Republic of the Philippines

COMMISSION ON HIGHER EDUCATION

Region V (Bicol)
BAAO COMMUNITY COLLEGE
San Juan, Baao Camarines Sur
COLLEGE OF EDUCATION

ENHANCING READING COMPREHENSION OF GRADE 2

PUPILS THROUGH READING ASSESSMENT IN
SAGRADA ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

An Undergraduate Action Research Presented to the

Faculty of College of Education
Baao Community College
Baao, Camarines Sur

In Partial Fulfillment for the Degree Program

Bachelor of Elementary Education

ROSALIE ARCILLA
KIMBERLY B. BOLIVAR
VIDA C. EVANGELISTA
MARY JOY C. IBALLAR
NICHO T. LOZANO
RENAMIE JOY S. MAJELLO
DIANA ROSE L. OAFALLAS
ANDRIAN R. ORO
GENELIE S. SEPTIMO
MYRNA L. VALENCIANO

JUNE 2024
 CHAPTER I

BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Introduction

Education1 is an important issue in one’s life. It is the key to success in

the future, and to have many opportunities in our life. Education has many

advantages to people. For instance, it has illuminated a person’s mind and

thinking. It helps students to plan for work, or pursue higher education from

university. Having education in an area help people think, feel, and behave in a

way that contributes to their success and improves not only their personal

satisfaction but also their community. In addition, education develops human

personality, thoughts and social skills. It also prepares people for life

experiences. It makes people have special status in their own society and

everywhere they live. We believe that everyone is entitled to have education

“from cradle to grave”. There are various benefits of having education, such as

having a good career, having a good status in society, and having self-

confidence. Education is a process of acquiring knowledge and information that

leads to successful future.

Reading comprehension is essential for students to be able to master

other English skills. A student who wants to be a good writer, for example, must

also be a good reader. Furthermore, students must be able to read in order to

communicate and receive information (technology, science, news, etc). This

type of information can be found in television advertisements, journals, social

media, newspapers, magazines, short messages, and so on. To understand the

written text in that source of information, students must be proficient in reading

in order to comprehend effectively the information that the writer intends to

convey. According to Prasetyono (2010), Greenaland and Michaels also

emphasizes the importance of effective reading. They say that effective reading

entails being able to read accurately and comprehend as much of the passage

as is required to achieve your goal.

Reading skills are important also for a child's academic success because

they allow them to access the full curriculum and improve their comprehension

and language skills. Furthermore, reading can be a fun and imaginative time for

children, opening doors to all kinds of new worlds. According to studies, reading

for pleasure has a significant impact on children's academic performance.

Similarly, evidence suggests that children who read for pleasure every day not

only perform better those who do not in reading tests, but also develop a

broader vocabulary.

Unfortunately, readers, particularly students and young readers, do not

have good reading comprehension and do not read well or effectively,

particularly when it comes to understanding simple English passages or short

stories. The reason for these problems is that students have difficulty

comprehending the text because there are not enough words in the text or they

do not know many of the words in the text that they have read. This statement is

supported by Paran in Harmer, according to Prasetyono (2010), he stated that if

readers do not know half of the words in a text, they will struggle to understand

the text as a whole.

 Teachers' inability to use appropriate reading activities and strategies is

one of the factors affecting students' reading comprehension. With these types

of problems, students have a tendency to read the passages incorrectly.

Students, for example, frequently read without objectives or strategies, and they

occasionally perform poorly in subsequent reading activities. As a result, the

students have low comprehension and experience understanding the passages.

In other words, the students' reading comprehension is inadequate to assist

them in becoming good readers.

Teachers can use some strategies to take part in the process by means

of reading aloud, asking questions, and having students predict information of

texts. In this way, students get opportunities to understand the meaning of a

text. According to Brown (2010), the key to intensive reading is to provide

students with more opportunities to interact with a text; the more familiar the

reader is with the text, the more comprehension is promoted.

This action research was conducted on the Grade 2 pupils of Sagrada

Elementary School in the academic year 2023 – 2024. The class consisted of

two groups: the Set A boys and the Set B girls. The issues or problems that the

researchers intend to address are the reading comprehension of Grade 2

pupils. Using reading assessment, the researcher aimed to enhance or improve

their reading comprehension.

The present study is unique in that it sought to enhance the reading

comprehension of primary learners, especially since the education system has

been dramatically affected by the pandemic.

Reading

Reading is one of the Basic Skills of English. It's classified as an input

skill. It means that when people read something, they will learn something from

it. According to Nunan (2010), reading is a fluent process in which the reader

combines information from a text with their own background knowledge to

construct meaning. During the reading, readers combine information from the

text with information from their prior knowledge.

