Research Article - (2024) Volume 19, Issue 3
THE EFFECTIVENESS OF A TRAINING PROGRAM IN DEVELOPING READING SKILLS AMONG STUDENTS WITH LEARNING DISABILITIES
Dr. Khaled Ahmad Obeidat* and Dr. Munjed M Najadat*Correspondence: Dr. Khaled Ahmad Obeidat, Special education department, Faculty of Educational sciences, Ajloun national university, Jordan, Email:
Jordan
Received: 05-Jun-2024 Published: 18-Jun-2024
Abstract
The current study aimed to design a training program to develop reading skills for students with learning Disabilities in Irbid governorate, and to measure its effectiveness. The study was quasi-experimental, and the study tools included a reading skills assessment and the proposed training program. The study population consisted of 130 male students with learning Disabilities in the fourth grade in Irbid governorate. The study sample was purposefully selected and comprised 30 students with learning Disabilities, divided into two groups: an experimental group of 15 students and a control group of 15 students, distributed randomly. Data analysis was conducted using the Mann-Whitney test to estimate the significance of differences between the two independent samples, and the Wilcoxon test to estimate the significance of differences within the single sample. The results indicated the effectiveness of the training program based on differentiated pedagogy in reading skills, with statistically significant differences at the (α≤0.05) level between the average ranks of the experimental and control groups on the reading skills assessment in favor of the experimental group. In light of the study results, it is recommended to generalized the training program to teachers of students with learning Disabilities and to conduct further studies on different categories of special education.
Keywords
Reading skills, Training program, learning Disabilities.
Introduction
The school is a social building consisting of a group of educators in an institution that was created as a result of the needs of the community to edúcate its members and provide an increase in knowledge that contributes to the Establishments of the future of this society. We find that the school consists of two dimensions: the first dimension is the structural dimension, which consists of sections, management and playground, and the functional dimension, which consists of teachers, trainers and students.
Learning Disabilities are among the disturbances that prevent the learner and his correct learning among his peers in normal circumstances, as he shows a deficit in many activities to keep pace with his peers or their competitors, and the outputs of education in the Arab world, for example, have become in a situation that we do not say that it portends a real tragedy, but rather it is a lethal reality, as these outputs have become very weak, and those responsible for producing these outputs themselves have become at a distance from the ability to serve the elements of the educational process in general (Markoun, 2021).
Reading is also one of the most important areas of learning Disabilities, as about 805 people with learning disabilities suffer from reading difficulty, which is the main means of acquiring information and experiences, and the basis of each educational process. Therefore, it is one of the most important means of conveying the fruits of the human mind, and therefore stumbling in it may result in stumbling in all other fields of learning. Therefore, good reading is an important factor in school and university, and in various other areas of life, and equally, writing plays an important role in being an educational skill necessary for academic success, and as a communication formula of a degree of complexity (Al-Maghraoui, 2017).
The problem of the study and its questions
Al-Azmi, 2020, Al-Batayneh, 2021, Al-Amri and Braymah, 2020, Mustafa, 2016) pointed out that learning Disabilities are a category of special education spread in all countries of the world in different proportions between one country and another, and there is a continuous increase in the number of students with learning Disabilities.
Through a review of previous studies such as the study of Muhammad, 2020; Abdullah, 2022; Khudair et al., 2020; daily observations; and parents' constant complaint about the lack of skills of their children with learning Disabilities in various skills, especially with regard to reading skills, which are among the basic characteristics of students with learning Disabilities.
Are there statistically significant differences at the level of significance (α≤0.05) between the mean scores of the control and experimental groups on the reading skills scale in post measurement attributed to the variableof the training program?
Objectives of the study
Detection of differences between the averages of the scores of the control and experimental groups on the reading skills scale in post-phyas.
Importance of the study
This research focuses on the development of reading skills among students with learning Disabilities and increases the importance of research that it takes place in the classroom environment to have an opportunity to make it the subject of experiences and advancement and development because it lacks such research and field studies, and the importance of the age group that it deals with, which is characterized by flexibility and formability, which are students with learning Disabilities at the basic stage. The results of this study contribute to finding solutions to some of the problems associated with the category of learning Disabilities and contribute to building an educational strategy to improve the reading skills of students with learning Disabilities.
