Exploring English Reading Barriers: A Teacher’s Perspective from a Remote Elementary School
DOI: https://doi.org/10.30605/gxpx9v67
English Reading Instruction, Remote Elementary School, EFL Learners, Teaching Strategies, Qualitative Research
Abstract
Reading instruction in English at the elementary school level plays a crucial role in academic development, particularly for students in remote areas. This study aims to explore the reading challenges faced by students learning English at a remote elementary school in Taiwan, based on the perspectives of the foreign English teacher (FET). The focus of this research is to identify the barriers affecting students' reading abilities and to find teaching strategies that can overcome these challenges. This study employs a qualitative descriptive approach, with the subjects being English teachers at an elementary school in a remote area. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with a foreign English teacher (FET) and analyzed using the data condensation, data display, and conclusion verification methods. The results indicate that key challenges include low motivation, limited vocabulary, first language interference, curriculum gaps, and limited exposure to native English contexts. Beyond identifying barriers, this study contributes to the field of TEFL in under-resourced areas by proposing a localized pedagogical framework that aligns curriculum expectations with students' developmental readiness. It offers significant implications for policymakers regarding the necessity of early-grade exposure and provides educators with evidence-based strategies to bridge the home-school disconnect through enhanced family engagement and structured phonetic instruction.
Downloads
References
Akram, H., Yang, Y., Ahmad, N., & Aslam, S. (2020). Factors contributing low English language literacy in rural primary schools of Karachi, Pakistan. International Journal of English Linguistics, 10(6), 335-346.
Biemiller, A. (2009). Words worth teaching: Closing the vocabulary gap. Columbus, OH: SRA/McGraw-Hill.
Cahyono, B. Y., & Widiati, U. (2006). The teaching of EFL reading in the Indonesian context: The state of the art. TEFLIN Journal, 17(1), 36–57. https://doi.org/10.17507/tltr.0606.05
Ehri, L. C. (2005). Learning to read words: Theory, findings, and issues. Scientific Studies of Reading, 9(2), 167–188.
Gardner, R. C. (2006). The socio-educational model of second language acquisition: A research paradigm. EUROSLA Yearbook, 6, 237-260.
Kasper, M., Uibu, K., & Mikk, J. (2018). Language teaching strategies’ impact on third-grade students’ reading outcomes and reading interest. International Electronic Journal of Elementary Education, 10(5), 601-610.
Khan, R. M. I., Shahbaz, M., Kumar, T., & Khan, I. (2020). Investigating reading challenges faced by EFL learners at elementary level. Register Journal, 13(2), 277–292. https://doi.org/10.18326/rgt.v13i2.277-292
Kame'enui, E. J., & Baumann, J. F. (2012). Vocabulary instruction: Research to practice (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Guilford Press.
Larionova, E., Rebreikina, A., & Martynova, O. (2023). Electrophysiological signatures of spelling sensitivity development from primary school age to adulthood. BioRxiv, 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1101/2023.01.10.523398
Mustafa, H. H., Rashid, M. A., Atmowardoyo, H., & Dollah, S. (2015). Students’ attitudinal factors in learning English as a foreign language. Journal of Language Teaching and Research, 6(6), 1187-1194. https://doi.org/10.17507/jltr.0606.05
Rusmiati, R., Maharani, P. R., & Susidamaiyanti, S. (2022). The use of SQ6R method in increasing EFL students’ reading comprehension. Accentia: Journal of English Language and Education, 2(1), 31–39.
Febriyanto, B., Rahman, R., Yuliawati, Y., Anggraeni, S. W., & Yonanda, D. A. (2023). Hubungan kemampuan berpikir kreatif dan menulis deskripsi pada siswa kelas II sekolah dasar. Jurnal Elementaria Edukasia, 6(3), 1519–1528. https://doi.org/10.31949/jee.v6i3.5647
Harrison, H., Birks, M., Franklin, R., & Mills, J. (2017). Case study research: Foundations and methodological orientations. Forum Qualitative Sozialforschung, 18(1). https://doi.org/10.17169/fqs-18.1.2655
Saldana, J., Miles, M. B., & Huberman, A. M. (2014). Qualitative data analysis: A methods sourcebook (3rd ed.). Sage Publications.
Kim, H., Sefcik, J. S., & Bradway, C. (2017). Characteristics of qualitative descriptive studies: A systematic review. Research in Nursing & Health, 40(1), 23–42. https://doi.org/10.1002/nur.21768
Downloads
Published
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Jessica Angeline De Eloisa Tobing, Dedi Dedi, Harmita sari
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
In submitting the manuscript to the journal, the authors certify that:
- They are authorized by their co-authors to enter into these arrangements.
- The work described has not been formally published before, except in the form of an abstract or as part of a published lecture, review, thesis, or overlay journal.
- That it is not under consideration for publication elsewhere,
- That its publication has been approved by all the author(s) and by the responsible authorities – tacitly or explicitly – of the institutes where the work has been carried out.
- They secure the right to reproduce any material that has already been published or copyrighted elsewhere.
- They agree to the following license and copyright agreement.
License and Copyright Agreement
Authors who publish with Onoma Journal: Education, Languages??, and Literature agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0) that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgment of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work.
