A Study of the Reading Habits and Interests of Urban Working Professionals

A STUDY OF THE READING HABITS AND INTERESTS OF URBAN WORKING PROFESSIONALS, EXECUTIVES AND MANAGERS Irene Ong Pooi Fong - Department of Management, The University of Sheffield Programme, Taylor's Business School

ABSTRACT This study was undertaken to examine the reading habits andinterests of urban working professionals, executives andmanagers in the Klang Valley. With an overall insight into thereading behaviour of this group, it is greatly hoped that therewill be a greater awareness among corporate individuals andorganizations as regards the importance of reading in knowledgeacquisition and knowledge management. Reading is a vitalbehavioural factor in a knowledge-based society and an emergingknowledge economy. A total of 299 responses were collected in this study.Generally, the reading attitude is very encouraging and a widevariety of materials was read, ranging from local newspapers,magazines, journals and books to foreign publications. There arealso significant relationships between the gender, race andlevel of management of respondents and their reading pattern. The results of this study indicated that seniority plays quite amajor role in influencing the reading pattern. It was alsorevealed that there is a strong possibility of the presence offive major categories of readers based on the attitudes andintensity of their reading activities. INTRODUCTION Reading is an aspect associated with literacy. However, thereading process is not simple in its nature. It does not merelyinvolve recognizing a single character and pronouncing itcorrectly or to recognize and pronounce a few characters thatare arranged in a particular manner, but more importantly it isthe ability to understand the meaning of these arrangements.According to Bullock (1975), reading is more than areconstruction of the authors' meanings; it is the perception ofthose meanings within the total context of the relevantexperiences of the reader that is a much more active anddemanding process. Here, the reader is required to engage incritical and creative thinking in order to relate what he readsto what he already knows. The civilization of mankind today demands that one should notonly know how to read and be literate but also be functionallyliterate. Functional literacy is acquired as Gray (1956:p.24)puts it when a person has acquired the knowledge and skills inreading and writing which will enable him to engage effectivelyin all those activities in which literacy is normally assumed inhis culture or groups. In short, reading is a complex processthat requires the mental capacity, perception and experience ofan individual who is conditioned by his or her own distinctcultural environment.

Importance of reading Reading has come to hold the most significant place in educationas a means of communication in a highly literate society. Mann,in his study (1971), stressed that the book is still very muchpart of people's lives in our modern society and in spite of theinvention of the latest audio-visual materials, the book in itsordinary conventional form is still the most important means ofcommunication ever invented. Mann further stressed that readingis important for acquiring knowledge and information. Theenrichment in knowledge would, in turn, enable one to presentoneself more confidently. According to Dato' Dr Salleh Mohd Nor in his paper, "Reading inthe Context of Management", which was presented during theNational Seminar on the Promotion of Reading Habits in Malaysiaheld from 20-21 June 1994, there is no substitute for readingwhen it comes to gathering information or keeping abreast ofdevelopment. Information may appear in different media but thepoint is that one still has to read. The great advantage ofreading is that there is much more material written in all formsthan that on tape and video that one would listen to, and theperception of the ear to respond to critical information is notas effective as that to the eye. Reading contributes not only to an individual's well-being,self-development and progress but also to the whole nation andthe world. Gordon (1976) stated that the thirst for reading anda wider dissemination of books is a sign of progress in theworld. As for now, reading helps to develop workplace literacy wherepersonnel need to have the ability to read and write workplacematerials. Jorie W Philippi (1993) stressed that there is ashift toward self-directed teamwork and emphasis on qualityproduction. This shift is necessary for competing in a globaleconomy. It has created job tasks that employ applications ofjob-specific literacy tasks whereby one of the tasks is thatworkers must be able to use job-reading processes for locatinginformation. They need to be able to identify job needs andefficiently use basic skill application or workplace literacy(i.e. reading, writing, speaking, listening, computation andproblem solving) to complete job tasks. Thus, with these skills,they will have a sense of competence and confidence,independence and better control over problems and issues intheir workplace. Reading problems However, reading as a practice and art has tended to diminish(Hewett, 1960). In the opinion of Asheim (1956), reading as ahabitual activity is normally confined to a relatively smallsection of the literate population, and continued seriousreading is limited to an even smaller segment within this groupof readers. On the local scene, the habit of reading does not appear to be aprominent feature in the lives of most Malaysians. Thissituation was validated when Prof. Atan Long conducted a studyon reading habits and interests of Malaysians in 1982. In his

study, Atan Long found that Malaysians had poor reading habitsand did not like reading. He warned that the apathy towardsreading, if allowed to carry on, would create wide rifts in thesocioeconomic and intellectual development of segments of thepopulation. More recently, Dato' Dr Salleh (1994) reminded the public,especially individuals involved in management, such as theexecutives and managers of the corporate society, to emphasizereading. Furthermore, with the Information Super Highway and theMultimedia Super Corridor under construction, theseprofessionals would be engrossed heavily in networking andmanaging information. Dr Salleh warned too that if they were notcapable of reading the appropriate information in a timelymanner intelligently, they would not be able to go side by sidewith development. This situation would have to be looked into seriously as weenter the 21st century because reading for knowledge andinformation will become a critical source for competitiveadvantage besides development (Yeoh, 1995). Objective of the study Many studies have been done on the subject of reading habits andthey involved different categories of individuals. With thisinterest in mind, a similar study is carried out to investigatethe reading habits in the business environment involving urbanworking professionals, executives and managers. This study aimed to gather and analyse relevant data that willprovide the necessary information so that a description of thereading activity of professionals, executives and managers canbe obtained and inferences on the relationship between variablesconcerning the habit of reading can be made. In brief, the study hoped to answer the following questions: a. How regularly do executives and managers read books,magazines/journals and newspapers? What are the types of readingmaterials used? b. What are their reading preferences and interests with regardto the reading subject matter? c. What are their purposes and motivations for reading? Do theyread to acquire new skill and knowledge or to improve their presentones? d. What are their opinions and attitudes towards readingas a pastime activity? Thus, this survey hopes to elicit the reading habits of therespondents, their objectives of reading, their attitude towardsreading and their reading preferences. It is greatly hoped thatthe findings of this study will create a better understandingand further insight into the pattern of the reading behaviour ofexecutives and managers. Thus, this will help to heightenawareness on the current situation faced and generate morecommitment from business corporations to encourage reading among

