Reading Instruction at the Tertiary Level: A Critical Inquiry into Classroom Practices

Abstract

Reading instruction has been recognized as a key factor in enhancing students' productive engagement with reading texts. However, studies on how instruction is enacted in reading classes at the tertiary level remain in the margins, particularly in Nepal's higher education context. This paper examines teachers' enactment of reading instruction while teaching university reading courses. Framed within a qualitative inquiry, the paper utilized the data collected through lesson observations and semi-structured interviews with English teacher educators teaching B.Ed. English reading courses. The findings reveal that teachers' instructional activities were at odds with fundamental premises of reading pedagogy, with most reading lessons providing limited opportunities for students to engage in reading. While post-lesson interview data indicated teachers' awareness of the need for engaging students in reading activities to develop their reading skills, observation data showed their disproportionate inclination towards the traditional mode of lecturing, limited use of interactive models of reading comprehension, monologic use of dialogic activities, and an uncritical approach to teaching critical reading courses. This misalignment between teachers' pedagogical awareness and their actual instructional behavior appears to stem from several factors, including lengthy courses, traditional classroom settings, student expectations, students without course books, and a lack of instructional training and orientation for teachers. Implications of these findings for designing reading courses and reading instruction are discussed.