What strategy could enhance reading comprehension in ESL learners?

Encouraging students to summarize texts is an effective strategy for enhancing reading comprehension in ESL learners because it actively engages them with the material. Summarization involves distilling the main ideas and key details from a text, which requires a deeper understanding of the content. This process helps learners to process information critically and strengthens their ability to identify important concepts and relationships between ideas.

Summarizing encourages students to interact with the text, making connections and integrating new knowledge with what they already know. This active engagement aids in retention and recall, as learners are not merely passively reading but instead reflecting on the material and articulating it in their own words. Additionally, summarization allows teachers to assess understanding and identify areas where students may need further support or instruction, making it a dual-purpose strategy that benefits both learning and teaching.

In contrast, while vocabulary memorization and continuous grammar exercises are useful for language development, they do not directly improve comprehension skills. Restricting reading topics to students' native culture may limit their exposure to a diverse range of ideas and concepts, which is also essential for expanding comprehension skills. Engaging with a variety of texts not only helps students build language skills but also promotes critical thinking and cultural awareness.