Effects of English reading instruction based on the reader response approach on critical reading ability and critical thinking ability of upper secondary school students

The reader response approach was widely used in the field of literature teaching to enhance reading ability and critical thinking ability of learners in many countries. In Thailand, however, the reader response approach was not widely used in English reading instruction. The researcher, therefore, conducted the present study by designing ten reading lesson plans based on the reader response approach. The purpose of the present study was to examine the effects of the reading instruction based on the reader response approach on critical reading ability and critical thinking ability of upper secondary school students. The participants were twenty-one twelfth grade students from Chulalongkorn University Demonstration School. The research instruments consisted of critical thinking tests, critical English reading tests and student response worksheets. The data from critical thinking tests and critical reading tests were analyzed using t-test. In addition, the student response worksheets were analyzed using content analysis. The findings revealed that the reading instruction based on the reader response approach enhanced students’ critical thinking ability and critical reading ability, the mean scores of critical thinking tests and critical reading tests from the posttests were higher than the mean scores from the pretests at the significant level .05. In addition, the data analysis from student response worksheets indicated that the participants’ critical thinking ability was developed.