The effect of humorous passages on developing learners’ reading comprehension

Subject Areas : Journal of Teaching English Language Studies

Niloufar Poor Rahmani ¹ (Islamic Azad University, Takestan Branch)
Mohammad Taghi Hassani ² (Emam Hossein University)

Received: 2013-10-31 Accepted : 2013-12-07 Published : 2014-02-01

Keywords: motivation, reading comprehension, humor, achievement motivation, EFL reading,

Abstract :

Sense of humor as a key factor for increasing the effect of instruction has been overlooked by research in the field of education. This study was an attempt to investigate the effects of the use of humor on EFL learners’ reading comprehension. For this purpose, a group of Iranian EFL learners were taught reading comprehension through the use of humorous passages while another group of learners were taught through neutralized passages. Eighty four students studying in different private language institutes in Takestan participated in this study. All subjects were male with ages between 16 and 19. The results of the study showed that the use of humorous texts significantly enhanced the reading comprehension performance of the EFL learners’. The results also showed that the learners’ motivation was enhanced through the use of humorous reading materials.

References:

Aarnoutse, C., & Schellings, G. (2003). Learning reading strategies by triggering reading motivation. Educational Studies, 29 (4), 387-409. doi: 10/1080/0305569032000159688.

Abraham, P. (2002). Skilled Reading: Top-Down, Bottom-Up. Retrieved in July 2013. From http://www.sabes.org/resources/fieldnote/vo110/fn102/pdf.

Aebersold, J. A., & Field, M. L. (1997). From reader to reading teacher: Issue and strategies for second language classrooms.Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Abu- Rabia, S. (2004). Teachers’ role, learners’ gender differences, and EFL anxiety among  seventh-gender students studying English as a EF. Educational Psychology, 24(5), 711-721. doi: 10.1080/ 0144341042000263006

Ahmadi, M., & Gilakjani, A. (2011). The relationship between L2 reading  Comprehension and schema theory: A matter of text familiarity. International Journal of Information and Education Technology, 1(2), 142-149.

Ajideh, P. (2003). Schema theory-based pre-reading tasks: A neglected essential in the ESL reading class. The Reading Matrix, 3(1), 1-14.

Alsalmi, M. (2011). Schemata (Background Knowledge) and Reading Comprehension For EFL Students. Retrieved in Jan 2013. From http://mcgrawhillflnetworks.com/pdf/White_Papers/8353_networks_Bckgrnd_Knwld_WhitePaper.pdf .

Alyousef, H. S. (2005). Teaching reading comprehension to ESL/EFL learners. The Reading Matrix, 5(2), 126-137.

Alyousef, H. S. (2006). Teaching reading comprehension to ESL/EFL learners. Journal of Language and Learning, 4(1), 63-73.

Anderson, N. J. (1999). Exploring Second Language Reading: Issues and Strategies. Retrieved in Jan 2013. Fromhttp://nflrc.hawaii.edu/rfl/apri 2003/reviews/mcpherson.pdf.

Balkis, M., & Isiker, G. B. (2005). The relationship between thinking styles and personality types. Social Behavior and Personality, 33(3), 283-294.

Bernitz, Z. (1997). Effects of accelerated reading rate on memory for text among dyslexia Readers. Journal of  Educational Psychology, 89(2), 289-297.

Broussard, S. C., & Garrison, M. E. (2004). The relationship between classroom motivation and academic achievement in elementary school-aged children. Family and Consumer Science Research Journal, 33(2), 106-120. doi: 10.1177/1077727X04269573

Brown, H. D. (2000). Principles of Language Learning and Teaching. San Francisco: Longman.

Capa, R. L., Audiffren, M., Ragot, S. (2008). The effects of achievement motivation, task difficulty, and goal difficulty on psychological, behavioral, and subject effort. Psychophysiology, 45(5), 859-868.

Carrell, P. L., Devine, J., & Eskey, D. E. (1988). Interactive approaches to second language reading. New York: Cambridge.

Carell, P. L., & Grabe, W. (2002). Reading In: N. Schmitt (Ed.), An introduction to applied linguistics (pp. 215-231). London: Hodder Education.

