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European Journal of Alternative Education Studies ISSN: 2501-5915 ISSN-L: 2501-5915 Available on-line at: www.oapub.org/edu Volume 2 │ Issue 1 │ 2017 doi: 10.5281/zenodo.1025238 European Journal of Alternative Education Studies EFFECTIVENESS OF USING STOP, THINK AND TALK ACTIVITIES ON THE PERFORMANCE OF STUDENTS IN READING COMPREHENSION IN JUNIOR SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN FEDERAL CAPITAL TERRITORY (FCT) ABUJA, NIGERIAi Hanna Onyi Yusufii Department of Educational Foundations and Curriculum, Faculty of Education Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria Abstract: The study was carried out to determine the effect of stop, think and talk activities on the performance of students in reading comprehension in junior secondary schools in Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja. The study was carried out using a quasiexperimental pretest-posttest research design. The target population of the study comprised of 16,925 JSII students. A sample size of 100 JSII students from two secondary schools in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja, were purposely sampled in the study. Sixty five (65) students from Government Junior Secondary School, Apo and thirty five (35) from Government Junior Secondary School, Garki were used for the study. Both groups of students were taught for six (6) weeks. Government Junior Secondary School, Apo was assigned as the experimental group while Government Junior Secondary School, Garki was assigned as the control school. Students were pre-tested to establish their homogeneity before the commencement of the treatment. They were taught for six (6) weeks and were tested using retelling test as an instrument. Data collected from students’ test scores was analysed using mean and standard deviation, while t-test was used to test the formulated null hypothesis at 0.05 level of significance. Findings of the study revealed that stop, think and talk activities had significant effect on students’ performance in reading comprehension. In fact, the experimental group which was exposed to stop, think and talk activities had better understanding of the reading comprehension passages given to them. The result further revealed that students in experimental group were more active, responsive and paid The article has been presented at the International Teacher Education Conference held in Harvard University, Boston, Massachusetts, USA, Date: 16th – 18th August 2017 i Copyright © The Author(s). All Rights Reserved. © 2015 – 2017 Open Access Publishing Group 128 Hanna Onyi Yusuf EFFECTIVENESS OF USING STOP, THINK AND TALK ACTIVITIES ON THE PERFORMANCE OF STUDENTS IN READING COMPREHENSION IN JUNIOR SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN FEDERAL CAPITAL TERRITORY (FCT) ABUJA, NIGERIA more attention to details concerning the main ideas in the passages read. Based on the findings, it was recommended that teachers should be encouraged to use stop, think and talk activities in reading comprehension lessons. Such activities should be provided before, during and after every reading comprehension passage to enhance and facilitate students’ reading abilities. Curriculum planners should provide activities that would encourage students to stop, think and talk to make reading comprehension lesson more purposeful and meaningful. Keywords: reading, comprehension, performance, activities, effectiveness 1. Introduction Comprehension is intentional thinking during which meaning is constructed through interactions between texts and readers. It is a process in which readers construct meaning by interacting with text through the combination of prior knowledge and previous experience (Pardo, 2004). Comprehending a text involves two phases, that is, construction and integration. In phase one of this process, the reader constructs meaning from text and in the second phase integrates this newly constructed knowledge into the existing prior knowledge network. Reading is a crucial form of communication through which the information required in teaching and learning situations and in everyday life can be acquired (Adeniji, & Omale, 2010). The teaching of reading needs to include a range of comprehension strategies. Although learning to translate letters into words is extremely important. Comprehension strategies involve the mental processes that good readers use to understand text (Yusuf, 2009). There are various factors militating against the effective teaching and learning of reading comprehension in schools. Researchers (Yusuf 2016, 2013, Oyetunde 2009) have shown in their researches conducted in Nigeria, that poor methodology is one of the main causes of children’s reading failure. “ccording to them, children are failing to learn to read because they are not being taught reading in any meaningful way. Oyetunde and Unoh cited in Adeniji and Omale (2010) highlighted some impediments to positive reading habits and attitude. These include lack of materials, poor preparation of teachers, lack of interest, poor libraries or none at all, home background, poor method of teaching and lack of adult readers as models. Hence, teachers are always in search of enhanced methods of reading comprehension. Many children in Nigeria do not have the foundational skills such as word recognition, vocabulary development, and prior experiences that are considered necessary to connect text with meaning (Yusuf 2013, 2016). All of the foregoing have necessitated the need to European Journal of Alternative Education Studies - Volume 2 │ Issue 1 │ 2017 129 Hanna Onyi Yusuf EFFECTIVENESS OF USING STOP, THINK AND TALK ACTIVITIES ON THE PERFORMANCE OF STUDENTS IN READING COMPREHENSION IN JUNIOR SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN FEDERAL CAPITAL TERRITORY (FCT) ABUJA, NIGERIA constantly carry out researches to find possible solutions to the perennial reading problems of children in Nigeria. It is against this background that this study was undertaken. For viewing / downloading the full article, please access the following link: https://oapub.org/edu/index.php/ejae/article/view/1115 European Journal of Alternative Education Studies - Volume 2 │ Issue 1 │ 2017 130