Language in Reading Research: The Case of a Middle-Tier English-Medium Private School in Pakistan

• In Event: Language Across Borders: Multilingual Realities and Linguistic Justice in Global Classrooms

Abstract

Language is intricately connected to the formation of reading, writing, and thinking cultures in a society. Too often, studies on reading in the Global South use Global North findings to frame their inquiries in spite of the difference in linguistic contexts. While Global North research on reading usually emerges in a language-majoritarian context, Global South researchers also largely keep language invisible in their studies on reading despite their multilingual environment. This paper examines the understudied area of language in reading research at a privileged middle-tier English-medium private school in Karachi, Pakistan, where students mainly converse in English, the official language, in formal spaces in the school but predominantly speak the national language, Urdu, at home (Pervez 2024).
This study surveys salient features of the discourse on reading in the Global South while highlighting the language gap. For instance, in decrying a dearth of reading culture and the deteriorating state of libraries in Nigeria, Igwe (2011) does not mention language whatsoever. Similarly, in attempting to promote reading among unengaged students in Antigua and Barbuda, Warrington and George (2014) do not once reference students’ home language. Likewise, Shah and Saleem (2010) attribute poor reading habits in Pakistan to a range of factors such as dwindling standards of education and absence of a robust library system without discussing language.
Focusing on student attitudes towards reading in Grades 3 and 6 at Karachi Private Academy (KPA) along with voices of key stakeholders such as teachers, librarians, administrators, and parents, this paper probes ways in which the variance of language between home and school complicates the formation of reading habits among students in a resource-rich, literacy-rich space. Utilizing mixed methods research enabled validation of the data using various instruments. Data sources consisted of the Elementary Reading Attitudes Survey (ERAS) results, classroom observation notes, and transcripts of semi-structured interviews of students and school staff along with focus groups with parents.
Findings indicate that despite having positive attitudes towards reading, all interviewed students struggle with unfamiliar vocabulary while reading, including difficulty in understanding sentences, inability to follow storylines, and needing to translate from English to Urdu in their heads. While the teachers, librarians, and administrators together make a concerted effort to cultivate student reading culture, they conceded uneven reading skills among students and blamed parents for lack of support due to non-English home environment. Many parents, in turn, expressed dissatisfaction with their children’s reading habits and shared their expectation that teachers need to encourage children through role modeling.
The scholarly significance of the study lies in its centering of language in reading research in a bi/multilingual context which is often otherwise masked. It has implications for researchers and educators. Research on language in Pakistan is usually limited to literacy in lower socio-economic schools; middle-tier schools are often lumped with elite schools and hardly scrutinized. This study illustrates the need for widening the area of research. Educators will benefit from learning about linguistic challenges students face across the board and introduce pedagogical interventions that may be broadly implemented.

Author

• Saulat Pervez, International Institute of Islamic Thought