The Effectiveness of Reading Instruction in Korean EFL Classrooms: A Meta-Analysis

This study employs a quantitative meta-analysis to investigate the effectiveness of input- and output-focused reading instruction in Korean EFL classrooms and moderating variables on L2 learners' reading comprehension ability. Through an extensive search on electronic data bases, a total of 129 studies with 149 effect sizes (ESs) were collected, and their common ES was calculated based on Hedge' g with the software CMA ver. 2.2.056. The results of this study showed that output-focused reading instruction (OFRI) had a greater effect than input-focused reading instruction (IFRI). The difference of ESs between two types of reading instruction was especially larger at the elementary and secondary school levels. Among specific writing activities incorporated in OFRI, multiple output tasks followed by speaking activities were the most effective regardless of school levels. For single activity types, response writing and summarizing turned out to be the most effective activities for elementary school students and secondary and college students, respectively. Authentic materials were a significant moderator regardless of school levels. In addition, reading approaches and collaborative tasks had a statistically significant moderating effect at different school levels.