I noticed this in previous classes, and last term I decided to approach extensive reading another way; first with explicit instruction on how to choose a “just right” book followed by a trip to the Central Public Library for immediate practice. Word frequency level and the average number of running words needed to meet each word again. The most important finding from first language studies is that this vocabulary learning is not an all-or-nothing piece of learning for any particular word, but that it is a gradual process of one meeting with a word adding to or strengthening the small amounts of knowledge gained from previous meetings. In C. Lauren & M. Nordman (Eds. (1989). It is likely if they included more direct measures of vocabulary size, word recognition, and English structures as Elley and Mangubhai did, then there would be even more signs of improvement. For example, if a learner has a vocabulary of around 1,000 words and is thus expanding her vocabulary at the 1,001-2,000 word level, on average each word at this word level will appear once in every 10,000-15,000 running words (see Table 2). Day, R. R., Omura, C., & Hiramatsu, M. (1991). The Benefits of Extensive Reading for Foreign Language Acquisition: Yildirim, Ahmet: 9783656845409: Books - Amazon.ca (1994). Responses based on research would be appreciated. 2.) All materials on this site are copyright © 1996-2020 by JALT and their respective authors. Wodinsky, M., & Nation, P. (1988). On Wednesday, I'll share with you the method/approach I used with my learners when selecting books. Saragi, T., Nation, I. S. P., & Meister, G. F. (1978). Vocabulary learning and reading. A closer look at learning strategies, L2 proficiency and gender. Extensive reading offers a lot of benefits (provided you enjoy reading). In light of research that shows the benefits of extensive reading, it is worth incorporating extensive reading into the reading curriculum. It also seems that in terms of vocabulary control such texts compare favourably with graded readers. Applied Linguistics, 17(2), 210-233. Hafiz, F. M., & Tudor, I. These correlational studies are supported by Pickard's (1996) survey of the out of class strategies used by a group of German learners of English in Germany, where extensive reading of newspapers, magazines and novels ranked very high on the list of strategies used for learning English. (1989). At the end, I will introduce practical options and possible solutions in terms of implementing extensive reading programs. The lengths in column four are from the Longman Structural Readers Handbook (1976). Playing next. Extensive reading, free reading, book flood, or reading for pleasure is a way of language learning, including foreign language learning, through large amounts of reading. In two experiments, one conducted with second language learners in England for a maximum of 60 hours (Tudor & Hafiz, 1989; Hafiz & Tudor, 1989), and one with learners in Pakistan for a maximum of 90 hours (Hafiz & Tudor, 1990), Hafiz and Tudor looked at the effect of extensive reading of graded readers on learnersí language use. Laufer, B. Increasing reading rate is important because rate is a critical component of fluent reading. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters. The benefits of extensive reading are far-reaching: independent readers become more avid readers, better writers and, ultimately, lifelong readers. Comparing the effects of reading and writing on writing performance. Experimental studies have shown that not only is there improvement in reading, but that there are improvements in a range of language uses and areas of language knowledge. ), Special language: From humans thinking to thinking machines. Extensive means covering a substantial area and so, extensive reading refers to that type of reading in which students read and refer to large quantities of material, chosen by themselves. The benefits of extensive reading. This can be done with Graded readers. Bow Valley College. Calgary, Alberta, Canada These studies present compelling evidence of the improvements in second language acquisition that can be brought about by such programs. A well-balanced language program has appropriate amounts of message directed activity and language focused activity. This study raised the important issue of causality through the use of the LISREL program for analysing the data. Vocabulary acquisition from listening to stories. Wellington: NZCER. Second, it allows learners to follow their interests in choosing what to read and thus increase their motivation for learning. Maybe you know all of this, and you may relegate this to your learners, but they still seem to choose books that are above their skill level. Extensive Reading improves writing skills (Hsu and Lee, 2007; Smith, 2007 cited in Guo, 2012). These include gains in reading and writing competence, oral and aural skills, vocabulary growth, and increases in motivation, self-esteem and empathy. Talking specifically of intensive reading - let's give some definitions for the starters. Part 1 of this talk defines extensive reading, using the acronym BEE. