The Effects of Reading Habit and Vocabulary Mastery on Reading Comprehension among Vocational High School EFL Students

Abstract

Reading comprehension is an essential skill for EFL students because it enables them to understand and acquire information from written texts. This study aimed to investigate the effects of reading habits and vocabulary mastery on reading comprehension among vocational high school EFL students. A quantitative correlational design was employed involving 39 eleventh-grade students of SMK PGRI 1 Ponorogo selected through random sampling. Data were collected using a reading habit questionnaire, a vocabulary mastery test, and a reading comprehension test. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and multiple linear regression analysis through SPSS. The results revealed a very strong relationship between the independent variables and reading comprehension (R = .944). The coefficient of determination (R² = .891) indicated that reading habit and vocabulary mastery jointly explained 89.1% of the variance in students’ reading comprehension. Furthermore, vocabulary mastery had a significant positive effect on reading comprehension, whereas reading habit did not show a significant individual effect. These findings suggest that vocabulary mastery is a stronger predictor of reading comprehension than reading habit among vocational high school EFL students. Therefore, English teachers should emphasize vocabulary development while continuing to encourage positive reading habits to improve students’ reading comprehension achievement.