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Effectiveness of Phonic Approach To Grade One Readers

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321 views16 pages

Effectiveness of Phonic Approach To Grade One Readers

Uploaded by

Erika Lumayag
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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An Action Research on the Effectiveness of Phonics

Approach in Improving Grade One Readers-At-Risk’s


Reading Skills

An Action Research
Presented to

DR. VIVIANA C. GENABE


Field Study Facilitator

In Partial Fulfillment
of the Semi-Final Project for the Course
ED 4114 – FIELD STUDY 2

SOMBILON, REGINE MAE A.

FILOSOFO, DARA ROSE

PUZON, ROSE ANTONIETTE

PANTINOPLE , RAMENIE C.

BETONTA, AMFRAGER L.

BACHELOR OF ELEMENTARY EDUCATION


Academic Year 2022-2023
TABLE OF CONTENTS

I. ABSTRACT 1
II. INTRODUCTION 2-3
11I. STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM 4
IV. HYPOTHESIS 4
V. METHODOLOGY
Design 5
Locale 5
Respondents 5
Instruments 6
Data Gathering Procedure 6
VI. RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS
Profile of the Respondents 7
EGRA Pre-Test Results 8
EGRA Progress Test Results 9
VII. FINDINGS OF THE STUDY
Summary of EGRA Test Results 10
VIII. ACTION PLAN 11
IX. CONCLUSIONS 12
X RECOMMENDATIONS 13
XI. REFERENCES 14
ABSTRACT

Reading is critical to students' success both inside and outside of the classroom. One of
the many issues that a teacher faces while teaching is poor reading performance. It is then the
responsibility of everyone involved, particularly teachers, to improve the quality of instruction in
order to help slow readers and readers at risk acquire the basic knowledge and skills in reading.
This study determined the effectiveness of phonics approach in improving the reading skills of
the Grade One-Adelfa readers-at-risk of Langtad Elementary School in school year 2022-2023 as
basis for an action plan in improving the readers-at-risk reading abilities. A quasi-experimental
design which involved pre-test and progress test was used to determine the effectiveness of
phonic approach to grade one readers-at-risk’s reading skills. The researchers used an adapted
assessment tool from the Department of Education which are the EGRA (Early Grade Reading
Assessment) Pre-Test and EGRA Progress Test which served as the main tool for the data
gathering. Furthermore, researchers used frequency and simple percentage to determine the age,
gender and year level of the respondents and also to determine the effectiveness of the
intervention strategy used in this study helped in improving readers-at-risk reading skills. The
data results showed significant differences and improvement in the reading skills of readers-at-
risk using the phonetic approach as a method. The researchers have concluded that the phonic
approach indeed, is an effective way to improve the reading skills of children who are identified
as readers-at-risk.

Keywords: reading, readers-at-risk, phonics approach, action plan


1

INTRODUCTION

Reading is critical to students' success both inside and outside of the classroom; "not only
does reading serve as the major foundational skill for school-based learning, but reading ability
is strongly related to opportunities for academic and vocational success," according to the
National Reading Panel (Iretor-Oscar, 2014, p. 619). Literacy is commonly defined as the ability
to read, write, spell, listen, and speak; of the literacy skills, reading has the greatest impact on
academic success (Yusuf & Enesi, 2012). Reading education is critical and begins early in a
student's education: "The first years of school, particularly kindergarten and first grade, are
critical for the development of early reading skills that serve as the foundation for later literacy"
(Palacios, 2017, p. 178). While early reading instruction is critical, some students do not respond
to traditional reading instruction and eventually fall behind expectations for developing readers.
Beginning in early elementary school, these students demonstrate below-grade-level reading
skills on benchmark assessments.
One of the many issues that a teacher faces while teaching is poor reading performance.
While such issues could be attributed to a variety of causes, including social, economic,
environmental, or psychological factors. It is then the responsibility of everyone involved,
particularly teachers, to improve the quality of instruction in order to help slow readers and
readers at risk acquire the basic knowledge and skills in reading that can be used to pursue other
subject areas prescribed in the curriculum. The quality of education obtained by the students is
largely dependent on their ability to read and interpret printed materials adequately; and without
such abilities, they are practically barred from learning effectively and meaningfully to the other
subjects in the curriculum.
Phonics is a strategy for teaching everyone to read and write an alphabetic language. It is
accomplished by showing how the written language's letters or groupings of letters or syllables
relate to the sounds of the spoken language. The role of phonics instruction in early reading
development has been the subject of significant conjecture. Globally, if we take a much larger
perspective to consider the usage of phonics in grade 1, one of the most passionate topics in
education has been the importance of phonics instruction in early reading. According to an
educational historian, Nila Banton Smith (1965), phonics was first used as a reading instruction
in the US in the 1790s through the inclusion of phonetically organized wordlists of Noah
Webster's now the famous Blue Back Spellers (Webster, 1798).
With the Covid-19 pandemic, the disadvantages of distance and modular learning were
evident when the reopening of classes was implemented. Many of the enrolled children were
found to be readers-at risk and teachers are having difficulty in facing the problem. International
researches denote that phonemic awareness has been shown to be a powerful predictor of later
reading success. Griffeth states "poor readers who enter first grade phonemically unaware are

