PEOPLE'S DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF ALGERIA MINISTRY OF HIGHER EDUCATION AND

256 Pages·2017·3.21 MB·English

REPUBLIC OF ALGERIA MINISTRY OF HIGHER
PEOPLE’S DEMOCRATIC
EDUCATION AND SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH

Abdelhamid Ibn Badis University of Mostaganem
Faculty of Letters and Arts
Department of Foreign Languages

Using Students’ Schemata to Get Access to Effective Reading of
Literary Texts: The Case of Undergraduate Students
at Abd Al Hamid Ibn Badis University of Mostaganem

Presented by: Ms. BELGHOUL Hadjer

Dissertation submitted to the Department of English Language in
Candidacy for the Degree of Doctorate in Applied Linguistics

Board of Examiners

1. Prof. BAHOUS Abbes Chairman University of Mostaganem
2. Prof. GUERROUDJ Noureddine Supervisor University of Sidi Bel Abbes
3. Prof. BENAISSI Fawzia External examiner University of Sidi Bel Abbes
4. Prof. HADJOUI Ghaouti External examiner University of Tlemcen
5. Dr. BENNEGHROUZI Fatima Zohra Internal examiner University of Mostaganem
6. Dr. DJAFRI Yasmina Internal examiner University of Mostaganem

2017-2018
To my dear Parents,
Meriem and Assia

I
Acknowledgements
I am happy to express my sincere gratitude to all those who encouraged me in the
fulfilment of this thesis and those whose support enabled to achieve this work. I think that
in order to celebrate the efforts made throughout my studies and along the realisation of the
present research work, I do not need to forget all those who contributed to make it possible.
At the very beginning, I should thank Prof. Neddar, peace be upon him, who supported me
from my first registration in the English department at Mostaganem University. He was
always encouraging me in the course of my life and my professional career.
I am very grateful to my supervisor Prof. N. Guerroudj. His continuous
encouragements for this exploratory study were helpful. I have appreciated him for
allowing me to wander where my data led me, for finding my work valuable even when I
found it dull or not interesting. I am indebted to thank him for his understanding. I would
also thank him for his patience while reading and correcting this dissertation.
I am honoured and very grateful to Prof. A. Bahous for having so kindly accepted
to provide me with critical readings. I thank him for his continuous encouragement,
support all along the fulfilment of this research work, useful advice and comments, even in
difficult moments.
I am very glad to express my gratitude for attending classes and casual meetings
with the master students of Abdelhamid Ibn Badis University in order to discuss the
various issues related to my research work. They were very helpful and keen on
collaborating with me to fulfil the practical framework and to explore to how extent
learners’ background knowledge can be relevant in the reading comprehension of literary
texts.
I am extremely grateful to my wonderful husband, Dr. Samir Djelti, who patiently
encouraged me in the preparation of this thesis. I would like to thank him for his patience
and useful pieces of advice which have been beneficial in moments of despair and worries.
His enormous support, encouraging attitude and moral support prevented me from
surrendering.

