European Journal of Education Studies

ISSN: 2501 - 1111

ISSN-L: 2501 - 1111
Available on-line at: www.oapub.org/edu

doi: 10.5281/zenodo.1134453 Volume 3 │ Issue 12 │ 2017

INCREASING READING COMPETENCE THROUGH

BRAIN BASED LEARNING STRATEGIES IN ELT CLASSES

Ozlem Yagcioglui
Full-time instructor, Dokuz Eylul University,
School of Foreign Languages, Izmir, Turkey

Abstract:
Reading competence is one of the main foreign language learning skills in English
language teaching. All students who learn reading in ELT classes need motivation, and
there are different methods of motivating students in reading classes. Brain-compatible
learning and teaching is one of the most useful strategies in English language
education. This paper deals with brain based learning strategies in reading classes.
Brain based learning strategies will be examined and brain based learning theory will
be highlighted. Sample activities and exercises will be given, and useful websites and
books will be suggested.

Keywords: Brain based learning strategies; Brain based learning theory; sample
classroom activities

1. Introduction

Language learners must be motivated effectively to gain all language skills such as
reading, writing, speaking and listening. Reading competence is one of the fundamental
skills which a language learner should always develop. As it is generally known, there
are lots of methods and approaches which can be used in language teaching and
learning. In recent years, new methods and approaches have been developed to be
used. Brain- compatible teaching is not a new method, but new techniques and
approaches have been developed with the help of this method.
This study is based on the classroom observations of my own teaching situation
to answer the question; ‚How can I make my class hours more joyful in order to make

Copyright © The Author(s). All Rights Reserved.

© 2015 – 2017 Open Access Publishing Group 420
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INCREASING READING COMPETENCE THROUGH BRAIN BASED LEARNING STRATEGIES IN ELT CLASSES

students more active and talkative during their reading classes?‛ I tried to jazz up my classes
to increase my students’ reading skills.

2. Theoretical Background

2.1 Brain-Compatible Teaching and Learning

As Haley (2010:8) indicates:

‚Brain teaching emphasizes how the brain learns naturally and is based on what we
currently know about the actual structures and functions of the brain at several
developmental stages. Although brain-compatible teaching is not a panacea or magic
bullet to solve all of education’s problems, as teachers we must understand certain
principles and use effective strategies in purposeful ways. In other words, we must
understand the reasoning behind our teaching.‛

2.2 Brain-Compatible Theories of Teaching and Learning

A. Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences

According to Howard Gardner, there are eight intelligences; these can be listed as:
bodily/kinesthetic, interpersonal/social, intrapersonal, intro perspective, logical/
mathematical, musical/rhythmic, naturalistic, verbal/linguistic, and visual/spatial.
(Haley, 2010: 8).
Teachers and professors should always pay attention to identifying students’
individual intelligences and it should be recognized that they display them to varying
degrees and that these change overtime. Students must never be stereotyped. If teachers
spend enough time to learn about their student’s backgrounds such as their language,
culture, literature etc., they can also learn the strengths and weaknesses of their various
intelligences (Haley, 2010: 10).
Because there are always different kinds of learning styles in classrooms and,
indeed, everywhere in the world, it is fundamentally important to realise the different
learning styles as a classroom teacher or a professor. The following activities and
characteristics on multiple intelligences have been suggested by Haley (2010:12):

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INCREASING READING COMPETENCE THROUGH BRAIN BASED LEARNING STRATEGIES IN ELT CLASSES

