Jul 2026· Ibero-American Journal of Education & Society Research· Vol 6, pp. e26S09· 0 citations· 19 references
Abstract
Reading comprehension remains a critical challenge in primary education, where students often struggle to transition from mechanical decoding to inferential and critical thinking. This study examines the association between a pedagogical strategy based on short stories and the reading proficiency of sixth-grade students at the José Vicente Luque Educational Unit. Grounded in Cognitive Load Theory (Sweller, 2011), the research employed a mixed-methods approach with a pre-experimental design (single-group pre-test/post-test) involving 32 participants. The independent variable—short story strategy—was operationalized as an integrated instructional intervention combining measurable text features (structural brevity, narrative unity, and thematic relevance) with guided pedagogical mediation throughout the pre-reading, during-reading, and post-reading phases. After verifying normality via the Shapiro-Wilk test, the paired-samples t-test revealed a statistically significant improvement ($p < .001$), resulting in the rejection of the null hypothesis. Notably, Cohen’s $d$ (0.73) indicated a medium-to-large effect size, reflecting a robust positive trend in student performance. Qualitative findings further identified a reduction in cognitive fatigue and enhanced engagement. Overall, the findings indicate that optimizing cognitive load through brief narratives may facilitate the allocation of mental resources toward higher-order comprehension. Due to the absence of a control group, these results are interpreted as indicative evidence of a positive association rather than definitive proof of exclusive causality. The study concludes that the short story may function as a high-potential didactic resource for fostering analytical reading skills in basic education.
This study aimed to evaluate changes in the reading comprehension performance of EFL students following an instructional intervention based on local legends from Pujilí. The intervention incorporated A2-level reading activities adapted from Cambridge A2 Flyers-type tasks combining culturally contextualized narrative texts with skimming and scanning strategies within Communicative Language Teaching and Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT). A quantitative, one-group pretest–posttest pre-experimental design was employed with 22 fourth-semester students enrolled in the Pedagogy of National and Foreign Languages program at the Technical University of Cotopaxi, Pujilí Extension. Students worked with short narrative texts based on traditional legends from Pujilí, created by university students and faculty members and adapted to the A2 instructional level through pre-reading, while-reading, and post-reading activities. Reading-comprehension performance increased from a pretest mean of 5.62 to a posttest mean of 9.69. The paired-samples t test showed a statistically significant difference between the two measurement points, t(21) = 8.465, p < .001, and the Wilcoxon signed-rank test produced the same significant result, p < .001. The findings indicated substantial within-group improvement in reading-comprehension performance after the intervention. However, because the study used a one-group pre-experimental design, the results should not be interpreted as definitive evidence of causality.
Laydi Anabel Morocho Chipugsi, Mónica Lisbeth Guato Pila, José Ignacio Andrade Morán· Revista de Investigación Edu...· 0 citations
Reading comprehension is a fundamental skill for academic success; however, second-year students of the Unified General Baccalaureate (BGU) in Ecuador often experience persistent difficulties at inferential and critical levels. This study assessed the impact of using short informative texts as a pedagogical strategy to enhance reading comprehension. The research adopted a quasi-experimental one-group pretest-posttest design with a sample of 44 participants in a rural educational setting. The intervention consisted of a didactic sequence incorporating vocabulary scaffolding, guided structural analysis, and inferential questioning. Data were analyzed using descriptive and comparative statistical procedures to determine the magnitude of improvement. Results revealed a notable redistribution in performance levels: the proportion of students in the highest achievement range (9.00–10.00) increased from 13.6% (n=6) to 29.5% (n=13), while those in the lowest range (≤ 4.00) decreased from 22.7% (n=10) to 2.2% (n=1). Improvements were observed across comprehension levels, indicating a positive shift in students’ reading performance. These findings suggest that systematic exposure to concise, structured texts can mitigate cognitive overload and support the development of higher-order reading skills in low-proficiency learners, particularly in resource-constrained educational contexts.
