A Case Study of Korean EFL Students

In Korea, extensive reading among students is virtually non-existent, as English reading materials are typically for classroom or test-taking purposes. For these students, EFL reading is not an enjoyable and interesting method of improving their communicative competence, contrary to the language acquisition process for young L1 readers who voluntarily select interesting children’s books appropriate to their level. Furthermore, while EFL environments typically relate reading to writing and listening to speaking, there are very few studies on integrated approaches that claim that reading is an effective way of improving speaking skills. Through a case study with four Korean college-level EFL students, this paper suggests that extensively reading children’s literature is an effective way to improve speaking proficiency. The participants were given a list of 100 children’s books to choose and read from over a course of eight months. Case study results show that all four participants improved their oral fluency to some degree. Further findings indicate positive correlations between variables such as reading amount, reading difficulty, mean length of utterance, and words per minute. In addition to improved oral fluency, participants acted and spoke with more confidence in conversations. The case study serves as a good pilot for further research on exploring detailed relationships between more variables on reading and speaking.