Investigating Iraqi EFL University Students' Use of Reading Strategies
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Abstract
Reading strategies are deliberate, goal-directed techniques that readers employ to enhance their understanding, interpretation, and retention of written texts. These strategies enhance reading comprehension and are particularly essential for second language learners. This research aims to investigate the reading strategies adopted by Iraqi EFL university students and assess their effectiveness at improving comprehension. This research seeks to establish how students read academic texts, what types of strategies they use, and what difficulties they encounter in doing so. Research also seeks to explore the relationship between the degree of language skill in students and their strategic reading behavior. The research seeks to shed light on further comprehension of what strategies are most used and how they affect reading performance in the Iraqi situation. The sample of this study consists of 60 fourth-year undergraduate EFL university students between the ages of 21 and 24 years studying the English language at Tikrit University in the academic year 2024–2025. The study instrument used to gather data was a questionnaire developed by Hui-Fang Shang 2010. The results of the current study reveal that Iraqi EFL students actively use a wide range of strategies to aid their reading comprehension, and Students use all types of strategies relatively equally, with no clear dominance of one over the others.
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