Carrell, P. L., Devine, J., & Eskey, D. E. (2006). Interactive approaches to second language reading. California: Cambridge.

Coady, J. & Huckin, T. (1997). Second language vocabulary acquisition. Cambridge:  Cambridge University Press.

Collins, C. J., Hanges, P. J., & Locke, E. A. (2004). The relationship of achievement motivation   to entrepreneurial behavior: A meta-analysis. Human Performance, 17(1), 95-117.

Cziko, C., Greenleaf, C., Hurwitz, L., Schoenbach, R. (2000). What is reading? An excerpt from       Reading for understanding. The Quarterly, 22(3), 1-6.

Dechant, E. (1991). Understanding and teaching reading: A interactive model. Lawrence   Erlbaum Associates: Hillssdale, NJ.

Deci, E.L., & Ryan, R.M. (2000). Intrinsic and extrinsic motivations: Classic definitions and new directions. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 25(1), 54-67.

Drucker, M. J. (2003). What reading teachers should know about ESL learners. The Reading Teachers, 57(1), 22-29.

Ehrman, M. E., Leaver, B. L., & Oxford, R. L. (2003). A brief overview of individual differences In second language learning. System, 31(3), 313-330.

Eskey, D. E. (2002). Reading and the teaching of L2 reading. TESOL Journal 11(1), 5-9.   

Field, J. (2003). Psycholinguistics. New York: Rotledge.

Glasser, W. (1997). Choice theory and student success. The Education Digest, 63, 16-21.  

Grabe, W. (1991). Current developments in second language reading research. TESOL Quarterly, 25(3), 375-406. doi: 10.2307/3586977

Grabe, W., & Stoller, F. L. (2001). Reading for Academic Purpose: Guidelines for ESL/ EFL Teachers.Retrieved in Sep 2013. From http://pocketknowledge.tc.columbia.edu/.

Green, C. (2005). Integrating extensive reading in the Task-based curriculum. ELT Journal 59(4), 306-311. doi: 10.1093/elt/cci059

Guay, F., Chanal, J., Ratelle, C.F., Marsh, H. W., Larose, S., & Boivin, M. (2010). Intrinsic,  Identified, and controlled types of motivation for school subjects in your elementary  School children. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 8(4), 711-735.

Harmer, J. (2007). How to teach English. Pearson Longman: Longman.

Hedge, T. (2003). Teaching and learning in the language classroom. New York: Oxford.

Koda, K. (2005). Insights into second language learning: A cross-linguistic approach. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Lau, K. L., & Chan, D. W. (2003). Readind strategy use and motivation among Chinese good  and poor readers in Hong Kong. Journal of Research in Reading, 26(2), 177-190. doi: 10.1111/1464-9817.00195

Lesgold, M., A., & Perffetti, A., C. (2009). Interactive processes in reading comprehension. Discourse Processes, 1(4), 323-336. doi:10.1080/0163853780954443

Martin-Chang, S. Y., & Gould, O. N., (2008). Revisiting print comprehension and reading rate. Journal of Research, 31(3), 273-284.

McCormick, S. (2003). Instructing students who have literacy problems (4^th ed). Merrill Printice   Hall: Upper Saddle River, N.J.

McCormick, T. W. (1988). Theories of reading in dialogue. Lanham, MD: University Press of   America.

Mikulecky, B. (2008). Teaching Reading in a Second Language.Retrieved in May 2013. From    http://www.longmanhomeusa.com/content/Final-LO%20RES-Mikuley-Reading%20.pdf.

Mokhtari, K., & Reichard, C. A. (2002). Assessing students’ metacognitive awareness of  reading strategies. Journal of Educational Psychology, 94(2), 249-259. doi: 10.1037//0022-0663.94.2.249

Nikoopour, J., Alam, M., & Tajbakhsh, M. (2012). Thinking style and achievement      motivation: A survey study among Iranian EFL learners. International Journal of English and Literature, 2(3).

Noels, K. A., Pelletier, L. C., Clement, R., & Vallerand, R. J. (1999). Perception of teachers’ Communicative style and students’ intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. The Modern Language Journal, 88(1), 23-34. doi: 10.111/0026-7902.00003

Noels, K. A., Pelletier, L. C., Clement, R., & Vallerand, R. J. (2000). Why are you learning a  Second language? Motivational Orientations and Self-Determination Theory. Language Learning, 50(1), 57-85.