Intelligence Activities Characteristics

Verbal/Linguistic Creative writing/journal writing. Understands order and meanings
Storytelling. of words.
Oral debate/ Explains and teaches well.
Presentations reading Demonstrates memory and recall.
Musical/Rhythmic Jazz chants. Does well in drama, aerobic
Music composition. alphabet/exercise,
Singings/humming. Rhythm and percussion activities,
Musical performance. mime, and sports.
Can discern tones and pitch.
Logical/Mathematical Using graphic organizers. Enjoys abstract pattern recognition
Formulas/number sequences. or inductive/ deductive reasoning.
Pattern games. Discerns relationships.
Problem solving. Does complex calculations.
Deciphering codes.
Visual/Spatial Painting/drawing. Creates graphic representations,
Patterns and Designs. image manipulation, mental
Using various forms of multimedia. pictures.
Sculpture/ pictures. Displays active imagination
Mind mapping.
Bodily/Kinesthetic Dancing, acting, running. Playing Enjoys dancing. Role plays.
sports. Likes drama.
Processing knowledge with body Does well in sports.
motion. Prefers to use manipulatives.
Naturalist Drawing or photographing a Enjoys flora, fauna, and other
natural setting. natural phenomena.
Describing changes in the local Appreciates impact of nature on
environment. self and self on nature.
Planning a campaign which
focuses on endangered animals.
Intrapersonal/Introspective Silent reflection. Relates to inner states of being.
Thinking strategies. Self-reflective.
Complex guided imagery. Is aware and can express
Self-paced independent work. feelings.
Displays higher-order thinking/
reasoning.
Interpersonal/Social Giving/receiving feedback. Discerns underlying intentions,
Cooperative learning. behavior and perspectives of
One-to-one communication. Group another.
projects. Works cooperatively in groups. Is
sensitive to others’ feelings, moods,
and motives.
Excels in verbal/nonverbal
communication skills.

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2.3. Learning Styles

Multiple intelligences and learning styles share certain characteristics, but they must be
distinguished from one another, because it is believed that intelligences are determined
at birth, whereas learning styles can usually be taught, depending on the learners’
attitude and motivation toward the subject matter. (Haley, 2010:11)
Pashler, McDaniel, Rohrer and Bjork (2008:109) state that;

‚…the notion of learning style as a set of preferences and the notion of learning style as
a specific aptitude are very closely intertwined in many discussions of learning styles.
Moreover, it is our impression that among the general public, the notion of learning
styles and the notion of differential abilities are scarcely distinguished at all. There is,
after all, a commonsense reason why the two concepts could be conflated: Namely,
different modes of instruction might be optimal for different people because different
modes of presentation exploit the specific perceptual and cognitive strengths of different
individuals, as suggested by the meshing hypothesis. Similar to the learning-styles
hypothesis, the idea of specific abilities also implies a special form of crossover interaction.
However, the interaction is different in kind from what was outlined earlier as the key
test of the learning-styles hypothesis.‛

Šabatová further illustrates this (2008: 15):

‚In order to understand the theory of learning styles it appears to be logical to start from
individual differences. Of course, the history of learning styles is closely connected with
the history of individual differences or individualities. More precisely, the term ‚learning
style‛ could have been subsequently developed from the term ‚individual difference‛.
Thus, we can say that the individual difference could be a basis of today’s concept of
learning style.‛

Mobbs (2003) illustrates thus:

‚A learning style is a preferential mode, through which a student likes to master

learning, solve problems, thinks or simply react in a pedagogical situation.
The concept of learning style is used to describe individuals differences in the way people
learn. Each person has a unique way to absorb and process experiences and information.‛

Moreover, Mobbs (2003) states that;

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‚Learning Styles were developed by Peter Honey and Alan Mumford, based upon the
work of Kolb, and they identified four distinct learning styles or preferences: Activist,
Theorist; Pragmatist and Reflector. These are the learning approaches that individuals
naturally prefer and they recommend that in order to maximise one's own personal
learning each learner ought to:
 understand their learning style
 seek out opportunities to learn using that style‛

The characteristics of the four learning styles have been summarized in the
following table, according to Mobbs (2003):

