The Effect of TRAP Paraphrasing Strategy on Improving Secondary Stage Students' EFL Reading Comprehension of Authentic Texts

Abstract
This study aimed at investigating the impact of the TRAP paraphrasing strategy on improving secondary stage students’ EFL reading comprehension of authentic texts. Participants were (60) second year secondary stage students at Mahallat Abo-Ali Secondary School for Girls, East Mahalla Educational Directorate, Gharbia Governorate, in the first term of the 2021/2022 academic year. The study adopted the quasi-experimental design using two groups: an experimental group (n=30) and a control one (n=30). To collect the data, the following instruments were employed: an EFL Reading Comprehension Skills Checklist, an EFL Reading Comprehension test and an Authentic Texts Selection Criteria Checklist. The experimental group was taught using the TRAP paraphrasing strategy, whereas the control group was taught using regular instruction. Research results revealed that there was a statistically significance difference between the mean scores of the two groups on the EFL Reading Comprehension Skills test in favor of the experimental group.
Key words: Reading comprehension, Authentic Texts, TRAP paraphrasing, Secondary Stage Students