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company. Extensive Reading by Non-native Speakers of Texts Written for Young Native Speakers. This article looks at the language learning benefits from extensive reading, looking both at extensive reading of texts prepared for native speakers and those prepared for non-native speakers. The Benefits of Extensive Reading Question: What is extensive reading? Reading in a Foreign Language, 8(2), 689-696. There is a rough way of providing a guideline for deciding how much extensive reading learners at a particular level should be doing. Learning words from context. Benefits of extensive reading: 1. Use of reading and other input sources may be the only practical options for out of class language development for some learners. Scrivener, J. The books that were used in the experiments were generally "well-illustrated, and used only common-sense controls over the presentation of vocabulary and structures" (Elley & Mangubhai, 1981a, p. 26). In a study using SRA reading boxes, Robb and Susser (1989) found that extensive reading of SRA material and readers written for American teenagers produced several results superior to a skills focused reading course involving less reading. Hafiz, F. M., & Tudor, I. Benefits of Extensive Reading By Edna Orozco López and Miguel de la Ferrelle OrtizWhat is extensive reading?According to Richard Day extensive reading means that students read many andeasy books for information and enjoyment. This means that a learner with a vocabulary of the most frequent 1500 words would need to read 13,000 running words in order to meet a repetition of words at this level to reinforce a previous meeting. Tudor, I., & Hafiz, F. (1989). Students choose what to read. Language learning background factors and ESL proficiency. Tsang (1996) also found very positive effects of simplified reading on learnersí writing performance. One evening, she finds herself locked in the library with none other than Mr. Darcy himself. Extensive reading imbibes in the readers a wide store of vocabulary. Journal of Research in Reading, 12(2), 164-178. Elley (1991, pp. Acquiring second language vocabulary through reading: A replication of the Clockwork Orange study using second language acquirers. Incidental EFL vocabulary learning and reading. … Third, it provides the opportunity for learning to occur outside the classroom. The language knowledge measures included word recognition where learners have to read aloud a list of words, vocabulary knowledge, and grammar. To access the latest JALT Publications, please visit the. “The Benefits of Extensive Reading” is a “Pride and Prejudice” inspired novella that starts during Elizabeth’s stay at Netherfield to take care of her sister Jane. 0:37. Pickard, N. (1996). What vocabulary size is needed to read unsimplified texts for pleasure? The weakness of this analysis is that the figures of occurrences per 1,000,000 running words are based on unsimplified texts. Column three converts the figures in column two to a ratio. In the following section we will see if texts for native speakers can meet these requirements. Email: GlobalAccess@bowvalleycollege.ca, Email: GlobalAccess@bowvalleycollege.ca 378-379) attributes the success to five factors. Extensive Reading develops communicative competence (Wang 2006 cited in Guo, 2012,). Robb, T. N., & Susser, B. Note that the names of the characters and places make up a large proportion of the words not in the first 2,000 words. Elley, W. B. They found that oral exposure, speaking and listening outside class and communicative oral use affected out of class reading. Proponents such as Reading books benefits both your physical and mental health, and those benefits can last a lifetime. More, specifically, in what ways is extensive reading helpful for learning a target language? But the figures of 96.7% and 96.3% are still good coverage figures. Huang and van Naerssen (1987) found that reading outside class was the most significant predictor of oral communicative ability. Sensitive vocabulary tests. Reading Research Quarterly, 24(2), 174ñ187. However, the figures on repetition indicate that teachers need to be serious about extensive reading programs particularly in ensuring that learners do large amounts of reading. Acquiring literacy in a second language: The effect of book-based programs. If, for example, the memory of a meeting with a word lasts for one week, then the learner will need to read at least 10,000 words per week (40 pages of 250 words per page) to ensure that there is another meeting with the word before the memory of it is lost. Essentially, vocabulary learning from extensive reading is very fragile. Success in formal study may make reading more feasible. Although studies have focused on language improvement, it is clear that there are affective benefits as well. Gradman and Hanania found the strongest connection going from individual out of class reading to TOEFL results. Intensive Reading and Extensive Reading are … Let us look at two books written without formal vocabulary control for young native speakers and compare them with a graded reader written to fit into a prescribed vocabulary level. However, before investing time and money in an extensive reading program, it is necessary to be sure that the learning that occurs from it is not restricted solely to the improvement of reading