2
very likely to remain poor readers at the end of fourth grade since their lack of phonemic
awareness contributes to their slow acquisition of word recognition skills" (Griffeth & Olson,
1992, p. 519). According to Lyon (1998), children who do not learn sound awareness 'just don't
make it, they don't make it in school and they don't make it in life. It is extremely important and
it is not something that you can pick up" (p. 256). Also, according to Wattenberg (1998), 50% or
more students can easily master phonemic awareness and phonics which are the first two
components of learning to read. For the remaining students, explicit instruction in those
components is necessary or they will be put at a distinct and permanent educational disadvantage
by the end of third grade.
In the Philippines, the Department of Education issued Memorandum No. 173 s. 2019
with their advocacy "Hamon: Bawat Bata Bumabasa (3Bs Initiative)" to improve readers' reading
readiness and fluency at their grade level. To achieve this goal, the country's education sector
implemented the "Every Child A Reader Program (ECARP)" to improve primary students'
reading proficiency. This action is being taken in response to recent findings that many early-
grade learners are still struggling to meet the learning standards in early language, literacy, and
numeracy. The “Bawat Bata Bumabasa” Initiative will require reading coordinators who will
take charge of the reading center which will be established in every school. Language teachers
(Mother Tongue, English, and Filipino) will serve as the reading teachers who will conduct
intensive reading instructions and interventions for readers-at-risk and non-readers. Various
reading activities will be put in place for this purpose.
Locally, many schools in the provinces of Cebu use Phonics as their medium of
instruction for reading in Grade 1, such as Balisong-Casay Elementary School, Langtad
Elementary School, Tulic Elementary School, and Santander Central Elementary School. These
are the schools that we have observed and assisted during our field study 1 and 2. They contend
that teaching phonics to students and making phonic drills during their free time and before their
class starts can help students make reading easier. According to the teachers, phonics is the
foundation of reading which children must understand or master before they learn how to read.
In any way, phonics instruction is a method of teaching reading that stresses the
acquisition of letter-sound correspondences and their use in reading and spelling. Its primary
focus is to help beginning readers understand how letters are linked to sounds (phonemes) to
form letter-sound correspondences and spelling patterns and to help them learn how to apply this
knowledge in their reading. However, according to National Reading Panel, teachers need to
note that fluent and automatic application of phonics skills to text is another critical skill that
must be taught and learned to maximize oral reading and reading comprehension. This issue
again underscores the need for teachers to understand that while phonics skills are necessary in
order to learn to read, they are not sufficient in their own right. Phonics skills must be integrated
with the development of phonemic awareness, fluency, and text-reading comprehension skills.
It is within this context that the researchers were driven to conduct a study on the
effectiveness of using phonics approach in improving grade one readers-at-risk’s reading skills
of Langtad Elementary School in the school year 2022-2023 as basis for an action plan for
improving students’ reading skills.
The Problem 3

This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of using phonic approach in improving
grade one readers-at-risk’s reading skills of Langtad Elementary School in the school year 2022-
2023 as basis for an action plan for improving students’ reading skills.

