Mixed-methods research identifies significant linguistic and cognitive challenges in EFL academic reading, suggesting targeted strategies.
Key Points
Students faced significant linguistic difficulties, with complex sentence structures posing the greatest challenge while reading academic texts.
Quantitative analysis revealed a mean score of 3.31 for linguistic barriers, closely followed by cognitive processing challenges with a mean of 2.99.
A mixed-methods approach combined survey data from 39 students and qualitative insights from 8 focus group discussions to delve into reading challenges.
Practical strategies are necessary to advance academic reading skills, addressing linguistic features, cognitive processes, and motivational factors.