An Investigation into Detecting Learners’ Difficulties in Reading Comprehension in English for Academic Purposes Context

Abstract

The current study aims to detect EAP learners' difficulties in reading comprehension. The study was conducted with second-year doctoral students of Biology in the Natural and Life Sciences department at Biskra University. Methodologically, in the present study, the interpretivist paradigm was associated with the qualitative approach. As for the research design, the researcher opted for a case study. To collect data, an unstructured questionnaire, and test were utilised. In order to analyse the collected data, descriptive methods were used. To carry out this research, a sample of 16 students was purposely selected to answer the questionnaire and proficiency test. It is worth mentioning that a needs analysis framework was applied to identify target group needs, lacks, and wants. Ultimately, the findings demonstrated that students struggle with poor comprehension of science texts written in English due to different factors. This study also revealed the students real need for improvement in specific English related to their field of study, biology studies. By the end of this investigation, the researcher provided some recommendations to meet target group expectations and to be a starter for future research to overcome the EAP difficulties of biology students