1THE IMPLEMENTATION OF READING FLUENCY STRATEGIES IN PRIMARY SCHOOLERS Erika Tatiana Soto Tabares 1088018879 UNIVERSIDAD TECNOLÓGICA DE PEREIRA FACULTAD DE BELLAS ARTES Y HUMANIDADES LICENCIATURA EN LENGUA INGLESA 2015 .….14 References………………………………………………………………………………….……………..……….16 .….9 Reading Fluency Strategies...………6 Reading Comprehension……………………………………...………8 Reading Fluency………………………………………………………………....12 Methodology……………………………………………………………………………….11 Literature Review……………………………………………………………….....2 Table of Contents Contents Page Justification………………………………………………………………………………… 3 Objectives……………………………………………………………………………………5 Conceptual Framework……………………………………………………………………..... 6 Reading……………………………………………………………..………………………………………………….. What is more.4 books per year. However. the education is not only about teaching mathematics or physics. it is also about teaching other languages in order for the students to defend from this new world. All these factors happen on the grounds that the government invests little in resources for education then they are not motivated to learn. but also to succeed in other languages.2 and this is also a cause of the low results gotten in the PISA test from 2012. According to the OCDE (2014). our country is the one that reads the less in Latin America since while an argentine reads 5. And as we have had problems with the reading comprehension in our first language. according to the statistics presented by the CERLALC (2012). it does not matter how hard the government works to have programs for education in the English language.3 Justification Teaching children the pleasure of reading is not that easy nowadays since many of them do not have the support to do it and that is one of reasons why the improvement of education in a country is an important fact that goes all around the world. there are some means that are becoming necessary and those means are the new technologies which are the tools with which teachers need to work nowadays in order to innovate so they engage students to the classes. Londoño and Mesa (2014) argued that we need to prepare well our future professionals so they can compete with the globalized world and as Bonilla (2012) stated in her research paper. and there are countries that have tried to imitate the others in order to succeed. if the . One of the major problems of education in Colombia lies in the fact that the government does not spend the required money in education according to the report shown by the last meeting of the OCDE and that is one of the factors why students are not motivated to learn. a Colombian reads only 2. and one of the categories that had the worst results was reading comprehension. Countries invest in education not only for people to be professionals in a field. Then. but that has not worked for them since each country is different. in our country there are some programs that aim to have a bilingual population as it is the case of Risaralda where the government designed a program called Risaralda Bilingüe 2032 and it’s a public referent for the bilingualism of the region. those countries that invest the more in education are the ones that show the better results in the international tests. as a consequence. the use of simple reading comprehension strategies to check if students really understand the texts that they will read.4 reading comprehension is not worked in students. they will continue failing. they will master language easier. people will also tend to write better and in this way. enables the brain to comprehend the text. reading comprehension is affected by something that many teachers are not aware of and it is fluency. and this leaves little memory for the part of comprehension. especially between third and fifth grade. and this. they have said that because of the increasing of the repertoire. the meaning of the words have been forgotten. Nevertheless. Students can be benefited with this project since many authors as Ford (2012). All this will be explained in the following chapter which provides a wider description of the concepts previously used to describe the purpose of this project. have argued that when people read whether it is in their native tongue or in a foreign language. on the other hand. they tend to increase their repertoire and. besides. as Collins and Pressley (2002) stated. a fluent reader is able to read smoothly without cutting out the sentences. fluency. a dysfluent reader does many cognitive efforts primarily trying to decode words and trying to read with good pronunciation. they claimed that a non-fluent reader is the one that takes too much time decoding words and by the time he or she finishes the sentence. they will speak more fluently since they already have the words to use. This project is intended to take place in a public school of Pereira and the main participants will be primary students. In an article called Reading Comprehension and Fluency published in the web page Reading Instruction Resources (n. .d. and to complement the main idea. the intention of this project is to report how students react to the implementation of different reading fluency strategies in order to promote reading and at the same time. Considering what has been mentioned above.). . Learning Objectives General To report primary-state school students’ reactions towards the implementation of the different reading fluency strategies. To assess primary-state school students’ comprehension after the implementation of the reading fluency activities. Specifics To provide primary-state school students with a variety of reading fluency strategies.5 Objectives Teaching Objectives General To select the appropriate materials that really help primary-state school students’ development of the reading fluency skill. To identify primary-state school students’ problems with the use of the language. Specifics To identify the strategies with which primary-state school students engage the most. 6 Conceptual Framework In this conceptual framework can be found the four principal or key concepts in which the project is going to be based on and