Phát triển từ vựng của học sinh khối 11 bằng phương pháp đọc mở rộng một nghiên cứu hành động

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI
UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES & INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
FACULTY OF POST – GRADUATE STUDIES

*********

NGÔ MẠNH HÙNG

EXPANDING GRADE 11 STUDENTS’ VOCABULARY THROUGH
EXTENSIVE READING: AN ACTION RESEARCH PROJECT

(PHÁT TRIỂN TỪ VỰNG CỦA HỌC SINH KHỐI 11 BẰNG
PHƯƠNG PHÁP ĐỌC MỞ RỘNG: MỘT NGHIÊN CỨU HÀNH ĐỘNG)

M.A. MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS

Field: English Language Teaching Methodology
Code: 8140231.01

HANOI – 202019


VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI
UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES & INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
FACULTY OF POST – GRADUATE STUDIES

*********

NGÔ MẠNH HÙNG

EXPANDING GRADE 11 STUDENTS’ VOCABULARY THROUGH

EXTENSIVE READING: AN ACTION RESEARCH PROJECT

(PHÁT TRIỂN TỪ VỰNG CỦA HỌC SINH KHỐI 11 BẰNG
PHƯƠNG PHÁP ĐỌC MỞ RỘNG: MỘT NGHIÊN CỨU HÀNH ĐỘNG)

M.A. MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS

Field: English Language Teaching Methodology
Code: 8140231.01
Supervisor: Assoc. Prof. Dr. Lê Văn Canh


HANOI – 202019


DECLARATION
I certify that the thesis entitled “Expanding grade 11 students’ vocabulary
through extensive reading: An action research project.” is my own research
requirement for the Degree of Master of English Language Teaching
Methodology at the Faculty of Post Graduate Studies, University of
Languages and International Studies, Vietnam National University, Hanoi.

Signature

Ngo Manh Hung

i


ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

First and foremost, I would like to express my deep gratitude to Assoc. Prof.
Dr.Le Van Canh, my supervisor for his encouragement and inspirational
review during this process of writing the thesis. Without his precious support
and invaluable guidance, this thesis would never have been completed.
Besides, I would like to thank the authority of Dong Thanh High School for
allowing me to carry out this study and thank my colleagues and all the
students in class 11A3 for their participation in the study process.
Finally, an honorable mention goes to my families and friends for their
assistance and support for me in completing this thesis.

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ABSTRACT

The study aimed at determining how extensive reading influenced vocabulary
development of high school students, what students‟ attitudes towards
extensive reading stories in enriching their vocabulary knowledgeprogram
were and what can be learned from this action research project about
extensive reading that can be applied in Vietnamese high schoolsbenefits
other than learning vocabulary of extensive reading program from this action
research project were. The participants were 38 students from a grade 11 class
at a high school in Quang Ninh province. They were asked to read 10 short
stories within a twelve – week EFL extensive reading program. The
vocabulary pretest and posttests were administered to measure learners‟
incidental vocabulary learning through the program. The results indicated that
there were significant vocabulary improvements gained by the participants
after the EFL extensive reading program, suggesting that the extensive
reading program had created a beneficial effect on the incidental word

learning gained by the participants.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

DECLARATION .............................................................................................. i
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS............................................................................ ii
ABSTRACT .................................................................................................... iii
TABLE OF CONTENTS............................................................................... iv
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS .................................................................... xvii
LIST OF TABLES .................................................................................... xiviii
LIST OF FIGURES .................................................................................. xiviii
CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION .................................................................. 1
1. Rationale of the study.................................................................................... 1
2. Aims of the study and the research questions ............................................... 2
3. The scope and significance of the study ....................................................... 2
4. Method of the study ...................................................................................... 3
5. Design of the thesis ....................................................................................... 3
CHAPTER II: LITERATURE REVIEW .................................................... 5
2.1. Vocabulary ................................................................................................. 5
2.1.1. The definition of vocabulary ................................................................... 5
2.1.2. The importance of vocabulary in foreign language teaching and
learning .............................................................................................................. 6
2.1.3. Approaches to Vocabulary Acquisition Incidental vocabulary
acquisition and intentional vocabulary learning ............................................... 8
2.2. Extensive reading ....................................................................................... 9
2.2.1. Definition of extensive reading ............................................................... 9
2.2.2. The benefits of extensive reading ......................................................... 10