their personnel. Significance of the study It is an undeniable fact that reading is important. In Malaysia,during the early 1970s, the reading habit was stressed becausereading has socioeconomic impact. As Malaysia ventures into a new era of a fully developed nationby the year 2020, she needs individuals who are progressive instriving for self-development. To ensure progress, a goodreading habit is important. Literacy development has gone beyondthe survival stage to levels of empowerment and humandevelopment. Professionals, executives and managers are individuals who playthe key role in enabling the nation to achieve her vision. Theymay have been exposed to various management courses andleadership training, but they must not overlook the impact ofreading. According to Yeoh (1995), many managers are not avid readersalthough they should actively seek new knowledge and acquiremore information through the habit of reading. When they have abroader outlook and greater knowledge inculcated throughreading, they will have better perspectives to make vitalbusiness and investment decisions. He further added, "Managersneed to read a greater variety of books. They should be able toterm themselves as 'renaissance managers' who are not onlywell-versed in corporate strategy, information technology orbusiness economics but are also equally adept at other fieldslike international geopolitics, sociology, etc. Such readingswould then enable the busy corporate manager to be a criticalmanager" (p. 48-49). Thus, a culture of continual lifelong learning and continuousimprovement needs to be cultivated. Our companies must becomelearning organizations. We need to develop our capabilities andknowledge quickly if we want to stay ahead and advance to thenext stage of industrialization. According to Stan Davis, authorof the best-selling book, 2020 Vision, information and knowledgeare vital success factors to have in any business (Yeoh, 1995).Therefore, the quest for knowledge should never end. LITERATURE REVIEW Research on reading Reading is one aspect that has received increasing attention inresearch studies in recent years. Reading studies that weresummarized and reviewed in the Journal of Educational Research(1962, 1965 to 1967) and in the Encyclopedia of EducationalResearch (1969) cover various aspects of reading including,sociological, psychological, physiological and pedagogical. One of the earliest comprehensive studies on the reading habitwas the one done by Jenkinson (1940). This classic survey notedthat there was a difference in reading interests and tastesbetween the genders. Other studies carried out on genderpreferences were by Fendrick (1941), Wall (1948), Pafford (1959)

and Yarlott and Harpin (1971). Sharon (1974) did a study on non-book reading habits and foundthat the most common non-book material read among adults in theUnited States was the newspaper. Sharon stated that an averageof 35 minutes was spent on looking at a newspaper on a typicalday. On the other hand, 25 per cent of the American populationread magazines and each individual spent four to six minutesreading the magazines on a typical day (Cole and Gold, 1978). Onbook-reading habits, Mann (1971) reported a study done by theEuropean Research Consultants Ltd. in 1965 on book reading among2300 adults. Sixty-nine per cent of them did not read a book forthe past three months. Later in 1975, a study by The GallupOrganization reported that six per cent of the Americans readless than six books in a six-month period. The Poll furtheradded that the book readers in America were largely young,college educated workers with high income and involved inwhite-collar jobs. According to Lau (1981), readers of highersocioeconomic status read more than those of lower status, andbook reading decreases when readers get older (Sharon, 1974). As for studies done on the purpose and motivation of reading andthe attitude towards reading, various dominating motives weregiven. For example, information-getting, recreational, aestheticand critical understanding of the book (Butler, 1940) and thedesire to know, to be curious, to be well informed and tounderstand rather than to be ignorant (Gates and Jennings, 1961)were some of the motives. Shri Nath Sahai (1971) studied the reading purposes. It wasfound that some read to further their education and knowledge,some to meet the practical demands of the vocation and toimprove upon their occupational status, some to meet theirintellectual curiosity and others to satisfy their recreationalinterest and pass their leisure. Studies on reading attitudes have not featured very prominentlyin reading research literature and this could be an importantarea of research in the sociology of reading. One study byEnglander (1960) stressed the importance of attitude as animportant factor in encouraging reading and he found that animproved attitude in conjunction with improved reading skillwould make an individual a more effective reader. The local research findings Prof. Atan Long (1984) gave a similar analysis on the readinghabits and interests of Malaysians. His study found thatethnicity and the language used influence the patterns ofnewspaper, magazine and book readership. The effect of educationis clearly seen whereby, in general, readership of newspapersand magazines was much lower for people who received onlyprimary education. The attitude of the people towards readingwas quite positive. About one-fifth of the subjects rankedreading as their first choice activity, second only to the morepopular activity of TV watching. Newspapers were most read(97%), followed by magazines (67%) and books (42%). The dataalso indicated that those who read most frequently (heavyreaders) were from the high socioeconomic status, middle-agedand had an English educational background. Other local studies

include those carried out by Rita Vias (1988) and Lim (1974). Hypotheses Generally, the research findings in the above review impliedthat reading is accepted as an important activity practised fordifferent reasons by individuals from various backgrounds. Therewere specific reading preferences, patterns of reading andattitudes towards reading among the individuals and these werefound related to certain aspects such as gender, race andeducational background. The following hypotheses have been formulated with the aim ofexamining functional relationships between selected variablesconcerning the habit of reading and to examine the validity ofthe research findings at this point of time. Hypothesis One:The habit of reading is significantly related to or differentfrom job/profession (levels of management), educationalbackground and family status. Hypothesis Two:Reading preference (types and titles of reading materials, subjectmatter) is significantly related to or different from gender,race and job/profession (levels of management). Hypothesis Three:The attitudes towards reading are significantly relatedto or different from gender, race and job/profession (levels ofmanagement). RESEARCH METHODOLOGY Research design The study involved a survey of urban working professionals,executives and managers in the private sector. Research instrument A structured questionnaire was designed toelicit three types of information from respondents: a. Opinions in order to gain an insight into the respondents'attitudes towards reading. Section A contains 28 statements thatattempt to obtain this information (Refer Appendix 1). The scaleused is the seven-point Likert scale that measures the degree ofagreement or disagreement of the respondents. b. Information on current behavioural pattern and readinginterests. Section B contains 15 questions and statements thatexamine these aspects. The questions are closed-ended consistingof dichotomous and multiple-choice responses. c. Demographic information. Section C contains 12 questions andstatements in close-ended format with dichotomous andmultiple-choice responses. Sampling design

Using simple random sampling, a total of 299 sampling units wereselected and conducted during the month of November to December1996. These are the professionals, executives and managers(ranging from junior to senior management) who were working inthe Klang Valley. Data collection Questionnaires were handed out with the assistance of colleaguesand friends. Several visits were also made personally toselected business organizations and corporations. Data analysis The data were analysed by using SPSS (Statistical Package forthe Social Sciences). The hypotheses were tested by a number ofstatistical analyses: the Frequency count, Cross-Tabulation,T-Test, Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), Reliability test, Factorand the Quick Cluster Analysis. RESEARCH RESULTS The Reading Habit This section looks into the time spent by respondents onreading, the sources of materials, the usage of Internet andtheir purposes of reading. Time spent reading in a week Most of the respondents did nothave a specific time for reading. TABLE 1 - Time which Respondents Normally Read

Time No. Per cent (%)

Breakfast 16 5.4Lunch break 6 2.0Tea time 1 0.3Dinner 1 0.3After dinner 103 34.4Anytime 172 57.5TOTAL 299 100.0

A total of 172 of the respondents (57.5%) stated that they readany time in a day (see Table 1). However, many of them (34.4%)read after dinner, because they may have more time to read afterthey return from work. On the other hand, some read briefly inthe morning during breakfast (5.4%). Table 2 explains that on the average, they spent more than fourhours reading in a week (51.2%). This is definitely a positivesign! Those who read less than an hour only accounted for 2.7per cent. TABLE 2 - Average Time Spent on Reading in a Week

Time No. Per cent (%)

< 1 hour 8 2.71-2 hours 44 14.73-4 hours 94 31.4> 4 hours 153 51.2TOTAL 299 100.0

Sources of reading materials The most popular sources for obtaining their reading materialsare the bookshops, vendors or book rental outlets. They eitherbuy the materials on a day-to-day basis or subscribe monthly.This accounted for 52.8 per cent. The next source will be theoffices where they work (23.4%). Most places of work do havenewspapers and magazines ready for their staff to read duringbreaks. TABLE 3 - Sources of Reading Materials

