Effects of Using a Collaborative Learning Approach on the Reading Comprehension Ability Regarding Thai Literature and Vocabulary Learning Retention of Fourth Grade Elementary School Students

Abstract

This article aimed to compare the year-4 elementary school students’ reading comprehension ability prior to and after instruction using a collaborative learning approach, and to study the Grade 4 students’ vocabulary learning retention. The target population consisted of 22 students who studied in a year-4 elementary school level in the second academic year 2024 at a primary school in Nonthaburi province, Thailand. The students were selected to participate in the research using a purposive sampling method. Research instrument for collecting data was a reading comprehension ability test and a vocabulary academic achievement test. Both were multiple-choice tests consisting of 30 items each. which comprised 30 question items. The instruments for the experiment were 8 lesson plans designed following Collaborative Learning approach. Each lesson plan designed for 1 teaching session; a session comprised 60 minutes. The research was undertaken for 8 weeks, 2 sessions per week, a total of 16 sessions. The numerical data were analyzed to check median score and standard deviation. Additionally, the research results were examined to check statistical significance by using Wilcoxon signed-rank test. The findings showed that the Grade 4 students’ reading comprehension ability significantly improved after the intervention, at the 0.05 level of significance. Additionally, 4-year elementary students had vocabulary learning retention resulting from a comparison of vocabulary academic achievement after the experiment between first and second sessions which showed no significant difference at the 0.05 level of significance.