This paper is an attempt to synthesize the most popular approaches to categorize reading strategies and proposes an effective instrument to assess students’ reading strategy use. | VNU Journal of Science: Foreign Studies, Vol. 32, No. 4 (2016) 52-63 A Modified Survey of Reading Strategies (SORS) - a Good Instrument to Assess Students’ Reading Strategy Use Nguyen Thi Bich Thuy* College of Techniques, Economics and Trade, Phu Lam, Ha Dong, Hanoi, Vietnam Received 25 August 2016 Revised 24 November 2016, Accepted 29 November 2016 Abstract: Reading comprehension is one of the most important factors in English language learning for all students because it provides the basis for a substantial amount of learning in education [1, 2]. Being aware of the importance of reading strategies and their impact on language learning researchers all over the world have taken a lot investigations into this field. This paper is an attempt to synthesize the most popular approaches to categorize reading strategies and proposes an effective instrument to assess students’ reading strategy use. Keywords: Reading strategies, reading strategy classification, reading comprehension, readers. 1. Introduction making. Comprehension is enhanced when the reader actively uses his/her cognitive strategies such as comprehension strategies in the reading process. In order to read effectively, readers always try to draw selectively on a range of strategies, which are determined by readers’ purpose, text type, and context [6]. Reading plays a crucial role in language learning. It is one of the most important language skills that students should be equipped with. It is through reading that students access a lot of information concerning the target language and culture. For either ESL or EFL learners (English as a second or foreign language), it is the important skill to master in order to ensure success in language learning [3]. After all, reading is the basis of instruction in all aspects of language learning [4]. Erler & Finkbeiner [5] have proposed a quite comprehensive definition of reading in which they state that reading comprehension has been conceived of as the result of