Statement of the Problem


Specifically, it seeks to answer the following questions:
1. What is the profile of the respondents as to;
1.1 age; and
1.2 gender?
2. What areas do grade one readers-at-risk failed to achieve in the acquisition of basic reading
skills as to;
2.1 orientation to print;
2.2 letter name knowledge;
2.3 letter sound knowledge;
2.4 initial sound identification; and
2.5 familiar word reading?
3. What are the effects of using phonics approach in improving reading fluency of grade one
readers-at-risk?
3. Is there any significant difference between the pretest and posttest scores in improving reading
fluency for reader-at-risk pupils in grade one using the phonics approach
4. Based on the findings, what action plan for improving the reading fluency of grade one
readers-at-risk can be formulated?

Null Hypothesis

H0: There is no significant difference between the pretest and posttest scores in improving
reading skills for reader-at-risk pupils in grade one using the phonics approach.
4
METHODOLOGY

Design

This action research relied chiefly on the results of the different oral reading tests
conducted during the period of the program. Since the study involved pre-test and post-test, we
utilized quasi-experimental design. This method determined the effectiveness of phonic approach
to grade one readers-at-risk’s reading skills of Langtad Elementary School in the school year
2022-2023 before and after the intervention have made. The researchers used an adapted
assessment tool as a means of data collection and gathering information as basis for evaluating
the effectiveness of phonic approach as an intervention program in improving grade one readers-
at-risk’s reading skills. This was also used as basis for an action plan for improving students’
reading skills.

Locale

The research was carried out in the municipality of Argao where Langtad, Elementary
School is located. The said municipality of Argao is located in the Southeastern part of the
province of Cebu, which is approximately 70.5 kilometers (2 hours) away from Cebu City.

Respondents
The participants of this study were the grade one readers-at-risk students of the Langtad
Elementary School enrolled in the school year 2022–2023. Purposive sampling was used as a
sampling technique that determined the sample size of readers-at-risk from one section of grade
one pupils of the three schools The researchers had the total population of 23 grade one readers-
at-risk as the research respondents.

Table 1. Respondents of the Study

Respondents f %

Grade One- Adelfa 23 100


TOTAL 23 23

5
Instrument

The researchers used an adapted assessment tool from the Department of Education.
There were two instruments used in this study which are the EGRA (Early Grade Reading
Assessment) Pre-Test and EGRA (Early Grade Reading Assessment) Progress Test. This is
designed to measure some of the foundational literacy skills that readers need for beginning
reading. Students are tested in grade one through third grade to gauge whether or not phonics
skills have been acquired. In first grade, students are tested in the following areas: orientation to
print, letter name knowledge, letter sound knowledge, initial sound identification, and familiar
word reading. The assessment tool’s scoring sheet is the most suitable instrument to help the
researcher gather relevant information from a group with various backgrounds. The results
remain anonymous, saved time, and presented in a paper format, and there was little risk of
prejudice (Kothari, 2004). The assessment tool’s scoring sheet was consisted of two parts: Part I
was the demographic profile where their personal basic information was accumulated such as
their name (optional), age, and gender. In Part II, the respondents were tested in the following
areas: orientation to print, letter name knowledge, letter sound knowledge, initial sound
identification, and familiar word reading.

Data Gathering Procedure

During the data gathering process, the researchers used the results of EGRA pre-test
which was administered by the teachers at the beginning of the school year. Based on the given
results, it was then identified that 23 grade one pupils were considered as non-readers or as
identified as readers-at-risk in this study. Researchers examined how phonics approach used as
an intervention strategy in this study to improve the reading skills of grade one readers-at-risk
pupils. The researcher also assisted their resource teacher in conducting remedial sessions to the
readers-at-risk using phonics approach. After the first quarter of implementing the use of phonic
approach in improving readers-at-risk’s reading skills, the teacher administered a progress test
using the EGRA tool to the grade one pupils with the assistance of the researchers which were
the field study students to track the progress of the readers-at-risk in the acquisition of reading
skills. The researchers used the statistical treatments of frequency and simple percentage to
determine the effectiveness of the intervention strategy used in this study helped in improving
readers-at-risk reading skills. This was also the point at which the researchers compared the
average of post-intervention data with the pre-intervention data which were the pre-test and
progress test results to find out to what extent does intervention strategy used in this study helped
in improving readers-at-risk reading skills. Researchers also presented an action plan to
significantly improve the reading skills of readers-at-risk pupils. Furthermore, the researchers
also presented recommendations on how to effectively improve reading abilities to the struggling
readers.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION


