Classifying Parts of the Speech to Improve Reading Comprehension in EFL University Learners

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the results of word recognition through parts of speech classification facilitated by Google drive sheets. Participants were 20 EFL students at a public university in Babahoyo. This action research study used quantitative data gotten from pre-post surveys, quizzes, pre and post-tests. Evidence showed that students improved 17% on their word recognition skill and this upgraded their reading comprehension skills with 14% increment. It was corroborated by the p-value 000 < 0.05. Moreover, the effect size according to Cohen´s was large with 1.02 in the vocabulary section and small effect in reading comprehension with 0.39. Also, class observations demonstrated that differentiating adjectives and adverbs was the most challenging issue for students. Finally, outcomes demonstrated that students changed their perspective positively about learning vocabulary after the intervention. Implications of this study involve other EFL teachers at higher education institutions who would like to improve their students’ reading comprehension and overall English proficiency.