fluency, even though this in itself is a useful goal. Green and Oxford (1995) in a study of the effect of learning strategies on language proficiency found that reading for pleasure was most strongly related to proficiency. Hirsh, D., & Nation, P. (1992). Out of class language learning strategies. Even with these limited and indirect measures, improvement was seen particularly in writing. When this unfortunate experience occurs, there is too much unfamiliar vocabulary for learners to possibly use context to acquire new vocabulary, little comprehension, and the potential for discouragement from future reading. System, 6(2), 72ñ78. Extensive reading and the development of language skills. We can see from Table 1 that the graded reader Indonesian Love Story provides greater control with 99% of the words coming from the most frequent 2,000 words of English plus names. Reading in a Foreign Language, 7(2), 541-551. Reading is its own reward. The results displayed in Table 1 are strong confirmation of … At this level, this is the equivalent of one graded reader every one to two weeks. It is clear from these studies that extensive reading can be a major factor in success in learning another language. Improving vocabulary Reading … Since this study only investigated the impact of extensive reading on a single subject, the findings in the study are limited to the perspective of this single learner. Longman Structural Readers Handbook. Current literature points to the importance and benefits of extensive reading. The research on extensive reading shows that there is a wide range of learning benefits from such activity. (1989). 5 years ago | 2 views. The impact of a book flood in Fiji primary schools. London: Longman. Extensive reading vs skill building in an EFL context. Then, I will examine the numerous benefits of extensive reading as well as some obstacles which explain why extensive reading programs are difficult to implement. Here are a few of them: More exposure to the language, including style, vocab, and … Table 1 presents the vocabulary profile of the three texts showing the percentage of the running words in the 1,000 most frequent words according to West's (1953) General Service List, the words in the second 1,000 most frequent words, the names of characters and places, and the remaining words. It is likely that the relationship between extensive reading and language proficiency is changing and complex. It can be compared with extensive reading, which involves learners reading texts for enjoyment and to develop general reading skills. Gradman, H., & Hanania, E. (1991). It also enhances collaboration among students, as it sometimes done in pair or group work. The "book flood" studies reviewed by Elley (1991) show striking increases made on measures of language use, language knowledge, and academic performance. Extensive reading, specifically the use of the Reading Journal is included in the reading curriculum of our Department with the main goal of improving the TOEFL reading scores of our students. Reading in a Foreign Language, 5(2), 239-251. In addition, several of the words outside the lists were repeated several times (huff, puff, chinny, chin). How do you encourage extensive reading in and outside the classroom? There are many benefits of Extensive Reading in language learning. Success in reading may increase motivation for further study and reading. Moreover, the benefits of intensive reading include enhancing reading comprehension, helping students by understanding sentence structure and developing critical thinking as students have to answer all required questions after reading. Huang, X., & van Naerssen, M. (1987). 3. Phone: 403-410-3400, Email: SGAreception@bowvalleycollege.ca According to Wikipedia, extensive reading is: “Extensive reading, free reading, book flood, or reading for pleasure is a way of language learning, including foreign language learning, through large amounts of reading. Numerous studies show that the amount of reading engaged in correlates with overall reading development 4, and in particular, improvements in reading fluency. the objective are improve their overall comprehension skills and give them an active vocabulary. Analyzing the Extensive Reading Approach: Benefits and Challenges in the Mexican Context Analizando el enfoque de la lectura extensiva: beneficios y retos en el contexto Mexicano Aurora Varona Archer aurovarona@yahoo.com.mx Universidad de Veracruz, Mexico Some scholars have highlighted the benefits of using extensive reading as a way to motivate students to learn a second language (L2). As learnersí vocabulary grows larger, the new vocabulary is of lower frequency, and therefore the amounts of extensive reading would need to be greater. Phone: 403-410-1587, Email: SGAreception@bowvalleycollege.ca Extensive Reading Vs. Green, J. M., & Oxford, R. (1995). Extensive reading is Big, Easy, and Enjoyable. ER allows for multiple encounters with words and phrases in context thus making possible the progressive accretion of meanings to them. All rights reserved. London: Longman. The Benefits of Extensive Reading: A Pride and Prejudice Variation eBook: Lilian, Lory, Abbott, Jo: Amazon.ca: Kindle Store Elley and Mangubhaiís motivation for choosing