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THE DETERMINATION OF READING HABITS AMONG HUNGARIAN STUDENTS IN SLOVAKIA

Viktoria Gergelyova

Abstract

This paper introduces the results of a survey examining the reading habits of Hungarian students in Slovakia. As the largest ethnic minority in Slovakia is Hungarian, it has extensive primary and secondary native language school networks. The purpose of this research is to map the reading habits of students to answer the question how these habits of different age groups change and what indicators (social background, school success) they correlate with. We have chosen questionnaires composed of 28 questions as a method for examining the students’ reading habits. The total number of survey respondents was 98. There were three age groups involved: 23 students at a secondary grammar school, 38 pupils in the second stage of primary school and 37 pupils in the first stage of primary school. Interestingly, there is no big difference in reading attitudes among the different age groups. The respondents’ answers prove that only a fraction of students read in their free time. On the other hand, the groups, regardless of age, subjectively claim that they do not have problems with reading comprehension tasks. They claim that reading is easy for them, so they understand everything that they read. It can be concluded that these statements are highly controversial with the results of international surveys. These results have potential implications for further research to determine the reading habits and reading comprehension skills of Hungarian pupils in Slovakia.

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