THE RELATION BETWEEN EXTENSIVE READING AND WORKING MEMORY, PROCESSING SPEED, LEARNING MOTIVATION AND LITERACY SKILLS IN A FOREIGN LANGUAGE

Abstract

This article reports on a research project carried out between 2018 and 2019 with eight grade students from two private schools of Medellín, Colombia. The objective of the study was to analyze the relation among an Extensive Reading (ER) program (as proposed by Day and Bamford, 1998) with working memory, processing speed, motivation towards learning and the development of reading and writing skills in English as a Foreign Language (EFL). This project had a pre experimental method with variable control on the age, school level and neuro-cognitive diagnosis of the students who participated in it. Results show an influencing relation between ER and working memory, processing speed and motivation which can explain the cognitive effectiveness of this program. Finally, conclusions regarding the program’s strengths given the impact it had on students’ cognitive performance and learning motivation, limitations on its implementation and future research possibilities are discussed.