Group Work and Substitution of Words in Senior School Certificate English Comprehension Examination

Abstract

This study was conducted on 50 participants, all students at the Senior Secondary level. The purpose was to generate pedagogy for improved teaching of a difficult aspect of comprehension—word substitution. Word substitution is expected to be a reflection of extensive reading as it has to do with how much of vocabulary reservation the candidate possesses and how best he is able to use them. Unfortunately, not many students find this aspect interesting possibly because of the drop in attitude to reading. The researcher, therefore, experimented with Group strategy to find out if working as a group could indeed improve the teaching of word substitution and help more students acquire the skills that would make them work more independently and successfully in tackling comprehension questions. All the four research questions were treated to favor group work and the only one null hypothesis was rejected. Group work is widely recommended for words substitution but learner’s autonomy is equally encouraged.