The Effects of Missing Letters to the Reading Comprehension

CAVITE STATE UNIVERSITY (CvSU) DON SEVERINO DE LAS ALAS CAMPUS Indang, Cavite ( (046) 415-0021 ( (046) 415-0012 E-mail: [email  protected] com â€Å"The Effects of Missing Letters to the Reading Comprehension of 2nd year IT Students of Cavite State University† In Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Subject Experimental Psychology Prepared By: Ersando, Shalom G. Suansing, Glenda Mae E. March 2012 BIOGRAPHICAL DATA Shalom G. Ersando was born in J. P Rizal Memorial Hospital Dasmarinas Cavite on January 15, 1994. She is now residing at Brgy. Cabezas, Trece Martires City,Cavite.She is the eldest among the two siblings of late Mr. Carlito B. Ersando and Mrs. Victoria G. Ersando. She finished her elementary at Palawit Elementary School at Brgy. Cabezas Trece Martires City,Cavite in 2006. She completed her secondary at Tanza National Trade School at Paradahan I Tanza Cavite. At Present she is now taking up Bachelor of Science in Psychology at Cavite State University Inda ng Cavite. BIOGRAPHICAL DATA Glenda Mae Suansing was born on August 23, 1994. She is the second child of Nerissa and Alexander Suansing. She is currently residing at St. Michael Village, Sungay East, Tagaytay City.She has two siblings, Glen Mark and Gladys Suansing. She graduated her elementary at Tagaytay Elementary School. She was a consistent character awardee. She finished her secondary education at Tagaytay City Science National High School. She is currently studying at Cavite State University taking up Bachelor of Science in Psychology. After graduating college she is planning to pursue Industrial Pschology. She wants to become a Human Resource Practitioner. ACKNOWLEDGMENT This experimental research will not be complete without encouragement,assistance,support and inspiration proved by several people.The authors wish to express their sincerest appreciation and gratitude to the following persons who helped in the realization of this piece of work; To Ms. Alodia Mercado, our adv iser for her sound academic guidance and moral support which enabled her to pursue this study; To Ms. Alma Fatima Reyes, for her useful comments and suggestions that improved the study; To Ms. Ivy Valerie Garcia for letting the researchers use her laptop; To To the family of the researchers,for their love and support they gave me throughout the study; My greatest praise and honor to our Lord Almighty who guided me through my most difficult moments and problems.ABSTRACT SUANSING GLENDA MAE, ERSANDO SHALOM â€Å"The Effects of Missing Letter to the Reading Comprehension of 2nd year IT Students of Cavite State University. † Experimental Research. Bachelor of Science in Psychology. Cavite State University. March 2012, under the supervision of Ms. Alma Fatima Reyes. As reading plays an important role in our lives, reading comprehension is important for human progress. This experimental research proposes to investigate the effects of missing letters to the reading comprehension of students. The research is conducted at Cavite State University, Indang, Cavite.Fifteen respondents were needed for the Pre-test and the Post-test. Same person will be taking the Pre-test and Post-test. All fifteen respondents are 2nd year BS IT students of Cavite State University. The general objective of the study was to determine the Reading Comprehension of Students with missing letters. Specifically, the study aimed to determine if there was a difference between the scores obtained in the Pre-test and the scores obtained in the Post- Test. Data and information were gathered through the help of the respondents by answering the questionnaires regarding to their Reading Comprehension Skills provided by the researchers.TABLE OF CONTENTS APPROVAL SHEET. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BIOGRAPHICAL DATA. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ACKNOWLEDGM ENT. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ABSTRACT. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . LIST OF TABLES. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . LIST OF FIGURES. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . LIST OF APPENDICES. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . INTRODUCTION. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Statement of the Problem. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Objectives. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Hypotheses. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Significance of the Study. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Scope and Limitation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Definition of Terms. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Theoretical Framework. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Conceptual Framework. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . METHODOLOGY. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Research Design. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Design Notation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sampling Technique. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Respondents. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Research Instrument. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Data Gathering Procedure. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Statistical Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . RESULTS AND DISCUSSION. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . APPENDICES. