2022 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

How extensive reading improves EFL learners' fluency and proficiency

Research Project

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Project/Area Number	19K00901
Research Category	Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
Allocation Type	Multi-year Fund
Section	一般
Review Section	Basic Section 02100:Foreign language education-related
Research Institution	National Institute of Technology, Toyota College
Principal Investigator	Nishizawa Hitoshi 豊田工業高等専門学校, 電気・電子システム工学科, 教授 (40249800)
Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha)	吉岡貴芳豊田工業高等専門学校, 電気・電子システム工学科, 教授 (30270268) 市川裕理豊田工業高等専門学校, 一般学科, 准教授 (50782596)
Project Period (FY)	2019-04-01 – 2023-03-31
Keywords	多読 / 英語運用能力 / 流暢性
Outline of Final Research Achievements	In this study, we analyzed the relationship between learning behaviors and the English language proficiency of technical college students who take long-term, multi-reading classes for 5-7 years to explore how extensive reading improves the fluency of English input and English language proficiency of beginner-level students. In particular, we found that dictation tests can measure low-level fluency and that early improvement is effective. However, low-level fluency-building methods tend to be too training-intensive for beginner-level students to sustain. It is better to continue reading classes for an extended period (5 years or more) and wait for fluency to increase. Reading with the pace of the narration can be a practical approach, assuming that the English texts are easy enough.
Free Research Field	教育工学、工学教育
Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements	日常生活では使わない外国語の学習では、流暢性を高めることが難しい。本研究では、（5年以上の）長期継続多読授業で流暢性を無理なく高められることを再確認できた。英文和訳を避け、やさしい英文から読み始める多読プログラムが、適切な指導法の下でも成果が見えない場合、継続期間が（3年以下と）短いことが理由と考えられる。改善策として、継続期間延長、プログラム間連携、他の活動との組合せ、生涯教育としての取り組み等を考えたい。