Identifying the Reading Difficulties of Grade 2 Pupils in Developing Reading Fluency

Reading fluency is essential to early literacy development because it supports accurate word recognition, efficient reading, and comprehension across learning areas. This study examined the reading difficulties of Grade 2 pupils at Ammoweg Elementary School, Asipulo District, Schools Division of Ifugao, Philippines, with emphasis on English reading activities and written Mathematics problems. A quantitative descriptive research design was employed using a modeled population of 30 Grade 2 pupils selected through total enumeration. Reading performance was assessed through a 30-item word recognition task, an oral reading passage, a 10-item comprehension assessment, and five mathematical word problems. Frequencies, percentages, means, and standard deviations were used to describe performance and identify common difficulties. Results showed a mean word recognition score of 21.4 out of 30, oral reading accuracy of 88.6%, reading rate of 48.2 correct words per minute, and comprehension score of 6.3 out of 10. The most frequent difficulties involved decoding unfamiliar words (70.0%), hesitant oral reading (63.3%), and recognizing common words (56.7%). Understanding mathematical vocabulary (60.0%) and identifying relevant information in word problems (56.7%) were also common difficulties. Pupils with higher reading rates generally demonstrated better comprehension scores, although the descriptive design did not establish causality. The findings highlighted the importance of differentiated reading instruction, systematic decoding activities, vocabulary development, guided oral reading, and comprehension support. The study provided a classroom-based framework for identifying reading difficulties and organizing targeted literacy interventions.