparison of monolingual and bilingual reading of a novel. PloS One 10: 1–38. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0134008

Council of Europe. (2001) Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, Teaching, Assessment. Cambridge, U.K: Press Syndicate of the University of Cambridge.

Dussias, P. (2010) Uses of eye-tracking data in second language sentences processing research. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics 30: 149–66.

Ehri, L. (2005) Learning to read words: Theory, findings, and issues. Scientific Studies of Reading 9: 167–88. https://doi.org/10.1207/s1532799xssr0902_4

Ehri, L., Nunes, S., Willows, D., Schuster, B., Yaghoub-Zadeh, Z. and Shanahan, T. (2001) Phonemic awareness instruction helps children learn to read: Evidence from the National Reading Panel’s meta-analysis. Reading Research Quarterly 36: 250–287. https://doi.org/10.1598/rrq.36.3.2

Fender, M. (2003) English word recognition and word integration skills of native Arabic and Japanese-speaking learners of English. Applied Psycholinguistics 24: 289–315. https://doi.org/10.1017/s014271640300016x

Fender, M. (2008) Spelling knowledge and reading development: Insights from Arab ESL learners. Reading in a Foreign Language 20: 19–42.

Fukkink, R., Hulstijn, J. and Simis, A. (2005) Does training in second language word recognition skills affect reading comprehension? An experimental study. The Modern Language Journal 89(1): 54–75. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0026-7902.2005.00265.x

Gough, P. and Tunmer, W. (1986) Decoding, reading and reading disability. Remedial and Special Education 7: 6–10. https://doi.org/10.1177/074193258600700104

Grabe, W. (2009) Reading in a Second Language: Moving from Theory to Practice. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press.

Graham, S., Harris, K. and Chorzempa, B. (2002) Contribution of spelling instruction to the spelling, writing, and reading of poor spellers. Journal of Educational Psychology 94: 669–86. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-0663.94.4.669

Hayes-Harb, R. (2006) Native speakers of Arabic and ESL texts: Evidence for the transfer of written word identification processes. TESOL Quarterly 40: 321–39. https://doi.org/10.2307/40264525

Holmqvist, K., Nyström, M., Andersson, R., Dewhurst, R., Jarodzka, H. and Van de Weijer, J. (2011) Eye Tracking: A Comprehensive Guide to Methods and Measures. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Hyönä, J. and Olson, R. K. (1995) Eye fixation patterns among dyslexic and normal readers: Effects of word length and word frequency. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition 21(6): 1430–40. https://doi.org/10.1037/0278-7393.21.6.1430

Izumi, S. (2002) Output enhancement and the noticing hypothesis. Studies in Second Language Acquisition 24: 541–77. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0272263102004023

Jiang, X., Sawaki, Y. and Sabatini, J. (2012) Word reading efficiency and oral reading fluency in ESL reading comprehension. Reading Psychology 33: 323–49. https://doi.org/10.1080/02702711.2010.526051

Katz, L. and Frost, R. (1992) The reading process is different for different orthographies: The orthographic depth hypothesis. In R. Frost and L. Katz (eds) Orthography, Phonology, Morphology, and Meaning 67–84. Amsterdam, NL: Elsevier North Holland Press.

Lee, S. and Huang, H. (2008) Visual input enhancement and grammar learning: A meta-analytic review. Studies in Second Language Acquisition 30: 307–31. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0272263108080479

Leow, R., and Martin, A. (2018) Enhancing the input to promote salience of the L2. In P. Spinner, S. M. Gass, and J. Behney (eds) Salience in Second Language Acquisition 167–86. New York: Routledge.

Lesaux, N. and Siegel, L. (2003) The development of reading in children who speak English as a second language. Developmental Psychology 39: 1005–19. https://doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.39.6.1005

Martinez, R. and Schmitt, N. (2012) A phrasal expressions list. Applied Linguistics 33: 299–320. https://doi.org/10.1093/applin/ams010

Masterson, J. and Apel, K. (2000) Spelling assessment: Charting a path to optimal instruction. Topics in Language Disorders 20: 50–56. https://doi.org/10.1097/00011363-200020030-00007

National Reading Panel. (2000) Teaching Children to Read: An Evidence-Based Assessment of the Scientific Research Literature on Reading and its Implications for Reading Instruction. Retrieved from http://www.nichd.nih.gov/publications/nrp/report.cfm

Oakley, M. J. (2018) Coming from Different Directions: A Comparison of the Eye Movements of English L1 and Arabic L1 Speakers Reading in English and the Implementation of an Intensive Reading Intervention Programme [Unpublished doctoral dissertation]. Lancaster: Lancaster University.