which are reading. In this . they are all connected in order to make us understand that they all are very important parts in the making of this project. Reading is a process of multiple facets in which are involved word recognition. reading is very important when learning a language. Reading fluency in the Colombian context is something that is rarely found although nowadays there are some places in the country in which fluency is worked throughout different strategies in order to help students master the language. it would be good to mention that they are placed in an order so the conceptual framework can be strong and well structured. in this way. reading comprehension. but it is correct to say that reading is as important as the others and plays an important role in language since. Castellanos (2004) reported that many of the students with which she tried the read aloud method had shown very good results and they were also encouraged to read books. it can be showed that each one is different and has different characteristics. To start defining the concepts. These concepts are defined individually so they can be more comprehensible and. Reading It is not correct to say that reading is the most important skill a learner must develop. Then. fluency and motivation (Leipzig. and although they have an order. there are many different research and study groups in which reading fluency has been a topic to work on. it helps students to master other parts of the language such as writing. according to Cuervo and Dávila (2014). they can be great and helpful in any learning process since. but it is also important to be fluent in order to make ourselves understood and more accurate users of the language. but when they work together. but it is still not very known in the whole country. in the process of learning. reading fluency and reading fluency strategies. In the Colombian Journal of Applied Linguistics. 2001). as said before. comprehension. the first concept that will be defined is reading since it is the base of the project and it is the concept which is surrounded by its derivations. but maybe because teachers do not choose . But there are still people who do not understand the meaning of reading and that is the moment when teachers need to work harder to try to make learners understand the meaning of it and make them know how important it is for a person to know how to read correctly as it can show the level of literacy that each one has.1) This leads us to know that reading is not as easy as one can get to think since it is not only looking at some words and reading as it would be only a mechanic act in which the reader sees unrelated phonemes and words with no sense (Grabe 1991). Prisilya (2014) stated that a way of mastering better language is to read. and it also help people to have more capacity to communicate. Nonetheless. and therefore they do not associate it at all with relaxation and enjoyment (London. Besides the development of the skills. In fact. work together at different levels of consciousness. and it is also the age in which the habit of reading can be better imparted. the better ages to develop a language skill is when we are just children.7 case. and that is why those people who read the most are usually the ones who speak and write better since they learn to be fluent and make their language more understandable. it has been demonstrated that Colombia is the south American country that reads the less and it is not due to the lack of instruction since students are in their first grades at school. 2013). people only tend to read because they need it for school or college or even for work purposes. reading is interacting with the text to create meaning out of it while the mental processes that occur in the brain. reading is a very complex process in which the reader needs to be active so the meaning of the text can be gotten just as Mikulecky (2008) claims: “Reading is a conscious and unconscious thinking process. the focus will be on working with different strategies to master reading fluency in children since by my own experience and based on many readings about psycholinguistics. The reader applies many strategies to reconstruct the meaning that the author is assumed to have intended. (p. The reader does this by comparing information in the text to his or her background knowledge and prior experience”. Grabe (2008) stated once that L2 learners first need to understand what has been learned in their L1 and the way they learned it in order to understand how reading in L2 is since much of the strategies to learn that second language are based on the strategies for the first language. According to Trejos and Jaramillo . the reading has no sense. then. and it is maybe one of the most complete way to approach language in any context since it helps improving writing. (2001) is the ability that a person has to read a text. and to be capable to explain the ideas gotten from it. they will have more opportunities to master the other parts of the language. but the problem is that not all English teachers are prepared to teach that important. and reading. in order for a reader to approach text. then. 2000) defines reading comprehension as “a cognitive process that integrates complex skills and cannot be understood without examining the critical roles of vocabulary learning and instruction on its development. meaning that communication will be easier. Reading is a very important skill since it helps mastering a language. In this way. The National Reading Panel (NICHHD. there needs to be prior knowledge and experience. To sum up this first concept. understand its meaning. and it also helps to raise the rage of vocabulary of the person. it is important to highlight that reading is an important skill to develop as the others.8 the appropriate books for children to read at school. speaking can be also improved. skill that helps learners improve their other skills. but it is also important to comprehend what is being read as if the person reads but does not comprehend. but if students develop this skill