Deriving Word Meaning From Various Context Clues In L2 Reading

This thesis intends to test and discuss the effectiveness of strategy training in an on-going reading course. Previous researches and studies have emphasized the importance of reading strategies used by the readers when they are interacting with a piece of written task. Reading is then viewed as a strategic interaction between the reader and the text. Different reading strategies are studied and described by a number of researchers who are interested in this area. And numerous researches and studies have been carried out in the field of strategy training under a firm belief that reading strategies can be taught and practiced. This thesis discusses the effects and results of an eight-week-strategy training program. Some of the factors that influence the training and results are also detected and discussed. Chapter one gives a brief introduction of the whole thesis. Chapter two introduces some basic issues concerning reading. Various interpretations of reading are provided and three approaches of the reading process are compared and discussed. It also lists several factors that have some influence on reading. This chapter also introduces learning strategies and reading strategies, and it emphasizes one particular reading strategy - inferring word meaning from context. Chapter three describes the training program designed for college students to develop their ability in using the strategy. Chapter four discusses and analyzes the effectiveness of the training based on the data collected from pretest, posttest, and the in-class quizzes. On the results of the training, this chapter also compares students' performances on the five types of context clues. And factors that affect the using of the strategy are also discussed. The last chapter reviews issues concerning this training program.