Learning
Attributes Activities VLE Opportunities
style

Activist Activists are those people  brainstorming  Interactive learning

who learn by doing. Activists  problem solving  Group work
need to get their hands dirty,  group discussion opportunities
to dive in with both feet first.  puzzles  Communication and
Have an open-minded  competitions virtual classroom (Chat)
approach to learning,  role-play
involving themselves fully
and without bias in new
experiences
Theorist These learners like to  models  Concentrate on concepts
understand the theory  statistics and theories presented
behind the actions. They  stories in a variety of ways
need models, concepts and  quotes  Discussion groups could
facts in order to engage in  background facilitate more thorough
the learning process. Prefer information debate around theories
to analyse and synthesize,  applying theories than in a time-limited
drawing new information seminar
into a systematic and logical
'theory'
Pragmatist These people need to be able  time to think about  Interactive learning
to see how to put the how to apply  Problem-based learning
learning into practice in the learning in reality
real world. Abstract concepts  case studies
and games are of limited use  problem solving
unless they can see a way to  discussion
put the ideas into action in
their lives. Experimenters,
trying out new ideas,

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theories and techniques to

see if they work
Reflector These people learn by  paired discussions  Problem-based learning
observing and thinking  self-analysis  Presentation of content
about what happened. They questionnaires from a variety of
may avoid leaping in and  personality perspectives
prefer to watch from the questionnaires  Discussion groups allow
sidelines. Prefer to stand  time out asynchronous
back and view experiences  observing activities communication - time to
from a number of different  feedback from reflect before
perspectives, collecting data others contributing
and taking the time to work  coaching
towards an appropriate  interviews
conclusion

3. Method

3. 1. 1. Participants
The participants consisted of 120 university students at Dokuz Eylul University in the
city of Izmir in Turkey. Their ages ranged from 19-23.

3.1.2. Teaching Procedure

The participants were asked to reply to the following questions during the 1 st and the
2nd weeks of their courses:
1. Do you like listening to music while studying English?
2. Do you like drawing pictures?
3. Do you like taking photos?
4. Do you like acting and dancing?
5. Do you like using the internet?
6. Do you like using your mobile phone for learning English?
7. Do you like cooking?
8. Do you like travelling?
9. Are you an optimist or a pessimist person? Why?
10. Do you live alone or with your family?
According to the answers of the questions asked, different classroom activities
and methods were used to motivate students during class hours.

3.2 Sample Class Activities

Sample Class Activity to Improve Vocabulary Knowledge (Haley, 2010: 160)

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3.2.1 Directions
1. Students were assigned a different vocabulary word.
2. During the class hours, students wrote down other words they heard or read that
helped them describe their vocabulary word.
3. In the other box, a picture of what the word reminded them of or looked like in
their mind was drawn by the students.

Vocabulary Word

Words to Describe Your Word | Draw a Picture

3.2.2 Sample Activity for the Pre-Intermediate Level of Students

Directions: Students filled each link with jobs that were interdependent and gave
reasons why they needed each other. (Haley, 2010: 155)

Interdependence Chains

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3.2.3 Sample Activity for the Upper Intermediate Level of Students

Directions: The following passage was one of the reading passages read by my students
(at Dokuz Eylul University in Izmir, Turkey) during the 2013-2014 academic year and
during the 2016-2017 academic year. (Campbell & Tennant, 2011:27):