and they really comprehend what they read. and with this improving of writing. a mental process in which all those experiences and knowledge are connected occurs for the reader to draw meaning from the text and to make sense of it. as equal as the others. I will start developing the concept of reading comprehension which according to De Corte et al. and also preconceptions about the use of language.1) The key point of reading comprehension according to Nagy (1988) is to have first an instruction about vocabulary and to use the correct reading comprehension strategies that learners are taught so they can understand better the text even if it is easy or not. Reading Comprehension As said above. that they do not develop the taste for reading.” (p. reading comprehension is to have a solid understanding of what is being read and not only to understand the grammatical structure of the text as one needs to connect ideas in order to get the meaning of the text. and development of vocabulary”(p. Hallquist & Kopel (2013) stated that: “Research shows there are several underlying causes for poor reading comprehension. Caposey & Heider cited by Blickenstaff. they are not really connecting the ideas and having mind open to the reading process. and if there is no good instruction and an environment that can influence the learner to learn. Fluency Fluency has become an important part of the learning process of a language and it has evolved throughout the years. and perception of its impact on the . then the affective filter will be high and it will not be easy for the learner get to understand the texts. and its relation with reading comprehension is very close as in order to achieve successful fluency. and in this way. the type of instruction. Among the reasons are the complex process of learning to read. the reader needs to understand what is being read. However. According to Young (2011) the names have changed. Many people ask themselves how reading fluency affects the other skills of language and the truth is that it has a big impact regarding on them. the definition has transformed.14) If a learner is not willing to learn. a diverse population. many people do not care for having good understanding of the texts as the majority of the time they read because they have to.9 (2014). method for decoding. prior knowledge. people need to learn reading strategies and learn to connect ideas and draw meanings out of text to catch the author’s ideas and to be able to talk or to write about it when they are asked to. Since reading has become a very important part of the language. then the results of the process of making meaning out of text will not be positive as Díaz and Laguado (2013) point out in their research about reading comprehension in a public school in Colombia. all these are important aspects of fluency and they need to be taken into account at the moment of working on fluency. Furthermore. But this depends much on the strategies used by the professor in order to develop fluency in the learners of a language since first. and they are also developing vocabulary skills that can contribute to oral language fluency. they will have the process totally systematized. they can motivate student to learn and. When a student is going to learn a new skill. there needs to be a lot of repetition as in this way. they can contribute to the development of the English language due to the fact that they are getting more vocabulary and better pronunciation. in a more complete definition. automatically. automaticity which refers to the ability of doing thing almost or completely automatic. Pikulski and Chard (2003). accurate word recognition that allows readers to read smoothly and easily with expression and understanding”. they are gaining valuable information about the sounds and cadences of spoken English. fluently and with no noticeable mental effort (Grabe 2010). as well as reading and listening comprehension. All these changes have made fluency more understandable for those who study how it can be implemented and which are the benefits that it brings for those who have better fluency. second. students learn better and then. prosodic knowledge that is about the stress the rhythm and the intonation of speech. and syntactic knowledge that is about the knowledge of words combining to form phrases. efficient. For that same reason. Blau (2000) argue that “reading fluency involves rapid. it is also a way of developing speaking and writing skills since in order to be a fluent reader. and prosodically. one needs to master words and to learn how to pronunciate correctly the words in the text. There are some other aspects that compose this concept which are accuracy that refers to the ability of working without making mistakes.” This is a support for previous definitions that show the importance of reading and reading fluency when learning a language. Reading fluency is the ability that people have to read words accurate. Ford (2012) states that “As students practice English text accurately. .10 reading process has become more focused. and so the student can finally be a complete fluent reader. As comprehension is an important skill in all the stages of literacy development. using poetry. in this way. or as an intensive intervention implemented three times a week in 20 minute intervals. Gorsuch & Taguchi (2010) say that maybe teachers and learners in the L2 or FL settings cannot be aware and really convinced of the important that reading fluency has in reading comprehension and. Finally. Although the focus of the class is about fluency in reading.” Another good strategy for improving fluency when reading and guarantying comprehension is the guided reading which helps fluent students with lack of comprehension concentrate in the meaning of the text. Reading Fluency Strategies As there exist many strategies to improve reading comprehension. Neumann. Teachers can use a variety of methods to increase reading fluency. These methods can be used in either small groups during reading. These strategies for improving reading fluency were though