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教育システム情報学会

2017年度学生研究発表会

Self-Explanation on Reading Comprehension in English as Foreign Language
using Kit-Build Concept MapBanni Satria ANDOKO*1, Yusuke HAYASHI*1, Tsukasa HIRASHIMA*1
Learning Engineering Lab, Graduate School of Engineering, Hiroshima University
Email: ando@lel.hiroshima-u.ac.jp*1

Abstract: This study aims at increasing and retaining English as foreign language learnres' understanding of English
texts. For the purpose we add the Self-Explanation function to Kit-Build Concept Map. Self-explanation is the processof explaining texts or problem to oneself to better understand the material while reading. In this study self-explanation
is to connect propositions in the concept map with texts as the source. The result of this study shows learners accept
the activity and can correctly make self-explanation when they correctly make the propositions related to the texts.
Keyword: Self-Explanation, Kit-Build Concept Map, Reading Comprehension, English as Foreign Language (EFL)

1.

Introduction

the concept map.
Novak defined a tool named concept map, and it
definition is; Concept maps are graphical tools fororganizing and representing knowledge. They include
concepts that usually enclosed in circles or boxes of some
type, and relationships between concepts indicated by aconnecting line linking two concepts. Words on the line,referred to as linking words or linking phrases, specify therelationship between the two concepts (8). KB Map
framework have two characteristics, they are; (A) concept
map building task is divided into segmentation task andconstruction task, and then the segmentation task isreplaced by recognition task of parts of a concept map thatis “kit,” and (B) a goal map should be prepared as an ideal
map that a learner is required to build; the applicabletargets of the KB Map are restricted and it requires several
additional functions for the learning environment.
Therefore, it is necessary to propose an adequate way touse KB map under these restrictions (6).
Example of a goal map as shown in Figure 1. Teachers
create goal maps to represent the structure of knowledge
that learners need to learn. Figure 2 illustrates an exampleof parts. It is call as kit. Although, in general concept map
building, learners are required to extract parts fromlearning resources, in KB map building learners justrecognize the parts

Reading comprehension in English as Foreign
Language (EFL) require a continuous process of multiple
interactions between the learners’ background knowledge
within their mother language and the knowledge thatbeing described in other Language (English). In general,
the reading comprehension of EFL is the same processwith the Mother Language (ML) reading comprehension,
but in EFL it is slower and less successful than ML reading(2).
There are many strategies that being used to support thereading comprehension process. This study focuses on
concept mapping and self-explanation.
Concept mapping gives an advantageous effect onreading comprehension of EFL (3, 4, 5). Kit-Build concept
mapping (KB Map) method (6,7) is effective to reading
comprehension in EFL (2) and realizes immediate
diagnosis.
Self-explanation is the process of explaining texts or
problem to oneself to better understand the material while
reading. Self-explanation contributes to science text
comprehension is by facilitating follow-up processing inwhich readers maintain textual coherence between
sentences through resource-demanding inference
processes (9). Readers who explain the text, either
spontaneously or when prompted to do so, understandmore from a text and construct better mental models of thecontent (1).
This study proposes a learning environment whichfacilitates reading comprehension in EFL with KBMapping and self-explanation. KB-mapping helps
learners' structural understanding of the content.
The composition of this paper is organized as follows.
The next section gives an overview of KB-mapping,followed by explanation of the difference of KB mappingfrom original concept map and relation between KBmapping and EFL reading comprehension. Section 3shows the setting and the method of the experiment in thisstudy. Section 4 shows the result and make discussion on
it. Finally, section 5 concludes this paper and shows somepromises of future study.

2.

Figure 1 an example of goal map
Gas
Solid
Liquidmel(ng
coagula(on
vaporiza(on
condensa(on
sublima(on.
sublima(on.

Figure 2 an example of kit

3.

Self-explanation in KB map

The purpose of this function is to increase learners’
understanding and ideally, they can keep and preserve theinformation or knowledge in their mind much better. This

KIT BUILD CONCEPT MAP“Kit-Build Concept Map” or “KB map” is anapplication that implemented the closed-end approach of225

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new function added one more step on learners’ map. Afterthey make a full proposition, new text windows willappear and require student to highlight a specific sentencefrom the reading material that related to the propositionthey have made. see Figure 3.

process is needed to activate the difficult-to-accessknowledge or memory for previous section of the text
using effortful, step-by-step reasoning activities (10) In
the last 2 sessions, the number of Self Explanation wasincreased very high, showing that learners feel
comfortable and have a strong knowledge to explain theproposition with the Self-Explanation function. Using thisfunction, learners can show the reason why they havemade the propositions,

5.