Magical & mysterious places

‚Does Utopia exist? What about Shangri-La, Atlantis and El Dorado? Let’s start with Utopia.
The word Utopia was invented by Sir Thomas More who used it as the title for a book he wrote
in 1516. In the book, he described a fictional island in the Atlantic Ocean. Since then the word
has been used to describe a society in which everything is perfect: in other words, a place that
couldn’t possibly exist.
Shangri-La is another fictional place that started life in a book. The book was ‘Lost Horizon’ by
the British author James Hilton. Published in 1933, Hilton described a mystical valley where
people aged more slowly and lived longer. People continue to use the term Shangri-La to refer to
a heavenly place. Although the valley in Hilton’s book is fictional, some places in the Buddhist
Himalaya between northern India and Tibet have claimed to be the location for the story.
Atlantis was an island first mentioned in Plato’s Timaeus and Critias. According to Plato’s
dialogues, Atlantis was destroyed by an earthquake or other natural disaster about 9, 000 years
previously. Plato’s characters say it was situated somewhere outside the Pillars of Hercules,
although most believers think the Atlantic Ocean or Antarctica. Wherever it is or isn’t, the idea
of this lost civilization continues to inspire and intrigue us.
El Dorado was the name of a tribal chief who covered himself with gold dust and then dived into
Lake Guatavita situated in Colombia. The ritual became the basis for the legend of El Dorado
which told of a lost city of gold. The possibility of finding gold in this lost city attracted many
explorers including Francisco Orellana and Gonzalo Pizarro who, in 1541, set off on an
expedition to find their fortune. They didn’t find the city, but Orellana ‘discovered’ the Amazon
River. They were followed many years later by Sir Walter Raleigh who was also unsuccessful in
his attempt. Since then the name El Dorado has been used to describe anywhere that money can
be found quickly.‛

Before the activity:

I asked my students to do skimming and scanning on the passage they would read.
Teaching Procedure:
Step 1: Students read a text, entitled ‚Magical & mysterious places‛ from their
workbooks.
Step 2: Students in my class answered the following exercises: (Campbell& Tennant,
2011: 26)

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Magical & mysterious places

1. Which of these ‘places’ have you heard of? What do you think they have in common?
Utopia Shangri-La Atlantis El Dorado

2. Read the article. Then match the places with their ‘locations’.
1. Utopia a. South America
2. Shangri-La b. the Atlantic Ocean
3. Atlantis c. the Mediterranean Sea
4. El Dorado d. Asia

3. Put the words into the table, according to which legendary they refer to.
earthquake easy money expedition fictional island
longer life lost city of gold lost civilization
mystical valley natural disaster perfect society tribal chief

Utopia
Shangri-La
Atlantis earthquake
El Dorado

4. Read the article to check your answers to exercise 3.

5. Complete the quotes with one of the names: Utopia, Shangri-La, Atlantis, El Dorado.
 ‘Since ----------------------------- is the city of gold, there might be, of gold nuggets, an
entire temple of gold.’ ( The Road to ------------------------------------------)
 ‘It’s the death of a whole culture and a whole heritage. It’s like the city of -----------------’
(Mary Bowen)
 ‘Everybody has their own ideas of ---------------- … I tried to teach myself to enjoy the
present, enjoy the now.’ (Mark Knopfler)
 ‘A map of the world that does not include ------------------------------ is not worth even
glancing at, for it leaves out the one country at which Humanity is always landing.’
(Oscar Wilde)

6. Answer the questions in your own words.

 Can you think of a modern-day equivalent to El Dorado?
 If they did exist, which of the places would you most like to visit? Why?
 Describe your ‘Shangri-La.’

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Step 3: I read the reading passage loudly twice to my students. I also asked them if
there were any new words for them in that passage. I explained the definitions of the
new words in that passage.

3.3.3. Objectives
1. To give students the chance to practice English as much as possible
2. To teach students new words while they are reading the new passages
3. To teach students the pronunciations of the new words effectively
4. To encourage students to participate in role-playing activities
5. To encourage students to join in group and pair-work discussions during class
hours
6. To encourage students to answer the questions of the exercises on reading
passages to increase their fluency in English
7. To encourage students to be more positive and optimistic while learning English
8. To help students to increase their thinking skills while attending pair work or
group work discussions

3.4. Findings

3.4.1. Data Analysis

According to the answers of the questions which were asked during the 1 st and the 2nd
weeks of the courses students had attended, the following results were found:
 120 students indicated that they liked listening to music while studying English
 110 students indicated that they liked drawing pictures
 110 students indicated that they liked taking photos
 115 students indicated that they liked acting and dancing
 120 students indicated that they liked using the internet
 110 students indicated that they liked using their mobile phones for learning
English
 100 students indicated that they liked cooking
 120 students indicated that they liked travelling
 110 students informed that they were optimist students
 100 students informed that they lived alone in Izmir during the academic year

3.4.2 Students’ Attitudes

Classroom applications in this study were conducted in 3 different classes in the
English Preparatory Classes Department at Dokuz Eylul University in the city of Izmir
in Turkey during the 2013-2014 academic year and during the 2016-2017 academic year.

