The development of a learning-oriented reading assessment model to improve English reading ability and promote learning engagement on EFL undergraduate students

Abstract

The study was conducted 1) to examine the effects of the learning-oriented reading assessment model on EFL undergraduate students’ reading ability, 2) to investigate the effects of the learning-oriented reading assessment model on EFL undergraduate students’ reading processes, and 3) to explore the effects of the learning-oriented reading assessment model on EFL undergraduate students’ learning engagement. A mixed-method research design was employed. The study participants were 25 first-year undergraduate students at a public university who were enrolled in a foundation English course. The period of the study was 16 weeks. There were five data collection instruments including the CU-TEP, the end-of-the-unit tests, the learners’ journal, the teacher’s observation notes, and the semi-structured interview protocol. Quantitative data were analyzed using means, standard deviations, percentages, and dependent t-tests, and qualitative data were analyzed by content analysis.

The study findings revealed that the learning-oriented reading assessment model had an effect on the development of students’ reading ability, activated students’ reading processes, and fostered students’ learning engagement. The findings of the study supported the integration of the learning-oriented reading assessment model into an English reading classroom to promote not only language skills such as reading but also an affective factor such as learning engagement of learners.