Reading Comprehension

Reading Comprehension is about the reader actively constructing

meaning within the text that they are reading. Through activating their prior

knowledge, having a set purpose for reading, making predictions, visualizing,

questioning, and many other strategies the reader is able to develop a much

stronger understanding of the text they are reading. The main goal of reading is

to gain comprehension. When students read a passage, they decode written

information and combine it with their prior knowledge in their brains to produce

comprehension. According to Anderson in McKay (2011), reading is both a

process and a product. The product of reading is called reading

comprehension, or an internal construction of meaning; that is, there has been

understanding of what has been read.

Reading Assessment

Reading assessments can be a useful part a reading program, as long as

their aim is to help students become fluent readers who understand what they

read. Reading assessments done later along the path of literacy can be used to
aid comprehension, even as it assesses it. This helps the child identify his or

her strengths, as well as weaknesses. According to Brehaut (2015), the most

effective reading assessments help children assess what they do and do not

understand about a text. All of this is done in order for a child to become a fluent

reader. Fluency is more than just being able to pronounce printed words on a

page; it is also about understanding the meaning and context of those words.

Educators want children to be able to read fluently, which means being able to

demonstrate how much they understand what they are reading by how they

read.

Statement of the Problem

The action research aims to know and assist pupils in Enhancing the

Reading Comprehension of the Grade 2 pupils through Reading Assessment in

Sagrada Elementary School specifically, it seeks to answer the following

questions:

1. What is the level of reading comprehension of Grade 2 pupils through

Assessment Reading?

2. What are the factors that affect the Reading comprehension of Grade 2

pupils?

3. What is the significant difference between pre-test and post-test that is

conducted in Grade 2 pupils in Reading comprehension after conducting

Assessment Reading activity?

Significance of the Study

The results of this study have a great importance to the following:

 Pupils - it holds a significant importance for Grade 2 pupils as it can

contribute to the development of effective strategies and materials aimed at

enhancing their reading comprehension skills. Improved reading

comprehension can empower pupils in their academic journey and foster a love

for learning.

Parents - it will benefit from insights gained in this study as it can provide

them with a better understanding of how to support their children's reading

development at home. Knowledge of effective reading assessment methods

and comprehension enhancement strategies can enable parents to play a more

active and informed role in their child's education.

Teachers - can stand to gain valuable insights into approaches that

effectively enhance reading comprehension in Grade 2 pupils. The study results

can inform teaching methodologies, curriculum design, and the creation of

targeted assessments, ultimately equipping educators with tools to better

address the specific needs of their students.

School - as an educational institution, can benefit from the study by

implementing evidence-based practices for improving reading comprehension

among Grade 2 pupils. This can contribute to the overall academic success of

the school and enhance its reputation as an institution committed to effective

pedagogy.

Future Researchers - in this study provides a foundation for further

investigation into reading comprehension enhancement strategies in primary

education. The methodologies and insights gained can serve as a basis for
designing more advanced studies and interventions in the field of literacy

development.

Scope and Delimitation

The scope of the study was focused on the reading comprehension

primary on the factors affecting the conducted in Grade pupils with

respondents of Sagrada Elementary School of school year 2022-2023.

The study limits it coverage on the respondents of Grade 2 pupils and

teachers of Sagrada Elementary School. The main purpose is to know the

effectiveness of Reading Assessment to the Reading Comprehension of

Sagrada Elementary School.

Assumption of the Study

This study assumes that the reading comprehension levels of Grade 2

pupils can be significantly improved through the implementation of reading

assessments. The underlying assumption is that by systematically evaluating

the reading skills of Grade 2 pupils, it becomes possible to identify areas of

strength and weakness. The study further assumes that targeted interventions

and enhancements, informed by the insights gained through reading

assessments, can effectively contribute to the overall improvement of reading

comprehension among Grade 2 pupils.

Definition of Terms

This gives your concepts that will be discussed throughout your study, as

well as contextual information as to how will be using those concepts in the

study.

Assessment is the systematic process of gathering, analyzing, and

interpreting information or evidence to make judgments or evaluations.

Assessment is often used to measure the extent of knowledge, skills, abilities,

or other qualities in individuals or groups.

Comprehension is the ability to understand and make meaning from

information encountered through reading, listening, or other forms of

communication. Comprehension involves not only decoding the words but also

grasping the underlying meaning and connecting ideas.

Enhancing is the process of improving or augmenting the quality,

effectiveness, or overall performance of something. In the context of your study,

enhancing may refer to improving specific aspects related to reading,

comprehension, or other relevant factors.

Reading is the cognitive process of decoding symbols (usually written

language) to extract meaning. Reading involves the interpretation of words,

sentences, and texts to comprehend the information presented.

Reading Assessment is an evaluative process specifically focused on

assessing an individual's reading skills and abilities. Reading assessments may

include various methods such as tests, observations, and analyses to measure

aspects like decoding, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension.

Reading Comprehension is about the reader actively constructing

meaning within the text that they are reading. Through activating their prior

knowledge, having a set purpose for reading, making predictions, visualizing,

questioning, and many other strategies the reader is able to develop a much

stronger understanding of the text they are reading.