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In each of these classes, there were Turkish university students from different faculties
at Dokuz Eylul University. Students accepted increasing reading competence would be
useful for their professional developments. They enjoyed reading English passages,
jokes and dialogues from different sources. They also liked using the internet and
Google for their studies.

3.4.3 Students’ Perceptions

120 students found the teaching tasks very useful and they realised that they
consistently improved their reading and communication skills. They regularly
participated in pair work and group work activities during the class hours and
informed me that their interests and motivation increased on a daily basis. Accordingly,
the students’ accuracy and fluency in English also improved rapidly.

4. Conclusion

Reading comprehension is one of the basic skills in English language learning. There are
lots of approaches and methods to motivate our students in reading classes. Brain-
compatible teaching and learning is one of the essential methods in contemporary
English language teaching classes. Students have the opportunity to learn new things
according to their tastes and likes with the help of the brain-compatible teaching
methods.
In this paper, brain compatible teaching and learning has been examined, as has
Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences. Learning styles and the characteristics of the
four learning styles have been summarized, with sample classroom activities suggested
for each. It is hoped that this study will help my colleagues to do more enjoyable
courses. It is also hoped that students in the ESL or ELT classes will get more benefits
with this study.

4.1 Discussion Questions for Teachers or Professors

1. Do you think Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences will help you to teach
English better in your classes?
2. Do you think increasing reading competence with the help of the brain-
compatible teaching strategies will help your students to be more fluent in
English?
3. Do you think students who learn Basic English in the pre-intermediate level
classes can get benefits if they are asked to do exercises according to their
multiple intelligences?
4. What are the attributes of your students in learning or improving English?

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References

1. Campbell, R. & Tennant, A. (2011). Reading: Magical & mysterious places. Upper
Intermediate Global Workbook. p.p. 26-27. Oxford: Macmillan Education.
2. Haley, M. H. (2010). Interdependence Chains. Brain-Compatible Differentiated
Instruction for English Language Learners. p. 155.Boston, New York: USA. Pearson.
3. Haley, M. H. (2010). Word Chart. Brain-Compatible Differentiated Instruction for
English Language Learners. p. 160.Boston, New York: USA. Pearson.
4. Mobbs, R. (2003). Honey and Mumford Learning Styles. Retrieved 12 November
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http://www.le.ac.uk/users/rjm1/etutor/resources/learningtheories/honeymumfor
d.html
5. Mobbs, R. (2003). Learning Theories. Retrieved 12 November 2017 from:
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7. Pashler, H., McDaniel, M., Rohrer, D. and Bjork, R. (2008) What evidence is
Necessary to Validate Interventions Based On Learning Styles?: Primary Mental
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http://www.psychologicalscience.org/journals/pspi/PSPI_9_3.pdf
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http://is.muni.cz/th/104803/pedf_m/Learning_Styles_in_ELTsabatovajarmila.pdf

Appendix 1
Links for Multiple Intelligences Theory and Applications

1. Multiple Intelligences Research Study (MIRS). Retrieved 22 November 2017

from:
http://gse.gmu.edu/research/mirs
2. Howard Gardner. Retrieved 22 November 2017 from: www.howardgardner.com
3. Multiple Intelligences: Challenging the standard view of intelligence. Retrieved
22 November 2017 from:
http://www.pz.harvard.edu/projects/multiple-intelligences
4. Gardner, H. E. (2006). Multiple Intelligences: New Horizons in Theory and
Practice. Retrieved 22 November 2017 from:
https://www.amazon.com/Multiple-Intelligences-Horizons-Theory-
Practice/dp/0465047688

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