Investigating Problems Faced by EFL Students in Comprehending Contextual Meaning of Written Discourse

Abstract

This study aimed at investigating problems faced by EFL students in comprehending contextual meaning of written discourse. The researcher has adopted descriptive analytical method. Two instruments have been used for collecting data relevant to the study, namely questionnaire to teachers of English at some Sudanese Universities and written diagnostic test the fourth year students of English at University of Al Fashir, College of Arts. The study sample of questionnaire comprises (104) teachers whereas the written diagnostic test composes (44) students. The researcher applied SPSS program to analyze and verify the results. The results have showed that EFL students are unable to infer the meaning of the words within text. Moreover, EFL students are able to make mental picture of a text to understand the process that face them during reading. EFL students could achieve considerable success in context when they are exposed to comprehensible input. The study has recommended that instructors should raise students' awareness about the importance of contextual meaning of written discourse. On the other hand, EFL students should be able to deduce the meaning from the phrases as a whole rather than individual word. The EFL students should be taught via linguistic contextual clues so as to understand the meaning of all idioms. Furthermore, Students should be encouraged by their teachers to infer the meaning of the words in a given context. Some suggestions are also proposed for further studies.