The investigation of cultural background perception on reading comprehension ability: A case of intermediate EFL learners in Zanjan

Abstract

Learners’ perception of culture on receptive skills, more specifically on reading comprehension, has been an area facing a big challenge contemporarily. The current research aimed to investigate the cultural perception of Iranian EFL learners on reading comprehension ability. To conduct the study, an exploratory quantitative ex-post facto design (Dornyei, 2007) consisting of a questionnaire and interview study was used. Participants, 50 intermediate EFL learners (25 males, 25 females), were selected using the Oxford Placement Test. The participants were provided with two passages with different cultural contents (one containing Iranian culture and another containing culture of English-speaking countries). Then participants were required to fill in a Likert-scale questionnaire which was distributed through Google Form online platform. Also, an interview session was conducted to gather more detailed data. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, and coded to find common themes. Analysis of interview and questionnaire data showed that learners hold similar cultural perceptions on reading comprehension ability, yet gender and social class have no significant impact on learners’ perceptions. The results of the study specified that Iranian EFL learners held a positive attitude towards the integration of cultural materials into reading passages to better comprehend the target language. Moreover, it was seen that gender and social class did not impact significantly learners’ cultural perceptions of English reading comprehension. The findings imply that ESL students with various reading levels or capabilities can learn from materials that are culturally diverse, specifically the ones at higher reading proficiency levels.

Keywords:

• Background or prior knowledge
• culture
• learners’ perception
• reading comprehension

PUBLIC INTEREST STATEMENT

The purpose of this research is to investigate Iranian English as a foreign language (EFL) learners’ perceptions of culture on their reading comprehension. Therefore, an interview and a questionnaire, which had already been validated, were used. 50 participants including 25 male and 25 female intermediate EFL learners were homogenized using the Oxford Placement Test. Afterwards, the participants were given two passages with different cultural contents, one representing the Iranian culture and the other representing that of English-spoken countries. Then, the participants answered a number of questions presented through a questionnaire and an interview. The results indicated that the participants had similar cultural perceptions on reading comprehension; however, their gender and social class were not found to having any impact accordingly. The results also demonstrated that Iranian EFL learners had a positive attitude towards the integration of cultural materials into reading passages to better help language learners acquire the target language.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

The authors received no direct funding for this research.

Notes on contributors

Houman Bijani

Houman Bijani is an assistant professor in Applied Linguistics (TEFL) from Islamic Azad University, Science and Research Branch, Tehran, Iran. He is also a faculty member of Zanjan Islamic Azad University. He got his MA in TEFL from Allameh Tabatabai University as a top student. He has published several research papers in national and international language teaching journals. His areas of interest include quantitative assessment, teacher education, and language research. He has published over 30 scholarly research articles, in ISI and internationally-known scientific research journals, mostly related to rater training programs. This research is a part of a research thesis investigating the impact of cultural integration in learners’ perceptions of reading comprehension ability. Houman Bijani was honored to supervise the research team including two other researchers, Mina Sahrayi and Salim Said Bani Orabah.

Mina Sahrayi

Mina Sahrayi is an MA holder in TEFL from Zanjan Islamic Azad University. She has published a few research articles in recognizable ISC journals. Her area of interest is the implication of culture in second language acquisition.

Salim Said Bani Orabah

Salim Said Bani Orabah is a senior lecturer of English and the Head of English Language Center at the University of Technology and Applied Sciences, Ibra, Sultanate of Oman. He has published some articles in valid international ISI journals. He got his doctorate from the University of Exeter, England. His areas of interest include teacher education and language research.