Limits of the study
Spatial Limit: Public schools for the basic stage in Irbid Governorate/
Time limit: The second semester 2023/2024 The duration of the training program was 4 weeks and consisted of 11sessions with 3 weekly sessions.
Human Limit: Students with learning Disabilities in Irbid Governorate who are enrolled in the resource room in Irbid School
Objective Limit: Designing a program in developing reading skills for students with learning disabilities and ensuring its effectiveness.
Terminology of the study
The training program is procedural defined as :A set of activities and tasks that students with learning Disabilities are trained on. These activities are provided through training sessions during a specified time. This session is carried out in a private classroom equipped with the means and tools to implement the program inside the school.
Procedural, learning disabilities are defined as students who have been diagnosed with learning disabilities and receive special education services in the resource room of the Ministry of Education who are in the fourth grade in Irbid Governorate.
Reading skills are procedural defined: It is the score obtained by students with learning Disabilities on the reading skills scale.
Theoretical literature and previous studies
Learning Disabilities
A disorder that hinders the normal learning process, and this disorder is in the processes that entre the learning process such as memory, perception, attention, thinking, and learning strategies. Reading and writing (spelling, editorial expression, calligraphy) as well as mathematics are affected by these disorders (Al-Ghazawi, 2020). Hamadneh, B.M.& Alqarni,T.M.(2023).
Some theories explaining learning Disabilities
as he interpreted it (Abdullah ,2022).
Speech Delay Theory: The authors of this theory go on to interpret learning Disabilities as reflecting the slow maturation of visual, motor, and linguistic processes, and the attention processes that characterize cognitive development. Since each individual with learning Disabilities has different manifestations of slow maturation aspects, each of them differs in the rate of passing through the stages of development.
Behavioral theory: This theory is due to learning Disabilities because the reasons for low academic achievement are wrong, which may be due to the use of inappropriate teaching methods due to the lack of educational means and appropriate educational activities and the large number of learners, and their lack of motivation to learn and study, in addition to the existence of inappropriate environmental conditions in the family, school and society. Therefore, the owners of this trend believe that it is necessary to study environmental conditions and socialization factors.
Psychological theory: This theory focuses on the mind's processing of information based on cognitive processes, attention abilities, memory, and basic psychological factors represented in sensory perception, memory, conceptualization, language, and its role and use in thinking and learning.
Information processing theory: The basic psychological processes are due to the special abilities in processing information, and these abilities are: listening, looking, touching, through which we acquire information, as well as the special abilities to process information such as attention, excellence, memory, information representation, concept formation and problem solving.
Definition of reading skills: It is a clear disorder in learning the skill of reading and the related disorder in the basic psychological processes (perception, attention and memory). Learning to read requires the ability to understand and use linguistic vocabulary and the ability to visually distinguish between letters and words (Khoja, 2019).
Indicators for reading Disabilities
Deleting some words or parts of them, adding some words, syllables or letters to speech, replacing some words with others that may carry some of their meanings, repeating some words more than once without justification, flipping and replacing letters, poor distinction between similar letters, poor distinction between vowels, and slow reading process (Mustafa, 2016).
Previous studies
Alamshawy (2020). In a study aimed at identifying the effectiveness of a proposed program to improve the reading and writing skills of students with learning disabilities, the study sample consisted of 20 students divided into two groups: a control group of (10) and an experimental group of (10) students with learning Disabilities. The study used a measure of writing and reading skills. The study also used the semi-experimental approach, and the results resulted in the effectiveness of the program applied to improve the reading and writing skills of students with learning Disabilities.
Hijazi (2018) conducted. A study aimed at the effectiveness of a training program based on the activities of the resource room to develop the reading and writing skills of students with learning disabilities. The study sample consisted of 12 students from the fifth grade of primary school, distributed into two groups: an experimental group of 6 students, and a control group of 6 students. The study also used the semi-experimental approach. The results of the study also indicated that there were no statistically significant differences between the pre and post-serial measures in the reading and writing skills of the experimental group.
