Chapter three

Research Methodology

3.1 Introduction

The research methods which were chosen to conduct the study, are

clearly explained in this chapter. The researcher describes how the

information required to address the research questions and aims was

gathered, presented and analyzed. The research design, selection of the

sample, selection of the material and the process of lesson planning , were

all justified.

3.2 Methodology

To determine whether short stories have a positive impact on reading

comprehension, a quantitative approach was conducted, because this

study was related to numbers and statistical data. In the context of this

study, a quasi-experimental research design in which the participants

were divided into a controlled group and an experimental group, was

chosen since it enabled the efficient collection of data and contributed in

establishing a causal relationship of cause-and-effect between an

independent and dependent variable. The quasi–experimental design

according to White and Sabarwal (2014) identifies a control group that

has similar attributes to an experimental group which was in the same

state in terms of prior knowledge before the experiment took place. The

efficiency of the program or policy used in the experiment is determined

by the outcomes of the control and experimental groups.

Thus, a pre-test/post-test research format is used to ensure that the test

results have high levels of validity. Both groups are given a pre-test and a

post-test, but only the experimental group is exposed to a treatment. In

other words, the teacher gives the students a pre-test at the beginning of

the experiment, uses the remedial material with the experimental group,

then post-tests both groups and compares the outcome.

3.3 participants

The study included first-graders in the age range of five to six. To find

out how short stories affect young children at Modern Benghazi

International Private School. A convenient sample of 18 students was

selected. The total number of participants was divided into two separate

groups. The control group included nine students, while the experimental

group consisted of eight. The researcher acted as a sub-teacher for the

experimental group, in which all students who agreed to partake in the

experiment were encouraged to participate in the activities, and consent

was obtained from both the subjects and the main teacher. Both groups

also consented to taking the pre- and post-tests.

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3.4 Selection of material

The selection of materials used in this study was based on a certain set

of criteria to ensure that the materials were appropriate. The Oxford Owl

E-Book Library provided the researcher with two short stories that were

used in the study and had to do with teaching reading. The researcher has

already read the stories to ensure that they are age-appropriate for first-

graders, are not culturally offensive, and contain vocabulary that is

appropriate. The names of the stories used are: (1) A house fit for a

mouse; and (2) Good old Grandad! Both stories were retrieved from

Oxford's E-book library.

3.5 Lesson plan

Lesson plans are required for all teaching professionals because they

are similar to a road without which you will not be able to reach your

destination. If you wish to show your effectiveness as a teacher, then a

lesson plan is a must.

3.5.1 What is a lesson plan?

Good teachers usually have some sort of plan, whether simple or complex,

before stepping into the classroom to help them organize their lesson in an

efficient way, and as Jensen explains, "A lesson plan is an extremely

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useful tool that serves as a combination guide, resource, and historical

document reflecting our teaching philosophy, student population,

textbooks, and most importantly, our goals for our students" (Jensen,

2001, p. 403).

In other words, Milkova (2012) states that a lesson plan is the teacher's

blueprint for what the class will cover and how it will be done efficiently.

The learning objectives for the class meeting must be determined before

designing a lecture. After that, you can create instructive learning

exercises and come up with methods for getting feedback on students'

academic progress.

3.5.2 How to plan a lesson?

The first step of lesson planning is identifying the objectives.

According to Milkova (2012) identifying clear objectives for student

learning will help determine the types of teaching and learning activities

to be employed in the classroom. Which has been pointed out by Richards

as he stated.

"Clear well-written objectives are the first step in daily lesson

planning. These objectives will help state precisely what we want our

students to learn, help guide the selection of appropriate activites, and

direction. They also give teachers a way to evaluate what their students

have learned at the end of the lesson" (Richards et al., 2002, p 32).
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Lesson plan 1

Title of the story: A house fit for a mouse

Date: 14/12/2022

Teacher's name: Mai Alsenussi

Class profile: 8 male and female students aged 5 to 6.

Level: First grade

Lesson length: 45 minutes

Target language: English (for native Arabic speakers)

Main objectives: By the end of the lesson, students will be able to:

 Read the story accurately with little or no help from the teacher.

Subsidiary objectives:

 To increase the students' vocabulary and guessing skills.

 To reinforce the students' reading comprehension skills through

listening and speaking.

Materials:

 White board, markers, flashcards.

 textbooks, and Short stories retrieved from www.oxfordowl.co.uk

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 Anticipated problems:

 Students may face difficulties in understanding the story.

 Some students might not be familiar with the vocabulary used in

the story.

 Students might not be able to pronounce some of the words.

Solutions:
 Teacher will explain the plot of the story and ask students before

and after reading to ensure their understanding.

 Teacher will elicit and drill the words before and while reading.

 Teacher will encourage students to read some of the words out loud

and correct any mispronunciation by repeating after the students.

