SKETCH YOUR UNDERSTANDING: AN ACTION RESEARCH ON IMPROVING READING COMPREHENSION AMONG GRADE 7 STUDENTS THROUGH DRAWING-BASED INTERVENTION

The purpose of this quantitative research approach utilizing a quasi-experimental one-group pretest-posttest design was to examined the effectiveness of Drawing-Based Intervention (DBI) on improving the reading comprehension skills of Grade 7- Rose students from Asuncion National High School. A 45-item reading comprehension test covering poetry, essays, and short stories was administered during the pre-test and post-test phases. Pre-intervention results revealed “Very Low” comprehension levels, with an overall average score of 30.63%. Following the implementation of DBI, the overall average increased significantly to 74.87%, with poetry comprehension reaching a “High” level (80.95%) and essay and short story comprehension both classified as “Average” (71.90% and 71.75%, respectively). Frequency analysis showed a shift from low pre-test scores clustered between 8 and 16, to higher post-test scores concentrated between 30 and 36. A paired sample t-test revealed a statistically significant difference, (t (41) = 30.2, p < 0.001). The result found out that there was a difference between the pre-test and post-test based on its overall mean. These findings suggest that DBI is an effective, engaging, and learner-centered instructional approach for improving reading comprehension among junior high school learners. To provide a comprehensive understanding of the students' experiences during and after the intervention, the researchers conducted interviews with selected individuals. From the responses gathered, four themes emerged regarding the lived experiences of students: Reading as a Fun and Interesting Activity, Reading as a Fun and Interesting Activity, Increased Motivation to Read, Increased Attention to Detail. Keywords: Reading Comprehension, High School Students, Drawing-Based, Pre-Experimental, Action Research