Abstract:
This study aimed at investigating students’ awareness, practices and challenges of reading
comprehension strategies used by grade 10 students at Mettu secondary school. To achieve
this, a descriptive case study method was employed. The participants of the study were grade
ten students for the 2022 academic year and grade ten English language teachers in the
school under investigation. Out of 232 grade 10 students in the school, 70 of them were
selected through a simple random sampling technique whereas two teachers participants
were selected by purposive sampling technique. To collect relevant data, three instruments of
data collection: questionnaire, interview and observation were used. Data collected through
questionnaire was analyzed quantitatively by making use of frequency percentages and mean
values. On the other hand, data gathered via interviews and classroom observation were
analyzed qualitatively. The findings of the study depicted that the students’ awareness of
different reading comprehension strategies is at a low level. Similarly, their practices of
using the strategies were poor. Furthermore, the study revealed that the nature of the reading
comprehension activities/tasks and lack of awareness of reading comprehension strategies
were among the challenges which have been hindering students’ not to practice varied
reading comprehension strategies. Based on the major findings of the study, it is concluded
that the students’ were not effectively exposed to reading comprehension strategy use neither
explicitly nor implicitly. In conclusion, recommendations were forwarded in order to boost
students’ awareness and practices of using different reading comprehension strategies.
Among these, teachers should model and explain the strategies and they are expected to
design tasks and activities that suit their students’ needs instead of being a servant of
students’ textbooks. Moreover, they should provide‘scaffolding’ rather than making students
rely on them forevery classroom episode. Furthermore, students should exercise their
responsibility as active readers. Finally, concerned officials have to organize practical
refreshment training on how reading comprehension strategies are best taught at secondary
school.
