Self-regulated learners in voluntary reading: The effects and Implications on EFL reading classes

Abstract

This study was an attempt to investigate how self-regulated learning through voluntary reading (VR) was implemented and affected on EFL students' reading comprehension. Self-regulation strategy is usually done in class but the researcher transformed into self-checking voluntary reading card based on self-regulated learning (SRL). The researcher applied quasi-experimental with pre-test post-test control group design to see the effectiveness of SRL in voluntary reading. The research was applied to 93 Indonesian EFL learners of a private university in East Java, Indonesia. They were chosen based on their performance on preliminary research treated as experimental and control group. The experimental group got treatment of VR activity with SRL strategies and the control group got direct teaching. The data were analyzed using t-test and the result showed that selfregulation through voluntary reading has a significant effect on students' reading comprehension. The average score of students with high SRL in experimental group is 83.96 with standard deviation 10.723, while students with low SRL got average score 79.22 with standard deviation 7.92. In control group, the average score of students with high SRL is 76.00 with standard deviation 8.483 and those who with low SRL got average score 65.83 with standard deviation 7.13. This study implicitly reminds EFL teachers to pay more attention to increase students' self-regulation and to overcome the problems of independence, interest, habit in reading, and reading comprehension.