Time No. Per cent (%)

Friends & neighbours 24 8.0Bookshops/Vendors/Book rental outlets 158 52.8Coffee shops 3 1.0Clubs 5 1.7Libraries 33 11.0Offices 70 23.4Others 6 2.0TOTAL 299 100.0

Usage of Internet There are only 53 respondents (17.7%) who actually use theInternet to obtain information on reading materials or to assessinformation as shown in Table 4. TABLE 4 - Usage of Internet

Usage No. Per cent (%)

Yes 53 17.7No 246 82.3TOTAL 299 100.0

Various topics are assessed frequently and range from subjects

like information technology, telecommunication, business andeconomics, politics, industrial inquiries to world affairs,news, self-development, sports, health planning, cars and evenentertainment! Purposes of reading The three main purposes for reading are to obtain informationand knowledge on specific subjects of interest (29.8%), forgeneral information on current affairs (29.4%) and for pleasure(22.4%). TABLE 5 - Purposes of Reading

Purpose No. Per cent (%)

Pleasure 67 22.4General information 88 29.4Study/Exams 9 3.0Specific subjects 89 29.8Job-related 46 15.4TOTAL 299 100.0

Reading Interests The respondents' interest in materials like newspapers,magazines or journals and books is viewed from the point oftheir preference, types and titles of the reading materials andsubject matter that they are keen on and read frequently. Newspapers Two categories of newspapers were looked into: a) Localnewspapers, and b) Foreign newspapers. Local newspapers As seen from Table 6, the most popular newspapers read are theEnglish ones. The Star accounted for the highest level ofreadership (66.2%), followed by the the New Straits Times(57.5%). As for the Malay papers, Berita Harian and UtusanMalaysia have an equal level of readership (14.0%). Sin Chew JitPoh seems to be the more popular paper for those who readChinese newspapers (13.7%). As for Tamil Nesan, it has only tworeaders, accounting for 0.7 per cent. TABLE 6 - Readership of Local Newspapers

Titles No. Per cent (%)

Berita Harian 42 14.0Utusan Malaysia 42 14.0Nanyang Siang Pau 29 9.7

Sin Chew Jit Poh 41 13.7New Straits Times 172 57.5The Star 198 66.2Malay Mail 56 18.7Tamil Nesan 2 0.7Others 18 6.0TOTAL 299 100.0

Foreign newspapers Only a relatively small number of the respondents read foreignnewspapers, totalling 92 persons (30.8%). Asian Wall StreetJournal is the paper most read (22.7%). There are other foreign newspapers listed. Some are readingmaterials for foreign expatriates. To name a few, they are USAToday, Financial Times, South China Morning Post, L'EquiPE andsome Japanese titles. TABLE 7 - Readership of Foreign Newspapers

Titles No. Per cent (%)

Asia Wall Street Journal 68 22.7London Times 3 1.0New York Times 4 1.4The Straits Times (Singapore) 8 2.7Others 9 3.0TOTAL 299 100.0

Topics of newspapers Table 8 presents the topics that are read by the respondents. TABLE 8 - Topics of Newspapers

Topics No. Per cent (%)

Local news 248 82.9Foreign news 199 66.6Business/Stock market 175 58.5Leisure columns 115 38.5Sports 69 23.1Editorial 48 16.1Book reviews 16 5.4Others 4 1.3TOTAL 299 100.0

Clearly, the four major topics read are the local news, foreignnews, the business and stock market page and the leisurecolumns. Other topics mentioned are health and medical issues,information technology and readers' views. Business magazines / journals Out of 299 respondents, 110 of them did not read businessmagazines (36.8%) whereas 189 did (62.8%). Among the titleslisted, Malaysian Business is most read (32.4%), followed byBusiness Week (20.7%). Other titles read are Malaysian Industry,Far Eastern Economic Review, ASIA 21, Forbes, Economist andAsian Inc. Almost half of the respondents (157 individuals or 52.5%) read awide range of magazines or journals related to their job. Forexample, those who are involved in information technology andcomputer read magazines like Telecom Asia, PC World, Bytes,Computer World and Computime. Those who are involved in theaccounting profession read ACCA magazines, MIA Journal,Malaysian Accountant and Akauntan Nasional whereas magazinessuch as Electronics Engineers, Electronics Today, SemiconductorInternational, Electronic Design, Institute of Engineers,Malaysia and Technical are mostly read by those who work in thetechnical, electronics and engineering industry. Other magazineslisted include Bankers Journal, The Edge, Quality Review and CIBNews. Professional books The readership level of professional books ispresented in Table 10. TABLE - 10 Readership of Professional Books

Topics No. Per cent (%)

Management 139 46.5Leadership 77 25.8Human resource/Training 36 12.0Environment 29 9.7TQM 47 15.7Sales/Marketing 58 19.4Science/Technology/IT 89 29.8Others 14 4.7TOTAL 299 100.0

Generally, only 41 respondents did not read any professionalbooks (13.7%). Since the respondents were mostly managers, it isreasonable that management was the topic most read. Other topicsof interest were psychology, philosophy, labour market issuesand finance. Influence of Certain Factors on the Habit and Interests ofReading This section gives a deeper insight into the habit and interests

of the respondents' reading activities. It will look into therelationship of certain selected variables such as gender, raceand levels of management of their job or profession to the habitand interests of reading. Guided by the hypotheses (one and two)that have been formulated earlier, this section will be used toexamine any significant pattern. Time spent on reading in a week Using Cross tabulation and chi-square, the significance ofrelationship between three variables and the time spent readingis examined. The variables are marital status, number ofchildren and levels of management. TABLE 11 - Cross Tabulation between Selected Variables/Items withthe Time Spent on Reading in a Week

Item cross P-value Significant/tabbed with Not significanttime spent

Marital status 0.4486 Not significantNo. of children 0.6590 Not significantLevels of management 0.0197 Significant

Table 11 shows that there is no significant relationship betweenthe marital status and the number of children of the respondentsand the time they spent reading in a week. Regardless of theirmarital status and the number of children they have, respondentsspent from three to above four hours a week reading. However, there is a significant difference in the time spent dueto their levels of management. The higher the level, the moretime would be spent on reading. Clearly, those in the middlemanagement increased their time for reading from three to fourhours (25.9%) and to more than four hours (56.5%). Senior-levelrespondents show a higher increase, from 26.8 per cent to 62.5per cent. TABLE 12 - Influence of Levels of Management on the Time Spentreading in a Week

Levels <1 1-2 3-4 >4

Junior 3.1% 17.7% 42.7% 36.5%Middle 3.4% 14.3% 25.9% 56.5%Senior - 10.7% 26.8% 62.5%

Local newspapers Generally, there is a significant relationship between the raceor ethnic group and the language medium of the newspapers.