for more than fluency as it should focus only in reading fast. so it can be checked if students are really getting meanings. E. Hallquist. reading along silently as oral reading is being modeled. echo reading. & Slaboch cited by Blickenstaff. J. there are also different strategies to improve reading fluency. & Kopel. and reader’s theatre. Neuman. partner reading. but in reading fluently at the time of drawing meaning out of text. Ross & Slaboch (2004) argued that the . Ross. Fluency is a bridge that gets people to have better skills like pronunciation. K. and a great variety of vocabulary as when learners read they recognize words and associate and associate meanings. (2013) claimed that: “Increasing fluency is a key way of increasing a student's comprehension skills.. teachers cannot focus only on that skill of reading since it is important to develop all the skills together and that is why the teacher needs to also incorporate reading comprehension strategies in the class. These include choral reading.. the result could be that they will not expend time in class or extra-class in those kinds of activities to improve fluency.11 On the other hand. Repeated Reading Echo Reading Reader’s Theatre Model Fluent Reading: Read aloud Methodology . students can incorporate background knowledge with what they are reading as reading accurate and with effective speed allows the reader to focus mainly on the meaning of the words. the more s/he is able to focus on meaning and to hold information in the memory which is constantly working. and that fluency is gained by using the different reading fluency strategies that exist such as the following ones which are relevant for this project.12 more fluent a learner is. For all these reasons. and in this way. there needs to be some instruction in order to achieve fluency. it has been decided that in order to elicit students’ reading fluency. The role of the preservice teacher is that of implementing what has been though for this project while the class is being filmed in order to check students’ responses to the implementation and to make the observations and reflections required. texts should contain words and grammatical structures familiar to the learners”(p.13 Context This classroom Project will be carried out at a public primary school located in Pereira. cited by The British Council (2006). when students have developed the skills. Participants This classroom project will be carried out with two types of participants which are primary students from a public school and a pre-service teacher who is in eighth semester from a language teaching program at a public university in Pereira. Van Duzer. Also. The implementation will involve the curriculum of the educational institution guided by the standards of the Guía 22 which is a document that presents the basic standards of competence for English language according to the Ministerio de Educación Nacional. Furthermore. age range. Taking this into account.1). and they should also be in accordance with their sex. claimed that “good readers expect to understand what they are reading. this project will be developed in the classroom 2 hours per week which comes to be 20 hours in total for the semester and the same number of sessions for the implementation. we can say that they are experts on understanding what they read. Therefore. cited by The British Council (2006). there will be developed three steps proposed by The British Council (2006). novice readers acquire a set of hierarchically sub-skills of reading towards comprehension ability. According to Dole et al. interests and background culture . . Implementation The classroom project described in this paper is intended to promote reading skills through the implementation of different reading fluency strategies. among others. stated that “post-reading exercises first check students’ comprehension and the lead students to a deeper analysis of the text”. filling in forms and charts. cited by The British Council stated that “pre-reading activities can lighten students’ cognitive burden while reading because prior discussions will have been incorporated”. Lebauer. summarizing. paraphrasing. .14 Before Reading: One of the purposes of before reading is to elicit students’ prior knowledge or to socialize new vocabulary. the before reading phase is used to engage and get the attention of students by providing them with means to predict the content of the text. writing reading logs and role-playing. re-reading. students integrate the knowledge and information that they have brought to the text with the new or unknown knowledge or information. Ur (1996). Also. Barnett cited by The British Council. this is the phase in which one of the reading fluency strategies will be implemented. it is necessary to say that the after reading phase depends on the purpose of reading and the type of information selected. Then. 2006). Vaezi (2001) and Fitzgerald (1995) use different strategies for the during reading phase such as making predictions. After Reading: Here. In addition. and this phase is critical for comprehension to happen (The British Council. making questions. monitoring. The British Council proposes some activities that can be made in this phase and which are discussing the text. During Reading: In this stage. pausing. answering questions. integrating prior knowledge. 15 . (2013). (2013).16 References Bonilla. Grabe.. (2010). What is reading? Retrieved on March. (2001). Cambridge University Press. 2015 from http://sophia.. J. 14.readingrockets. Review of Educational Research. (1995). Vol. Grabe. 375–406. & Laguado. 133-150 Fitzgerald. Developing Fluent Readers. G. & Taguchi.readnaturally. Gorsuch. Blickenstaff. Improving Reading Skills through Skimming and Scanning Techniques at a Public School: Action Research. Language Teaching Research. S. Reading in a Foreign Language. 1: pp 27-59.stkate. (1991). 10(1). The nature of reading: Defining reading. 2015 from http://www. (2012). 71-83. TESOL Quarterly. 2015 from http://www. 163-180. 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