2.2.3. The basic principles of extensive reading ............................................. 13
2.3. Graded readers ......................................................................................... 15
iv


CHAPER III: METHODOLOGY............................................................... 17
3.1. Research questions ................................................................................... 17
3.2. Description of participants ....................................................................... 17
3.3. Materials ................................................................................................... 17
3.4. Action research......................................................................................... 18
3.5. Data collection instruments ...................................................................... 23
3.5.1. Vocabulary tests .................................................................................... 23
3.5.2. Vocabulary Knowledge Scale(The Post-test 2) .................................... 24
3.5.3. Questionnaire ........................................................................................ 25
3.6. Data presentation and data analysis ......................................................... 25
3.6.1. The pre-test and post-test ...................................................................... 25
3.6.2. Minimum Mastery Criterion ................................................................. 27
3.6.3. Vocabulary knowledge scale ................................................................ 27
3.6.4. Questionnaire ........................................................................................ 28
In this research, the researcher asked participants to write answers to five
open ended questions after they had finished each short story. ...................... 28
CHAPTER IV: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS .................................... 30
4.1. The results of the tests .......................................................................... 3130
4.1.1. The result of pre-test ......................................................................... 3130
4.1.2. The result of the post-test .................................................................. 3433
4.1.3. Data collected from the Vocabulary Knowledge Scale .................... 3837
4.2. The results of questionnaire ................................................................. 3938
In this research, the researcher asked participants to write answers to five
open ended questions after they had finished each short story. .................. 3938
4.2.1. Participants‟ attitudes towards the extensive reading stories in enriching

their vocabulary knowledge. ....................................................................... 4745
4.2.2. The benefits other than learning vocabulary of extensive reading
v


program from this action research project. ................................................. 5048
4.3. Discussion of research questions ......................................................... 5451
4.3.1. Positive effects of extensive reading stories on participants‟ vocabulary
development ................................................................................................ 5451
4.3.2. Students‟ attitudes towards the extensive reading program in enriching
their vocabulary knowledge. ....................................................................... 5552
4.3.3. Applicability of extensive reading program to other contexts.......... 5552
REFERENCES .......................................................................................... 6157
APPENDICES .................................................................................................. I
APPENDIX 1: VOCABULARY PRE- TEST ............................................... I
APPENDIX 2: VOCABULARY POST- TEST 1 ....................................... III
APPENDIX 3: THE POST-TEST 2 (second measure) .............................. V
APPENDIX 4: SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE (ENGLISH VERSION) .. VI
APPENDIX 5: PHIẾU KHẢO SÁT (PHIÊN BẢN TIẾNG VIỆT) ........VII
APPENDIX 6: A SAMPLE OF A LESSON PLAN ................................ VIII
DECLARATION ............................................................................................... i
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .............................................................................. ii
ABSTRACT ..................................................................................................... iii
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ......................................................................... vii
LIST OF TABLES ......................................................................................... viii
LIST OF FIGURES........................................................................................ viii
CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION ...................................................................... 1
1. Rationale of the study.................................................................................... 1
2. Aims of the study and the research questions ............................................... 2
3. The scope and significance of the study ....................................................... 2

4. Method of the study ...................................................................................... 3
5. Design of the thesis ....................................................................................... 3
CHAPTER II: LITERATURE REVIEW ......................................................... 5
vi


2.1. Vocabulary ................................................................................................. 5
2.1.1. The definition of vocabulary ................................................................... 5
2.1.2. The importance of vocabulary in foreign language teaching and
learning .............................................................................................................. 6
2.1.3. Approaches to Vocabulary Acquisition .................................................. 8
Incidental vocabulary acquisition and intentional vocabulary learning ........... 8
2.2. Extensive reading ....................................................................................... 9
2.2.1. Definition of extensive reading ............................................................... 9
2.2.2. The benefits of extensive reading ......................................................... 10
2.2.3. The basic principles of extensive reading ............................................. 13
2.3. Graded readers ......................................................................................... 15
CHAPER III: METHODOLOGY ................................................................... 17
3.1. Research questions ................................................................................... 17
3.2. Description of participants ....................................................................... 17
3.3. Materials ................................................................................................... 17
3.4. Action research......................................................................................... 18
3.5. Data collection instruments ...................................................................... 23
3.5.1. Vocabulary tests .................................................................................... 23
3.5.2. Vocabulary Knowledge Scale(The Post-test 2) .................................... 24
3.5.3. Questionnaire ........................................................................................ 25
3.6. Data presentation and data analysis ......................................................... 25
3.6.1. The pre-test and post-test ...................................................................... 25
3.6.2. Minimum Mastery Criterion ................................................................ 27
3.6.3. Vocabulary knowledge scale ................................................................ 27

