Reading skills needs analysis: A prologue to program design and instructional materials development

• Main Author: Espiritu, Leonard David M.
• Format: text
• Published: Animo Repository 2018
• Subjects: Reading—Ability testing; Reading—Aids and devices; Language and Literacy Education
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/faculty_research/11078
• Institution: De La Salle University

Reading in itself is one form of communication - a way of connecting with the text and its writer - which then results in fluency of grasping the intended meaning of the writer (Alyousef, 2006). Hence, more than merely a language skill, reading is a life skill which enables people to understand meanings presented in written form. Consequently, teachers play a crucial role along the process of developing various skills in reading. The recent study explores the learners’ view of themselves as readers as well as their ability to notice relationships and organization of ideas in a text. Moreover, the conduct of the study serves the purpose of exploring further reading skills which the learners need to fully comprehend the text they are faced with. Data were gathered through a review of the necessary documents, a questionnaire adapted from Naidu, Briewin & Embi (2013), and a focus group discussion. The results show that a plurality of the learners sees themselves as average readers and that their awareness on the connection between and among ideas is not always heightened. As well, the study found out the students’ perceived necessary reading skills, with scanning on top of the list. The findings suggest that it is an imperative for teachers to develop metacognition among students, as well as explicitly raise students’ awareness on the relationship and organization of ideas in a text through teaching them to use graphic organizers. Furthermore, it is expected that a reading program and a set of instructional materials will be developed in response to this needs analysis.