II
Abstract

Reading literary texts has always been acknowledged to be an important process in
learning English as a foreign language. The purpose of the present work is to demonstrate
the way Algerian master students can better read by shedding light on the impact of
schemata that can be cultural, linguistic or/and literary. This study explores such
parameters as important elements in identifying the non-native informants’ reading
comprehension skills in a controlled group. Moreover, the findings of such investigation
have been collected from twenty under- graduate students at Abdelhamid Ibn Badis
University of Mostaganem. This thesis is divided into five chapters; the first two chapters
highlight the relevance of the empirical studies related to literary reading by reviewing the
various approaches of reading theory as proposed by Widdowson (2000, 2007), McVee,
Dunsmore & Gavelek (2005), and Bernhardt (2005). I also depict the schema theory in
relation to reading with special reference to the reader’s socio-cultural background,
linguistic and literary competence. The third chapter discusses the pedagogical as well as
the theoretical framework of the study. It tries to provide an explanation for the theoretical
analysis with regard to the data collection instruments. In the fourth chapter, I present a
methodological description of the procedures adopted in conducting the present empirical
study. I also present the analysis of the contextual circumstances under which the students’
and the teachers’ questionnaires were conducted. Regarding the last chapter, it involves the
analysis of the collected data from the experiment. At this stage, the data collection
required a representation of some statistical and grading operations that are reported under
bar graphs, pie charts and tables. As a result, the analysis demonstrates that the students’
background knowledge in terms of cultural, linguistic and literary elements does not
necessarily boost the students’ reading comprehension of culturally unfamiliar short
fiction. In addition, the analysis also shows that the teachers are necessarily obliged to take
into account the students’ profile in their selection of literary texts. In addition, they are
EFL master students who are mature and able to deal with any foreign text. In fact, both
teachers of literature and their students assert that extensive reading plays a significant role
in enhancing the reader’s linguistic and cultural competences. By reading extensively and
discovering foreign cultures, the learner becomes more empathetic and tolerant vis-à-vis
these literary texts just as s/he becomes skilful in understanding and using the target
language. By doing so, the learner’s schemata are in continuous change and therefore
become dynamic. Consequently, they allow language learners to enrich and improve their
linguistic competence as well as their openness in order to familiarise themselves with
foreign cultures. Therefore, the results confirm Cook’s idea about the activation of the
mental processes in reading foreign texts. As a conclusion, this exploratory work
demonstrates that schema theory is not always necessary in the reading of literary texts in
the case of advanced learners in EFL context.

III
List of Abbreviations

EFL: English as a foreign language
ESL: English as a second language
L1: The First language or the mother tongue
MCQ: Multiple Choice Questions
ESP: English for specific purposes
BMD: Bachelor Master Doctorate
T: Teacher

IV
List of Tables

Table 4.1 The Population Division ...................................................................................123
Table 4.2 The Literary Selection ..................................................................................... 124
Table 4.3 The Description of the Methodological Procedures ........................................ 128
Table 5.1 The Students’ Biographical Information ......................................................... 155
Table 5.2 The Learners’ Reading Comprehension Dimensions (The Boarding House).. 164
Table 5. 3 The Learners’ Reading Comprehension Dimensions (The Lottery)............... 169
Table 5.4 Comparative Results of Leila and Sami’s Answers ........................................ 174

V
List of Figures

Figure 3.1 Byram’s (1997) Intercultural Communicative Competence Model.............93
Figure 3.2 Nieke’s (1995) Clarification of key concepts: Intercultural Education and
Intercultural ....................................................................................................96
Figure 4.1 The Methodological Procedures ................................................................127
Figure 5. 1 Participants’ Gender ....................................................................................156
Figure 5.2 The Learners’ Social Origins………………………………………...……157
Figure 5. 3 The Readers’ Trips Abroad and their Contact with Foreign……………...158
Figure 5. 4 The Difficulties in Reading Short Stories………………………...……….160
Figure 5.5 The Learners’ Strategies to Become Better Readers…………………..…161
Figure5.6 The Readers’ Grading Scale of Comprehension.........................................162
Figure 5.7 The Readers’ Level of Tolerance in Reading Foreign Texts…...……….163
Figure5. 8 The Learners’ Reading Comprehension Dimensions (The Boarding House).
............................................................................................................................................165
Figure 5. 9 The Learners’ Reading Comprehension Dimensions (The Lottery)..........170

VI
Contents

Dedications ……………………………………………………………..………………… I
Acknowledgements ………………………....……………….………………...……...…. II
Abstract ……………………………….……………………...….………………...…… III