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BIBLIOGRAPHY. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .LIST OF TABLES †¢ Table 1. A Distribution Table of the Pre-test Scores †¢ Table 2. A Distribution Table of the Post-test Scores †¢ Table 3. Difference of Pre-test and Post-test Scores LIST OF FIGURES †¢ Figure 1. Parallel Letter Recognition †¢ Figure 2. Research Paradigm †¢ Figure 3. Graphic Representation of Pre-test Scores †¢ Figure 4. Graphic Representation of Post-test Scores LIST OF APPENDICES †¢ Budgetary Estimates (Appendix A) †¢ Calendar of Activities (Appendix B) †¢ Instrument (Appendix C) †¢ Statistical Analysis of Data (Appendix D) †¢ Curriculum Vitae (Appendix E) THE EFFECTS OF MISSING LETTERS TO THE READING COMPREHENSION OF 2nd YEAR IT STUDENTS OF CAVITE STATE UNIVERSITY† Glenda Mae Suansing Shalom Ersando | An experimental research prepared to the faculty of the Department of Social Sciences and Humanities, College of | |Arts and Sciences, Cavite State University, Indang Cavite in partial fulfillment of the requirements for Experimental Psychology| |with Contribution No. ER1. Prepared under the supervision of Ms. Alma Fatima Reyes. | INTRODUCTION Reading is a cognitive process of decoding characters or symbols in order to create a meaning.It is a means of communicating and sharing of information. We do it automatically. It requires development, practice and understanding. When we read, we use our eyes to receive written symbols such as letters and we use our brain to convert them into words, sentences and paragraphs that communicate something to us. Many people read books, newspapers, magazines, comic books, etc. It is considered as a daily routine of other people who loved to read. Readers integrate the words they have read into their existing framework of knowledge or schema.Reading helps a lot in our vocabulary. It wi dens our knowledge about words. Sometimes when we encountered unfamiliar words we can’t understand it, but when we encountered the same word we already knew what its meaning because we’ve read it already read it in the past. Reading also helps us in communicating in many way for example say, your job or any job for that matter, and you need to read a contract for business purposes or even if you work at a supermarket, don’t you need to know how to read in order to send the food that a person get to the right address.So as you see reading is just an element we need for day to day life. Statement of the Problem The study aimed to determine the reading comprehension of students with missing letters. 1. What is the highest rating of the scores obtained in the Pre-test by the 2nd year BS IT students of Cavite State University? 2. What is the highest rating of the scores obtained in the Post-test by the 2nd year BS IT students of Cavite State University? 3. Is there a significant difference between the scores obtained in the Pre-test and the scores obtained in the Post-test? . Do the missing letters affect the reading comprehension of students? Objectives Generally, the study aimed to determine if there is a significant difference between reading with missing letters and reading with complete letters. Specifically, the study aimed to: 1. to determine the highest rating of the scores obtained in the Pre-test by the 2nd year BS IT students of Cavite State University. 2. to determine the highest rating of the scores obtained in the Post-test by the 2nd year BS IT students of Cavite State University. 3. o determine if there is a significant difference between the scores obtained in the Pre-test and the scores obtained in the Post-test. 4. to determine the effects of missing letters to the reading comprehension of students. Hypotheses Ha: There is a significant difference between reading the words with missing letters and reading with complete letter s in the comprehension of the students. Ho: There is no significant difference between reading the words with missing letters and reading with complete letters in the comprehension of the students. Significance of the StudyThis study will benefit the following beneficiaries: Respondents This study will help the respondents to be familiarized in this type of reading. The respondents will also enhance their vocabulary. Community This study will be a great help for the community in order for the people to be aware in this style of reading. School This study will benefit the school by teaching this style of reading not only for students but also for the teachers. Future Researchers This study will be a guide for the future researchers in order for them to have a background regarding to this study.This will also serve as their related literature. Scope and Limitation This study is about on how the students read and understand the meaning of a word if there is a missing letter on the word . This study will also test the vocabulary of the students. This study only involves 2nd year IT students of Cavite State University. It is composed of 15 respondents from IT students. The study also limits the short period time given to conduct this research. Definition of Terms These are some terms used in the study: Cognitive Psychology – it is the study of internal and external processes of the brainWord Superiority Effect – refers to the increase in efficiency of letter identification within words Reading Comprehension – level of understanding when reading Pattern Recognition – organization of stimuli Pre-Test – test given before the Post-test Post-Test – test given after the