books written for young native speakers was probably that these were much more attractively illustrated, and interesting for young readers. The familiarity of syntactic patterns acquired through extensive reading enables the learners to string together various words to produce their own creative original language which is in conformity to established patterns. Report. Laufer's (1989) research suggests that learners need to be familiar with at least 95% of the running words in a text if they want to comprehend and thus perhaps learn from the text. The extensive reading program also gave the learners more enjoyment both of reading and writing. (2nd ed.). Applied Linguistics, 8(3), 287-307. One of the texts The Three Little Pigs in the Ladybird series seems to have been used in the Fiji book flood study (Elley & Mangubhai, 1981, p. 26). The children in the book flood studies were aged from 6 to 12 years old, and so the content matter of such books was appropriate. First, reading is essentially an individual activity and therefore learners of different proficiency levels could be learning at their own level without being locked into an inflexible class program. The measures of language use in Elley, and Elley and Mangubhai's studies included measures of oral language, reading comprehension, and writing. Seven Extensive Reading websites: T2G 4V1, Phone: 403-410-3411 An important issue considered in this article is the vocabulary load of the texts that learners should read in extensive reading. All material published more than six months ago is openly accessible on this site. Pitts, M., White, H., & Krashen, S. (1989). Comprehensible Input. In spite of these shortcomings, there is no reason to doubt the finding that learners incidentally gain small amounts of vocabulary knowledge from each meaning focused reading of an appropriate text. Pig is actually in the second 1,000 words but for comparison purposes it was counted as a name. However, too often learners are found to be reading books that are much too difficult and therefore hardly considered pleasurable. Privacy Policy, Posted by English Language Learning on February 4, 2013, Instructor Training & Professional Development, Learners will have a positive attitude toward reading. If the small amount of learning of a word is not soon reinforced by another meeting, then that learning will be lost. The vocabulary knowledge measures did not measure total vocabulary size or vocabulary growth. While intensive reading requires a high level of focus and deliberate effort, extensive reading is meant to be a fun and pleasurable experience, requiring a low expenditure of mental effort. The studies of extensive reading that Elley was involved in are the most substantial in terms of length (12-36 months) and number of students (from over a hundred to several thousand). (1989). In The Three Little Pigs pig, wolf, and (Mr.) Smith make up the total of names. Intensive Reading . Learning from graded readers. Elley, W. B., & Mangubhai, F. (1981a). The benefits of Extensive Reading Extensive Reading gives students chances to read longer pieces of reading, which they choose, which they can read at their own speed and at their own ability level. Elley, W. B., & Mangubhai, F. (1981b). Reading in a Foreign Language, 5(2), 271-275. Joe, A., Nation, P., & Newton, J. All of Hafiz and Tudor's measures were of language use. (1990). As teachers we know that free reading can have many benefits for students. Students read on a wide variety of topics. One effect of extensive reading that appears with short-term programs is on reading attitudes and reading habits. Reading in a Foreign Language, 5(1), 155-161. The study in England used standardised reading and writing measures and analyses of the studentsí writing, while the study in Pakistan used only analyses of students' writing. This kind of reading helps students to develop a sense of liberty. (forthcoming). There was language control only to the extent that "appropriateness of difficulty and interest were the guiding principles of book selection" (Elley, 1991, p. 402). Paul Nation, Victoria University of Wellington, The Language Teacher - Issue 21.5; May 1997, The Language Learning Benefits of Extensive Reading. It helped them to engage with reading more and it changed how they read. Reading Research Quarterly, 20, 233-253. The two factors determining the necessary amount of reading are (a) the frequency level of the learners' vocabulary, and (b) the length of time that the memory of a meeting with a word is retained. Francis, W. N., & Kuçera, H. (1982). Browse more videos. TESOL Quarterly, 29(2), 261-297. When this unfortunate experience occurs, there is too much unfamiliar vocabulary for learners to possibly use context to acquire new vocabulary, little comprehension, and the potential for discouragement from future reading. These include gains in reading and writing proficiency, oral skills and vocabulary, an increase in motivation and positive affect. ELT Journal, 43(1), 4-13. To submit an article or other material to. System, 18(1), 31-42. For less than advanced students, the language barrier usually reduces reading to slow, painful decoding with a dictionary -- which is, of course, not really reading at all. The