Reading strategies used by Arabic speakers in different texts

This preliminary study analyzed the reading comprehension of Arabic speaking graduate and undergraduate students who are currently pursuing their degrees in the United States. The purpose was to investigate the influence of their native language on comprehension of different types of text. In this research study, data was collected using the following different measures: the Mokhtari and Sheorey's (2002) Survey of Reading Strategies (SORS), The Vocabulary Size Test (Laufer & Nation, 1999), and a reading comprehension test developed for the study. The reading comprehension test consisted of a vocabulary score on two different types of texts, one literary in nature, and the other scientific. A preliminary analysis of the data seems to indicate that vocabulary size, as measured by The Vocabulary Size Test has an influence on the type of strategies the students use to comprehend texts. The data suggests that these Arabic students apply specific types of reading strategies and are aware of their preferred reading strategies. Finally, based on the data, suggestions will be offered as to ways to accommodate college students who are Arabic speakers and to differentiate teaching strategies according to their needs and vocabulary knowledge