The Skimming and Scanning Instruction for EFL Reading Comprehension: A Classroom Study

Abstract

Purposeful reading requires learners to match their approach to a text and task. This mixed-methods classroom action study examined a four-week sequence of explicit skimming and scanning instruction for upper-secondary EFL learners working around CEFR A1-A2. Thirty-eight students completed classroom reading assessments before and after eight 45-minute sessions; a separate baseline survey record contained 40 responses. Lessons combined prediction, teacher modeling, timed searches, main-idea identification, collaborative checking, and post-reading reasoning. The six-part composite increased descriptively from 19.92 to 26.76 out of 55, a gain of 6.84 points (34.3% relative to baseline). The largest component increases were recorded for critical thinking (+3.29) and main idea/supporting details (+2.84); vocabulary (+1.37), inference (+0.60), and word recognition (+0.29) also rose, whereas fluency decreased (-1.55). Interview themes suggested greater strategic awareness, confidence, and perceived transfer to other subjects, but learners also reported that rapid reading could omit relevant details and that scanning required time. The findings support the feasibility of explicit, purpose-driven strategy instruction, not a causal effect. No control group, participant-level scores, dispersion estimates, delayed measure, or interview sample size was available; survey and assessment denominators also differed. Future research should use parallel tests, a preregistered scoring model, paired data, independent rating, and a comparison condition.