Comprehension Skills of Elementary Learners: Basis for Development of Learning Interactive Reading Activities (LIRA)

This study assessed the reading comprehension skills of the Grade 6 Pupils during the School Year 2022-2023. It sought to answer the following questions which involved   the profile of the student-respondents in terms of age, sex, economic status, educational attainment of parents and their relationship to the parents and the teachers.  Also, the reading problems encountered by the Grade 6 learners and their level of reading comprehension skills of the students based on phonetic awareness, phonics, decoding, word identification, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension. Likewise, a significant relationship between the profile of the pupils and their reading comprehension skills was also determined. The program of activities can be adopted by the teachers to improve the reading comprehension skills of Grade 6 pupils served as output of the study. Findings showed that the Grade 6 learners are younger female-dominated learners with middle socio-economic status backgrounds whose parents neither finished secondary level nor degree holder and undergraduate units with either one or both parents are working. Further, learners in the division had supervision with their parents and had regular study habit.  The reading problems encountered by the Grade 6 learners are still developing with a focus on basic understanding and making meaning on fluency, vocabulary, background knowledge, comprehension strategies, lack of self-motivation, lack of background knowledge and inability to comprehend the texts were the foremost problem. Likewise, the reading comprehension ability of learners along vocabulary knowledge is developing. Further, the supervision of parents and good study habits influence the reading comprehension of learners. Additionally, these strategies could strengthen the comprehension ability of learners in school and at home. It is recommended in the study that the teachers should provide learners with specific resources or strategies aligned with their demographic background, e.g., culturally relevant texts for students from a specific background. Thus, an intervention of interactive materials shall be developed to address the concerns of Grade 6 learners in reading.