A Comparison of Reading Accuracy and Reading Comprehension in Bilingual Arabic/Farsi-speaking and Monolingual Farsi-speaking Elementary Students in the Fifth Grade
Background: Reading comprehension is one of the primary skills required of students in elementary schools. Various factors can influence this skill, including bilingualism. Owing to the variety of languages and dialects in Iran, a large number of students learn Farsi as a second language; consequ...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Shiraz University of Medical Sciences
2017-12-01
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| Series: | Journal of Rehabilitation Sciences and Research |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://jrsr.sums.ac.ir/index.php/jrsr/article/view/207/124 |
| _version_ | 1818199716387618816 |
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| author | Maryam Jalalipour Fatemeh Majdinasab Hajar Khedri4 Batoul Chadorian |
| author_facet | Maryam Jalalipour Fatemeh Majdinasab Hajar Khedri4 Batoul Chadorian |
| author_sort | Maryam Jalalipour |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Background: Reading comprehension is one of the primary skills required of
students in elementary schools. Various factors can influence this skill, including
bilingualism. Owing to the variety of languages and dialects in Iran, a large
number of students learn Farsi as a second language; consequently, they are
faced with numerous challenges in acquiring high-level skills such as reading
and writing. The present study was aimed at comparing reading comprehension
and reading accuracy between bilingual Arabic and Farsi-speaking and
monolingual Farsi-speaking fifth grade children in Ahvaz.
Methods: This cross-sectional, descriptive analytic study was carried out
employing a random sample of 165 bilingual students (91 girls and 74 boys), and
159 monolingual students (79 girls and 80 boys). The students were evaluated in
terms of reading accuracy and comprehension skills using some selected parts
from a reading test developed by Shafei et al., in 2009. Finally, mean scores were
compared between the two groups employing the independent samples t-test.
Results: Both reading comprehension and accuracy were significantly higher in
monolinguals compared to bilingual Arabic/Farsi-speaking students (P=0.000).
Gender stratified results showed higher levels of reading comprehension skills
in both monolingual girls (P=0.000) and boys (P=0.03) in comparison to
bilinguals. However, in the reading accuracy subtest, only monolingual girls had
a significantly superior performance than the bilinguals (P=0.000).
Conclusion: Overall, our results showed lower levels of reading comprehension
and accuracy skills in bilingual fifth grade students in comparison to
their monolingual peers in the city of Ahvaz. It seems that even in the late
elementary school years, bilingual children have not attained the same level as
their monolingual peers. Due to the importance of reading skills in academic
achievement and day-to-day life, we highly recommend the implementation
of measures toward improving these skills among bilingual elementary school
students. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-12T02:26:11Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-b0f39e80481c4b4da4b8beeb95f7a746 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2345-6159 2345-6159 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-12T02:26:11Z |
| publishDate | 2017-12-01 |
| publisher | Shiraz University of Medical Sciences |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Rehabilitation Sciences and Research |
| spelling | doaj.art-b0f39e80481c4b4da4b8beeb95f7a7462022-12-22T00:41:33ZengShiraz University of Medical SciencesJournal of Rehabilitation Sciences and Research2345-61592345-61592017-12-01040497101A Comparison of Reading Accuracy and Reading Comprehension in Bilingual Arabic/Farsi-speaking and Monolingual Farsi-speaking Elementary Students in the Fifth GradeMaryam Jalalipour0Fatemeh Majdinasab1Hajar Khedri42Batoul Chadorian3Rehabilitation Sciences Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, IranDepartment of Speech Therapy, School of Rehabilitation Sciences, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, IranStudent Research Committee, School of Rehabilitation Sciences, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, IranStudent Research Committee, School of Rehabilitation Sciences, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, IranBackground: Reading comprehension is one of the primary skills required of students in elementary schools. Various factors can influence this skill, including bilingualism. Owing to the variety of languages and dialects in Iran, a large number of students learn Farsi as a second language; consequently, they are faced with numerous challenges in acquiring high-level skills such as reading and writing. The present study was aimed at comparing reading comprehension and reading accuracy between bilingual Arabic and Farsi-speaking and monolingual Farsi-speaking fifth grade children in Ahvaz. Methods: This cross-sectional, descriptive analytic study was carried out employing a random sample of 165 bilingual students (91 girls and 74 boys), and 159 monolingual students (79 girls and 80 boys). The students were evaluated in terms of reading accuracy and comprehension skills using some selected parts from a reading test developed by Shafei et al., in 2009. Finally, mean scores were compared between the two groups employing the independent samples t-test. Results: Both reading comprehension and accuracy were significantly higher in monolinguals compared to bilingual Arabic/Farsi-speaking students (P=0.000). Gender stratified results showed higher levels of reading comprehension skills in both monolingual girls (P=0.000) and boys (P=0.03) in comparison to bilinguals. However, in the reading accuracy subtest, only monolingual girls had a significantly superior performance than the bilinguals (P=0.000). Conclusion: Overall, our results showed lower levels of reading comprehension and accuracy skills in bilingual fifth grade students in comparison to their monolingual peers in the city of Ahvaz. It seems that even in the late elementary school years, bilingual children have not attained the same level as their monolingual peers. Due to the importance of reading skills in academic achievement and day-to-day life, we highly recommend the implementation of measures toward improving these skills among bilingual elementary school students.http://jrsr.sums.ac.ir/index.php/jrsr/article/view/207/124Arabic/Farsi-speakingBilingualismReading accuracyReading comprehension |
| spellingShingle | Maryam Jalalipour Fatemeh Majdinasab Hajar Khedri4 Batoul Chadorian A Comparison of Reading Accuracy and Reading Comprehension in Bilingual Arabic/Farsi-speaking and Monolingual Farsi-speaking Elementary Students in the Fifth Grade Journal of Rehabilitation Sciences and Research Arabic/Farsi-speaking Bilingualism Reading accuracy Reading comprehension |
| title | A Comparison of Reading Accuracy and Reading Comprehension in Bilingual Arabic/Farsi-speaking and Monolingual Farsi-speaking Elementary Students in the Fifth Grade |
| title_full | A Comparison of Reading Accuracy and Reading Comprehension in Bilingual Arabic/Farsi-speaking and Monolingual Farsi-speaking Elementary Students in the Fifth Grade |
| title_fullStr | A Comparison of Reading Accuracy and Reading Comprehension in Bilingual Arabic/Farsi-speaking and Monolingual Farsi-speaking Elementary Students in the Fifth Grade |
| title_full_unstemmed | A Comparison of Reading Accuracy and Reading Comprehension in Bilingual Arabic/Farsi-speaking and Monolingual Farsi-speaking Elementary Students in the Fifth Grade |
| title_short | A Comparison of Reading Accuracy and Reading Comprehension in Bilingual Arabic/Farsi-speaking and Monolingual Farsi-speaking Elementary Students in the Fifth Grade |
| title_sort | comparison of reading accuracy and reading comprehension in bilingual arabic farsi speaking and monolingual farsi speaking elementary students in the fifth grade |
| topic | Arabic/Farsi-speaking Bilingualism Reading accuracy Reading comprehension |
| url | http://jrsr.sums.ac.ir/index.php/jrsr/article/view/207/124 |
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