Pre- test Schema – past experiences Treatment – levels of the independent variable Theoretical Framework This study justified the Parallel Letter Recognition. It is the model that most psychologists currently accept as most accurate is the parallel le tter recognition model.This model says that the letters within a word are recognized simultaneously, and the letter information is used to recognize the words. This is a very active area of research and there are many specific models that fit into this general category. The figure below is one popular formulation of this model. [pic] Figure 1: Parallel Letter Recognition Figure 1 shows a generic activation based parallel letter recognition model. In this example, the reader is seeing the word  work. Each of the stimulus letters are processed simultaneously.The first step of processing is recognizing the features of the individual letters, such as horizontal lines, diagonal lines, and curves. The details of this level are not critical for our purposes. These features are then sent to the letter detector level, where each of the letters in the stimulus word are recognized simultaneously. The letter level then sends activation to the word detector level. The  W  in the first lett er detector position sends activation to all the words that have a  W  in the first position (WORD  and  WORK).The  O  in the second letter detector position sends activation to all the words that have an  O  in the second position (FORK,  WORD, and  WORK). While  FORK  and  WORD  have activation from three of the four letters,  WORK  has the most activation because it has all four letters activated, and is thus the recognized word. Conceptual Framework Fig. 2 This study aimed to know the difference between the Pre-test and Post-test scores of the students in their reading comprehension. REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE This chapter presents the related topics and studies regarding this study. It also presents the synthesis of all the topics.Pattern Recognition Our ability to recognize familiar types of things is a spectacular human characteristic. This attribute allows us to recognize an old friend in a sea of faces, to identify an entire musical theme f rom a few notes, to read words, to enjoy the taste of a vintage wine, or to appreciate the smell of a rose. It is a cognitive endowment that we mostly perform seamlessly, rapidly, and without much effort. In our everyday life, we use pattern recognition all the time, yet the cognitive structures which support pattern recognition are only recently understood. Cognitive Psychology, 6th edition, Robert Solso, p. 109) Researchers have discovered that top-down processing can influence our ability to recognize a variety of objects. It also influences our ability to recognize letters during reading. Most of the research on this topic examines how context helps us recognize letters of the alphabet. Psychologists who study reading have realized for decades that a theory of recognition would be inadequate if it were based only as the information in the stimulus. (Cognition, 5th edition, Margaret Mathin, p. 42) Immediacy of InterpretationOne of the important principles to emerge in studied of language processing is called the principle of immediacy of interpretation. Basically this principle says that people try to extract as much meaning out of each word as it arrives, and they do not wait until the end of sentences or even the ends of phrases to decide or how to interpret a word. For instance, Just and Carpenter (1980) studied the eye movements of subjects as they read a sentence. While reading a sentence, subjects will typically fixate or almost every word. Just and Carpenter find that the time subjects spend fixating or word is basically proportional to the amount of information provided by a word. Thus, if a sentence contain or relatively unfamiliar or a surprising word, they pause in that word. (Cognitive Psychology & Its Interpretation,John R. Anderson) Reading Comprehension Reading comprehension is a complex undertaking that involves many levels of processing. One of the most fundamental aspects of comprehension is the ability to deal with unfamiliar words encoun tered in text. Readers who struggle with word-level tasks use up valuable cognitive space that could be allotted to deeper levels of text analysis.It is not enough to rely on context cues to predict the meaning of new words, since this strategy often results in erroneous or superficial understandings of key terms, especially in content-area reading (Paynter, Bodrova, & Doty, 2005). Mature readers need to possess a basic knowledge of â€Å"how words work† and a set of strategies for approaching new words encountered throughout the day. (http://www. edu. gov. on. ca/eng/research/mcquirter. pdf) How word knowledge affects reading comprehension Vocabulary knowledge is one of the best predictors of reading achievement (Richek, 2005).Bromley (2004), in a comprehensive review of research on vocabulary development, concludes that vocabulary knowledge promotes reading fluency, boosts reading comprehension, improves academic achievement, and enhances thinking and communication. Spellin g is also an important consideration in reading comprehension. The concepts about sound patterns that children learn in the early years through invented spelling and direct spelling instruction help them to decode new words in their reading. As they mature and begin to spell longer and more complex words, children apply the concepts of