The study of Franceschini and Roncone (2017), franshiskini warunkuni,aimed to verify the impact of a program based on video movement games in improving reading skills, phonological working memory and visual-spatial attention in a sample of children with dyslexia. The research sample consisted of 12 students and a pre-test was conducted for the two groups. In order to achieve the goal, the semi-experimental approach was used and the sample members were distributed into two groups according to the quality of the games included (video movement games - non-kinetic video games). The results indicated an improvement in the speed of vocabulary excellence, phonological coding, and visual-motor attention. This non-traditional reading treatment program also contributed to improving short-term working memory and phonemic blending skills.
From the above, it is clear from previous studies that they focused on different aspects, without other important aspects, and the current study is an attempt to fill the gaps, and complete the successive Construction process over the years.
The researcher benefited from the previous studies in writing the theoretical framework of the current study, identifying the problem of the study and formulating it in a scientific research method, enriching its theoretical literature, developing the study methodology, building the study tools, and discussing and interpreting the results.
The current study differs from its counterparts from previous studies, in that it may be the first study conducted in Irbid Governorate within the limits of research science, to reveal a training program in the development of reading skills among students of learning Disabilities in Irbid Governorate, where the results of the study are circulated to the study community.
Despite the above, the current study has been distinguished from the previous studies, in its purpose, society, sample, place and time in the educational field, which dealt with the effectiveness of a training program in the development of reading skills for students with learning Disabilities, and the results of this study are expected to draw the attention of students to research in this field.
Method and Procedures
Study community: The study community consisted of students with learning Disabilities in Irbid Governorate, who numbered (130) students who are diagnosed by the Ministry of Education and receive part of their education in the learning resource rooms.
Study sample: The study sample was selected in the intentional way with low reading skills on the scale, and it consisted of 30 students distributed in an experimental group of 15 students and a control group of 15 students.
Study approach: A quasi-experimental approach was chosen that enables us to identify and determine the magnitude of the impact between the variables of the study problem, as well as collect and prepare data and lay the foundation for classifying them and reaching and interpreting the results.
Study Tools
First: The training program: by referring to previous References and studies, including the study of (Muhammad, 2018; Ainu and Khallaf 2020; Khoja 2019, Masoud, 2022. Khanfour et al. (2018), a training program was developed aimed at developing the reading skills of students with learning disabilities.
Validity of the program: The validity of the training program was confirmed by presenting it in its initial form to a group of (10) arbitrators with experience and specialization in special education in Jordanian universities in order to verify in terms of the general and sub-objectives of the program, and the clarity and comprehensiveness of the statements. The amendment was made in the light of the views of the arbitrators and their suggestions.
Program Objective: The general objective is to reveal the effectiveness of the training program in developing reading skills when requesting learning Disabilities.
Program Contents: The program contains (11) training sessions for a period of one month, each session lasts from( 30-45 ) minutes, according to three weekly sessions (Table 1).
| Reading Skills | Skills to be developed | User Style | Number of sessions: (4) | Total Sessions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reading | Connects the quanta in the first column with their synonym in the second column | Self-learning, technology integration | 1 | 11 |
| Decomposes words into letters | Self-learning | 1 | ||
| Decomposes words into syllables | Self-Learning, Collaborative Learning | 1 | ||
| It combines words from letters | Self-learning | 1 | ||
| Composing of syllables words | Self-learning, lecture | 1 | ||
| Completes the blank with the appropriate word | Self-learning, active learning | 1 | ||
| Circles the correct answer | Self-learning, active learning | 1 | ||
| Selects the appropriate word and places it in the blank | Self-learning, discussion | 1 | ||
| Reads words intact | Discussion, lecture | 1 | ||
| Reads the text and answers questions | Lecture, Discussion | 1 | ||
| Reads the paragraph out loud | Self-learning | 1 |
Second: Reading Skills Scale
By referring to previous studies, including Zumra, 2018; Muhammad, 2018; Mustafa, 2016; Al-Amshawi, 2020;), the researcher developed a reading skills scale to ensure the effectiveness of the training program in developing reading skills among students with learning disabilities.
