Abstract:

Mature age admission at universities is increasing rapidly all over the world and Ghanaian universities, both private and public are no exception. The language proficiency of the admitted mature students, especially in reading is often low, which affects their comprehension abilities, and academic work. The purpose of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a Task-based language teaching (TBLT) approach to improve the reading proficiency of mature students.

An intervention using an instructional model that was designed in relation to the specific needs of mature students, was undertaken with a group of mature students. The model comprised the principles of constructivism, principles of cooperative learning, teaching and learning activities, and the four phases of the TBLT approach. The control groups were instructed through the traditional mode. The study used a convergent parallel mixed methods design, with pre- and post-tests for the quantitative data and interviews, together with outsider’s observation for the qualitative data. The quantitative data were analysed using ANOVA and T-Test with effect sizes and the qualitative data were analysed through content analysis.

The results showed that the mature students, who participated in the intervention obtained higher posttest scores, which were statistically significant. The improvement in their reading proficiency as shown in the test results was statistically significant, in comparison to the non-mature and mature control groups, with large effect sizes. Comparatively, although all the groups improved in their post-test scores, the T-test, paired-samples tests and ANOVA indicated the highest improvements in the reading post-test of the experimental group in comparison to the other control groups.

Results from the qualitative data supported the findings of the quantitative data. Frequent feedback, enthusiasm and willingness by students, enabling classroom environment, motivation, collaborative learning and mature-only class contributed highly to the positive results of the post-test. Based on the findings, recommendations are made for the use of an adapted TBLT approach for improving the reading proficiency of mature age students.

Keywords:

Task-based language teaching (TBLT) method, reading proficiency, English as a second language, mature students, student-centred, task-oriented activities.