The Use of Think-Aloud in Assisting Reading Comprehension among Primary School Students
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.33736/jcshd.2456.2021Abstract
Reading strategies are seldom taught to students despite their importance in aiding reading comprehension. This study aimed to examine the effectiveness of the think-aloud strategy and investigate primary school students' perception of using the think-aloud strategy in assisting their reading comprehension. Twenty-seven primary school students were introduced and trained to use the think-aloud strategy through teacher-modelling and reciprocal think-aloud with comprehension passages related to the relevant English curriculum. Questionnaires and interview sessions were conducted to gather information on how the students perceive the use of think-aloud in reading comprehension. Findings revealed that students have positive perceptions towards using think-aloud as a reading strategy in their reading comprehension and were keen on using the strategy in their future reading.
References
Aarnoutse, C., & Schellings, G. (2003). Learning Reading Strategies by Triggering Reading Motivation Educational Studies, 29 (4), 387-409.
https://doi.org/10.1080/0305569032000159688
AD-Heisat M.A.A., Mohammed, S., Sharmella, K.A., & Issa, J.H. (2009). The Use of Reading Strategies in Developing Students' Reading Competency among Primary School Teachers in Malaysia. European Journal of Social Sciences, 12(2), 310-319.
Afflerbach, P., Pearson P.D., & Paris, S.G. (2008). Clarifying Differences Between Reading Skills and Reading Strategies. The Reading Teacher, 61(5), 364-373.
https://doi.org/10.1598/RT.61.5.1
Alyousef, H.S. (2005). Teaching Reading Comprehension to ESL/EFL Learners. The Reading Matrix, 5(2),143-154.
Alzu'bi, M. (2019). The Impact of Think-Aloud on EFL Students' Reading Comprehension. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/337890517_The_Impact_of_ThinkAloud_on_EFL_Students'_Reading_Comprehension
Al Seyabi, F., & Tuzlukova, V. (2015). Investigating EFL Reading Problems and Strategies in Post-BasicSchools and University Foundation Programmes: A Study in the Omani Context. Malaysian Journal of ELT Research, 11(2), 35-51.
Baumann, J.F., Jones, L.A., & Seifert-Kessell, N. (1993). Using think-aloud to enhance children's comprehension monitoring abilities. The Reading Teacher, 47(3), pp.184-193.
BERNAMA (2017, April 21). Kadar literasi rakyat Malaysia masih pada tahap 55 peratus - KP
Perpustakaan Negara. Retrieved from https://www.pnm.gov.my/pnm/resources/pdf%20file/keratan%20akhbar/2017/april/21_April_2017_Bernama_Online.pdf
Best, R.M., Floyd, R.G., & McNamara, D.S. (2008). Differential Competencies Contributing to Children's Comprehension of Narrative and Expository Texts. Reading Psychology, 29(2), 137-164.
https://doi.org/10.1080/02702710801963951
Bohn-Gettler, C.M., & Kendeou, P. (2014). The Interplay of Reader Goals, Working Memory, and Tex Structure During Reading. Contemporary Education Psychology, 39(3), pp.206-219.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cedpsych.2014.05.003
Bojovic, M. (2010). Reading Skills and Reading Comprehension in English for Specific Purposes. The International Language Conference on The Importance of Learning Professional Foreign Languages for Communication between Cultures 2010, (September 2010), 1-5.
Carioli, S., & Peru, A. (2016). The Think-Aloud approach: A Promising Tool for Online Reading Comprehension. Journal of Media Literacy Education, 8(1), 49-61.
https://doi.org/10.23860/jmle-8-1-4
Carioli, S., & Peru, A. (2019). Teaching online reading strategies using the Think Aloud technique. Evidence from an experimental study. Italian Journal of Educational Technology, 27(3), 279-293
Chen, L.L., Maarof, N., & Yunus M.M. (2016). Factors Affecting ESL Reading Comprehension of Malaysian Secondary School Students. International Conference on Education, 542-547.
Dara, D. (2019). Investigating English Reading Comprehension Problems of Cambodian High Schoo Students. American International Journal of Social Science, 8(3), 52-56.
https://doi.org/10.30845/aijss.v8n3p8
Davey, B. (1983). Think-aloud - Modeling the cognitive processes of reading comprehension. Journal of Reading, 27(1), pp. 44-47.
