Reading comprehension and word learning through reading

Abstract

Reading has been shown to be an important source of vocabulary acquisition; however, it is proposed that
in order for pupils to learn words efficiently while reading, they should be skilled comprehenders. The
purpose of this research is to determine the influence of reading comprehension skills on the ability to learn
new words while reading. Two tests were applied to a sample of 102 fourth-grade students: a standardized
test of sentence comprehension, comprehension of a text in silence and comprehension of a text aloud,
and a self-created test of word learning while reading. Subsequently, the scores were analyzed through the
statistical techniques of correlation and hierarchical regression to observe the effect of a skill on another.
Children's comprehension of texts read aloud was found to be the most significant predictor of the ability
to learn words. Unlike previous research, this study focuses on Spanish-speaking children’s learning and it
uses pseudowords as stimuli.