Investigating Reading Comprehension Difficulties The Case of Fourth-year EFL Learners at Belaarbi Baabouche Middle School

Abstract

Reading is a vital skill that must be learned in order to effectively acquire a foreign language. However, it is a difficult skill to master because the number of learners struggle with understanding the meaning of the texts. The aim of the research is to investigate the reading issues that fourth-year middle school EFL students face, and to identify their poor reading comprehension skills and the main causes of their failures to complete the reading activity. As study instruments, a questionnaire and classroom observations on two separate topics were used. The questionnaire was distributed to various fourth-year middle school EFL teachers in Bordj Bou-Arreridj city, and the classroom observation was done with fourth-year middle school EFL learners at Belaarbi Baabouche Middle School. The findings demonstrate that the number of the students struggle with reading comprehension due to a lack of vocabulary, a lack of prior knowledge in their mother tongue (Arabic), confusing words, and the complexity of the texts.