O’Connor, M., Geva, E. and Koh, P. W. (2019) Examining reading comprehension profiles of grade 5 monolinguals and English language learners through the lexical quality hypothesis lens. Journal of Learning Disabilities 52(3): 232–46. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022219418815646

Perfetti, C. (1997) The psycholinguistics of spelling and reading. In C. Perfetti, L. Rieben and M. Fayol (eds) Learning to Spell: Research, Theory, and Practice 21–38. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Plonsky, L. (2015) Statistical power, p values, descriptive statistics, and effect sizes: A ‘back-to-basics’ approach to advancing quantitative methods in L2 research. In L. Plonsky (ed.) Advancing Quantitative Methods in Second Language Research 23–45. New York: Routledge.

Qian, D. (1999) Assessing the role of depth and breadth of vocabulary knowledge in reading comprehension. The Canadian Modern Language Review 56: 282–307. https://doi.org/10.3138/cmlr.56.2.282

Randall, M. (2007) Memory, Psychology and Second Language Learning. Amsterdam, NL: John Benjamins.

Randall, M. and Groom, N. (2009) The BUiD Arab learner corpus: A resource for studying the acquisition of spelling. Retrieved from http://ucrel.lancs.ac.uk/publications/CL2009/54_FullPaper.doc

Randall, M. and Meara, P. (1988) How Arabs read Roman letters. Reading in a Foreign Language 4: 133–45.

Rasinski, T. and Samuels, S. (2011) Reading fluency: What it is and what it is not. In S. Samuels and A. Farstrup (eds) What Research has to say about Reading Instruction 94–113. Newark, DE: International Reading Association.

Rayner, K. (1998) Eye movements in reading and information processing: 20 years of research. Psycholinguistic Bulletin 124: 372–422. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.124.3.372

Rayner, K. (2009) Eye movements and attention in reading, scene perception, and visual search. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology 62: 1457–1506. https://doi.org/10.1080/17470210902816461

Rayner K., Reichle, E., Stroud, M., Williams, C. and Pollatsek, A. (2006) The effect of word frequency, word predictability, and font difficulty on the eye movements of young and elderly readers. Psychology and Aging 21: 448–65. https://doi.org/10.1037/0882-7974.21.3.448

Ryan, A. (1997) Learning the orthographical form of L2 vocabulary-a receptive and a productive process. In N. Schmitt and M. McCarthy (eds) Vocabulary: Description, Acquisition and Pedagogy 181–98. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

Ryan, A. and Meara P. (1991) The case of the invisible vowels: Arabic speakers reading English words. Reading in a Foreign Language 7: 531–40.

Saigh, K. and Schmitt, N. (2012) Difficulties with vocabulary word form: The case of Arabic ESL learners. System 40: 24–36. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2012.01.005

Schmider, E., Ziegler, M., Danay, E., Beyer, L. and Bühner, M. (2010) Is it really robust? Reinvestigating the robustness of ANOVA against violations of the normal distribution. European Research Journal of Methods for the Behavioral and Social Sciences 6: 147–51. https://doi.org/10.1027/1614-2241/a000016

Sharwood Smith, M. (1991) Speaking to many minds: On the relevance of different types of language information for the L2 learner. Second Language Research 7: 118–32. https://doi.org/10.1177/026765839100700204

Thompson-Panos, K. and Thomas-Ružic, M. (1983) The least you should know about Arabic: Implications for the ESL writing instructor. TESOL Quarterly 17: 609–23. https://doi.org/10.2307/3586616

VanPatten, B. (2015) Foundations of processing instruction. International Review of Applied Linguistics 53(2): 91–109. https://doi.org/10.1515/iral-2015-00

Wade-Woolley, L. and Siegel, L. (1997) The spelling performance of ESL and native speakers of English as a function of reading skill. Reading and Writing: An Interdisciplinary Journal 9: 387–406. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-3054-9_5

Winke, P. (2013) The effects of input enhancement on grammar learning and comprehension. Studies in Second Language Acquisition 35: 323–52. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0272263112000903

Yeung, S., Siegel, L. and Chan, C. (2013) Effects of a phonological awareness program on English reading and spelling among Hong Kong Chinese ESL children. Reading and Writing 26: 681–704. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11145-012-9383-6

Downloads

Published

2022-03-18

Issue

Vol. 6 No. 1 (2022)

Section

Articles

How to Cite

Oakley, M. J., Kormos, J., & McCray, G. . (2022). The implementation of an intensive second language reading intervention program for Arabic L1 learners of English as a foreign language. Instructed Second Language Acquisition, 6(1), 3–28. https://doi.org/10.1558/isla.18885

Most read articles by the same author(s)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 > >>