base words, prefixes, and suffixes to their spelling.This knowledge of morphology, in turn, helps them to deconstruct longer words encountered in their reading. Templeton (2004) argues that spelling knowledge provides the basis for explicit awareness and understanding of morphology, which, in turn, may guide the systematic growth of vocabulary knowledge. Considering the strength of vocabulary knowledge in predicting reading achievement, the complex interrelationships among these areas are significant. (http://www. edu. gov. on. ca/eng/research/mcquirter. pdf) Missing letter effectIn cognitive psychology, the missing letter effect refers to the finding that, when people are asked to consciously detect target letters while reading text, they miss more letters in frequent, function words (e. g. the letter â€Å"t† in â€Å"the†) than in less frequent, content words. The missing letter effect has also been referred to as the reverse word superiority effect, since it describes a phenomenon where letters in more frequent words fail to be identified, instead of letter identification benefitting from increased word frequency.The effect is usually measured using a paper-and-pencil procedure, where readers are asked to circle a target letter every time they come across it while reading a short passage. The missing letter effect is more likely to appear when reading words that are part of a normal sequence, than when words are embedded in a mixed-up sequence (e. g. readers asked to read backwards). The missing-letter effect for common function words It has been proposed that function words such as for and on conceal their let ters because their higher familiarity allows fast access to their unitized representations.However, this study shows that letter detection in function words varies with their linguistic role in text. When such words were embedded in a phrase where they were forced into a content role by the surrounding context (e. g. , for or against or on switch ), letter detection improved markedly and did not differ from that of matched content words. The result was replicated when the context preceding the function word and the overall sentential meaning were equated for both function and content usages.The results support a late-stage structural account of the function-disadvantage effect, where the syntactic units that support the structural frame of a sentence are lost in the transition from structure to meaning. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved) Word superiority effect In cognitive psychology, the word superiority effect (WSE) refers to the phenomenon that people a re more accurate in recognizing a letter in the context of a word than they are when a letter is presented in isolation, or when a letter is presented within a nonword (e. g. â€Å"WXRG†).Studies have also found a WSE when letter identification within words is compared to letter identification within pseudowords. (e. g. â€Å"WOSK†) and (e. g. â€Å"WERK†). The effect was first described by Cattell (1886), and important contributions came from Reicher (1969) and Wheeler (1970) . The WSE has since been exhaustively studied in the context of cognitive processes involved during reading. Large amounts of research have also been done to try to model the effect using connectionist networks. (http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Word_superiority_effect) Several studies have shown a correlation between working memory and reading comprehension.Daneman and Carpenter (1980) used a dine-task procedure in which both tasks (reading and remembering) use a single verbal memory state. A compromise position suggests that the phonological component of working memory acts as a sort of back-up memory. When sentences are short or easily comprehended it is not needed with syntactically more complex or lengthy sentences processing may lay behind the input and so the representation in the phonological store needs to be consulted. (McCarthy and Worrington, 1990) Transfer to Long Term MemoryVerbal rehearsals may be necessary in acquiring some kinds of knowledge such as learning new vocabulary words. New words need to be first remembered by sound like a representation cannot be retrieved to long term memory. Ebbinghaus discovered another unique findings the serial position effect. It can be found in memory for lists even when serial anticipation is not required. Working Memory Working memory  has been defined as the system which actively holds information in the mind to do verbal and nonverbal tasks such as reasoning and comprehension, and to make it available for furthe r information processing.Working memory tasks are those that require the goal-oriented active monitoring or manipulation of information or behaviors in the face of interfering processes and distractions. The cognitive processes involved include the  executive  and  attention  control of  short-term memory  which provide for the interim integration, processing, disposal, and retrieval of information. Working memory is a theoretical concept central both to  cognitive psychology  and  neuroscience. Synthesis We use pattern recognition in our daily lives, most likely in reading in how we recognize letters.It is an ability where only humans can do. One of the most widely demonstrated phenomena in the research on recognition is the Word Superiority Effect. According to the word superiority effect, we can identify a single letter more accurately and more rapidly when it appears in a word that it appears alone by itself or in