3.6.4. Questionnaire ........................................................................................ 28
CHAPTER IV: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS ........................................ 29
4.1. The results of the tests .............................................................................. 29
4.1.1. The result of pre-test ............................................................................. 29
4.1.2. The result of the post-test ...................................................................... 32
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4.1.3. Data collected from the Vocabulary Knowledge Scale ........................ 36
4.2. The results of questionnaire ..................................................................... 37
4.2.1. Participants‟ attitudes towards the extensive reading program ............ 43
4.2.2. The applicability of extensive reading program to high schools .......... 46
4.3. Discussion of research questions ............................................................. 49
4.3.1. Positive effects of extensive reading on participants‟ vocabulary
development .................................................................................................... 49
4.3.2. Students‟ attitudes towards the extensive reading program.................. 50
4.3.3. Applicability of extensive reading program to other contexts ............. 50
PART V: CONCLUSION ............................................................................... 52
REFERENCES ................................................................................................ 55
APPENDICES .................................................................................................... I
APPENDIX 1: VOCABULARY PRE- TEST ................................................... I
APPENDIX 2: VOCABULARY POST- TEST 1 .......................................... III
APPENDIX 3: THE POST-TEST 2 (second measure) ................................... V
APPENDIX 4: SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE (ENGLISH VERSION) ....... VI
APPENDIX 5: PHIẾU KHẢO SÁT (PHIÊN BẢN TIẾNG VIỆT) ..............VII
APPENDIX 6: A SAMPLE OF A LESSON PLAN ................................... VIII

viii

ix


LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

AR

Action Research

EFL

English as a Foreign Languages

ER

Extensive Reading

L1

First Language

L2

Second Language

M

Mean

MOET

The Ministry of Education and Training of Vietnam

x


LIST OF TABLES

Table 1.1: Results of Studies of the Benefits of Extensive Reading Program 12
Table 3.1: individual results of pre-test .................................................. 323130
Table 3.2: individual results of pre-test .................................................. 343332
Table 3.3: The participants‟ vocabulary score of pre-test and post-test1373635
Table 3.4: Sample item requiring demonstration of word knowledge ... 393837
Table 3.5: Sample questionnaire ............................................................. 403938
Table 3.6: The result of questionnaire of 10 lessons .............................. 414038
Table 3.7: Mean result of questionnaire from 10 lessons ....................... 474443

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 2.1: Action Research Cycle (McBride & Schostak, 1989).................. 21
Figure 3.1: Pie chart shows percentage of what participants like about
extensive reading ..................................................................................... 484644
Figure 3.2:Pie chart shows percentage of what participants do not like about
extensive reading ..................................................................................... 494745
Figure 3.3: What participants gained from ER program......................... 514846
Figure 3.4: What participant learnt about reading skill after ER program
................................................................................................................. 524947
Figure 3.5: Participants‟ changes in English reading skill after ER program
................................................................................................................. 535048

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xii


CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION

1. Rationale of the study
As a teacher at a high school in Quang Ninh province, I realized that in spite
of great investment in the physical conditions for teaching and learning
English by the province, the learners‟ ability to use English remained
unsatisfactory. One of the main reasons for this fact was student‟s limited
vocabulary knowledge. Because of having a small vocabulary size, the
students encountered great challenges in developing their language skills such
as listening, speaking, reading and writing. Most students who were studying
English at the school did not know how to enrich their vocabulary to use and
communicate every day.
Vocabulary plays the most important part in learning foreign languages.
Students need to have a rich vocabulary if they want to be good at any skills
such as reading, listening, writing or speaking. Enriching vocabulary is not a
quick progress because it must be a process of preparation, practicing,
learning and long-term accumulation. In general, most students often have
difficulties in mastering or remembering vocabulary. They do not know how
to use vocabulary in situations or real contexts exactly and they tend to learn
Vietnamese meanings of vocabulary by heart. If they do not learn vocabulary
in contexts they may not know how to use vocabulary appropriately.
In the process of making efforts to try many different techniques of teaching
vocabulary, the researcher found that reading is an effective way to enhance
students‟ vocabulary. Krashen (2004) believes in the power of reading for the

