Systematic Literature Review of ESL/EFL Reading Strategies

Abstract

Reading comprehension has a fairly large impact on one's ESL general proficiency. Much research has been done focusing on how reading comprehension might be enhanced in the past. Few systematic researches have been carried out on the impacts of reading comprehension among ESL learners. The present article set out to analyse the existing literature on ESL/EFL reading strategies in improving reading comprehension among English non-native speakers. Guided by the PRISMA Statement (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses) review method, a systematic review of the Scopus and Google Scholar databases identified 36 related studies. Further review of these articles resulted in three main themes-reading strategies used, reading strategies and gender, as well as reading strategies and MALL. Several recommendations are highlighted related to conducting more experimental studies and for the researchers to add more systematic reviews in this particular topic.