由下而上及由上而下閱讀策略對台灣英語為外語學習者之英文閱讀理解能力的個別及聯合效應

The Individual and Joint Effects of Bottom-Up and Top-Down Reading Strategy Use on Taiwanese EFL Learners' English Reading Comprehension

本研究旨在探討台灣英語為外語學習者對由下而上及由上而下閱讀策略的偏好及此兩種策略對其英文閱讀理解能力的個別及聯合效應。經由方便取樣，共有140位（男生26位，女生114位）修讀通識英文的大一學生有效地填答完英文閱讀測驗及閱讀策略量表。結果顯示：台灣的大學英語學習者偏好使用由上而下甚於由下而上的策略；且學習者有偏好使用最有效閱讀策略的傾向，例如重複閱讀策略和使用先前的知識與經驗策略。此外，雖然由下而上和由上而下策略皆與英文閱讀理解能力有顯著相關，但由上而下策略卻是唯一能顯著預測英文閱讀理解能力的有效變項，而由下而上策略卻無法直接且顯著的預測英文閱讀理解能力。由下而上策略能透過由上而下策略的完全中介作用去間接的影響英文閱讀理解能力。因此，同時在課堂上教導英語學習者使用由下而上及由上而下閱讀策略將有助於提升其英文閱讀理解能力。

 

The purpose of the present study was to identify university learners’ reading strategy preferences and to assess the individual and joint effects of bottom-up and top-down reading strategy use on English reading comprehension in an English as a foreign language (EFL) context. To this end, a convenience sample of 140 (26 males, 114 females) Taiwanese EFL freshmen taking General English I were given the English Reading Comprehension Test and the Reading Strategy Survey. EFL learners showed a clear preference for top-down strategies over bottom-up strategies; in addition, they reported preferring using the most effective strategies such as rereading and using prior knowledge and experience. Moreover, although both bottom-up strategy use and top-down strategy use were positively correlated with reading comprehension, top-down strategy use was the sole significant predictor of reading comprehension. Bottom-up strategy use failed to predict reading comprehension directly, but it had an indirect effect on reading comprehension through the complete mediation of top-down strategy use. Thus, delivering an effective reading strategy instruction involving a combination of bottom-up and top-down processing would be beneficial to reading proficiency development for EFL learners.