6
Presentation, Analysis, and Interpretation of Data

This chapter includes the presentation, analysis, and interpretation of the data gathered in
the study. All information gathered was based on the results of the different oral reading tests of
the Grade One –Adelfa pupils which was administered by the teacher with the assistance of the
researchers. The following were the findings revealed in the implementation of the action
research. Twenty-three Grade One pupils of Langtad Elementary School were assessed using the
Early Grade Reading Assessment (EGRA) pre-test and progress test administered by their
teacher with the assistance of the researchers. They were assessed on the areas of the phonics
skills that grade one readers-at-risk failed to achieve in the acquisition of reading skills as to
orientation to print, letter name knowledge, letter sound knowledge, initial sound identification
and familiar word reading.
Part I of the discussion consists of the respondents' profiles. Part II consists of the
respondents' oral reading test results.

Demographic Profile of the Respondents

Table 2. Respondents’ Profile in Terms of Age

Respondents f %
8 years old and above 0 0
7 years old 17 74
6 years old 6 26

TOTAL 23 100

Table 2, shows the age profile of the Grade One –Adelfa pupils. Specifically, out of 23
respondents, none of which are at the age of 8 years old and above, seventeen (17) or 74% pupils
are seven years old, and six (6) or 26% are 6 years old.
Gender Profile 7
Table 3. Respondents’ Profile in Terms of Gender

Gender f %
Male 12 52.17
Female 11 47.83
TOTAL 23 100

As shown in Table 3, out of 23 respondents, 52 or 52.17 % are male while 11 or 47.83%


are male. It clearly shows that the Grade One-Adelfa pupils have a greater number of male
pupils compared to female.

Oral Reading Tests of the Respondents

Three tables on oral reading tests were presented, evaluated, analysed and interpreted.

Table 4. Early Grade Reading Assessment (EGRA) Pre-Test Result


(Before Intervention – Phonics Approach)

SUB- SUB- SUB-


SUB-TEST 1 SUB-TEST 3B
Enrollment TEST 2 TEST 3A TEST 4
Sections S.Y. 2022- Letter Letter Familiar PROFILE
2023 Orientation to Initial Sound
Name Sound Word
Print Knowledge Knowledge
Knowledge
Reading
M F T R NR R NR R NR R NR R NR R NR
Grade
1 1 2
One - 9 14 0 23 0 23 9 14 0 23 0 23
2 1 3
Adelfa

39.13 60.87 39.13 60.86 100


Total % %
0 100% 0 100%
% %
0 100% 0
%

As reflected on the table, out of 23 Grade One pupils 60.87% are non-readers as to
orientation to print, 100% are non-readers with regard to letter name knowledge and letter sound
knowledge, 60.86% are non-readers regarding to initial sound knowledge, and 100% are non-
readers in terms of familiar word reading. Overall, Grade One- Adelfa pupils are 100% non-
readers or considered to be as readers-at-risk at the beginning of the school year 2022-2023. This
implies that Grade One pupils are having difficulties in reading as to orientation to print, letter
name knowledge, letter sound knowledge, initial sound knowledge, and familiar word reading.