Critical thinking is an essential competence in language education because students are expected not only to understand texts but also to interpret information, evaluate arguments, identify assumptions, make inferences, and justify their opinions using textual evidence. However, reading instruction in many English as a foreign language classrooms still emphasizes literal comprehension, vocabulary translation, and answer-finding activities. This study aims to examine the effectiveness of reading-based literacy activities in developing students’ critical thinking and to explore how students experience critical reading tasks in secondary EFL classrooms. The study employed a mixed-method design using a quasi-experimental pretest-posttest control group approach supported by classroom observations, student interviews, reflective journals, and document analysis. The participants were 74 Grade VIII students divided into an experimental group and a control group. The experimental group received reading-based literacy activities involving prediction, questioning, evidence mapping, inference-making, argument evaluation, perspective comparison, and reflective response writing. The control group received conventional reading instruction. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, paired-sample t-tests, independent-sample t-tests, normalized gain scores, and effect size analysis. Qualitative data were analyzed thematically. The findings showed that the experimental group achieved significantly higher critical thinking improvement than the control group. Qualitative findings revealed that reading-based literacy activities strengthened students’ ability to question texts, locate evidence, compare viewpoints, infer implicit meanings, and justify interpretations. The study concludes that reading-based literacy activities can develop students’ critical thinking when they are explicit, evidence-based, dialogic, and supported by reflective assessment.
Fitriani Fitriani, Fitriah Hayati· Sensei International Journal...· 0 citations
This study was motivated by the low reading comprehension skills of ninth-grade junior high school students in English texts. Many students experience difficulty connecting new vocabulary to the story context, which impedes their comprehension. This quantitative research employed a quasi-experimental design to examine the effect of the Story Impression strategy on the English reading comprehension of ninth-grade students at SMPI Al-Muqorrobin. Two intact classes were involved: Class IX-A served as the experimental group (n = 19) and was taught using the Story Impression strategy, while Class IX-B functioned as the control group (n = 19) and received conventional instruction. Reading comprehension tests (pre-test and post-test) were used as the instrument, and the data were analyzed using Welch’s test in Microsoft Excel. The control group showed an improvement in the mean score from 38.68 on the pre-test to 62.86 on the post-test, while the experimental group demonstrated a greater increase from 48.75 on the pre-test to 90.00 otgn the post-test. Statistical testing confirmed that this increase was highly significant (p < 0.05), and the experimental group outperformed the control group on the final assessment. The findings demonstrate that the Story Impression strategy is highly effective in enhancing junior high school students’ reading comprehension.
Siti Abidah, Suhartatik· JOURNEY (Journal of English...· 0 citations
This exploratory, classroom-based mixed-methods study examined a five-phase, AI-supported multimodal literacy sequence implemented with 25 Grade 4 students over four weeks. The intervention combined interactive digital reading, collaborative narrative writing, AI-supported comic imagery, multimedia editing, and peer reflection. Quantitative analyses compared students’ baseline and post-intervention comprehension scores and summarized responses to a 12-item post-intervention questionnaire. Qualitative data from open-ended responses, classroom observations, and student artifacts were analyzed thematically. Students’ mean comprehension scores increased from 63.81 (SD = 9.70) at baseline to 75.37 (SD = 7.63) after the intervention, representing a significant within-group change, t(24) = 5.49, p < 0.001, dz = 1.10. Questionnaire responses were generally positive, particularly for original story writing, digital comic creation, and the addition of movement and sound. Three qualitative themes were identified: AI-supported representations as scaffolds for narrative comprehension, as catalysts for authorial identity and creative agency, and as mediators of collaborative meaning-making. Because the study used a single-group design and the comparability of the parallel assessment forms was supported through expert content review rather than large-scale psychometric equating, the findings should be interpreted as exploratory evidence of association rather than as causal effects of AI. The study nevertheless illustrates how developmentally appropriate, teacher-mediated AI activities may support multimodal literacy participation in primary education.
Panayiota H. Diakou, C. Angeli· Education sciences· 0 citations
Reading comprehension is a crucial skill that underpins the understanding of scientific concepts and processes, facilitates the integration of conceptual knowledge with analytical thinking, and thereby enhances scientific literacy. In this context, the flipped learning model allows students to explore essential concepts at home through digital resources, thus freeing classroom time for targeted interventions. In this study, it was aimed to evaluate the effect of reading comprehension-based science instruction, supported by a flipped learning model, on the learning and reading comprehension skills of 7th-grade students during the 2022-2023 academic year in a boys-only public middle school in Istanbul. By employing an embedded mixed design, the effectiveness of reading comprehension-based instruction was evaluated during and after the implementation stage by conducting an experimental design and collecting both qualitative and quantitative data. In total, 67 students participated. In the experimental groups, students learned basic concepts at home through assignments from the Education Science Network before class, while in-class activities focused on applying reading comprehension skills to scientific content. Data were gathered through various measurement tools, including a reading comprehension skills scale, an achievement test, teacher reflection notes, and semi-structured interviews. The findings showed that students significantly showed improvement in their reading comprehension and science performance. Students stated that they achieved better understanding and learning through reading strategies that they could apply in other courses. In addition, the instruction contributed to their social-emotional development, including self-awareness, social skills and academic motivation.
