This study aims to investigate the perceptions of ESL readers of a midwestern American university about reading challenges and coping strategies in reading. The research was conducted with survey questionnaires comprising both open-ended...
moreThis study aims to investigate the perceptions of ESL readers of a midwestern American university about reading challenges and coping strategies in reading. The research was conducted with survey questionnaires comprising both open-ended and close-ended questions on thirty Intensive English Program (IEP) students of three different reading levels--ESL Reading 3, 5, and 6. Out of eleven reading challenges posed to them, they either agreed or strongly agreed that lack of vocabulary knowledge, making inferences, complex sentence structures, finding specific information and long passages are among the most difficult reading challenges. The most effective strategies they agree or strongly agree at are group working, note-taking from teachers' prereading discussion, scanning, skimming, top-down and bottom-up strategies. The study also reports that participants doing non-academic reading along with academic study have fewer challenges and more strategies in reading.
