ERIC Number: EJ1176294
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2018-Apr
Pages: 22
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: EISSN-1539-0578
EISSN: N/A
Embodied EFL Reading Activity: Let's Produce Comics
Shiang, Ruei-Fang
Reading in a Foreign Language, v30 n1 p108-129 Apr 2018
While theories of embodied cognition have been investigated in lab experiments with proficient readers, currently no studies have applied these theories to improving reading comprehension for low-proficiency readers. Using an embodied cognition approach, this study investigated producing comics as an embodied reading activity. To compare effects on English as a foreign language (EFL) reading comprehension of narrative texts, 71 low-proficiency tertiary EFL readers were randomly assigned to one of two collaborative post-reading activity groups: comics production or translation. Before the activities, the participants were given background knowledge instruction for the narrative texts. Reading comprehension was assessed by a true-false test, followed by a semi-structured focus group interview. The results show that the comics production group outperformed the translation group in reading comprehension. Moreover, evidence from interviews shows the comics production activity assisted low-proficiency EFL readers in constructing multimodal representations of what they read, improving the depth of their reading comprehension.
Descriptors: Cartoons, English (Second Language), Second Language Learning, Second Language Instruction, Language Proficiency, Reading Comprehension, Interviews, Translation, Schemata (Cognition), Reading Instruction, Prior Learning, Comparative Analysis, Semi Structured Interviews, Reading Tests, Instructional Effectiveness, Chinese, Native Language, Foreign Countries, Focus Groups, Student Attitudes, College Freshmen, Statistical Analysis
Reading in a Foreign Language. National Foreign Language Resource Center, 1859 East-West Road #106, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI 96822. e-mail: readfl@hawaii.edu; Web site: http://nflrc.hawaii.edu/rfl/
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research; Tests/Questionnaires
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Taiwan
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A