List of Abbreviations ....................................................................................................... IV
List of Tables ..................................................................................................................... V
List of Figures ................................................................................................................... VI
Contents ………………………...……….………………………………….….………. VII
General Introduction ....................................................................................................... 14
Chapter I: Context in the Reading Comprehension Process in EFL
1. Introduction .................................................................................................................... 22
1.1. Reading Conception in EFL Context............................................................................22
1.1.1 Reading Theory.......................................................................................................... 23
1.1.2 Difference in Meaning Derivation............................................................................. 26
1.2 Different Approaches in Reading Comprehension....................................................... 27
1.2.1 Identifying the Socio-Cultural Aspects Related to Reading Comprehension Issues..30
1.2.2 The Different Types of Reading..................................................................................33
1.2.2.1 Aesthetic Reading.................................................................................................... 34
1.2.2.2 Efferent vs. Aesthetic Reading.................................................................................34
1.3 The Relationship between the Reader and the Society in Reading................................36
1.4 The Evolution of Literary Theories in Relation to Reading in EFL..............................38
1.5 The Cultural Theories in EFL Reading .........................................................................42
VII
Contents
1.6 Culture Definition .........................................................................................................43
1.7 Tolerance vis-a-vis Cultural Aspects ............................................................................45
1.8 Literature and Emotional Intelligence............................................................................46
1.9 Comprehending Cultural Dimensions in EFL Reading.................................................47
1.10 Literature and Cultural Understanding.........................................................................49
1.11 The Impact of Cultural Background Knowledge in EFL Reading Comprehension....50
1.12 Conclusion ................................................................................................................. 53
Chapter II: The Relevance of Schema Theory in Reading Literary Texts
2. Introduction......................................................................................................................55
2.1 Exploring Schema Theory in EFL Reading...................................................................55
2.2 An Overview of Schema Theory................................................................................... 56
2.3 The Techniques Used in the Application of Schema Theory in Reading Texts in EFL
Context ................................................................................................................................60
2.3.1 The Relevance of Pre-Reading Tasks Technique....................................................... 61
2.3.2 The Previewing Technique .........................................................................................62
2.3.3 The Questioning Technique .......................................................................................63
2.3.4 The Semantic Planning Technique ............................................................................ 64
2.4 The Relevance of Descriptive Texts for the Development of Sociocultural
Competence..........................................................................................................................65
2.4.1 Descriptive Materials of Schema Theory in EFL........................................................66
2.4.2 The Relation between Descriptive Materials and Sociocultural Schemata ............... 67
2.5 The Relevance Cultural Schemata in EFL Reading Comprehension……………..…...68
VIII
Contents
2.6 Investigating Reading Comprehension Process in Relation to Background
Knowledge...........................................................................................................................73
2.6.1 The Dimensions of Schema Theory ...........................................................................75
2.6.2 Goodman’s View of Schema Theory in Reading Comprehension ..........................76
2.7 The Linguistic Relevance in Reading Comprehension .................................................81
2.8 The Relevance of Extensive Reading in EFL Curriculum ............................................84
2.9 The Selection of Texts for Reading in EFL...................................................................87
2.10 Readers’ Classification in EFL Context ......................................................................88
2. 11 Indentifying Possible Reading Deficiencies in EFL ..................................................89
2.12 Conclusion....................................................................................................................90
Chapter III: Theoretical and Pedagogical Framework of the Study
3. Introduction……………………………………………………….…………………….92
3.1 The Relevance of Intercultural Competence in EFL Teaching .....................................92
3.2 Intercultural Education Requirements............................................................................94
3.3 Culture and EFL Teaching...........................................................................................100
3.4 The Pedagogical Framework........................................................................................101
3.5 Theory and Methodology ............................................................................................102
3.6 The Relevance of schema theory in the Pre- reading Stage ........................................106
3.7 The Selection of Short Stories .................................................................................... 111
3.8 Teaching Short Stories in EFL classes………………………………………….........107
3.8.1 Pre-Reading Phase………………………………………………………………….112
3.8.2 While-Reading Phase................................................................................................113
3.8.3 Post-Reading Phase………………………………………….…………………....113
IX