READING HABITS AND SELF-ASSESSMENT OF READING COMPREHENSION SKILLS AMONG HUNGARIAN STUDENTS IN SLOVAKIA

Abstract

This paper introduces the results of a survey examining the reading habits and self-assessment of reading comprehension skills of Hungarian students in Slovakia. As the largest ethnic minority in Slovakia is Hungarian, it has extensive primary and secondary native language school networks. The purpose of this research is to map the reading habits and self-assessment of reading comprehension skills of students to answer the question how these subjective views of different age groups change and what indicators (social background, school success) they correlate with. We have chosen questionnaires composed of 28 questions as a method for examining the students’ reading habits. The total number of survey respondents was 131. There were 98 respondents from average schools where reading comprehension and reading habits are not taught separately. In that case three age groups were involved: 23 students at a secondary grammar school, 38 pupils in the second stage of primary school and 37 pupils in the first stage of primary school. Interestingly, there is no big difference in reading attitudes among the different age groups. The respondents’ answers prove that only a fraction of students read in their free time. On the other hand, the groups, regardless of age, subjectively claim that they do not have problems with reading comprehension tasks. They claim that reading is easy for them, so they understand everything that they read. It can be concluded that these statements are highly controversial with the results of international surveys. At a later stage of the research the survey was conducted in a primary school where pupils have regularly reading comprehension classes. The number of respondents from this school was 33. There were 21 pupils from the second stage and 12 pupils from the first stage of primary school. Based on the results, there are considerable differences in the answers provided by the two groups. The pupils from the primary school with reading comprehension classes differently judge their level of understanding. These results have potential implications for further research to determine the reading habits and reading comprehension skills of Hungarian pupils in Slovakia.