development of the first, second or foreign language competence. He displays
some case studies to support his claim of the power of recreational reading for
progress. Extensive reading leads learners to acquire the language if they are
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sufficiently exposed to the language and if they have the materials that are
interesting for them. Krashen (2004) brings in the term “narrow reading” for
the extensive reading the learners do on the areas of their own interest.
Reading can broaden learners‟ language competence by providing
automaticity of recognizing and decoding words and written symbols of a
printed message (Grabe, 1991). Moreover, it can increase the learners‟
exposure to the language. However, the quality of exposure to language is
very important to their motivation to acquire new forms of the input. This
exposure to language is more likely to reduce the gap between L1 and L2.
From these reasons, the researcher has intended to apply extensive reading as
a good way to enhance students‟ vocabulary. It led the researcher to do this
study entitled “Expanding grade 11 students’ vocabulary through extensive
reading: An action research project”. The researcher expected to help his
students to enrich their vocabulary through extensive reading program.
2. Aims of the study and the research questions
The research was carried out to find out how extensive reading influenced
students‟ vocabulary development through an action research project. The
project was carried out in an attempt to answer the following questions:
1. How does extensive reading influence students’ vocabulary development?
2. What are the students’ attitudes towards the extensive reading stories in
enriching their vocabulary knowledgeprogram?
3. What are benefits other than learning vocabulary of extensive reading
program from this action research project?
3. The scope and significance of the study

The present study was conducted at the second semester on the students who
were in grade 11 and used the seven –year English textbook of MOET. They
had three English every week and the researcher decided to choose one

2


English optional lesson a week to apply extensive reading program of the
research. In total, the researcher carried out ten lessons in three months during
the research and the 10 short stories were from the book “Stories for
reproduction: introductory” (L.A Hill, 1965) used as the main materials of the
study. After three month –period s of conducting the research, the researcher
hopes hoped that the student will would enhance their vocabulary knowledge
and develop their positive attitudes towards extensive reading storiesactivities.
If the research succeeds, it will be made an effective contribution to an
improvement in teaching and learning English vocabulary. at the researcher‟s
School.[t1]
4. Method of the study
An action research approach was adopted for this study. Instruments of data
collection include the pre-test, post-test, and a student questionnaire. The pretest and post-test were used to measure the change of the students‟ vocabulary
size as an impact of the intervention, which is an extensive reading program.
The questionnaire was administered to explore what the students‟ attitudes
towards the extensive reading program were and what can be learned from
this action research project about extensive reading that can be applied in
Vietnamese high schools.
5. Design of the thesis
Structure of the thesis is divided into three main parts. Each part deals with
different aspect of the research.
Chapter I: Introduction: shows an overview of the research which the
researcher presents the rationale for the research, the aims, the research

questions, the scope and significance of the research, the research method as
well as the design of the research briefly.
Chapter II: Literature Review contains a literature review in which the
researcher analyzes [t2]and describes the general theories in connection with
importance of vocabulary and extensive reading.
3


Chapter III. Methodology shows the research method, the rationale for the
research and data collection instruments. The researcher describes detailed
information about the participants of the research, the design of questionnaire,
the pre-test and two post-test as well as the data collection procedures.
Chapter IV. Findings and discussions presents significant findings of the
research and discusses the results of the research relating to the research
questions.
Chapter V: Conclusion includes some pedagogical implications, some
limitations and conclusion of the research.

