The effects of Prereading activities on Taiwanese High School Students' Scores on a TOEFL Reading Comprehension Test
Ming-Tzu Caroline Liao
Major Professor: Dr. Colleen BriceThis study investigated the effects of prereading activities on Taiwanese EFL high school students' reading comprehension of two passages from a TOEFL test. Approximately 100 senior high school students were randomly assigned to one of two treatment groups and read two passages. Immediately after reading the passage, subjects answered a 10-item multiple-choice test. This study employed a 2 treatments (a prereading activity condition and a control condition) x 1 achievement x 2 passages design. T-test analysis revealed significant effects for prereading and passage. Further investigation through one way ANOVA procedure revealed that the experimental group received significantly higher multiple-choice scores on the posttest than on the pretest of the experimental group. In addition, the experimental group also demonstrated significant increased comprehension on the posttest compared to the control group. Therefore, results on multiple-choice posttest showed strong positive effects of the prereading treatment. Students' responses to an attitude survey revealed that they responded positively to the experimental treatments. Results of the study are interpreted through a schema-theoretic view of the reading process. Implications of the findings for reading instruction in EFL / ESL classroom are discussed.
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