A survey on the use of English-language newspapers and other media among Maltese adults

Abstract

The main aim of this study is to investigate the role of English-language newspapers in the daily lives of adult individuals in Malta. It analyses how this medium, which is easily available and inexpensive to buy, provides the reader not only with the updated news or information of the day, but also serves as a means of exposure to the English language for all those literate persons who are beyond compulsory schooling age. In order to find out whether newspapers printed in English can enhance readers' comprehension skills, a qualitative and quantitative research has been carried out among a total of 177 adults (aged 16 and over) attending various adult learning institutions on a full- and/or part-time basis in Malta. A comprehension task, based on an article from an English-language newspaper published in Malta, was devised in order to carry out a part of this investigation. Results indicate that the subjects who performed best in the comprehension task were those with a higher educational background who read English print newspapers regularly. Other media available in English were also taken into consideration in order to verify their effect on the subjects' performance in the comprehension task.