Generally, Malay newspapers are mostly read by the Malayrespondents, Chinese newspapers by the Chinese and Tamilnewspapers by the Indians. However, there is no significantrelationship in the readership of English newspapers wherebythey are read by all the ethnic groups. For the Malay newspapers as an example, both the Berita Harianand Utusan Malaysia displayed significant relationships (bothhave p-value of 0.00); Berita Harian has a readership of 45.8per cent among the Malays but only 2.6 per cent among theChinese and 15.4 per cent among the Indians. English newspapers like the New Straits Times and the Malay Maildisplayed no significant relationships with the different races(each has a p-value of 0.6903 and 0.3679 respectively). However,The Star shows a higher level of readership compared to theother two titles. Table 13 gives a closer picture of the abovesituation. Topics of newspapers The relationship between the genders ofrespondents and the topics they read most frequently in thenewspapers was looked into. Topics that displayed significantrelationships are sports (p-value=0.00), business/stock market(p-value=0.00), foreign news (p-value=0.0079) and leisurecolumns (p-value=0.00). Sports, business/stock market andforeign news are more favoured by males whereas the leisurecolumns are more favoured by females. TABLE 14 - Readership of Newspaper Topics with Regard to Gender

Topics Male (%) Female (%)

Local news 82.4 84.0Sports 30.7 6.4Business/Stock Market 67.8 38.3Editorial 15.1 18.1Foreign news 71.7 55.3Book reviews 3.4 9.6Leisure 21.0 76.6Others 2.0 -TOTAL (persons) 205 94

Business magazines / journals It was found that the gender and levels of management of therespondents have certain degree of influence on the types ofbusiness magazines or journals that are read. Generally, males read more business magazines than females foralmost all the titles that are listed. The relationship betweengender and the magazines has a p-value of 0.01. TABLE - 15 Readership of Business Magazines/Journals with Regardto Gender

Titles Male (%) Female (%)

Business Week 24.9 11.7Malaysian Business 36.1 24.5Fortune 7.3 9.6World Executive Digest 21.0 16.0Asia Business News 17.1 8.5Harvard Business Review 2.0 3.2Others 9.3 2.1TOTAL (persons) 205 94

A p-value of 0.00 was recorded for the relationship between thelevels of management and the magazines. It was discovered thatmore senior managers read more business magazines. Middlemanagement recorded a higher level of readership for all thetitles as compared to the other levels. It is a point to notethat Fortune has a bigger appeal to senior level whereby 17.9per cent of them read this magazine but only 6.3 per centrecorded for junior level and 5.4 per cent for middle level. Job-related magazines / journals All gender and races of respondents have no distinct differencein reading job-related magazines or journals. However, there isa relationship between the levels of management and thesemagazines (p-value=0.0001). Magazines which contain titlesrelated to the nature of their jobs are read by those from themiddle management (57.8% or 85 persons). Junior level and seniorones recorded 35.4 per cent (34 persons) and 67.9 pre cent (38persons) respectively. Professional books With regard to gender, both males and females do not display abig difference in the readership level on topics likeleadership, human resource/training, environmental issues, totalquality management, sales/marketing and other topics. TABLE 16 - Readership of Business Magazines/Journals with Regardto Levels of Management

Titles Junior Middle Senior(%) (%) (%)

Business Week 14.6 21.8 28.6Malaysian Business 16.7 34.7 53.6Fortune 6.3 5.4 17.9World Executive Digest 14.6 22.4 19.6Asia Business News 4.2 20.4 16.1Harvard Business Review 3.1 2.7 -Others 6.3 6.1 10.7TOTAL (persons) 96 147 56

TABLE 17 - Readership of Professional Books with Regard to Gender

Topics Male (%) Female (%)

Management 50.7 37.2Leadership 25.4 26.6Human resource/Training 10.2 16.0Environment 9.8 9.6TQM 17.6 11.7Sales/Marketing 19.0 20.2Science/Technology/IT 35.6 17.0Others 4.9 4.3TOTAL (persons) 205 94

On the other hand, there is a difference in the topics ofmanagement (p=-value=0.0406) and science/technology/informationtechnology (p-value=0.018). In both cases, males read more onthese topics compared to females. All races do not have a distinct preference on the listed topicsexcept for topics on leadership (p-value=0.0219) andscience/technology/ information technology (p-value=0.0228). Inboth cases, Malays and Indians specifically have lowerreadership levels compared to the Chinese. As for the different levels of management, all respondents fromthe three levels have no significant relationship with the booksread. All of them believe that the topics listed are equallyessential or appropriate to be read, regardless of the seniorityof their positions. Attitudes towards reading Overall, the 28 statements that were constructed to evaluate theattitudes of respondents towards reading as an activity arereliable. The reading attitude scale displayed a Cronbach'sCoefficient Alpha of 0.6798, that is, bigger than 0.5. The general attitude Generally, the respondents showed a positive attitude towardsreading. Many believed that reading is an enjoyable activity.For example, 78 per cent of the respondents agreed that theyalways tried to read whenever they had the time and 78.5 percent enjoyed reading a lot. On the other hand, 62.2 per cent ofrespondents disagreed that they only read if they did not haveanything else to do. Many respondents believed that reading played an important rolein their profession. The majority (87.3%) agreed that they couldbe more competent in their job with the new knowledge acquiredthrough reading and 97.3 per cent agreed that reading couldenhance their job-related knowledge and skill. It is a point to note that most respondents thought that readingis important although they are busy. More than half of them

(64.9%) actually made sure that they read and 78 per cent readwhenever they had the time. Relationship of certain factors on the attitudes toward reading The influences of certain variables on the attitudes of readingwere examined using the T-test and the ANOVA analysis. This isto validate hypothesis three. Relationship between gender and the attitudes toward reading It was discovered that there is significant difference betweenthe two genders with a few attitudes. Females (mean=2.5213) tended to disagree more that they readonly materials that are related to their job or career ascompared to males (mean=3.0439). They also disagreed more thanthe males about enjoying sports more than reading (femalesdisplayed a mean value of 2.4468 while males had a mean value of2.8390). Females tended to enjoy reading more and read wheneverthey had the time (mean=5.6596 and 5.4574 respectively) comparedto their male counterparts (mean=5.1073 and 5.0488respectively). However, males are more enthusiastic about reading for thelatest information about business (mean=5.5366) compared tofemales (mean=5.1915). Reading books was too time consuming formales (mean=3.5805) whereas females did not think so(mean=3.0957). Relationship between race and the attitudes toward reading It was found that Chinese respondents tended to agree more thatthey read only if a topic interests them (mean=4.9421) ascompared to Malays (mean=4.4583), Indians (mean=4.3846) or theother races (mean=3.8182). Both the Chinese and other races (whoare mostly foreign expatriates) tended to have a higher degreeof agreement that their busy schedule discouraged them fromreading (mean=4.0579 and 4.3636 respectively). Malay(mean=3.3333) and Indians (mean=3.6154) tended to agree less. Relationship between levels of management and the attitudestoward reading Using the ANOVA, it was found that there were significantdifferences between the three levels of management and certainattitudes. From Table 19, it can be noted that junior level professionalstended to agree more that they read only if a topic interestedthem and when they did not have anything else to do. They alsotended to enjoy TV more than reading. On the other hand, moresenior personnel had a stronger appeal to reading - theybelieved that reading could enhance job-related skill and theyalways made sure that they had the time to read. They also didnot agree that reading a book is time consuming. TABLE 19 - Table of Mean for Selected Reading Attitudes withRegard to Levels of Management