Ditzel, S.N. (2010). Metacognitive Reading Strategies Can Improve Self-Regulation. Journal of College Reading and Learning, 40(2), 45-63.
https://doi.org/10.1080/10790195.2010.10850330
Fawcett, G. (1993). Using Students as Think Aloud Models. Reading Research and Instruction, 33(2), pp.95-104.
https://doi.org/10.1080/19388079309558147
Hirsch, E.D. (2003). Reading comprehension requires knowledge - of words and the world. Scientific insights into the fourth-grade slump and the Nation's stagnant comprehension scores. American Educator, 27(1), 10-29.
Jafarigohar, M., Soleimani, H., & Soleimani, Z. (2013). The Effects of Reciprocal Teaching vs ThinkAloud on Reading Comprehension of Pre-Intermediate Students in Iran. International Journal of English and Education, 2(1).
Jahandar, S., Khodabandehlou, M., Seyedi, G., Mousavi, R., & Abadi, D. (2012). The Think-aloud Method in EFL Reading Comprehension. International Journal of Scientific & Engineering Research, 3(9), 1-9.
Khalifa, A.A.H.A.S., Ahmed, A.O.A., & Ismael, E.A.A. (2020). EFL Teachers' Beliefs and Actual Classroom Practices of Teaching Reading Strategies. International Journal of Science, Engineering and Technology Research (IJSETR), 9(4).
Kirby, J.R. (2007). Reading Comprehension: Its Nature and Development. Encyclopaedia of Language and Literacy Development, pp 1-8. Retrieved from http://www.literacyencyclopedia.ca/pdfs/topic.php?topId=227
KPM (2019). Pelaporan Pentaksiran Sekolah Rendah (PPSR 2019). Retrieved from https://www.moe.gov.my/en/muat-turun/laporan-dan-statistik/lp/3056-pelaporan-pentaksiran-sekolahrendah-2019/file
Kymes, A. (2005). Teaching online comprehension strategies using think-aloud. Retrieved fromhttp://educ7006.pbworks.com/w/file/fetch/50829345/Kymes%20A%20%282005%29%20-%20teaching%20online%20comprehension%20strats%20using%20think_alouds_online.pdf
https://doi.org/10.1598/JAAL.48.6.4
Leipzig, D.H. (January 2001). What is reading? WETA. Retrieved from https://www.readingrockets.org/article/what-reading
McKeown, R.G., & Gentilucci, J.L. (2007). Think-Aloud Strategy: Metacognitive development and monitoring comprehension in the middle school second-language classroom. International Reading Association, pp.136-147.
https://doi.org/10.1598/JAAL.51.2.5
Migyanka, J.M., Policastro, C., & Lui, G. (2005). Using a Think-Aloud with Diverse Students: Three Primary Grade Students Experience Chrysanthemum. Early Childhood Education Journal, 33(3), pp. 171- 177.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-005-0045-z
Mohammed, Q. & Rashid, R.A. (2019). The Sources of Reading Comprehension Difficulties Among Saudi EFL Learners. Trends in Social Sciences, 1(1), 7-16.
Nation, K. (2019). Children's reading difficulties, language, and reflections on the simple view of reading. Australian Journal of Learning Difficulties, 24(1), p.47-73.
https://doi.org/10.1080/19404158.2019.1609272
Ortlieb, E., & Norris, M. (2012). Using the Think-Aloud Strategy to Bolster Reading Comprehension of Science Concepts. Current Issues in Education, 15(1), 1-8
Oster, L. (2001). Using the think-aloud for reading instruction. The Reading Teacher, 55(1), pp.64-69.
Pardo, L.S. (2004). What every teacher needs to know about comprehension. International Reading Association, 272-280.
https://doi.org/10.1598/RT.58.3.5
Pariona, A. (2017, August 1). The most popular official languages of the world. Retrieved from https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/the-most-popular-official-languages-of-the-world.html
Raihan, M.A. (2011). 'Think-aloud' Techniques used in Metacognition to Enhance Self-regulated Learning.Journal of Educational Research, 25(2),125-160.Sawe, B.E. (2019, June 7). What is the most spoken language in the world? Retrieved from https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/most-popular-languages-in-the-world.html
Seng, G.H. (2007). The Effects of Think-Aloud in a Collaborative Environment to Improve Comprehensionof L2 Texts. The Reading Matrix, 7(2), 29-45
Seng, G.H. (2009). Using Think-aloud While Reading: What do students think about it? English LanguageJournal, 3, 125-142.
