Reading Problems Faced by Students in Secondary Schools of Peshawar, KP, Pakistan

Abstract

Reading plays an important role in the intellectual development of students at his academic journey. The goal of the current study was to examine how reading affects students' overall development and the challenges that secondary school students’ encounter when they read in class, as well as how reading development and reading beliefs are affected. The study was quantitative in nature using descriptive research design. The population of the study comprised all the secondary schools’ students of Frontier Children Academy (FCA), Frontier Youth Academy (FYA), and Frontier Science Academy (FSA) at Hayatabad Peshawar, which includes 735 secondary school students. The sampling was carried out using Raosoft online sample calculator. A total of 220 students were selected using simple random sampling technique. A self-structured three points Likert’s scale questionnaire with 16 items was used to collect data from the sampled students. The data was analyzed using frequencies and percentages. The study findings show that a significant number of students were found having problems in reading and comprehension of the reading materials. The results of the research indicate that most students require repeated reading in order to fully comprehend a given subject. Analysis revealed that when students received the right support and a remedial strategy, they improved their reading comprehension by roughly 90% and had more positive views about working hard to become better readers than their comparative peers. The ramifications for designing effective peer-mediated learning environments for use in high school education classes are emphasized. The study recommends that specific time for reading during the school hours may be given for resolving the severe reading difficulties. Moreover, Teachers may implement strong motivating mechanisms and provide reading resources to students during class.