Systematic Tracking of Malaysian Primary School Students’ ESL Reading Comprehension Performance to Facilitate Instructional Processes

This study was conducted to systematically track and benchmark upper primary
school students’ ESL reading comprehension ability and subsequently generate
data at the micro and macro levels according to individual achievement, school
location, gender and ethnicity at the school, district, state and national levels. The
main intention of this initiative was to provide information to assist ESL teachers
about their students’ reading ability and to determine students' reading
comprehension performance standards. The auto generated data is expected to
facilitate classroom instructional process without necessitating teachers to prepare
test materials or manage data of their students’ reading comprehension track
records. The respondents were 1,514 Year 5 students from urban and rural schools
from a district in northern Malaysia. The idea was conceptualised through a series
of tests and development of the Reading Evaluation and Decoding System
(READS) for Primary Schools. The findings indicated that majority of the
respondents were ‘below standard’ and ‘at academic warning’. We believe the
generated data can assist the Ministry of Education to develop better quality
instructional processes that are evidence based with a more focused reading
instruction and reading material to tailor to the needs of students.