Table 5. Early Grade Reading Assessment (EGRA) Progress Test Result


(After Intervention – Phonics Approach)

SUB-TEST SUB-TEST
Enrollment SUB-TEST 1 SUB-TEST 2 SUB-TEST 4
Sections S.Y. 2022- 3A 3B PROFILE
2023 Orientation to Letter Name Letter Sound Initial Sound Familiar Word
Print Knowledge Knowledge Knowledge Reading
M F T R NR R NR R NR R NR R NR R NR
Grade
One - 12 11 23 13 10 20 3 17 6 17 6 12 11 16 7
Adelfa

73.91 69.57
Total 56.52% 43.47% 86.96% 13.04%
%
26.08% 73.91% 26.08% 52.17% 47.82%
%
30.43%

As shown on the table, after the intervention has made which is the use of phonics
approach in teaching the foundational skills of reading, out of 23 Grade One pupils 56.52 % are
readers as to orientation to print, 86.96% are readers with regard to letter name knowledge,
73.91% regarding to letter sound knowledge and initial sound knowledge, and 52.17 % are
readers in terms of familiar word reading. Overall, Grade One- Adelfa pupils have 69.57%
readers after the use of phonics approach as an intervention strategy has made. This implies that
Grade One pupils are gradually improving their reading skills through phonics approach.
FINDINGS OF9 THE STUDY

Table 6. Early Grade Reading Assessment (EGRA) Oral Reading Test Results in Grade 1
Pre-Test and Progress Test Result

Pre-Test Progress Test


No. % No. %
1. Readers 23 100% 16 69.57%
2. Non-Readers/Readers-At-Risk 0 0 7 30.43%
TOTAL 23 100% 23 100%

The table reveals that out of 23 grade one pupils 16 or 69.57% are readers; 7 or 30.43%
are non-readers/readers-at-risk. Further, it shows that 16 pupils from being readers-at-risk to
readers. This implies that the pupils improved significantly in their reading skills after using the
intervention program in reading using the phonics approach.

The following are the findings of this action research.


1. There was significant improvement in reading skills of readers at-risk in Grade One-Adelfa.
2. Phonics approach in reading is effective in improving the reading skills of readers at-risk
3. Continuous evaluation of pupil’s performance enable the teachers apply varied remediation
techniques to help pupils improve their abilities especially in reading.
4. There is a significant difference between the pretest and posttest scores in improving reading
skills for reader-at-risk pupils in grade one using the phonics approach.
10
ACTION PLAN

Objectives:
 To enhance the reading skills and lessen the number of non-readers and
readers-at-risk of Grade 1-Adelfa in Langtad Elementary School using the
Phonics Approach.
Time Frame:
 The target time frame will be at the end of the third quarter for school year
2022-2023. It is expected that non-readers and readers-at-risk will be able
to enhance their reading skills. The remedial reading program will be
conducted during remedial class from 2:00 p.m. until 4:30 p.m.

Actions/Activities Taken:
As it turned out based on the EGRA Pre-test results, the stated problems on the reading
skills of non-readers and readers-at-risk in Grade 1- Adelfa, the following plan of action
was formulated to improve reading skills:
1. Strengthen the phonics-based remedial reading program design to repair and
enhance the reading skills of non-readers and readers-at-risk.
2. During reading, group readers-at-risk who make frequent mistakes so that
remedial instruction can be given in-depth.
3. Have one-on-one reading sessions with readers-at-risk to give their progress
full attention and focus.
4. Conduct an oral reading test after each component in the reading program.
5. Use the results of the oral reading assessment as a guide to implementing the
necessary corrective actions to enhance reading abilities.
6. Make the reading corner more attractive and functional.
7. Use multimedia for more comprehensive lessons in phonics.
8. Involve parents to make follow-ups on their children’s homework.
11
CONCLUSIONS