Reading attitude Junior Middle Senior

VAR05 5.0208 4.8095 4.0536VAR10 5.1458 4.8163 4.5357VAR12 3.5625 3.3129 2.8214VAR16 5.8438 6.0272 6.2321VAR20 4.2083 4.2653 3.3571VAR21 3.4375 3.6122 2.9286VAR22 4.5208 4.8435 5.1964

The classification of respondents according to their readingattitudes Using the Factor and the Quick Cluster analysis, attempts weremade to classify the respondents into specific categories asregards their reading attitudes. According to the Factor analysis, there are five factors thatwere identified that accounted for 46.3% of the variance in thecriteria (reading attitudes) variable. The Eigenvalues for eachfactor are: Factor 1: 5.89282, Factor 2: 2.36286, Factor 3:1.80434, Factor 4: 1.56909 and Factor 5: 1.33670. Based on thefactor loading, variables that have factor loading of more than0.5 (to be significant enough for selection) were selected. Thevariables involved are presented in Appendix 1, Table 20. Rearranging the factors and variables, certain dimensions orcategories of respondents have been identified and named. (SeeTable 21 in Appendix 1). In conclusion, there are five categories of readers that can beidentified: (1) The non-readers who believe that reading is a boring activityand a waste of time. (2) The marginal readers who do not have much interest in reading.They would rather do other activities than read and only read ifit is really necessary. (3) The avid readers who actually love reading. Reading is theirfavourite hobby. (4) Those who read for job-related needs who specifically readbecause they believe that reading plays a vital role in theirjob as regards the knowledge and skill that can be acquiredthrough reading. (5) Those who do not deny that reading is important but find thatthey do not have the time. These may be those who are involvedheavily in their work. From the Quick Cluster analysis, four clusters were identifiedwhereby variables with loading of above five were grouped intotheir respective clusters. Table 22 in Appendix 1 shows theselected clusters and variables.

Referring to Appendix 2 and from the analysis done on the factorscores, Cluster One can be identified as those who believereading is important but are too busy to read (2.7% of therespondents fall into this cluster). Cluster Two, whichaccounted for 60.8 per cent of the respondents, are the avidreaders whereas Clusters Three and Four can be categorized asthe marginal readers (36.0%) and the non-readers (0.5%). CONCLUSION The study was undertaken to examine the reading habits andinterests of urban working professionals, executives andmanagers ranging from junior to senior management in the KlangValley. It specifically looks into the respondents' readingbehaviour, purposes, attitudes and the reading preference toobtain a better understanding and insight into their readingpattern. It is hoped that the findings of the study willincrease the awareness among the corporate sectors regarding theimportance of reading in developing thinking individuals, who inturn, become strategic human resources that will give thecompetitive edge to the organization in this information age. Implications of the study This study has brought to light some of the salient points ofreading habits and interests of the majority of urban workingprofessionals, executives and managers. It is very encouraging to discover that many of theprofessionals, executives and managers have a positive outlookon the importance of reading since knowledge through readingamong this group gives a strategic position for an organization.Stronger emphasis by the middle and senior levels of managementon reading revealed that there is a substantial awareness amongthis group of individuals on its importance. However, there is a lack of reading among the junior levelindividuals who may not be aware of the impact of reading fortheir self-development. Management, specifically at the higherlevel, has a role to play to encourage wider reading among theexecutives. One area that the management can look into is to have morematerials made readily available to them in their places ofwork, for example, by subscription to or setting up of librariesof knowledge centres in their organization. A certain amount ofresources needs to be set aside for this purpose. Organizationsmust look upon this as a form of long-term investment asknowledge and information will enhance their workforce and givethem the competitive edge in the long run. Reading materialsneed to be made easily accessible, specifically foreignpublications. With globalization, knowledge about foreignhappenings (business or non-business) is important for us tocompete effectively with other global competitors. Emphasisshould be placed on the environment and information technologysince these are current issues that will have significant impacton the operations of the organization. Motivation can also be given to employees through continuous

training and orientation programmes where the idea of reading asa constant practice can be imparted to them. Organizations mayconsider encouraging their employees to attend seminars onreading, which are not meant only for academicians. Someorganizations have their own editorial departments that publishbulletins and newsletters for their employees. These departmentscan be used more effectively to disseminate knowledge andinformation. It is disappointing to note that Internet usage among theprofessional individuals is still low although computernetworking has become more prominent in information search.Better information systems may need to be implemented toencourage better networking. There is also a tendency for female executives and managers tohave less interest in business-related materials and topics suchas information technology. Women, on the whole, should keepthemselves abreast of the business world. Acquiring new andtimely knowledge and information, especially in business-relatedissues, is essential to all corporate individuals. Suggestions for future research This exploratory study also has some implications for futureresearch. Due to time and cost constraints, the sample size inthis study is quite restricted. The scope of the research hasbeen substantially wide too. Thus, future studies should contemplate a larger sample size andusage of a stratified sampling method. The study should be morefocused, for example, concentrating on a particular industry ora certain level of management. Reading habits and interests inother parts of the country can also be carried out to help shedlight on whether the reading behaviour in a different settingwill give rise to different results. The questionnaire developed in this study has room forimprovement. More relevant aspects and attitude statements canbe included to give future studies a more comprehensiveapproach.p REFERENCES Asheim, L (1956). What Do Adults Read? Adult Reading, 55thYearbook of the National Society for the Study of Education,Part II, University of Chicago Press, pp. 5-28. Atan bin Long, et al. (1984). A Survey on the Reading Habits andInterests of Malaysian People, KL: DBP. Bullock, A (1975). A Language For Life: A Report of theCommittee of Inquiry Appointed by the Secretary of State forEducation and Science, London: Her Majesty Stationery Office. Butler, H. (Jan 1940). An Inquiry into the Statement of Motivesby readers, Library Quarterly X, pp. 1-49. Cole, J and G, Carol S (eds) (1978). Reading in America,Washington D C: Lib. of Congress.

Englander, M E (Feb 1960). Changes in Affect Attributed to Ins.In Reading Improvement at the College Level, Journal ofEducational Research LIII, No: 6, pp. 231-26. Fendrick, P (Mar 1941). Newspaper Reading Interest of HighSchool and College Students, Journal of Educational ResearchXXXIV, pp. 525-30. Gates, A I and Jenning, F C (1961), The Role of Motivation,Development in and through reading, 60th Yearbook of theNational Society for the Study of Education, Part I, Universityof Chicago Press, pp. 109-20. Gary, W S (Feb 1959). Summary of Investigations Relating toReading July 1, 1958 to June 30, 1959, Journal of EducationalResearch LIII, No: 6, pp.203-222. Gordon, N R (1976). Books As A Way of Life: Reading in aChanging World, ed. Mohrhardt, Verlag Dokumentation Publication. Hewett, R P (1960). Reading and response, London: George GHarrap. Jenkinson, A J (1946). What do Boys and Girls Read? AnInvestigation into the Reading Habits with some Suggestionsabout the Teaching of Literature in Secondary and SeniorSchools, 2nd Ed., London Methuen. Leng, I J (1974). Children in the Library, Cardiff: Universityof Wales Press. Lim The Eng (1974). A Study of the Reading Habits and Interestsof 6-Form Students in English Medium Schools and their use ofthe School Library Facilities, Kuala Lumpur: University Malaya. Mann, H P (1971). Books, Buyers and Borrowers, Andre Duetsch. Pafford, M K (Oct 1959). Some Indications of Literacy InterestsAmong 6th Formers and Undergraduates, Research and Studies,University of Leeds, Institution of Education, No: 20, pp.30-37. Philippi, Jorie W (1993). Acquiring and Using Literacy Skills inthe Workplace. In: S R Yussen and M C Smith (eds), ReadingAcross the Life Span, Springer-Verlag. Rita Vias (1988). Problems and Recommended Solutions inPromoting Reading in Malaysia-How to Promote Reading Habits inAsia and the Pacific, Report of the 21st Training Course on BookProduction in Asia and the Pacific, Tokyo, 13-31 October. Sahai, S N (Sept 1971). Personality Trait as Determinants ofReading Purpose, Research in Librarianship III, No: 18, pp.161-75. Sahai, S N (Dec 1971). Sex, Age, Education, Occupation andIncome as Determinants to Fiction Reading Behaviour, Annals ofLib. Science and Documentation, Indian National ScientificDocumentation Centre, Delhi XVIII No: 4, pp.177-80.

