Graphic organizers in reading comprehension development

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to analyze the influence of the use of graphic organizers strategies in the development of students reading comprehension in the students of the Unidad Educativa Joaquin Lalama, Ambato- Ecuador. The study combined the quali-quantitative paradigm and was used with a quasi-experimental design. This investigation was carried out with a sample represented by 75 students, who were randomly distributed in a control group (40 students) and an experimental group (35 students). The students of this research were examined before and after the exposure of this intervention. The test instruments were designed by the researcher. For this examination a text was presented in order for the students to read it and complete some reading comprehension activities, they had 25 minutes to complete the test and a short 5 minutes’ previous interview was made in order to measure the previous knowledge of the students. The results of the pretest and posttest were analyzed and presented in forms of percentages, frequencies and tables. The data collected and analyzed was complemented with a paragraph of analysis. The data was collected by means of the observation technique and the application of a pre-test and a post-test. Students in the group that received treatment (Experimental group) improved significantly in receptive skills (listening and concentration), learning skills (decoding, understanding and previous knowledge) and as a result in reading comprehension, compared with the group that used traditional techniques (Control group). This improvement in the Experimental group demonstrated that the implementation of the strategy had the expected results and improved reading comprehension. The results proved that the use of graphic organizers strategy developed the students` reading comprehension in a group of students from the Joaquin Lalama School, Ambato, Ecuador, was effective.