An Action-Research Study on 8th Grade Students' Motivation towards Reading Habits of English Short Stories: A Comparative Study among Six Educational Districts in the State of Kuwait

Abstract

Abstract : This research aims to measure the kind of reading habits that 8th-grade students (boys and girls) in the State of Kuwait have toward reading short stories in English and their degree of motivation. Three main hypotheses were formulated and tested in the form of a questionnaire. The first hypothesis tested students' overall views about their reading habits of English short stories during their school year in relation to their gender. The second hypothesis focused on students' overall views about their reading habits of English short stories and the level of such habits in different educational districts. The third hypothesis dealt with the relationship between students' reading habits and the prizes offered to them for completing their assignments. Other sub-hypotheses were also formulated to test the following variables: reading habits, level of difficulty in reading English stories, motivation, and parental encouragement. The data were collected from a total of 691 students from six main educational areas in the State of Kuwait: Al-Asma, Hawalli, Farwania, Al-Jahra, Ahmadi, and Mubarak Al-Kabeer. A statistical analysis was conducted on all the questionnaire items using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). The questionnaire items were correlated with the three main independent variables: gender, educational district, and prizes received by the students for their reading of English short stories. The results of the study show that female students have access to better reading resources and better parental encouragement. All the results obtained for differences in reading habits within their different educational districts are highly significant. Students in Al-Jahra district have the highest positive reading habits, which were due to students having more teachers' motivation and encouragement than the other groups. As for their level of achievement in terms of receiving prizes, all the results are highly significant, which means the students who receive prizes for their reading of short stories have positive views towards their reading. The most important findings showed that providing reading resources and parental encouragement positively affected the students' overall reading habits of English short stories. Hence, the study requires the Ministry of Education in Kuwait to bring essential changes in their educational system regarding students' English reading habits in public schools. In addition, both parents and teachers play a significant role in introducing them to reading. As a result, students might eventually be more motivated towards reading English short stories, which is hoped to lead to better language performance on the part of EFL learners. This can be accomplished by providing the students with suitable reading materials for which they should be given prizes in order for them to be motivated towards achieving better reading English skills