a string or same letter. As we are reading a bo ok or any reading material, our brain process the meaning of a word. It is naturally done by our brain. By the help of our schema or past experiences, when we encountered a familiar word, we can easily recognize it.But it's quite difficult for us to understand the meaning of a word if we never encountered it in our past. METHODOLOGY In this chapter, the researchers will describe the research design, sampling technique, respondents, research instrument, data gathering procedure and the statistical analysis that they used. Research Design The research design that the researchers used was the Within Subject Design. A within-subjects design is a type of experimental design in which all participants are exposed to every treatment or condition. For the Pre-test, the respondents we’ll be not exposed to treatment.For the Post-test, the students will be now exposed to the treatment which is the missing letters in the passage. Psychologists often use them to test the relative effective ness of a new treatment, often a difficult proposition. One of the greatest advantages of a within-subjects design is that it does not require a large pool of participants. Generally, a similar experiment in a between-subjects design would require twice as many participants as a within-subjects design. A within-subjects design can also help reduce errors associated with individual differences.In a between-subjects design where individuals are randomly assigned to a treatment condition, there is still a possibility that there may be fundamental differences between the groups that might impact the results. In a within-subjects design, individuals are exposed to all levels of a condition, so the results will not be distorted by individual differences. Each participant serves as his or her own baseline. Design Notation O1XO2 O1 = Pre-test O2 = Post-test X = Treatment (Missing Letters) Sampling Technique Random sampling method was used.The researchers used the table of random sampling fo r choosing the respondents. The respondents were 2nd year IT students of Cavite State University. In random sample, each individual in the population has an equal chance of being selected. If more than one individual is to be selected for the sample, there must be constant probability for each and every selection. Respondents The researchers need 15 students for pre-test and post-test. Same person were taking the pre-test and post-test. Research Instrument The instrument that the researchers used was a test questionnaire. The est questionnaire is composed of a short passage or story and then it is followed by a 10 item question. Treatment For the first passage in the pre-test, a normal passage with complete letters is given. For the post-test, the passage contains words with missing letters. This treatment will be given to 15 respondents. This will tests if it is good or effective to use. Data Gathering Procedure The researchers need to provide questionnaires for the respondents reg arding to their Reading Comprehension skills. The researchers need to provide questionnaires until they meet the minimum ( 15) respondents.After that Pre-test will be given in the respondents. And the post-test will be given to know if missing letters will affect the Reading Comprehension of the respondents. Statistical Analysis The researchers used the Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test. The Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test is a non-parametric statistical test for testing hypothesis on median. It is used when we wish to compare two sets of scores that come from the same participants. This can occur when we wish to investigate any change in scores from one time point to another or individuals are subjected to more than one condition.As the Wilcoxon Signed-Ranks Test does not assume normality in the data it can be used when this assumption has been violated and the use of the  dependent t-test  is inappropriate. The advantage with Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test is that it neither depends on the form of the parent distribution nor on its parameters. It does not require any assumptions about the shape of the distribution. For computing the mean, the researchers used the formula below. The researchers summed up all the scores and divided the total by the number of scores. [pic] Where: [pic] is the symbol for the mean [pic] is the symbol for summationX is the symbol for the scores N is the symbol for the number of scores For computing the standard deviation, the researchers used the formula: [pic] Where: S is the symbol for standard deviation [pic] is the value of the mean [pic] is the symbol for summation Xi represents each data value from i=1 to i=N.. N is the sample size RESULTS and DISCUSSION This chapter contains the analysis and interpretation of the results that we have gathered. The results gathered were organized, tabularized, discussed and analyzed in this section. The table contains the scores obtained by the students in the Pre-test and Post-Test.Table 1. A Distribution table of the Pre-test scores |Rating |Frequency(f) |Percentage(%) | |Excellent |0 |0 | |Very Good |4 |26. 7 | |Good |8 |46. 7 | |Poor 3 |26. 7 | |Total |15 |100 | |Mean |2. 0 | | |Standard Deviation |0. 75593 | | |Verbal Interpretation |Poor | | Legend: Poor 0-3; Good 4-5; Very Good 6-7; Excellent 8-10. Table one shows the pre-test scores by 2nd year IT students of Cavite State University. Out of fifteen students, 3 or 26. 