Investigating the Relationship Between Reading Environment and Reading Comprehension of High School EFL Students

Abstract

This study aims to investigate the relationship between students' reading environment and their reading comprehension achievement among high school EFL (English as a Foreign Language) students. A quantitative correlational research design was employed, conducted at a vocational high school in Condet, East Jakarta, involving 90 Grade X students selected through cluster random sampling. Data were gathered using two instruments: a reading environment questionnaire encompassing three dimensions physical/classroom environment, digital reading environment, and ecological/community environment along with a multiple-choice reading comprehension test. The data were analyzed using the Pearson Product-Moment Correlation test via IBM SPSS Statistics version 26. The results revealed a correlation coefficient of 0.622 with a significance value of 0.000, indicating a significant and strong positive relationship between the reading environment and students' reading comprehension. Furthermore, the coefficient of determination (R²) of 0.387 demonstrated that the reading environment contributes 38.7% to the variance in reading comprehension scores, while the remaining 61.3% is attributed to other internal factors not examined in this study, including vocabulary mastery, background knowledge, and intrinsic learning motivation. This study underscores the importance of establishing a holistic and optimized reading environment as a critical foundation for long-term literacy development among EFL learners.