4


CHAPTER II: LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1. Vocabulary
2.1.1. The definition of vocabulary
Linguists define vocabulary differently based on different criteria. The most
popular one from “ Longman Dictionary of Language Teaching and Applied
linguistics”, according to (Richards & Schmidt, 2013), vocabulary is defined
as “ a set of lexemes, including single words, compound words and idioms”.
Similar to the above definition, Hornby (2010) defines vocabulary as : 1) all

the words that a person knows or uses; 2) all the words in particular language;
3) the words that people use when they are talking about a particular subject;
4) a list of words with their meanings. Then, vocabulary is a collection of
words in a particular language that an individual knows and that has a
meaning. It means that a language consists of a number of words that form a
meaningful language.
Lehr, Osborn, and Hiebert (2004) define vocabulary as knowledge of words
and word meanings in both oral and print language and in productive and
receptive forms. More specifically, they use vocabulary to refer to the kind of
words that students must know to read increasingly demanding text with
comprehension.
Diamond and Gutlohn (2006) say that vocabulary is the knowledge of words
and word meanings. As Steven Stahl (2005) puts it, "Vocabulary knowledge
is knowledge; the knowledge of a word not only implies a definition, but also
implies how that word fits into the world." Vocabulary knowledge is not
something that can ever be fully mastered; it is something that expands and
deepens over the course of a lifetime.
From these definitions of vocabulary, vocabulary is the basic means of
5


communication and vocabulary can be understood as the total number of all
the words that a language possesses, including single words, two or three
word items expressing a single idea and multi-word idioms.
2.1.2. The importance of vocabulary in foreign language teaching and
learning
Vocabulary plays an important role in teaching and learning foreign
languages because it is impossible for someone to get into conversation if he
or she cannot understand or recognize the meaning of the key words used by
other people. To express an idea or ask some information, a person must be

able to produce lexical items to convey his or her meanings. Thus, it is very
difficult for someone to participate in a conversation when he or she only has
a little vocabulary.
Morgan and Rinvolucri (2004) point that vocabulary has played its part in the
more general movement towards giving greater prominence to the teaching of
vocabulary that has taken place since its initial publication. They suggest that
teachers and learners of foreign languages should understand the nature and
functions of vocabulary, what it means to know a word, and how best to
acquire vocabulary.
Moreover, Thornbury (2002) states that vocabulary means a large collection
of items. He adds that learning vocabulary is important because it enriches
someone’s knowledge of words. This implies that the success of the learner in
learning a language depends on not only the size of vocabulary he or she has
learned but also vocabulary building.
Furthermore, Cameron (2001) believes that building a useful vocabulary is
central to the learning of a foreign language at primary level. Vocabulary is
fundamental to using the foreign language as discourse, since it is both learnt
from participating in discourse and is essential to participating in it.
6


Vocabulary acquisition is important in reading. Without enlarging their
vocabulary, students cannot read successfully. Having a good mastery of
vocabulary makes it possible for them to use the language for communication
because they are aware of the ideas and attitudes that are represented by
words. Therefore, anyone who learned a language successfully must enlarge
his or her vocabulary acquisition.
To show how important vocabulary is, Bromley (2004) states that vocabulary
holds some important roles in teaching-learning process. They are as follows:
Promoting fluency. Students who recognize and understand many words read

more quickly and easily than those with smaller vocabulary fluent readers
read at a faster rate, process more material more quickly and have better
comprehension than less fluent readers.
Boosting comprehension. Vocabulary knowledge strongly influences
comprehension. On a component analysis of comprehension, word meanings
were found to make up 74% of comprehension.
Improving achievement. A large vocabulary means a large fund of
conceptual knowledge which makes academic learning easier. Students with
large vocabularies score higher on achievement tests than those with small
vocabularies.
Enhancing thinking and communication. Words are tools for analyzing,
inferring, evaluating and reasoning. A large vocabulary allows for
communicating in ways that are precise, powerful, persuasive and interesting.
In conclusion, realizing that the knowledge of vocabulary is very important,
learners have to pay a greater attention to the vocabulary teaching. The
teacher must have a good, effective and efficient method in order that the
teaching vocabulary is successful. If someone can master vocabulary well, she
or he will be able to promote fluency, boost comprehension, improve
7


achievement, and enhance thinking and communication.
2.1.3. Approaches to Vocabulary Acquisition Incidental vocabulary
acquisition and intentional vocabulary learning

