Sustained silent reading with non-native speakers of English: Its impact on reading comprehension, reading attitude, and language acquisition

This study examined one independent reading program, Sustained Silent Reading SSR) and the role of this program on reading comprehension, vocabulary/language acquisition, and the attitude toward reading. One hundred twenty students at a culturally diverse Southern California high school completed the Estes Attitude Scales, a Personal Survey, and the Gates-MacGinitie Reading Comprehension Test in a pre-test post-test design. Half of these students participated in classrooms where teachers provided fifteen minutes of sustained silent reading time on a daily basis; the other half participated in the regular English curriculum. This study covered a period of 9 months (except two weeks in December and one week in April because of school holidays). The research questions posed were: (1) Will SSR increase reading comprehension? (2) Will this program develop a more positive attitude toward reading? (3) Will this program increase vocabulary? The results of the study showed that the SSR group had significant gains in three areas: comprehension, vocabulary, and attitude toward reading; the control group had some gains in comprehension and vocabulary but not in attitude toward reading. This led to the assumption that there exists a positive relationship between SSR in all three areas. The researcher concluded that it was valuable for the students to read the fifteen minutes per day in that improvement was shown in three areas, while only two areas in the control group. The taking of fifteen minutes for reading did not prove to be detrimental to the students. They performed as well, if not better, as those in the control group who had the full period for English curriculum.