The Impact of Reciprocal Teaching on Pre-Service English-as-a-Foreign-Language Teachers’ Reading Comprehension Skills

Abstract

This quasi-experimental study explored the impact of a seven-week intervention in reciprocal teaching (RT) on improving pre-service English-as-a-foreign-language (EFL) teachers’ (PSEFLTs) reading comprehension skills. The experimental group (N = 56) were subjected to an intervention designed to help them understand and apply the steps in RT while the control group (N = 53) attended to reading classes taught conventionally. Data was collected from a pre-reading test administered prior to the commencement and a post-reading test administered following the intervention, and a semi-structured interview. The findings revealed there was no statistically significant difference in experimental and control participants’ reading comprehension skills in the pre-reading test; nevertheless, the experimental group outperformed the control group in the post-reading test. Analysis of the qualitative data demonstrated the PSEFLTs viewed the RT intervention as effective in developing their reading comprehension skills and would implement it in their future teaching.

Keywords

• PSEFLTs
• quasi-experimental study
• reading comprehension skills
• reading skills course
• RT

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