7% of the students got Poor rating; 8 or 46. 7% of the students got Good rating; 4 or 26. 7% of the students got Very Good rating; and no one got Excellent rating. According to Anderson and Freebody (1981), it is well established that good comprehenders tend to have good vocabularies. This correlation, however, does not mean that teaching vocabulary will increase readers’ comprehension, for that is a causal conclusion.As it turns out, however, when reading educators conducted experiments in which vocabulary was either taught to students or not, compre hension improved as a function of vocabulary instruction. In the pre-test, the researchers included some difficult or unfamiliar words that the researchers think the students didn’t encounter before. As shown in the pre-test scores, the respondents tend to have poor reading comprehension and vocabulary. The low scores they got was a proof that if a word is unfamiliar and unrecognizable you can’t easily understand it. Table 2. A Distribution table of Post-Test Scores Rating |Frequency(f) |Percentage(%) | |Excellent |4 |26. 7 | |Very Good |3 |20 | |Good |4 |26. 7 | |Poor |4 |26. | |Total |15 |100 | |Mean |2. 5 | | |Standard Deviation |1. 18723 | | |Verbal Interpretation |Poor | | Legend: Poor 0-3; Good 4-5; Very Good 6-7; Excellent 8-10. Table 2 shows the post-test scores from the same students who took the pre-test. Out of fifteen students, 4 or 26. 7% of the students got Poor rating; 4 or 26. 7% of the students got Good rating; 3 or 20% of the students got Very Goo d rating; and 4 or 26. 7% of the students got Excellent rating. According to a research study, there are much more effective ways to teach comprehension. Much work has been done in the area of teaching novice readers a bank of â€Å"reading strategies,† or tools to interpret and analyze text.There is not a definitive set of strategies, but common ones include summarizing what you have read, monitoring your reading to make sure it is still making sense, and analyzing the structure of the text. Some texts, like in philosophy, literature or scientific research, may appear more difficult to read because of the prior knowledge they assume. Because the texts were unfamiliar, readers don’t understand it. Analysis of research findings reveal that if a reader is to become very good at comprehending what he reads he must meet two principal learning requirements. They must: (1. know words; and (2. ) be able to reason with physical text. In the post-test, the treatment was adminis tered. Some words in the passage have missing letters. According to Just and Carpenter (1980), who studied the eye movements when reading, if a sentence contains unfamiliar words, the reader will pause in that word. Thus, when the respondents were reading the passage, whey saw the words with missing letters, they paused as their brain processed to recognize that word. The respondents extract meaning to that word as they read it. Table 3. Difference of Pre-test and Post-Test Scores Rating |Pre test frequency |Post-test frequency | |Excellent |0 |4 | |Very Good |4 |4 | |Good |8 |3 | |Poor |3 |4 | |Total Mean |2. 0 |2. 5 | *Legend: Poor 0-3; Good 4-5; Very Good 6-7; Excellent 8-10. Table 3 shows the difference of pre-test and post-test scores. As a whole, it shows that most of the students got high scores in the post-test. The total mean scores of the students in the pre-test is 2. 0 which is equivalent to Poor rating. The total mean of scores of students in the post-test is 2. wh ich is equivalent to Poor rating also. Thus, there is a 0. 5 difference in the mean scores. After computing the difference of the pre-test and post-test scores using Wilcoxon Signed-Rank Test, the result of the asymptotic significance is 0. 01. Thus, the researchers should reject Ho because the result of asymptotic significance of the study is less than 0. 050. The results have showed that the students were more capable in answering the passage with missing letters. The results gathered by the researchers showed that the missing letters affect the reading comprehension of the students. It positively helped the students to understand well the passage.According to Paynter, Bodrova and Doty (2005), one of the most fundamental aspects of comprehension is the ability to deal with unfamiliar words encountered in text. In the passage, maybe the students have encountered it before so that they understand the passage. Readers who struggle with word-level tasks use up valuable cognitive space that could be allotted to deeper levels of text analysis. SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS The summary provides comprehensible summary on how the study was conducted. It also presents the list of findings, state the conclusion and some of the recommendations. Summary The study aimed to determine whether there are differences between reading with complete letters and reading with missing letters.Specifically, the study aimed to 1) determine the rating of IT students in the Pre-test; 2) determine the rating of IT students in the Post-test; 3) determine the significant difference between the scores obtained in the Pre-test and the scores obtained in the Post-test; 4) determine the effect of missing letters to the reading comprehension of the students. The researcher conducted their study at Cavite State University from February 17 to March 8, 2012. The researcher used the within subject design for their study. The researcher used random sampling method where they used the table of random numbers to choose their respondents. Their