Browsing by Author "Molagoda, H.M.T.M.H."

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    A Diachronic Study on the Expansion of the English Lexicon
    (Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, 2019) Molagoda, H.M.T.M.H.
    English which is claimed to encapsulate a rich vocabulary has been nourishing its lexicon from antiquity to the modern times. This study aimed at conducting a diachronic study on the expansion of the English lexicon in emphasizing how the rags to riches story of English coincides with the enrichment of the English lexicon. To accumulate data for the study, the secondary data collection sources such as research articles, books, and journals were referred and semi-structured interviews were conducted with two senior lecturers in English. It was discovered via a qualitative analysis that the external history of England immensely contributed to widen the English lexicon. In expanding on the external history, the contribution of the first known inhabitants of England, Celtics was merely limited to the names of rivers and places. The Germanic tribes, Anglo Saxons that comprised Angles, Jutes, and Saxons arrived at England to assist Celts against Picts and Scots and the fusion of their dialects gave birth to Old English which was spoken from around the 5th century to the 11th century. The Christianizing of Britain during this period upon the arrival of St. Augustine in 597 BC added a host of Latin words related to religion, education, clothing and household etc. Then, the Age of Vikings contributed many Scandinavian words while the Norman occupation in the Middle English period which was characterized by the use of French contributed about 10,000 French words to the enrichment of English. Later, Shakespeare's works, King James Bible, and the mega events such as industrialization, colonization, and globalization gifted a great deal of new lexemes, borrowings, loan words, and idioms to enrich its vocabulary. In conclusion, English can be identified as a flexible language which absorbs the lexical items to suit the needs for its enrichment, development, and growth.
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    Exploring the Effectiveness of Applying Active Reading Strategies in ESL Classrooms to Enhance Reading Comprehension of Learners
    (Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, 2020) Molagoda, H.M.T.M.H.
    Reading is indubitably an indispensable skill to master in the process of acquiring the English language for it provides learners the exposure to the target language whilst honing their lexicon, expression of ideas, grammatical knowledge, etc. Yet merely answering a set of questions after spending much time translating difficult words to one’s native language which happens in most ESL classes does not adequately facilitate reading comprehension. Thus, this study intended to explore the effectiveness of applying active reading strategies in ESL classrooms to enhance the reading comprehension of learners. The objectives were to identify and implement active reading strategies in authentic ESL classes and to explore learners’ perspectives on the use of these novel approaches. The primary data were accumulated from 160 students from the University of Ruhuna via group interviews, structured questionnaires, and participant observation. Secondary data were collected from books and research articles. The acquired data were analyzed both qualitatively and quantitatively. The researcher implemented the active reading strategies, scanning, skimming, critical reading, predicting, inferencing, summarizing, discussing, frontloading vocabulary, and choral reading in the ESL classroom. The respondents confirmed the researcher’s observation that their exposure to the above reading strategies followed by constant practice assisted them to comprehend reading materials better and they sparked their interest to read more in English. Moreover, the majority stated that choral reading helped them practice pronunciation while frontloading vocabulary made them focus on the meaning of texts during reading sessions without having to focus much on decoding the words in texts. In conclusion, active reading strategies assist to enhance reading comprehension of learners. Keywords: Active reading strategies, Reading comprehension