Abigail Rebecca Middlemas

• BA (Hons) English Language
• An ethnographic study covering engagement with pleasure reading by a group of adult learners of English as a second language

A key aim of the study was to use participant observation to look at how a group of 8learners whose first language was Farsi, engaged with the Magic Mondays literature collection. The collection was put together by Professor Martha Young-Scholten and is designed to be used by adults learning English as a second language with low literacy levels in their second language. The study took place for two hours each week for ten weeks. A Common European Framework of Reference was used to estimate the learners' literacy levels, to see if literacy levels influenced individuals' choice of literature or method of engagement.

Additional participant data was collected to gain an overall picture of interactions between group members. The study was useful in gauging which factors encouraged the learners to take part in pleasure reading and how their interactions regarding the literature may impact literacy skills: reading, comprehension, and pronunciation.

Funding source: Newcastle University

Project Supervisor: Professor Martha Young-Scholten