Increasing the English Reading Comprehension Ability of non-English Teachers: The Effectiveness of Mind-Mapping

Authors

  • Agnes Herawati*, Takayuki Nakanishi

Abstract

Learners of English as foreign language needs strategies in comprehending English task. This
research aims to find out the effectiveness of using mind mapping as strategy in increasing nonEnglish teachers' ability in reading comprehension. The effectiveness was based on their
significant improvement before and after having reading comprehension courses by using mind
mapping. The participants were 100 non-English teachers in West Java, Indonesia. This
research applied a quasi-experimental method, in which the teachers were divided into
experimental and control groups. All participants read four different types of texts as treatment,
however the experimental group had to utilize mind mapping when comprehending the texts. The
data were collected by using pre and post reading comprehension tests and were then analyzed
quantitatively by using independent and paired sample t-tests. The result showed that there was
significant improvement in comprehending English text for both groups, however there was a
statistically significant difference in reading comprehension between teachers who used mind
mapping in comprehending English text and those who did not. A set of questionnaires about the
use of mind mapping was also distributed to the experimental group, and it indicated that mind
mapping helped them organize the content of reading text, and they could comprehend it better.
Results in terms of an increased understanding of mind mapping, and implications for curricula
and classroom applications were also discussed.

Published

2020-10-17

Issue

Section

Articles