Inner and Outer Voices: L2 Readers' Experiences of Silent Reading, Reading Aloud and Reading-while-listening

Phonology manifests differently in reading silently (RS), reading aloud (RA), and reading-while-listening (RWL). Walter (2008) argues that L2 readers’ unreliable phonological representations of reading materials lead to comprehension difficulties. Few studies have explored the role of inner speech in reading L2 texts, especially in terms of decoding mechanism (de Guerrero, 2018). Research results on RWL during L2 reading are mixed (e.g. Askildson’s, 2011; Diao & Sweller; 2007; Kim, 2021). This qualitative study, adopting an exploratory case-study approach, aims to investigate L2 learners’ comprehension and experiences across the three conditions. Five international students studying in a UK university participated in reading sessions and follow-up interviews. They were asked to read three IELTS practice task passages, each in a different reading condition. Participants’ oral reading was evaluated using a set of descriptors based on Suzuki (2017). Interview data were coded according to participants’ perceived affordances and challenges, experiences with words of uncertain pronunciation, and their inner voice in each condition. Results indicate very different individual patterns among participants in both their comprehension and perceptions. While some performed best in RWL and liked it most, others found it the most difficult condition to read. All participants experienced hearing an inner voice in RS, while some experienced interference from this inner voice during RWL. Their comprehension generally suffered in RA, and they experienced phonological decoding difficulties to a different extent in this condition. Further analysis suggests that individual differences in L2 decoding skills and reading pace may account for these varied experiences.