Validity of the study tool
Virtual validity: The validity of the study tool was confirmed by presenting them to a group of (10) arbitrators with experience and competence in Jordanian universities. And to take into account their observations and amendments, in terms of language, the belonging of the paragraph to the field, and the appropriateness of the paragraphs, in addition to proposing any appropriate amendments. Based on the consensus of more than (90%) of the group of arbitrators, the tool was approved in its final form, as some of the paragraphs that were (15) were amended and replaced to become their final number (11) paragraphs distributed over three areas.
The stability of the study tool: To ensure the stability of the study tool, the test-retest method was verified by applying the scale, and reapplying it after two weeks to a group from outside a sample and its community consisting of (20) students, and then the Pearson correlation coefficient was calculated between their estimates in both times (Table 2).
Area |
Repeat stability | Internal consistency |
|---|---|---|
| Reading Skill | 0.88 | 0.86 |
Variables of the study
The study consisted of the following variables
Independent variable: dependent variable training program: reading skills
Statistical treatment used in the study
The (spss) program was used to answer the study questions, the Mann-Teny test and the Wilcoxon test (willcoxon w) were used to answer the study questions
Study Procedures
Refer to the previous literature in the design of programs and the scale of the study.
The study population was identified and assigned.
The study used the appropriate statistical equations in order to determine the size of the study sample
The study applied both the scale and the training program
Interpreting the results, discussing them, linking them to previous studies, and submitting recommendations and proposals in the light of the results
Presentation and discussion of findings
The second question states: Are there statistically significant differences at the level of significance (α≤0.05) between the mean scores of the control and experimental groups on the reading skills scale attributed to the training program?
To answer this question, the Mann and Whitney test was used to find the significance of the differences between the average grade levels of students with learning disabilities in reading skills in the post measurement, and the table below shows this (Table 3).
| Dimensions | Group | Number | Average Ranks | Total Ranks | Mann-Whitney U | Wilcoxon W | Calculated Z Value | Level of Significance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reading Skill | Experimental | 15 | 18 | 284.00 | 61 | 000 | - 2 - | .032 |
| Officer | 15 | 12 | 181.00 |
It is clear from Table No. (3) that there are statistically significant differences (α≤0.05) attributed to the experimental group in the skill of reading, as the calculated Z value was (-2.141) and with a statistical significance of (.032), and the differences came in favor of the experimental group.
That is, the members of the experimental group to which the pedagogy-based training program was applied have better reading skills than the control group who were taught reading skills in the traditional way. This shows the effectiveness of using the training program in developing the reading skills of students with learning Disabilities. The current study believe that this result emphasizes the use of training programs in developing the reading skills of students with learning Disabilities, as reading skills are the cornerstone of the educational process, which helps the child to deal with others and teach students positive behaviors that affect the school, society and family clearly.
The importance of reading skills lies in the fact that it is a basic need of students that helps them learn many things about the surrounding environment. Through reading skills, students acquire many skills and information that contribute to the formation of personality and mental health.
It is a result that is consistent with many previous studies that focus on students with learning Disabilities, as this result is consistent with the findings of the Al-Amshawi study (2020), which refers to the effectiveness of training programs in developing reading skills among students with learning Disabilities, and that this skill greatly helps them to get out of their isolation, and significantly increases their self-esteem and interaction with others, and it is also a result that is consistent with the study of Hegazy, (2018); Franceschini and Roncone, (2017). The improvement in reading skills of students with learning Disabilities in the experimental group is attributed to the training program.
Recommendations
In light of the results of the research, the researcher recommended the following:
Conducting training programs in the development of independent and social skills for students with learning disabilities
Conducting training programs on reading skills in another category of special education
Conducting training programs to develop reading skills for children with learning Disabilities in the first basic stage.
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