A study of secondary school reading achievement in a selected area of Newfoundland

Davis, Horace C. (1973) A study of secondary school reading achievement in a selected area of Newfoundland. Masters thesis, Memorial University of Newfoundland.

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Abstract

This study concentrated on various factors relating to the reading ability of selected secondary school students on the Burin Peninsula of Newfoundland. It sought to determine the relationship between reading ability and such variables as sex, intellectual ability and academic success. A comparison was also made between the performance of the students in this study and those comprising the norming population on a standardized reading test. -- The population for the study involved the total secondary school enrolment under the auspices of the Roman Catholic School Board for the Burin Peninsula of Newfoundland. Information was collected on student reading ability and intellectual ability by means of a standardized reading test and a standardized I.Q. test. Records of student academic success were obtained by means of a questionnaire sent to the school board in the case of the Grade IX and X students. Similar information concerning the Grade XI students was obtained from the records of the Newfoundland Department of Education. -- Statistically significant relationships were found to exist between reading ability and each of the independent variables. The male students in the study were found to be significantly more intelligent than the females. Females, on the other hand, were found to be better readers than the males to a degree to be statistically significant. -- A significant positive correlation was shown to exist between intellectual ability and reading ability. The more intelligent students were the better readers. -- The over-all academic success experienced by the students was found to correlate significantly with reading ability. The better readers obtained higher average percentages in their final grade reports. -- Reading ability was found to be a better predictor of academic success than were intelligence scores, since reading ability correlated more highly with academic success than did measures of intelligence. -- Mean reading scores of the students in this study were found to be lower than those of the students comprising the norming population on the standardized reading test used. The American students of comparable grade, age and I.Q. comprising the norming population were better readers than those students involved in this study. -- The mean I.Q. scores of the students involved in this study, while below those of the norm on the standardized I.Q. test used, did, nevertheless, compare somewhat favourably with the norms for that test. This was especially true for Grade XI males. -- The findings of this study point to the need for including formal reading instruction at the secondary school level. Attention should be directed towards the importance of the I.Q. and sex of the student as they affect the reading process. The ability to read has a direct bearing on student success in school. Every effort should, therefore, be made to insure that students master the skills involved in the reading process.

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