Salleh Mohd Nor (1994). Reading in the Context of Management,Proceedings of the National Seminar on the Promotion of ReadingHabits in Malaysia, June. Sharon, A T (1973-74). What Do Adults Read? Reading ResearchQuarterly, 9:2, pp. 148-169. Wall, W D (1948). The Newspaper Reading of Adolescents andAdults, British Journal of Educational Psychology XVIII, pp.24-6. Yarlott, G and Harpin, W S (Nov 1970). 1000 Responses to EnglishLiterature (I), Educational Research XIII, No: 1, pp. 3-11. Yarlott, G and Harpin, W S (Feb 1971). 1000 Responses to EnglishLiterature (II), Educational Research XIII, No: 2, pp. 87-97. Yeoh, M (1995). Vision & Leadership: Values and StrategiesTowards Vision 2020, Pelanduk Publications. APPENDIX 2 List of Attitude StatementsVAR01 I think I have enough reading in school or university.VAR02 I don't care much for reading.VAR03 I read only materials related to my job/career.VAR04 I am more competent in my job with the new knowledge acquiredthrough readingVAR05 I only read when a topic really interests me.VAR06 My busy schedule discourages me from reading.VAR07 Bookshops are one of my favourite shopping spots.VAR08 I always read whenever I have the time.VAR09 I read to keep myself abreast of the latest information on business.VAR10 Getting information from TV is faster and more enjoyable for me.VAR11 I will try to get reading material if it is good.VAR12 I only read if I don't have anything else to do.VAR13 I always encourage others to read.VAR14 I don't spend my money buying a book or magazine.VAR15 I usually don't have much time to read the newspaper thoroughly.VAR16 Reading can enhance my job-related knowledge and skill.VAR17 I enjoy sports such as golf more than reading.VAR18 I read only during my lunch/coffee/tea breaks.VAR19 Reading sends me to sleep.VAR20 It usually takes me a long time to finish a book.VAR21 Reading a book is too time consuming for me.VAR22 I always make sure that I have time to read.VAR23 I will only go to the bookshop/library if I need to get a particularreading material.VAR24 I read to seek new knowledge and more information relating to my job.VAR25 I like reading but I do not have the time.VAR26 I enjoy reading a lot.VAR27 I have a hard time focusing when I am reading.VAR28 Reading is important but I am too busy.

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Reading habits and interest of children aged 5 - 9 years

It is appropriate to discuss reading habits and interests with a review of activities that of interest to children. Table 1.4 illustrates the activities of children aged 5 to 9 years in order of importance.

Base: All aged 5 - 9 years

Table 1.4 Activities of interest for children aged 5 to 9 years

Chart 1.5 shows the principal types of reading material preferred by children aged 5 to 9 years. Comics is the main type of reading material children prefer (41 percent), followed, at a distance, by books (26 percent), newspapers (10 percent) and magazines (6 percent). Table 1.6 provides data on the incidence of reading of the various types of reading material by gender, age group and location.

Chart 1.5 Types of reading material read

Base: All aged 5 - 9 years

Table 1.6 Types of reading material read by gender, age group and location

Reading habits and interest of children aged 10 years and above

Chart 1.7 shows that the types of reading material chosen by Malaysians. The majority of Malaysians read newspapers (79 percent). This is not surprising taking into consideration the pricing, language and circulation and they are the most easily available reading material. Books occupy second position (52 percent) followed by magazines (47 percent) and comics (32 percent).

Chart 1.7 Types of reading material read

Table 1.8 provides data on the types of material read by gender, age group and location. It can be seen from the standpoint of gender, males have a greater preference for newspapers and comics; females on the other hand prefer magazines. Both males and females show almost equal interest in books.

Table 1.8 Types of reading material read by gender, age group and location

The data linking age with types of reading material read gives some interesting results. Charts 1.8 (a), 1.8 (b) and 1.8 (c) display the data in graphic form. The following points can be noted:

Those in the age group 15 to 44 years prefer newspapers; subsequently interest declines. Magazines are read mainly by those in the age group 15 to 34 years after which interest declines

more rapidly than interest in newspapers. Interest in books and comics declines after the age of 24 years; the decline is more rapid for comics.

Chart 1.8 (a): Newspapers

Chart 1.8 (b): Magazines

Chart 1.8 (c): Books

Chart 1.8 (d): Comics

Generally, it can be said that as Malaysians grows older, interest in all types of reading material declines. While this is understandable in respect of comics, the decline in interest in newspapers, magazines and books is particularly intriguing as it defies popular assumption that those in the older generation have more time at hand that they will take up reading of any type of reading material to fill the spare time. It should be however noted that Malaysian society is newly literate, and the older generation are less educated than those in the younger age groups, except for those in the higher income brackets.

In terms of geographical location, the reading of newspapers, magazines and books is more prevalent in the urban areas. Comics are the preferred reading material in the rural areas. Newspapers are the popular reading material in the urban areas.

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The English Reading Habits of ELLS Students in University Science Malaysia

Author: Ms Sarjit Kaur & Ms Rosy Thiyagarajah pdf version

University Science Malaysia

Keywords: University Science Malaysia, literacy, TESOL, ESL, postgraduate students, English proficiency test, foreign students.

Article style and source:

Peer Reviewed. Original ultiBASE publication. Paper presented at the "Sixth International Literacy and Education Research Network Conference on Learning", Bayview Beach Resort, Penang, Malaysia 27 - 30 September 1999.

Contents

Abstract Introduction Purpose of study The USM ELLS degree programme

Conducting the survey Results and discussion Perceptions of reading ability Motivation to read in English Preparation time spent on courses Conclusion References

Abstract

Academic success at the tertiary level is likely a multidimensional phenomenon that includes language proficiency, learning and study strategies and certain personal characteristics (Stoynoff, 1997). As reading is part of academic literacy, lecturers in local universities usually have high expectations of a student's ability to cope with the demands of reading in English. However, a survey conducted among eighty first year students enrolled for the Bachelor of Arts in English Language and Literature Studies (ELLS) programme at the School of Humanities, USM revealed poor reading habits and that the students' perceptions of their reading ability did not commensurate with the expectations of the lecturers. Results of a questionnaire and structured interviews (with a subgroup of 15 students and course lecturers) provided valuable insights about the reading readiness of students about to embark on an academic life. The findings of the survey will help to raise awareness among students and staff about potential reading difficulties and the crucial role that reading plays in the achievement of academic success. The results of this study have implications for admission decisions, academic advising and orienting of new students into the programme.