Shehu, I. (2015). Reading Comprehension Problems Encountered by Foreign Language Students, Case Study: Albania, Croatia. Academic Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies, 4(1), 91-96
https://doi.org/10.5901/mjss.2015.v4n1s1p91
Singhal, M. (2001). Reading Proficiency, Reading Strategies, Metacognitive Awareness and L2 Readers. The Reading Matrix, 1(1).
Smith, L.A. (2006). Think-Aloud Mysteries: Using structured sentence-by-sentence text passages to teach comprehension strategies. International Reading Association, 59, (8),764-773.
https://doi.org/10.1598/RT.59.8.4
Snowling, M.J., & Hulme, C. (2011, March). Evidence-based interventions for reading and language difficulties: Creating a virtuous circle. British Journal of Educational Psychology,8, 1-23
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.2044-8279.2010.02014.x
Sönmez, Y., & Sulak, S.E. (2018). The Effect of the Thinking-aloud Strategy on the Reading Comprehension Skills of 4th Grade Primary School Students. Universal Journal of Educational Research,6(1). 168-172.
https://doi.org/10.13189/ujer.2018.060116
Stevens, K.C. (1980). The Effect of Background Knowledge on The Reading Comprehension of Ninth Graders. Journal of Reading Behavior, 12 (2), 151-154.
https://doi.org/10.1080/10862968009547365
Think-alouds. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.readingrockets.org/strategies/think_alouds
Walker, B.J., (2005). Thinking aloud: Struggling readers often require more than a model. International Reading Association, 58(7), 688-692.
https://doi.org/10.1598/RT.58.7.10
Yazdanpanah, K. (2007). The Effect of Background Knowledge and Reading Comprehension Test Items on Male and Female Performance. The Reading Matrix, 7(2), 64-80
Ys, S.B., Nasir, C., & Rohiman, C.L.N. (2018). Using the Think-Aloud Method in Teaching Reading Comprehension. Studies in English Language and Education, 5(1),148-158.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright Transfer Statement for Journal
1) In signing this statement, the author(s) grant UNIMAS Publisher an exclusive license to publish their original research papers. The author(s) also grant UNIMAS Publisher permission to reproduce, recreate, translate, extract or summarize, and to distribute and display in any forms, formats, and media. The author(s) can reuse their papers in their future printed work without first requiring permission from UNIMAS Publisher, provided that the author(s) acknowledge and reference publication in the Journal.
2) For open access articles, the author(s) agree that their articles published under UNIMAS Publisher are distributed under the terms of the CC-BY-NC-SA (Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-Share Alike 4.0 International License) which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, for non-commercial purposes, provided the original work of the author(s) is properly cited.
3) The author(s) is/are responsible to ensure his or her or their submitted work is original and does not infringe any existing copyright, trademark, patent, statutory right, or propriety right of others. Corresponding author(s) has (have) obtained permission from all co-authors prior to submission to the journal. Upon submission of the manuscript, the author(s) agree that no similar work has been or will be submitted or published elsewhere in any language. If submitted manuscript includes materials from others, the authors have obtained the permission from the copyright owners.
4) In signing this statement, the author(s) declare(s) that the researches in which they have conducted are in compliance with the current laws of the respective country and UNIMAS Journal Publication Ethics Policy. Any experimentation or research involving human or the use of animal samples must obtain approval from Human or Animal Ethics Committee in their respective institutions. The author(s) agree and understand that UNIMAS Publisher is not responsible for any compensational claims or failure caused by the author(s) in fulfilling the above-mentioned requirements. The author(s) must accept the responsibility for releasing their materials upon request by Chief Editor or UNIMAS Publisher.
5) The author(s) should have participated sufficiently in the work and ensured the appropriateness of the content of the article. The author(s) should also agree that he or she has no commercial attachments (e.g. patent or license arrangement, equity interest, consultancies, etc.) that might pose any conflict of interest with the submitted manuscript. The author(s) also agree to make any relevant materials and data available upon request by the editor or UNIMAS Publisher.