respondents were 2nd year BS IT students, 15 students in pre-test and another 15 students in post-test. The researchers used a survey test questionnaire that was composed of a short passage and followed by 10 questions.The formula to determine the level of students in Pre-test was frequency tallies and percentage. The formula used to determine the level of reading comprehension in Post-test was also frequency tallies and percentage. In determining the significant difference between the Pre-test and Post-test scores, the formula that the researchers used was Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test. The findings resolved that there is a significant difference between reading with complete letters and reading with missing letters. From the asymptotic significance obtained from the pre-test and post-test we should reject Ho and accept Ha. Conclusions Based on the findings and the data gathered the following conclusions were drawn: 1. Based on the scores of the respondents in the pre-test, the respondents got the highest rating of Very Good which ranges from 0-7. The students were not familiar to the words in the passage. The researchers conclude that those words were not in their long term memory so it was hard for the respondents to understand the passage; 2. )Based on the scores of the respondents in the post-test, the respondents got the highest rating of Excellent which ranges from 8-10. Thus, the student’s performance was excellent and they meet the highest rating compared to the pre-test. The respondents could really read fairly well even if only half of the letters are present; 3. )Based on the mean scores of the students, there is a 0. difference between reading with complete letters and reading with missing letters. The researchers conclude that the treatment, which is the missing letters, is effective in reading comprehension. As the results showed, post-test is higher than the pre-test. Thus, there is a sig nificant difference between reading with complete letters and reading with missing letters; 4. )Missing Letters affect the reading comprehension of the students. The researchers conclude that it is effective to use. Based on the scores the respondents achieved, post-test scores were higher than the pre-test scores. Thus, the students understood the passage with missing letters. RecommendationsBased on the results of the study, the researchers highly recommend the following: Students. To the students, they should use this type of reading as a practice for them in reading comprehension and for their vocabulary. Teachers. To the teachers, the researchers recommend to use this type of reading to increase their inferential comprehension. Future Researchers. To anybody who wants to pursue the same study or related to this study this will help to improve the student’s style of reading. The researchers also recommend having further study regarding this study and they should also use larger amount of participants/respondents to show the comparison in our study. APPENDICES Budgetary Estimates (Appendix A) |Cost | |Print |100 | |Computer Rent |250 | |Transportation |100 | |Total |450 Php | Calendar of Activities (Appendix B) February 13 – Chapters 1,2,3February 13,14,15 Instrumentation February 17 to March 8 – Conducting of experimental research Data Gathering March 15 – Data Analysis March 19 – Chapter 4,5 March 21 – Chapter 1,2,3,4,5 March 26,27 – Poster Presentation April 10 – Soft Bound Statistical Analysis of Data (Appendix D) Frequencies pre test level |Statistics | |Level | |N |Valid |15 | | |Missing |0 | | |Mean |2. 0000 | | |Std. Error of Mean |. 19518 | | |Std.Deviation |. 75593 | | |Minimum |1. 00 | | |Maximum |3. 00 | |level | | | |Level | |N |Valid |15 | | |Missing |0 | | |Mean |2. 5333 | | |Std. Error of Mean |. 30654 | | |Std. Deviation |1. 18723 | | |Minimum |1. 0 | | |Maximum |4. 00 | |le vel | | | | | | | |N |Mean Rank |Sum of Ranks | |level – group |Negative Ranks |4a |8. 00 |32. 00 | | |Positive Ranks |19b |12. 84 |244. 0 | | |Ties |7c | | | | |Total |30 | | | |a. level ; group | |b. level ; group | |c. level = group | |Test Statisticsb | | |level – group | | Z |-3. 351a | |Asymp. Sig. (2-tailed) |. 001 | |a. Based on negative ranks. | |b.Wilcoxon Signed Ranks Test | Curriculum Vitae ( Appendix F ) Contact Information Name: Glenda Mae Suansing Address: St. Michael Village, Sungay East, Tagaytay City Contact Number: 09159727469 E-mail Address: [email  protected] com Personal Information Date of Birth: August 23, 1994 Place of Birth: Indang, Cavite Citizenship: Filipino Gender: Female Educational Attainment Primary Tagaytay Elementary School Secondary Tagaytay City Science National High School College Cavite State University Bachelor of Science in Psychology Interests: Playing guitar, Reading books, Watching films Contact Information Name: Shalom E rsando Address: Brgy.Cabezas Trece Martires City Contact Number: 09107232128 E-mail Address: [email  protected] com Personal Information Date of Birth: January 15 1994 Place of Birth: Dasmarinas Cavite Citizenship: Filipino Gender: Female Educational Attainment Primary Palawit Elementary School Secondary Tanza National Trade School College Cavite State University Bachelor of Science in Psychology Interests: Reading books, watching movie, Hanging with friends and playing badminton INSTRUMENT (Pre-test) INSTRUMENT (Post-test) ———————– Reading Comprehension of 2nd year BS IT students of Cavite State University Post-test Scores Missing Letters (treatment) Pre-test Scores