EXPERIMENTAL SETTING AND METHOD(1) Chi, M. T. H., de Leeuw, N., Chiu, M., & LaVancher, C..
Eliciting self-explanations improves understanding.
Cognitive Science, 18, 439–477(1994)(2) Alkhateeb, M., Hayashi, Y., Rajab, T., Hirashima, T.:
Comparison between Kit-Build and Scratch-Build Concept
Mapping Methods in Supporting EFL Reading
Comprehension, INFORMATION AND SYSTEMS INEDUCATION, 14(1),pp. 1–15,( 2015)(3) Manoli, P. and Papadopoulou, M.: “Graphic Organizers as
A Reading Strategy: Research Findings and Issues”, J. of
Creative Education, Vol. 3, No. 3, pp. 348–356 (2012)(4) Salehi, A. D., Jahandar, S. and Khodabandehlou, M.: “TheImpact of Concept Mapping on EFL Student’s Reading
Comprehension”, J. of Indian J. of Fundamental andApplied Life Sciences, Vol. 3, pp. 241–250 (2013)(5) Phantharakphong, P. and Pothitha, S.: “Development ofEnglish Reading Comprehension by Using Concept Maps”,
J. of Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, Vol. 116, pp.
497–501 (2014)(6) Hirashima, T., Yamasaki, K., Fukuda, H. et al.: “Frameworkof Kit-Build Concept Map for Automatic Diagnosis and Its
Preliminary Use”, J. of Research and Practice inTechnology Enhanced Learning, APSCE, Vol. 10, No. 1, pp.
1–21 (2015)(7) Yamasaki, K., Fukuda, H., Hirashima, T. et al.: “Kit-Build
Concept Map and Its Preliminary Evaluation”, Proc. of the
18th International Conference on Computers in Education,
pp. 290–294 (2010)(8) Novak, J. D. and Cañas, A. J.: “The Theory Underlying
Concept Maps and How to Construct and Use Them”,
Technical Report IHMC Cmap Tools 2006-01 Rev 01-2008(2008)(9) Yasuhiro Ozuru, Stephen Briner, Rachel Best. Et al:“Contributions of Self-Explanation to Comprehension ofHigh- and Low-Cohesion Texts”, Discourse Processes,
47:641–667 (2010)(10) Kintsch, W.. Learning and constructivism. In S. Tobias & T.
M. Duffy (Eds.), Constructivist theory applied toinstruction: Success or failure? (pp. 223–241).Mahwah, NJ:
Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc(2009)

4.1 Procedure
This experiment involving six undergraduate student
who learn English as Foreign Language. We conduct four
sessions and using four different material for each session.
Each session has the same activity, they are:• English group discussion• Reading the material in text
• Map construction• Test• Teaching session• Delayed test after 2 weeks．
4.2 Material
We use four English scientific articles, with Japaneseexplanation and translation in each article. The number ofwords in article is between 450 to 500 words. The numberof proposition in goal map is also limited from 10 to 16
propositions for each material. We prepared acomprehension test, which were a true or false sentence,around 80% of the question are related to the goal map andthe rest are not related but still come from the readingmaterial.
4.3 Results
The purpose of this research is to measure the efficiencyof the additional function in KB-Map. The result of theself-explanation function is shown in the table 1. Thisshows that correct rate of propositions in their learnermaps and the correct rate of self-explanation if they canmake proposition correctly. From this result, most of thestudents could make self-explanations if they could makecorrect propositions.
Table 1. Result of Self-Explanation in the KB-Map
Session1
Session2
Session3
Session4

Correct
propositions (%)
60.4
91.762.1
64.3

CONCLUSION

The tendency of learners using the self-explanation ishigh, it shown that the function could help their learning
process. In the beginning of the experiment some student
failed to understand how to use it, but it changes when
their understanding increase. Further experiment withbigger participants is needed to measure the efficiency ofthe self-explanation function.
参考文献

Figure 3. example of self-explanation in KB-Map4.

2017年度学生研究発表会

Correct
Self-Explanation (%)
74.1
76.4
95.1
96.3

However, when the text was not fit with the reader’sknowledge, consequently, the comprehension process wasbreak down, to follow these kinds of process another226