Children who were identified in kindergarten as having a reading disability were taught
to read in grade one using a structured phonetics code-emphasis approach. At the start of the
school year, the teacher conducted a pre-test to test the reading skills of the children using Early
Grade Reading Assessment (EGRA). They were assessed on their proficiency in word
identification, letter sound knowledge, initial sound knowledge, and familiar word reading. At
the end of the quarter, the teacher administered progress reading test using the EGRA tool with
the assistance of the researcher. The grade one pupils consistently scored higher on all
accomplishment metrics. It was determined that reading teaching does have a significant impact
on the development of early reading skills and that context-aware training yields less positive
results than structured, systematic phonics instruction.
Based on the findings of this action research, the data results showed significant
differences and improvement in the reading skills of readers-at-risk using the phonetic approach
as a method. Therefore, the researchers have concluded that the phonic approach indeed, is an
effective way to improve the reading skills of children who are identified as non-readers and
readers-at-risk. They can eventually focus on parts of words like syllables, consonants, vowels,
and suffixes if they introduce reading as the relationship between letters and sounds (Dixon,
1996). Following the completion of these stepping stones, students can begin to form and write
words, eventually progressing to sentences and paragraphs. Students are able to decode words by
following explicitly taught rules after being introduced to the science of reading. These students
improved their reading fluency without using a whole language approach, such as using pictures,
context clues, or guessing words based on the first few letter sounds. The teachers are able to
employ a variety of remedial approaches to assist the non-readers and readers-at-risks and
improve their abilities, particularly in reading, due to ongoing assessment of learner
performance. Non-readers and readers-at-risk are given daily remedial teaching and appropriate
coaching, which makes them feel valued. Additionally, it fosters positive attitudes and offers
them pleasurable experiences that give learning purpose.
12

RECOMMENDATIONS

Based on the findings and conclusions of the study, the following recommendations are
proposed:

1. In a public school, it is highly recommended that the school organize various


workshops/projects/programs to teach students to read (fluency and phonics) using multiple
teaching strategies which are indicated in the action plan of this study.
2. The institution may consider seeking support from stakeholders for the provision of reading
materials appropriate to the level of Grade 1 learners.
3. Teachers may provide direct, explicit instruction in phonemic awareness and phonics to all
students who need it most especially to readers-at-risk. The addition of daily phonics instruction
to the reading/language arts blocks can improve first grade students' oral reading fluency scores.
4. Teacher are highly suggested to conduct remedial sessions using phonic approach to readers-
at-risk pupils.
5. Teachers may include many hands-on activities using manipulatives such as plastic letters.
6. Parents should be involved in their children's learning on reading as well. And it should be the
responsibility of the school administration to contact parents once a month and teach them how
to help their children improve their reading abilities.
13
REFERENCES

Ancog, M. (2019, January 18). "Improving Reading Skills and Readers-At-Risk of Grade 3 Pupils of
Gregorio A. Herradura Elementary School through Phonics Approach | Ascendens Asia Journal of
Multidisciplinary Research Abstracts. "Improving Reading Skills and Readers-At-Risk of Grade 3 Pupils
of Gregorio a. Herradura Elementary School Through Phonics Approach | Ascendens Asia Journal of
Multidisciplinary Research Abstracts. Retrieved November 21, 2022, from
https://ojs.aaresearchindex.com/index.php/AAJMRA/article/view/4758

Campbell, Curtis A. S., "The Effects of Reading Readiness And Student Achievement in the
Primary Grades Through The Use of Phonemic Awareness" (2004). OTS Master's Level Projects
& Papers. 151. Retrieved from https://digitalcommons.odu.edu/ots_masters_projects/151
Department of Education, DepEd Memorandum No. 173 s. 2019, “Hamon: Bawat Bata
Bumabasa” (3Bs Initiative) (2019). DepEd Complex, Meralco Avenue, Pasig City 1600.
Retrieved from C:\Users\jlcabiles\Documents\cpartmtut of Q.tif (deped.gov.ph)
Johnson, A. M. (2022, August 15). The Effects of Daily Explicit Phonics Instruction on Reading Fluency
in First Grade. “the Effects of Daily Explicit Phonics Instruction on Reading Fluency I” by Allison M.
Johnson. Retrieved November 30, 2022, from https://sophia.stkate.edu/maed/485

National Reading Panel. (April, 2000). Report of the National Reading Panel. Teaching Children
to Read: An Evidence-Based Assessment of the Scientific Research Literature on Reading and
Its Implications for Reading Instruction. National Institute of Child Health and Human
Development. Retrieved from Phonics Instruction | Reading Rockets
100 million more children fail basic reading skills because of COVID-19 | | UN News. (2021,
March 26). UN News; news.un.org. Retrieved July 9, 2022, from
https://news.un.org/en/story/2021/03/1088392?
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