earticle

영어

Elementary School Teachers’ Perspectives toward the Reading Materials in an Extensive Reading Program Ji-Hyun Byun (Hannam University) The purpose of this research is to explore the perceptions of elementary school teachers toward the reading materials that are likely to be offered in the extensive reading program. A total of twenty elementary school teachers who were undergoing a professional development program participated in the study. They were situated in a print-affluent classroom replete with approximately 1,100 English-language reading materials including graded readers, young-adult books, and children’s books. In the program, the teachers were encouraged to check out any book related to their interests and proficiency levels. Data were collected from multiple sources to enhance the credibility of the study: observation with field notes, learner diaries, and interviews. The findings of the study indicated that the participating teachers showed great fondness for graded readers and perceived them to be appropriate reading materials for their elementary school students. The teachers' positive attitudes toward graded readers originated from these elements: simplified language and interesting content. They also believed that reading such books can be a cornerstone in instilling confidence in learners at elementary schools. Unlike the great popularity of graded readers, other reading materials including young-adult books, best sellers, magazines, and newspapers received less attention mainly due to colloquial language and a high level of text-difficulty.