Nuttall, C. (1996). Teaching reading skills in a foreign language. Oxford: Heineman.

Pookcharoen, S. (2009). Metacognitive online reading strategies among Thai EFL University studies. Available from ProQuest Dissertation and Theses database. (UMI No. 3390322).

Pressley, M. (2000). Comprehension instruction in elementary school: A quarter-century Of research progress. In B.M. Taylor, M.F. Graves & P.V.V. Broek (Eds), Reading for  Meaning: Fostering comprehension in the middle grades (pp. 32-51). New York: Teachers College Press.

Rajabi, P. (2009). Cultural orientation and reading comprehension models: The case of Iranian rural and urban. Novitas-Royal, 3(1), 75-82.

Reimann, A. (2006). A Critical Analysis of Cultural Content in EFL Materials. Retrieved in October 2013. From http://www.uuair.lib.utsunomiya-u.ac.jp/dspace/bitstream/1024/.

Richards, J. C., & Renandya, W. A. (2002). Methodology in language teaching. United Kingdom: Cambridge.

Ryan, R. M. (1995). Psychological Needs and the Facilitation of Integrative Processes. Retrieved in Sep 2013. From www.selfdeterminationtheory.org.

Saito, Y., Horwitz, E. K., & Garza, T. J. (1999). Foreign language reading anxiety. The Modern Language Journal, 83(2), 202-218. doi: 10.111/0026-7902.00016

Sellers, V.D. (2000). Anxiety and reading comprehension in Spanish as a foreign language. Foreign Language Annals, 33(5), 512-521. doi: 10.111/j. 1944-9720.2000.tb01995.x

Shapiro, A. M. (2004). How including prior knowledge as a subject variable may change   Outcomes of learning research. American Educational Research Journal, 41(1), 159-189. doi: 10.3102/00028312041001159

Shilei, G. & Xianbin, Z. (2005). The Role of Background Knowledge in Reading Teaching. Retrieved in Feb 2013. From www.celea.org.cn/teic/62/62-111.pdf.

Snow, C. (2002). Reading for understanding. Toward an R & D program in reading   comprehension. Arlington, VA: RAND.

Spencer, R. & Hay, I. (1998). Initial Reading Schemes and Their High Frequency Words. Retrieved in July 2013. From http://www.questia.com.

Taguchi, E., Gurshuch, G., & Sasamoto, E. (2006). Developing second and foreign language   Reading fluency and its effect on comprehension: A missing link. The Reading Matrix, 6(2), 1-17.

Thang Kiet, H. S. T. (2011). An intercultural perspective on teaching and learning in the Vietnamese EFL classroom. University of Sydney Paper in TESOL, 6, 43-69.

Tran, A. (2006). Modified Extensive Reading for English-Language Learners. Retrieved in Jun 2013. From www.freepatentosline.com.

Treiman, R. (2007). Reading. Retrieved in Jan 2011. From www.artsci.wustledu/rtreiman/selected-papers/Treiman-Handbook-of-linguistics, 2011.pdf.

Wang, J. H. & Guthrie, J. T. (2011). Modeling the effects of intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivation, amount of reading, and past reading achievement on text comprehension  between U.S. and Chinese students. Readind Research Quarterly, 39(2), 162-186. doi: 10.1598/ RRQ. 39.2.2

Wei, M. (2007). The interrelatedness of affective factors in EFL  learning: An examination of Motivational patterns in relation to anxiety in China. TESL-EJ, 11(1), 1-23.

Wigfield, A., Guthrie, J. T., Tonks. S., &  Perencevich, K. C. (2004). Children’s Motivation for reading: domain specificity and instructional influences. The Journal of Educational Research, 97(6), 299-309.

Yatvin, J. (2008). 2007 NCTE presidential address: Where ignorant armies clash by night. Research in Teaching of English, 42(3), 363-372.

Zhang, Z. (1993). Literature Review on Reading Strategy Research. Retrieved in July 2013.  From www.eric.ed.gov.