Procedure:

Stage Objective Procedure Focus Time

Warm-up To engage the  Teacher smiles and greets the T-Ss 3-5
students students in order to break the minutes
ice
S-T
 Teacher introduces herself and
asks the students to introduce
themselves as well
T-Ss
 Teacher asks the students if
they like reading stories
Teacher asks: what's your
favorite story S-T

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  Students take turns to answer

Lead in To prepare  T shows Ss the cover of the T-Ss 5 minutes

(pre students for story and asks them to describe
reading) the story
what they can see
 T elicits the title of the story T-Ss
from the Ss
 T writes the title of the story on T-Ss
the board and asks the Ss to try
and read it aloud
 Ss work in pairs to guess what
S-S
the story is going to be about

While To develop  T reads the story for the T-Ss 20

reading reading minutes
class while eliciting the
strategies and
understand the meaning of new vocabulary
text from the Ss
the new words are drilled
until the Ss have no trouble
pronouncing them Ss-T
 T encourages Ss to read the
words in red and ask them if
they know what they mean,
then rereads them if they
have any trouble
pronouncing the words Ss-T
 T rewrites the story on the

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 board and asks each student
to read a page while
answering the questions in
T-Ss
order to check the Ss
understanding
 T and Ss reread the story
Ss-T
out loud and answer a brief
activity on board
 T draws certain shapes and
pictures then asks Ss
whether they were
presented in the story, Ss
may look back at the
T-Ss
pictures and text quickly
then each student writes or
draws their answer on the
board
 T then checks the answers
with the Ss
Post To check the  T lays flashcards of the T-Ss 10
reading Ss accurate minutes
story and asks the Ss to
comprehension
of the text organize them based on
which event happened first
 T asks the Ss to retell the Ss-T
story using their own words
 T reviews the whole lesson T-Ss
and asks Ss what they
understood from the story

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 and what new words or
expressions they learned
from it.
Extra/free To enhance Ss  Ss work in two groups and S-S 5 minutes
activity creativity and reenact the events of the
encourage
them to use story
their
imagination

Story title : A house fit for a mouse

Pre reading stage:

 T elicits the plot of the story from the Ss by asking them to

guess what the story might be about based on the cover and
title.

While reading stage:

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 T reads the story together with the Ss and elicits the new
vocabulary from them.

 T asks the Ss to answer the questions while reading in order to

check their understanding.

Post reading stage:

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  T asks Ss to re organize the story using flashcards then retell the
story using their own words.

 T then reviews the whole story and asks Ss about what they
learnt from it.

Extra activities:
 Ss reenact the story in order to enhance their creativity.

Lesson plan 2

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Title of the story: Good old Grandad

Age: From 5 to 6 years old.

Grade: Primary 1

Target language: English (for native Arabic speakers)

Teacher's name: Mai Alsenussi

Lesson length: 45 minutes

Main aims: By the end of the lesson students will be able to:

 Read the story fluently and accurately.

 Scan the text for specific information.

Subsidiary Aims:

 Students will learn new vocabulary.

 Students will practice and improve other skills (listening/speaking)

and they will also improve the sub-skills of reading such as

scanning.

 Students' ability to use their imagination will be enhanced.

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Materials:

 textbooks, and Short stories retrieved from www.oxfordowl.co.uk

 Flash cards.

 White board and markers.

Assumptions:

 Students are likely already familiar with the story's main concept.

 Students will likely recognize the words from the story and will

have no problem in pronouncing most of them.

 Students are likely to have no trouble with the exercises as they're

quite similar to the ones in the previous story.

Anticipated problems:

 Students may lose interest or not want to participate in any more

activities related to reading.

 Students might get bored and refuse to answer any more

questions.

Solutions:

 Teacher engages the students in fun warmer activities to help

them get energized.

 Teachers asks questions in the form of games and fun activities.

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Procedure:

Stage Aim Procedure Time

Warm To get Ss  Ss take turns acting out 3-5 minutes

up attention words provided by the T
to practice and review
words from the previous
lesson.

Lead in To engage the  T tells the students a 5 minutes

students story about her
grandparents
 T asks the Ss if they can
share a similar story

Pre To set the story's  T writes the title of the 10 minutes

reading context and get story on the white board
stage the Ss interested and asks Ss to make
in the topic predictions of the plot
 T shows the Ss
flashcards and pictures
of the story and asks
them to describe what
they can see
 T presents new
vocabulary with each
flashcard
 T test Ss prior
knowledge by asking
them to describe what
they see in the
flashcards using words
from the previous
lesson
 T reads the story for the
class and pause after

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While To practice each frame for children 20 minutes
reading reading and to listen and point to the
stage understand the pictures.
text  Ss answer the questions
on the first page by
scanning the text
quickly and looking at
the pictures for specific
details
 T reads the sentences in
each frame with the
class then writes This is
my ... on the board. then
places a flashcard of
"grandad" next to it and
asks Ss to read it out
loud.
 Ss repeat the same
action until all of the
new words are practiced
 T then asks each student
to read a sentence while
acting out the actions of
the story

Post To check Ss  T asks Ss to retell the 5 minutes

reading understanding story using their own
and review the words after putting the
lesson event into order (using
flashcards from the
story)
 T divides Ss into two
groups and asks them to
act the story out

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 Story title : Good old Grandad!

Pre reading stage:

 Ss make predictions about the story based on the title and cover of
the story.
 T sticks flash cards onto the board and asks Ss to drill the words
and practice them before reading the story.

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While reading stage:
 T reads the story for the class and pauses after each frame for
children to listen and look at the pictures.

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  Ss answer a number of questions by scanning the text quickly and
looking at the pictures for specific details.

 T then checks Ss prior knowledge using flashcards.

Post reading stage:

 Ss reorganize the events of the story using flashcards.
 T then asks Ss to retell the story using their own words.
 Ss act the story out in groups,

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