Text Difficulty and its Effect on the Comprehension of Cohesive Ties

Dinali E. Devendra

Abstract

Recent approaches to ESL reading have stressed the importance of bottom up skills or a leaner's comprehension of lower level linguistic components. One such linguistic component is cohesion or the formal links, which create ties on the surface of the text. This paper looks at one factor, which can affect the processing of these ties, which is "readability" or the level of difficulty of the text. This paper presents a research, which looks at the effect that the readability of a text has on the comprehension of a particular type of cohesion called reference. It also examines the impact of levels of proficiency on ESL learners' ability to process referential ties at different levels of readability. The study clearly shows that textual factors such as readability can affect the processing of certain linguistic items and that it can compound difficulties in bottom up processing for low proficiency learners.

Introduction

The teaching of reading skills is considered to be an integral component of English language instruction in native, second and foreign language classrooms. Therefore a fundamental issue that has implications for pedagogy and assessment is an understanding of the nature of reading. i.e. What is reading? One of the main sources of contention has been whether reading involves primarily bottom up processes (lower order linguistic skills) or top down processes (higher order interpretation skills involving back ground knowledge). It is now accepted that reading, in whatever context, is an interactive process involving linguistic skills and interpretation skills, which operate simultaneously. (Rumelhart 1977; Eskey 1988; Grabe 1991).

With the advent of the interactive models of reading there has been a refocusing of interest on the role played by linguistic knowledge in successful reading. The connection between linguistic knowledge and reading competence is supported by the studies carried out by Alderson (1993), which indicate a strong overlap between grammar and reading abilities. Alderson suggests that reading tasks may tap into an automatic grammatical ability, which is different, but nevertheless related to the reflective awareness of grammar that is tested in discrete tests of linguistic components. Linguistic knowledge is of special importance in ESL contexts as it plays a crucial part in efficient and effective reading (Ekey 1988; Carrell 1988). It is now accepted that the differences observed between reading in the second language and reading in the first language can be attributed to the role played by language abilities in the second language. As Eskey (1989) says "language is a major problem in second language reading and even educated guessing at meaning is no substitute for accurate decoding" (1989; 97). Furthermore, research conducted by Clarke (1980) also suggests a kind of linguistic "threshold" that has to be reached if higher order interpretation skills are to be used. Thus the contribution made by automatic linguistic processing to efficient reading has now been established. Research has indicated that all aspects of linguistic knowledge (graphic features, letters, words, syntactic structures and the cohesive relations between various sections of a text) contribute to successful reading. This study looks at one aspect of the linguistic knowledge that an ESL reader is expected to bring to the reading task: the knowledge of,, cohesive devices.

Cohesive Devices and ESL Reading

Cohesive devices are certain linguistic devices that contribute to the unity of a text or a piece of discourse. It is this quality of unity or coherence that is one of the chief features of texts/discourse, in whatever form and of whatever length. According to Halliday and Hasan (1976), it is this key feature (that is also called "texture") that differentiates a text from a non-text (i.e. a collection of unrelated sentences). Cohesion contributes to the unity of a text by creating overt links on the textual surface. Cohesive devices link certain elements of a text that are structurally independent of one another. This is achieved when one item provides the source of interpretation for another item in a text. For example in the following sentence

John has bought a new car. He must have spent a great deal of money.

The word "He" in the second sentence is interpreted by referring back to the word "John" in the first. Thus the presupposing element (he) and the presupposed element (John) are integrated into the text, thereby creating cohesion. Cohesive relations can exist within a sentence as well but it attracts less attention in the context of a sentence because a sentence possesses cohesion or unity by virtue of its grammatical structure. The concept of cohesion is required to show how sentences that are structurally independent of one another may be linked together through particular features in their interpretation, since cohesion may be the chief means by which unity is achieved as in the example cited above. According to Halliday and Hasan (1976) cohesion refers to these non-structural text forming relations which are "the relations of meaning that exist within the text and that define it is as a text"(1976:4). Being able to understand the links created by these textual features is an important part of reading, in the first or second language. Research in ESL reading has supported the view that the ability to comprehend cohesive devices which are components of the bottom up textual elements contributes to effective reading comprehension. Sim and Benoussan (1979) state that the comprehension of expository texts by University EFL students can be affected by inability to comprehend function as well as content words. The authors argue that tests of reading proficiency should not focus only on understanding each component separately but also on the cohesive relationship between the components of a text. Cohen and Fine (1978) also support this point of view, as they have found that comprehension of expository texts by non native adult speakers of English is affected by the fact that these readers do not exploit cohesive ties. Charles Alderson (1993) includes cohesive devices as part of the grammatical knowledge that contributes to reading ability. Lipson and Wixon (1986) claim that if reading is viewed as a dynamic process, we need to understated the differential contribution of various text based characteristics such as genre, text structure parameters and the use of cohesion markers to the process of reading. The importance of cohesive devices in reading is, therefore, well established.

Cohesive devices consist of many types; reference, substitution, ellipsis, lexical cohesion and conjunctions. Since cohesion is part of the system of language, the resources or the potential for cohesion is built into the language itself which is the grammar and the vocabulary of the language. Therefore some types of cohesion will use primarily grammatical resources while others will utilize lexical resources. We can classify cohesive devices depending on whether they utilize grammatical or lexical elements.

