English Reading Proficiency and Problem of Science – Oriented Undergraduate Students at a Thai University
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Abstract
Many Thai people are still struggling to read English texts which will create a problem for them as they cannot use this skill effectively. As a result, their English reading proficiency should be developed since information and knowledge sources are mostly printed and presented in English language. In order to develop this skill, problems need to be investigated so that development of their English reading skill will be more effective. The research aims to investigate the level of English reading proficiency of science – oriented undergraduate students at a Thai university, and investigate whether their English reading problems are due to English problem, reading problem or both. A sample of 25 science – oriented undergraduate students at That Phanom College, Nakhon Phanom University participated in this study. The research instruments are reading comprehension tests in both English and Thai versions with the same contents, and translation tests from English to Thai language. The Results showed that mean score of the reading test in English as well as the score of translating a text from English to Thai were at a low level. Additionally, the mean score of a test on reading Thai texts was significantly higher than the mean score of reading English texts at .05 level. This indicates that the students’ English reading proficiency was poor. Their English reading problem was mainly due to English language issue rather than reading problem though they did not score quite well. Findings of this study can provide insights for problems analysis and future planning on English reading development, including reading comprehension skills.
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