Principles and Implementation of a Hungarian Reading Comprehension Intervention

Type of Abstract (select): Paper presentation

Abstract (max. 250 words):
Reaching an appropriate level of reading comprehension is a time-consuming journey; supporting this developmental process may even holds relevance in higher education to prepare students to successfully deal with academic texts. Over time, the focus in reading competence support should gradually be put on teaching reading strategies. This seems to have its challenges in several countries. In Hungary, the most fundamental issues are the short period of time explicitly dedicated to teaching reading, on the one hand, and the lack of knowledge in methodology of teaching reading strategies, on the other hand. This presentation describes the principles and implementation of an ongoing reading comprehension intervention which addresses these problems. The presentation builds on the data from PIRLS and PISA, and highlights the relevance of the intervention in Hungary from an international perspective. As part of the intervention, 12 teachers received training to enhance the reading comprehension of 5th grade students embedded in the domains of history and science. Two 8-hour workshops were held where teachers were actively involved in the selection and adaptation of reading strategies and motivational fundamentals to be used in the intervention to the curricula of the two domains. These were followed by a 12-week trial period. The international relevance of the intervention lies in the close cooperation with teachers, which may be crucial for the sustainability of the intervention methodology.


Brief Professional Bio (max. 100 words):
Jozsef Balazs Fejes holds an MSc in Geography, an MA in Educational science, and an MA in Labor relations from the University of Szeged; he holds a PhD in Education. He works as an Associate Professor at the Institute of Education, University of Szeged, Hungary. He is the head of the MTA-SZTE Reading and Motivation Research Group. His research covers learning motivation, reading competence, and equity in education. He is the co-founder and president of the Motivation Educational Association, a Hungarian NGO which supports the education of disadvantaged and Roma students and is an advocate of an inclusive society.