Gender effect on reading comprehension with Korean EFL learners

Abstract

This paper examines the effect of gender on English reading comprehension for Korean EFL (English as a Foreign Language) learners. The gender effect was measured using a DIF (Differential Item Functioning) methodology. Specifically, gender DIF was investigated for a random sample of 14,000 Korean examinees (7,000 males and 7,000 females) who took the English subtest of the 1998 Korean National Entrance Exam for Colleges and Universities. The English Reading Comprehension subtest consisted of 38 items (i.e., Items 18-55). The results of the study indicate that items classified as Mood/Impression/Tone tended to be easier for females, whereas items classified as Logical Inference were more likely to favor males regardless of item content. Further content analysis reveals that passage content is not a reliable factor that predicts interaction between gender and performance in reading comprehension, hence suggesting that future studies about gender effect on second language reading comprehension should consider item type as well as item content. © 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.