Promoting university students' receptive skills through extensive reading in multimedia-based instruction

• Published in: Journal of applied research in higher education 2021-12, Vol.13 (5), p.1464-1489
• Main Authors: Rezaee, Mehrdad, Farahian, Majid, Mansooji, Hani
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Classrooms; College students; Educational technology; English (Second Language); English as a second language; English as a second language instruction; Foreign Countries; Higher education; Internet; Language acquisition; Listening; Multimedia; Multimedia Instruction; Multimedia Materials; Pedagogy; Portable computers; Preferences; Qualitative research; Reading comprehension; Reading instruction; Reading Materials; Reading Motivation; Reading Programs; Reading Skills; Receptive Language; Second Language Instruction; Skills; Undergraduate Students; University students
• ISSN: 2050-7003; 1758-1184
• DOI: 10.1108/JARHE-09-2020-0304

PurposeThe present study focused on examining the effects of a multimedia-based Internet extensive reading program on promoting the receptive skills of Iranian university students.Design/methodology/approachIn the quantitative section of this explanatory sequential mixed-method study, a pretest-posttest design was used to compare the performance of three groups of Iranian university students in terms of their degrees of improvement in receptive proficiency. Besides, the differences in the levels of motivation among the learners were sought. The three classes under study included linear text extensive reading for the first experimental group, a multimedia-based Internet extensive reading group for the other and a control group. The qualitative phase of this study included a semi-structured interview and an open-ended questionnaire.FindingsAnalysis of the results revealed that the multimedia-based Internet extensive reading group outperformed the two other groups in terms of proficiency in receptive skills. They also had a higher level of motivation for reading. The findings of the qualitative phase showed that the participants preferred working with multimedia material rather than working with linear texts, or, in other words, printed books. University EFL instructors may be the most beneficiaries of the present study, as they can gain insights into applying Internet-based extensive reading programs into their courses.Originality/valueAlthough some studies have been carried out in this area, the paper provides its readers with a new procedure and methodology.