more extensive reading you do, the more language you are exposed to, allowing you to increase your passive knowledge of vocabulary quite quickly. Although there were no formal measures of learners' attitudes to reading, informal observation and teacher reports indicated that book flood learners enjoyed reading. Success in reading and its associated skills, most notably writing, makes learners come to enjoy language learning and to value their study of English. You can do this activity wherever and whenever you want. Experimental studies of second language learnersí vocabulary learning from reading have not come near to approaching the careful design of first language studies best exemplified by the work of Nagy, Herman and Anderson (1985). According to British Council: Intensive reading involves learners reading in detail with specific learning aims and tasks. It’s a flexible, portable learning activity. The figures in column two are from Francis and Kuçera (1982). The effects of extensive reading were thus both cognitive and affective. Day & Bamford (1998) highlight the benefits that have been gained by the undertaking of extensive reading programmes. Nagy, W. E., Herman, P., & Anderson, R. C. (1985). Students who develop an interest in reading are well on their way to becoming independent learners. As against, intensive refers to in-depth or concentrated. Table 1. It is believed that extensive reading is an important factor in education. Table 2. Experimental studies have shown that not only is there improvement in reading, but that there are improvements in a range of language uses and areas of language knowledge. Therefore, intensive reading means that type of reading in which the material has to be read carefully and thoroughly, to get specific details. The implications of this finding are very important for managing extensive reading. For more information on JALT, please visit the JALT website. There were some indications that the simplified syntax of the graded readers seemed to encourage the learners to simplify the syntax in their own writing. Benefits of Extensive Reading. It is the easiest way to develop such qualities. Table 2 shows, for example, that each word at the 1500 word level occurs 75 times per million running words. Elley, W. B. The book flood studies involved learners spending the greater part of their class time reading books that interested them. One study that looked at readers with low literacy found that the extensive reading program helped these readers to develop reading habits. The benefits of extensive reading … They begin in early childhood and continue through the senior years. The idea that learners can develop their language knowledge through extensive reading is attractive for several reasons. Frequency analysis of English usage. Directions, 7, 15-24. The long-term effects of a book flood on childrenís language growth. However, the benefits of ER are not limited to reading alone. Simplified texts, especially long ones, provide more repetitions of high frequency words (Wodinsky & Nation, 1988). What are the benefits of extensive reading? The benefits of extensive reading do not come in the short term. When learners do read level-appropriate materials for extensive reading, the benefits include: Am I preaching to the choir? The length of graded readers increases as the vocabulary level increases, so up to the 2,000 level about a book a week is about right. Extensive reading as a means of input to L2 learning. Students are encouraged to read byselecting any book they want. Graded readers as an input medium in L2 learning. As well as facilitating acquisition of vocabulary, it is believed to increase motivation through positive affective benefits.” There was no significant change in the vocabulary used in writing for the group in England, but this is not surprising as the vocabulary of the graded readers was probably far below the learners' vocabulary level (Hafiz & Tudor, 1990, p. 36). Several correlational studies looking at the effect of a variety of factors on L2 proficiency have shown the importance of extensive reading. ELT Journal, 50(2), 150-159. The following blog post was written by Janice McCrimmon, a faculty member at the Centre for Excellence in Immigrant and Intercultural Advancement. We know from research that fluent readers are better readers (i.e., score higher on measures of reading comprehension) than slow readers. The research on extensive reading shows that there is a wide range of learning benefits from such activity. Purpose of the Study This is a preliminary study, which aimed to investigate EFL students’ opinions on the benefits of the reading Students only read stuff that is interesting or fun for them. What percentage of textñlexis is essential for comprehension? extensive reading and listening: intensive reading or listening tends to be more concentrated, less relaxed, extensive reading take place when st are on their own. The books used were not graded readers but were ones that young native speakers of English would read. Follow. Tsang, W. (1996). As well as facilitating acquisition of vocabulary, it is believed to increase motivation through positive affective benefits. 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