Many linguists have stated their definitions of incidental vocabulary learning.
I. Nation and Nation (2001)[t3] says that incidental vocabulary learning is an
important strategy in vocabulary learning. It refers to the learning which
occurs without specific intention to focus on vocabulary. One can develop
vocabulary knowledge subconsciously while being engaged in any language

activities, especially reading. I.S.P. Nation and Nation (2001) claims
incidental learning is a by-product of learning something. That means learners
master vocabulary when they are involved in some learning activities, such as
reading, speaking, doing a task, and interacting with others.
Richards (2002) also defines that incidental learning is the process of learning
something without the intention of doing so. It is also learning one thing while
intending to learn another.
Incidental vocabulary learning motivates learners in extensive reading. It
involves learners' ability to guess the meaning of new words from the
contextual clues. Incidental learning occurs more frequently through
extensive reading in input-rich environments (Coady, 2001, as cited in Ahmad,
2011: 67). According to Ahmad (2011) incidental vocabulary promotes
deeper mental processing and better retention. The learners get themselves
fully involved in the process of deciphering the meaning through the clues
available in the text. They think and rethink about the new words involving
cognitive process which helps the learners retain the words for a longer period
of time. Cognitive process includes both receptive and productive aspects of
vocabulary. Learners understand not only the meanings in the given text but
the related grammatical patterns, common lexical sets and typical association

8


of the word with the context.
On the other hand, intentional learning of vocabulary is the method of
learning vocabulary by using tools to bring the learner’s attention into direct
contact with the form and meaning of words, such as dictionaries, vocabulary
lists, and direct vocabulary explanation. Intentional learning is quick and
usually preferred by learners, but it also causes some problems. Learners
often encounter vocabulary in an isolated form and remain incapable of using

it correctly in context (Ellis, 1999, as cited in Shokouhi and Maniati (2009)).
Ahmad (2011) claims intentional vocabulary learning based on synonyms,
antonyms, word substitution, multiple choice, scrambled words and
crossword puzzles, regardless of context. In addition, students often cram the
meaning of the new words without undergoing cognitive process. Moreover,
when students learn vocabulary in this way, they are more prone to rote
learning. Therefore, a very few words learned through this method get
transformed into active process.
2.2. Extensive reading
2.2.1. Definition of extensive reading
Louis Kelly (1969), in his volume 25 centuries of Language Teaching, credits
Harold Palmer with first applying the term “extensive reading” in foreign
language pedagogy (1969, p.131). Day and Bamford (1998) state that
extensive reading purposely focuses on students’ reading as much as possible:
not only in classroom but also out of classroom. The variety of reading
material on different topics is available; students themselves select the books
according to their level and interest. If they choose a book suitable to their
own level, they will understand an interesting text composed of mostly
familiar vocabulary and grammar elements. While Richards (2002) claims
that extensive reading is a form of reading instruction. Its definition and
9


purpose are expressed as follows: extensive reading means reading in quantity
and in order to gain a general understanding of what is read. It is intended to
develop good reading habits, to build up knowledge of vocabulary and
structure, and to encourage a liking for reading.”
In addition, Bamford and Day (2004) state extensive reading as a good
strategy to improve reading proficiency, and built linguistic competence (e.g.,
reading ability, vocabulary, writing and spelling skills).

From the above definitions of extensive reading, it can be concluded that
extensive reading is a language teaching procedure where students have to
read large quantities of materials for general understanding and the main goal
of it is obtaining pleasure from the text.
2.2.2. The benefits of extensive reading
There are many benefits of extensive reading that have been reported by many
language researchers.Nuttall (1996) states that extensive reading is effective
way to improve vocabulary. Students might have many chances to see words
repeatedly by reading a large quantity of materials and become familiar with
them. This helps students study vocabulary or words that are recognized
automatically. Once students learn many words from extensive reading, they
can improve the speed of reading with better comprehension skills. In this
way, students will be more confident in reading English texts.Davis (1995)
and his colleagues have discovered many benefits of extensive reading
through from long-term feedback from teachers and students in Singapore.
These may be categorized under four interrelated headings:
Reading skills: students were more positive about starting new texts. Their
imaginative responses improved, as did their personal engagement with what
they read. Their overall comprehension skills improved, and they found it
easier to read on other subjects. Overall they came to see reading as
10