For the purposes of this study the type of cohesion which will be investigated is reference. This is one of the most frequently used methods of creating cohesion, when a participant or element that is introduced at one place of the test is taken as reference for another that follows. Thus there are certain words in discourse whose meaning can be discovered only by referring to other words in the context. The most obvious example is the third person pronoun (he/himself/she etc). For example in the following sentence

Henry has not come to work to day. He must be sick.

The identity of "he" is gained by referring to "Henry" in the preceding sentence. Referential items are directives that indicate that information has to be retrieved from elsewhere. The specific nature of the information is the particular thing that is being referred to. The specific manner in which reference creates cohesion "is the continuity of reference by which the particular thing or class of things enters the discourse a second time" (Halliday and Hasan 1976:31).

The category of cohesive devices known as reference comprises the grammatical subclasses of personals, demonstratives and comparatives. Personals generally comprise the third person forms of pronouns (he/she/it/they). The category of demonstratives is a form of verbal pointing and can take the form of adverbial demonstrative (here/there/now/then) or nominal demonstratives (this/that/these/those). Comparative reference is an indirect form of reference that creates links in a text by using the concepts of identity or similarity. General comparison is used to express likeness between things (e.g. same, identical, equal) while particular comparison expresses comparability between things in respect of either quantity or quality (eg. better, more). All these types of referential ties creates links within the texts by indicating that information regarding the identity of the thing that is being referred to, has to be recovered from elsewhere in the text.

Readability

Research has shown that the ability to comprehend cohesive ties is dependent on many factors. Studies indicate that some cohesive devices are easier to comprehend than other types of cohesive devices. ESL readers encounter more difficulties in comprehending lexical cohesion than grammatical cohesion achieved by reference, substitution and ellipsis (Cooper: 1994). Another factor that can affect the comprehension of cohesive devices is the level of L2 proficiency. Those students with higher levels of proficiency can comprehend the links created by cohesive devices better than students at lower levels of proficiency. Cooper (op.cit.). The comprehension of cohesive devices can also be affected by the function of cohesive devices in text. Research has indicated that learners' ability to understand cohesive devices is dependent on the nature of the reading task. Learners may be able to handle cohesive relations in tasks at a particular level of discourse but not in others. ESL learners would be able to process cohesive ties when they are placed in a lower levels of discourse such as at the level of a sentence (intra-sentential) rather than at higher levels of discourse such as when links are created between sentences and paragraphs (inter-sentential and inter-paragraph cohesion)(Geva 1992). There are many other factors that can affect the comprehension of cohesive devices, which will not be dealt with at length. 1Reader characteristics such as developmental level, reading comprehension ability, and memory

One factor that this study attempts to investigate is whether the level of difficulty of a text affects the processing of referential ties. In this study the difficulty level of the text is being assessed by a very simple measure, that of readability. Readability is decided by the complexity of the vocabulary and sentence length of a text. Most indices of readability are based on a two-variable formula where one variable is an index of semantic complexity (a measure of the vocabulary demands of a text) and the other is an index of syntactic complexity (usually, sentence length.). Several indices have been developed to measure level of text difficulty such as the Flesch Reading Ease Score, the Gunning Fog Index and the Dale-Chall formula. The readability index that was used in this study is the Flesh Reading Ease score. The Flesch Reading Ease score is based on the number of syllables and the average sentence length in a given section of text. It is possible to test whole pieces of writing or to take samples (3-5 samples for an article or 25-30 in a book). In the Flesch scale (0 – 100) the lower the score the more difficult the prose, the higher the score the easier the text. On the basis of readability scores it is possible to predict reading difficulties for different groups of learners. Levels of reading achievement can be set up and it is also possible to characterize prose on the basis of potential audience and descriptions of style. Klare (1984) states that often the two language variables of semantic complexity and syntactic complexity account for much of the quality of readability in a piece of writing.
Many studies have been done on the effect of readability on reading behaviour. The first group of studies looks at the effect of readability when the motivation to read is not very high. Studies done by Murphy (1947) and Swanson (1948) indicate that when the level of the texts is too difficult readers do not read unless they have to, and also that they will read at a very superficial level. The second category of studies shows that even when the motivation may be high, that if there is a gap between the reader's reading ability and the readability levels of the materials, that reading difficulties would arise. Kern, Stich & Fox (1970) showed the effects of readability on discrepancies in following of military procedures. Studies also indicate that there is a high relationship between readability and the probability that students would complete a programme of studies (Klare & Smart 1973). It is clear therefore that readability can affect reader behaviour, and, in this case, the comprehension of certain linguistic components. Thus in relation to the processing of referential ties, we will investigate whether the readers' ability to process referential ties under various text conditions as defined by levels of readability is in fact one of the parameters of the L2 learners' growing proficiency in the language.
The Study

The subjects

The subjects for this study were students enrolled in the English for Science Programme, an ESP course that is aimed at enhancing the English language skills of students enrolled in the Bachelor of Science Degree, at the Open University of Sri Lanka. Successful completion of this English language programme is a mandatory requirement for the award of the Degree of Bachelor of Science. At the commencement of the main programme of study, (the Bachelor of Science Degree Programme) all students are required to sit a grading test in English to ascertain their levels of linguistic proficiency. These grading tests are conducted by the Department of Language Studies of the Open University of Sri Lanka for all faculties at various times of the year. On the basis of scores obtained at the grading tests, students are categorized according to their levels of linguistic competence. This enables students to receive the appropriate language instruction that would help them deal with their academic texts that are offered in the English medium.
