Phonological Awareness as a Predictor of Reading Fluency and Oral Proficiency among Senior High School Students: Basis for an Intervention Program
Year: 2026
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: This study examined whether phonological awareness predicted reading fluency and oral proficiency among Grade 12 Strengthened Senior High School students and used the findings to develop a proposed intervention program. A quantitative, non-experimental, descriptive-correlational design with comparative and predictive components was employed among 196 students selected through stratified random sampling from Las Piñas City National Senior High School–Doña Josefa Campus. Researcher-developed assessments measured phonological awareness, oral reading, and speaking performance; data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, group comparisons, Pearson correlation, and separate simple linear regressions. Phonological awareness was rated high (M = 20.79), although phoneme segmentation was the weakest component. Reading accuracy was strong (M = 96.39%), whereas prosodic reading remained developing (M = 2.29). Overall oral proficiency was developing (M = 2.24), with communicative strategies scoring lowest. Significant differences emerged across sex, section, track, and elective cluster. Phonological awareness correlated positively with reading fluency (r = .4425) and oral proficiency (r = .4642), explaining approximately 20% and 22% of their respective variance in separate regression models (p < .001). These results identify phonological awareness as a significant but noncausal statistical predictor of both outcomes. A pilot of the proposed SOUND TO SPEECH program is recommended to address phoneme segmentation, prosody, interaction, coherence, and communication strategies. The single-school, non-experimental design and researcher-developed instruments limit generalizability and causal inference. By identifying interconnected language-learning needs, the study offers school-based evidence for targeted instruction and advances SDG 4 through its potential contribution to equitable, sustainable literacy and communication development.
Author: Jonard Aquino Cardinal
Institution: University of Perpetual Help System DALTA
Language: English
Subfield: Developmental and Educational Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
SDG: Quality education
Open Access status: hybrid
OpenAlex ID: W7225342547