Introduction

What are the reading habits of Malaysian students at the university? Will efficient readers achieve higher levels of academic achievement? How do our students perceive their reading ability?

When we (with other colleagues of the English section) interview prospective students for the B.A. in English Language and Literature Studies (ELLS) programme, we always seem to ask about their reading habits. We constantly probe into the fabric of interweaving factors of their reading dimension hoping that they will elaborate on their favourite books and authors and comment on their leisure reading interests. During the interviews, we discovered that many of the students read very little (except for some who read the daily newspaper) and seem uncomfortable when asked about their reading interests, citing the usual reasons of the lack of time and access to reading materials to account for the little time spent on this activity. Of course, there have been instances when students have come prepared to these interviews and go to great lengths to explain a Shakespearean play or Dickens novel (often having read the simplified version) to impress us.

How much do Malaysians read? According to the last National Literacy Survey carried out in 1996 by the National Library, the average Malaysian reads only two books a year! This is an improvement compared to an earlier survey in 1982 which revealed that an average Malaysian read a mere page or two a year. The Sunday Star newspaper (8th August, 1999:p2) reports that "the poor reading habits among Malaysians was common knowledge but, in true Malaysian fashion, it took an official survey to jolt the education sector that something had to be done fast." When the survey

findings hit the headlines, the Education Ministry came up with the NILAM (Nadi Ilmu Amalan Membaca or Sapphire) programme in 1998 to nurture the reading habit among school children. In this reading project, students are awarded marks for the number of books they read and the Education Ministry has suggested an award ranking system for primary and secondary schools. However, many schools have yet to start the programme and those that have are still in the infancy stage. Various reasons for setbacks in the implementation of this reading programme have been cited, among which include the recent economic downturn making a national launch impossible. Many teachers have also expressed confusion about the concept and are unsure about implementing it in their schools.

Studies in the past have shown that the exam-oriented educational system in Malaysia promotes rote learning and that there needs to be a paradigm shift in how we view education and about the way we teach ((Chitravellu, 1997; Osman, 1997). The Education Minster, Datuk Najib Tun Razak, has frequently commented in the local media that most students read only to pass exams and do not read for pleasure. He has been instrumental in implementing many projects aimed at improving students’ reading ability in the country. Reading skills are important through out our lifespan, particularly as we respond to new demands and changes in jobs and reading for pleasure or recreational has been found to improve reading comprehension, writing style, vocabulary, spelling and grammatical development (Krashen, 1993). The positive and rewarding effects of recreational reading have been demonstrated in numerous studies (Burgess, 1994; Krashen, 1984, 1993)

Over the past over the past twenty years, increasing numbers of Malaysians have enrolled in institutions of higher learning in the country. Admission decisions are usually made on the basis of the applicants’ academic performance in standardised national exams like the ‘A’ levels or the STPM (Sijil Tinggi Pelajaran Malaysia). Hence, identifying the reading habits of university students will have tremendous significance on the local universities and for the students themselves. Most attempts to predict the academic performance of local university students have not focussed on the students’ reading habits. As Stoynoff (1997: 2) notes,"academic success is likely a multidimensional phenomenon that includes language proficiency, learning and study strategies, and certain personal characteristics." The intent of the present study is to investigate the students’ reading habits and their perceptions of their reading ability. We have defined reading habits as regular tendencies in reading behaviour. top

Purpose of study

The purpose of the present study was to find out answers to the following questions:

1. How much time do university students spend on reading materials in English? 2. How do university students perceive their reading ability? 3. What motivates them to read? 4. How much time do they spend on preparing for their courses?

The USM ELLS degree programme

The BA Honours in English Language and Literature Studies (ELLS) programme, designed to be in line with the national education policy and the aspiration of the nation to make English the effective second language, is a degree course which was first offered by the Centre for Languages and Translation, USM. It has taken into consideration the objectives of the KBSM (New Curriculum for Secondary Schools) and has also included a literature component that will equip the graduates with

the required knowledge and skills. The programme aims at meeting the current shortage of good teachers of English in the education system and producing competent teachers qualified to teach English as well as literature in English as required in the KBSM programme

Admission into the ELLS programme is based on the student’s STPM results, candidates sponsored by the Ministry of Education and candidates with recognised teaching qualifications or its equivalent (USM Handbook for BA ELLS programme, 1989). It is also stipulated in the programme that candidates must pass all courses offered for the degree course and that they must satisfy all coursework requirements. The course structure requires students to take 111 units over the three year duration. Top

Conducting the survey

The sample consisted of 63 students enrolled in the B.A.ELLS programme. These students were selected because they were first year students and they were new to academic life in a university. Also, a majority of them have worked as primary school teachers. A total of 63 questionnaires were administered during one of their foundation course lectures. Both teachers personally administered the questionnaires.

A survey entitled ‘The Reading Habits of ELLS students’ was developed for this study. It consisted of 5 demographic questions (gender, race, age, level of education and teaching experience), 1 question about their frequency in reading, 1 question on their perceptions of their reading ability, 1 question on their motivation to read and 2 questions on preparation time spent on their courses. In addition, structured interviews were conducted with 20 students to elicit more detailed information about their reading habits. Top

Results and discussion

The questionnaire revealed that the majority of students (82.5%) were females, were in the 25-29 age group, possessed a Teacher Training Certificate and 41.2% had 3-5 years of teaching experience. It was interesting to discover that two students had nineteen years of teaching experience and one had twenty-two years.

Table 1: Students’ frequency of reading

Hours per week

Reading materialsPercentages of students

less than 1 hour

Comic books 60.3%

  Letters 38.1%

  Journals 38.1%

1 – 2 hours Magazines 33.3%

3 – 5 hours Literary works and ELT books69.8%

  Newspapers 28.6%

  Novels 25.4%

The information gleaned from the questionnaire (refer to Table 1) revealed that while many students preferred spending as much as 3-5 hours per week on reading yet the breakdown of the responses indicated that 69.8% of them spent this amount of time on literacy works (i.e. poetry and drama) and ELT books, 28.6% on newspapers, 25.4% on novels and 25.4% of the students responded ‘non-applicable’ regarding the frequency of reading novels. Although many students claim to read literacy works and ELT books yet it was revealed during the structured interviews that they face tremendous problems in coping with reading literary texts prescribed by their lecturers saying they were still not very confident. Some of the comments:

"Reading literature is tough! I am blurred/shocked/devastated"

"It’s something very new."

"The more were read the more we do not know."

The above comments related to plays, like "King Lear’ and "The Importance of Being Earnest" and some selected poems (21 in numbers) by Spencer, Kipling, Browning and Sassoon.

