The Effect of Video- and Audio-Assisted Reading on Saudi EFL Learners’ Reading Fluency and Comprehension

To be successful, students must have excellent reading abilities, as reading is the most important skill for achieving high levels of learning and personal development. This study aims to investigate the effectiveness of using audio-visual aids to develop reading fluency and comprehension among English language students of the University of Jeddah. This quantitative research employed a quasi-experimental method. Data were collected from a reading comprehension test and a reading fluency test, measuring students’ word count per minute. Participants were divided into four groups, two each (a control group and experimental group) of men and women students. The men and women experimental groups comprised 26 students each, while the control groups comprised 24 and 28 students, respectively. The experimental groups watched videos to activate their thinking before reading the passage, and then read comprehension passages. Contrarily, the control groups were taught conventionally. Two achievement tests were used as pre-test and post-test to determine the improvement in the experimental groups. Independent- and paired samples t-tests were performed to compare the results of the two groups, which showed that the experimental groups outperformed the control groups in reading comprehension and reading fluency (p < .05). This study also investigated the differences between men and women regarding reading fluency and reading comprehension; the results did not show any differences between them (p > 0.05). These positive results shows that video and audio are effective for students in developing and supporting their reading fluency and comprehension. Therefore, it could be integrated and combined with traditional textbooks as supporting material to enhance reading skills among English language students.