Semantic mapping and task-based techniques in the comprehension of academic texts

Abstract

This quasi-experimental study determined the effectiveness of task-based technique and semantic mapping technique in the comprehension of academic texts of senior high school students. Further, it determined whether there is a significant difference in the students' reading comprehension skills of task-based group and semantic mapping group before and after the intervention. The respondents of this study were the seventy two (72) Grade 11 students of Calinog National Comprehensive High School taking General Academic Strand during the school year 2017-2018. Matched-pairing of the English 10 students' average and sex were used to determine the participants in the study. Assignment of the task-based technique group and semantic mapping group was through a toss-coin method. A teacher-made comprehension test and lesson plans were used in the study. These instruments were content- and face-validated by a panel of four experts, were found reliable and were pilot tested to determine their administrability. Mean and standard deviation were employed for the descriptive analysis of the study. The inferential statistical tools employed were the t-test for dependent samples and t-test for independent samples, all set at .05 alpha level significance. Results revealed that the students have average level of reading comprehension skills before and after the exposure to the task-based technique. Similarly, the students have average level of reading comprehension skills before and after the exposure to the semantic mapping technique. It was also found out that there is no significant difference in the reading comprehension skills of the task-based technique group and semantic mapping technique group before the intervention. In addition, it was found out that there is a significant difference in the reading comprehension skills of the students before and after the exposure to the task-based technique. Furthermore, the data reflect that there is a significant difference in the reading comprehension skills of the students before and after exposure to semantic mapping technique. The findings also revealed that there is no significant difference in the mean gain scores of the task-based technique group and semantic mapping technique group. Finally, task-based technique and semantic mapping technique were found to be effective techniques in enhancing students' reading comprehension skills of academic texts for it was revealed that participants in task-based technique group and semantic mapping technique group performed better after the conduct of the interventions. Furthermore, task-based technique and semantic mapping technique are both good teaching strategies in enhancing students' comprehension skills.