THE LOW EFL READING LEVEL OF GRADE FOUR STUDENTS AND REASONS: WITH PARTICULAR REFERENCE TO STUDENTS IN ABOMSA PRIMARY SCHOOL, ETHIOPIA.

  • PhD Research Scholar, English Department, Andhra University, India.
  • Research Guide,PG Boss & Professor, English Department, Andhra University, India.
Crossref Cited-by Linking logo

  • Abstract
  • Keywords
  • References
  • Cite This Article as
  • Corresponding Author

The purpose of this study was to explore the EFL reading ability of fourth graders of students in one selected school in Ethiopia. To this end, selected with purposive sampling technique, 118 grade 4 students of Abomsa Primary school in Ethiopia were tested the EFL oral reading test. The results of the data analyzed through frequency and percent, show that the grade four students in the mentioned school were poor readers in English. They were able to name the upper and lower case letters of English language and decode one syllable words with three or four letters. Moreover, the study found the three confusing areas of English letters for these students such as letter shape, letter-sound name and letter similarity with L1 script. Recommendations and implications were provided according to the findings of the study.

  1. Berhanu Bogale. (2009). Language Determination in Ethiopia: What Medium of Instruction? In: Proceedings of the 16th International Conference of Ethiopian Studies.
  2. Block M. K. and Duke N. K. (2015). Letter Names Can Cause Confusion and Other Things to Know About Letter?Sound Relationships.
  3. Dereje Negede. (2012). Primary EFL Teaching in Ethiopia: Policy and Practice: A Dissertation Submitted to Department of Foreign Languages and Literature in the Institute of Language Studies of Addis Ababa University
  4. EGRA Ethiopia. (2010). Data Analytic Report: Language and Early Learning
  5. EGRA Ethiopia. (2012). Ethiopia English Early Grade Reading Assessment: Data Analytic Report
  6. Eba Mijena. (2014). Practices and Impeding Factors in the Teaching of English to Young Learners in the First Cycle Public Primary Schools at Nekemte Town, Western Ethiopia . Science, Technology and Arts Research Journal Sci. Technol. Arts Res. J.,3(2): 201-212.
  7. Edaso Mulu. (2007). An Exploration of Factors Affecting Preparatory I School Students Reading Comprehension Skill. MA Thesis. Addis Ababa University.Unpublished.
  8. Ehri, L., C. (2003). Systematic Phonics Instruction: Findings of the National Reading Panel.(2005). Learning to Read Words: Theory, Findings, and Issues, Scientific Studies of Reading, 9:2, 167-188.
  9. Evans, M. A., Moretti, S., Shaw, D., & Fox, M. (2003). Parent scaffolding in children?s oral reading. Early Education and Development, (Special issue on Vygotskyian perspectives in early childhood education) 14, 363?388.
  10. Foulin J., N. (2005). Why is letter-name knowledge such a good predictor of learning to read? Reading and Writing.
  11. Gemechis Teshome. (2014). Teaching Reading Skills in Second Cycle (5-8) of Primary School in Oromia Region: Focus to East Wollega and IlluAbabor Zones. International Journal of Sciences: Basic and Applied Research (IJSBAR)Volume 17, No 1, pp 95-10.
  12. Heugh, K., Benson, C., Berhanu Bogale & Mekonnen Alemu (2006). Final Report Study on Medium of Instruction in Primary Schools in Ethiopia Commissioned By the Ministry of Education.
  13. H. L. (2004). Observational Learning During shared Book Reading: The Effects on Preschoolers' Attention To print and letter Knowledge, Reading Psychology, 25:3, 167-188, DOI:10.1080/02702710490484714.
  14. Jha, S., K. (2013). English in Eastern Ethiopia is learnt; not mastered. English Language Teaching; Vol. 6, No. 4
  15. Michael Daniel. (2003). The Effect of Primary English Readers on Reading Skills in Ethiopia. PhD thesis, University of Pretoria: South Africa.
  16. (2000). Ethiopian Baseline National Learning Assessment of Grade 4 & 8 Students. Addis Ababa: Ethiopia
  17. (2004). Ethiopian Second National Learning Assessment of Grade 4 & 8 Students Addis Ababa: Ethiopia
  18. (2008). Ethiopian Third National Learning Assessment of Grade Four Students. Addis Ababa: Ethiopia
  19. (2011). Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia Ministry of Education.
  20. Piasta, S.B. and Wagner, R.K. (2010) Developing Early Literacy Skills: A Meta-Analysis of Alphabet Learning and Instruction. Reading Research Quarterly, 45, 8-38. http://dx.doi.org/10.1044/1092-4388(2010/09-0093)
  21. Treiman, R., Kessler B, and Pollo T. C. (2006). Learning about the letter name subset of the vocabulary: Evidence from US and Brazilian preschoolers. Applied
  22. Wood, J. and McLemore, B. (2011). Critical Components in Early Literacy Knowledge of the Letters of the Alphabet and Phonics Instruction. The Florida Reading Quarterly. 38 (2).

[Melese Mengesha and L. Manjula Davidson (2018); THE LOW EFL READING LEVEL OF GRADE FOUR STUDENTS AND REASONS: WITH PARTICULAR REFERENCE TO STUDENTS IN ABOMSA PRIMARY SCHOOL, ETHIOPIA. Int. J. of Adv. Res. 6 (Oct). 680-689] (ISSN 2320-5407). www.journalijar.com

Melese Mengesha
PhD Research Scholar English Department, Andhra University, India.

DOI:

Article DOI: 10.21474/IJAR01/7855      
DOI URL: https://dx.doi.org/10.21474/IJAR01/7855

Download Full Paper

Download PDF No. of Downloads: 21 | No. of Views: 70