We were also informed that before coming to the university they had more time to read the various types of English newspapers (e.g. The Star, New Straits Times, etc.) but now they have no time and preferred to watch English news over TV or read the newspaper in the common room. Only 25.4% responded that they read novels (some last read a novel six months or three months ago). Favourite types of novel were horror stories (by Stephen King) romance and mysteries. During the structured interviews some said they rented books from bookshops and only one student (female) said she frequented her hometown library. The reasons for little reading of novels were time constraints, marital responsibilities, limited interest and the high price of imported books. Students reported the money spent on book purchased ranged from only RM3.90 – RM5.00 per book (usually from the Popular Bookshop in town). Gallik (1999) in a study on the recreational reading habits of college students in central Texas also found that only 35.2% of her respondents read novels.

Only 1-2 hours per week were spent on the reading of magazines: female students favouring magazines like Cleo, Home Scene, Motherhood and Reader’s Digest, while the male students read Time, Newsweek, etc. (while not subscribing to them). top

Perceptions of reading ability

Generally the ELLS students perceive themselves as being efficient readers of the various types of reading materials like newspapers, magazines and letters. Table 2 below summarises the findings of responses to questions of students’ perceptions of their reading ability:

Table 2: Perceptions of Reading Ability

Reading Materials

      Perceptions of Reading

Ability

  Very Efficiently(%)

Efficiently(%)

Quite Efficiently(%)

Not very Efficiently(%)

Not Efficiently(%)

N/A(%)

Newspaper 25.4 41.3 28.6 3.2 - 1.5

Magazines 15.9 41.3 25.4 14.3 - 3.1

Comic books

16.9 24.8 20.8 13.7 5.8 19

Letters/e-mail/chat rooms

21 35 19 9.5 3.2 6.3

Novels 20.6 31.7 27 11.1 - 9.6

Literary works

3.2 7.8 35 48.6 4.8 1.6

ELT books 1.4 32 44.4 20.6 - 1.6

Journals - 20.6 33.3 22.2 4.8 19.1

Although 41.3% of them claim to read newspapers and magazines efficiently, only 31.7% claim to read novels efficiently. It is interesting to note that 48.6% of the students do not rate themselves as highly in reading and comprehending literary works. Similarly 44.4% rate themselves as only ‘quite efficient’ readers of ELT books. In Freidberg and Mahanaimi’s study (1998) on the reading habits of 47 third year medical students in Israel during an integrated endocrinology course, it was revealed that 93.2% of the students had difficulties reading the prescribed course texts. This indicates that generally undergraduates find reading course texts problematic.

During the structured interviews the respondents claimed their reading difficulties were caused by the linguistic load, semantic problems, terminology and unfamiliarity with content areas. Students reported that they could not understand terms like "soliloquy", had little or not enough exposure to poems before and found analysing and criticising poems and novels a problem. They said they were ‘not coping well’, ‘were struggling’ and were ‘at a loss sometimes’. Some felt handicapped by their level of English language proficiency in the reading of literary works. Interviews with other colleagues (four lecturers) in the ELLS programme provided us the same comments i.e. that students have problems grappling with long texts, terminology and unfamiliarity with poems and plays. Students are not ‘independent readers’ and rely heavily on lecturers’ explanations and handouts. Top

Motivation to read in English

The questionnaire revealed that most of the students were aware of their roles as mature students and showed very positive attitudes towards reading. 85.7% of them read in English because they feel it can improve their English Language proficiency. Similarly 74.67% of them read in order to

get good grades in all their courses and 71.4% read in English because they want to become good English language teachers upon graduation. As in other studies conducted among mature learners at Malaysian universities (Kaur and Che Lah, 1999; Kaur and T.Mahadi, 1998), we found that these learning traits truly reflect their Asian characteristics of being goal-oriented and wishing to succeed at the university. Only 42.8% of the students were motivated to read because they enjoyed reading. Top

Preparation time spent on courses

The responses of the survey showed the majority of the students (84.1%) spent 6-10 hours more a week in doing assignments while 33.3% of the students reported they spent 3-5 hours preparing for tutorials. 42.8% of the ELLS students claimed to spend 3-5 hours reading relevant course texts and 41.2% of them spent that same amount of time making notes for their courses. 46% of the students claim that they spend 3-5 hours a week researching in the library. Very little time seems to be spent working on the computer as 49.2% of the students said they spent from less than 1 hour to 2 hours on the computer. This can be attributed to the fact that most of their course assignments are usually submitted at the end of each semester.

Students report that they face difficulties with regard to reading because of several factors. Amongst them are their inability to recall information; new terminology; inability to concentrate; and regressive reading habits. Top

Conclusion

The findings of this survey lead us to conclude that ELLS students need to improve their reading habits. Prior to their entry to USM they have not read much (except while studying in secondary schools). It will be beneficial to have a record of their reading habits in order to make predictions about their academic success in the ELLS programme. Both researchers and other course lecturers concur that generally their expectations of their students’ reading ability, have not been met. It would be helpful to course lecturers and administrators to have a heightened awareness of the reading difficulties faced by our students. One of the steps taken to minimise reading problems would be to incorporate study skills components within the courses or to make reading lists (in particular literature texts) more manageable. Course outlines are already provided online via the computer. Students could enter the university better equipped for success if detailed reading lists (particularly for literature courses which entail the reading of lengthy novels) for lectures and tutorials could be sent to successful applicants of the ELLS programme before they are admitted. Students should be encouraged to use the Internet as a tool to tap valuable reading resources or participate in relevant discussion groups. This activity can assist in the promotion of autonomous learning and make students more independent and resourceful. We hope our "reluctant readers" will continue to read after graduation when the pressure to read is absent thereby helping to foster a reading culture in our society. Top

References

Burgess, A. 1987. A Clockwork Orange. New York: W.W. Norton.

Friedberg, M and Mahanaimi, D. 1998. Reading Habits of Third –Year Medical students during an Integrated Endocrinology Course. Medical Teacher. March 1998, Vol. 20 Issue 2, p 133.

Gallik, J.D. 1999. Do they read for pleasure? Recreational reading habits of college students. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy. Vol. 42, Issue 6, p. 480.

Kaur, S and Che Lah, S (1998). The Sociocultural Development of Mature Learners at the University. Paper presented at the Malaysia International Conference on Languages, Literatures and Cultures (MICOLLAC). The Mines Resort Hotel, Kuala Lumpur. 10-12 May 1999.

Kaur, S and T.Mahadi, T.S. (1998). Challenges Faced By Malay Employees in Using English at the Workplace. Paper presented at the 3rd International Conference: "On the Role of Language in a Borderless World: Harkening to the Voices of Asia". Nikko Hotel, Kuala Lumpur. 10-12 May 1998.

Krashen, S. 1984. Writing: Research, Theory and Applications. Torrence, CA: Laredo.

Metsala, J.L. and McCann, A.D. 1996. Children’s Motivations for Reading. Reading Teacher. Vol. 50, Issue 4: p360.

Stoynoff, S. 1977. Factors Associated with International Students’ Academic Achievement. Journal of Instructional Psychology. March 1977. Vol. 24, Issue 1:p56.

The Sunday Star. 1999. Nurturing the Reading Habit. The Star Education: 8 August 1999:p2.

USM Handbook for ELLS students. School of Humanities, USM, p 14. Top