Improving Inferential Comprehension Skills: An Action Research

Abstract

The primary objective of reading instruction is to cultivate students' comprehension skills, which is defined as the ability to derive meaning from written texts. This capacity is recognised as a fundamental linguistic ability that students should acquire from an early age. Numerous studies have demonstrated a positive correlation between the enhancement of reading comprehension and reading motivation in students and subsequent success in a variety of domains. The present study aims to enhance the reading comprehension skills of six 4th grade primary school students through the utilisation of in-text, out-of-text and intertextual questions. The present study was conducted using a qualitative research design, employing a collaborative approach. In this context, the researcher, the student's teacher, counsellor, family and the researcher collaborated to formulate an action plan. The participants of the study, which was conducted in a total of 40 sessions over a period of 8 weeks, consisted of six students studying in the fourth grade of a primary school. The researcher employed three tools to collect data. The Reading Comprehension Test, the Reading Motivation Profile Scale, and the Reading Prosody Rubric. Three measurements were made: the first before the application, the second during the application and the third after the application. The researcher then analysed the data using arithmetic mean, frequency and percentage. The study revealed that the students' inferential comprehension level exhibited enhancement at varying rates. The findings revealed that in-text, out-of-text and intertextual activities had a positive effect on reading fluency, reading comprehension and reading motivation.