Improving Students' Reading Comprehension Of Descriptive Text Through Gallery Walking Strategy
This study aims to improve Grade V students’ reading comprehension of Islamic descriptive texts through the implementation of the Gallery Walking strategy in an English for Young Learners (EYL) classroom. The Gallery Walking strategy is implemented by having students work in small groups, move from one station to another, read short and simple texts, and discuss answers collaboratively using guided questions. The study employed a Classroom Action Research (CAR) design conducted in two cycles, involving planning, acting, observing, and reflecting stages, implemented collaboratively between the researcher as the teacher and the classroom teacher as the observer. The findings indicate a marked improvement in students’ reading comprehension. In Cycle I, only 52% of students achieved the minimum mastery criterion (≥ 76), indicating difficulties in identifying explicit information and answering basic comprehension questions. After instructional revisions in Cycle II, the proportion of students achieving mastery increased and successfully exceeded the predetermined success criterion (≥ 80%). This improvement was reflected in students’ ability to recognize vocabulary and understand short descriptive texts more meaningfully. It was also supported by increased student participation and more positive learning responses, indicating a more engaging classroom environment. The findings suggest that repeated text exposure, structured peer interaction, and the use of simplified contextual texts contribute to students’ comprehension development. Therefore, the Gallery Walking strategy effectively improves students’ basic reading comprehension and promotes active learning in the EYL classroom.