The Effectiveness of Using POSSE Strategy Integrated with CIRC Technique to Enhance English Reading Comprehension Ability of Grade 6 Students

Abstract

Background and Aims: English reading comprehension remains a persistent challenge for Grade 6 Thai EFL learners, as traditional instruction prioritizes translation, rote memorization, and teacher-centered methods with limited explicit strategy teaching. This study developed and evaluated the POSSE–CIRC Model, integrating the metacognitive POSSE strategy (Predict–Organize–Search–Summarize–Evaluate) with the Cooperative Integrated Reading and Composition (CIRC) technique. The primary aim was to examine the model’s effectiveness in improving reading comprehension; the secondary aim was to explore Grade 6 students’ perceptions of the model.

Methodology: A two-group pretest–posttest experimental design was employed. Participants were 25 Grade 6 students from one school in Phatthalung Province, randomly assigned to an experimental group (n = 13) receiving POSSE–CIRC instruction and a control group (n = 12) receiving conventional instruction. The intervention spanned 5 weeks (2 hours/week, 10 lesson plans). Instruments included parallel reading comprehension pretest/posttests (20 items, 6 sub-skills) and a 20-item perception questionnaire framed by the Stimulus–Organism–Response (SOR) model. Data were analyzed via descriptive statistics, independent-samples t-tests, paired-samples t-tests, Mann–Whitney U sensitivity analysis, effect-size calculation, and thematic analysis of qualitative responses.

Results: Pretest: No significant baseline difference between groups (p = .114). Posttest: The experimental group (M = 9.85, SD = 2.44) significantly outperformed the control group (M = 5.17, SD = 2.29), p = .001, with a very large effect size (Hedges’ g = 1.91). Within-group improvement: The experimental group’s mean score rose significantly from 6.31 to 9.85 (p < .001, Cohen’s d = 1.68), with all 13 students showing gains. Perceptions: Overall rating at a high level (M = 4.07, SD = 0.67), with Stimulus (M = 4.27) rated highest, followed by Organism (M = 4.02) and Response (M = 3.92). Qualitative findings highlighted clear explanations, structured steps, peer collaboration, improved comprehension, and strategy application.

Conclusion: The POSSE–CIRC Model effectively enhanced Grade 6 students’ English reading comprehension, with large, consistent gains and highly positive learner perceptions. The integration of POSSE’s cognitive scaffolding and CIRC’s cooperative support provided a balanced framework addressing both individual strategic processing and collaborative meaning-making. Further research with larger samples and across longer durations is recommended to examine long-term retention and generalizability