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An Exploration of Meaning-Making and Engagement with Multimodal Texts Involving 14-15-Year-Old Students in a Virtual Reading Group https://doi.org/10.17863/CAM.116064 Regis, Callista Fiona, Maine This thesis investigated factors impacting motivation and explored the connections made by a small group of St Lucian adolescents engaging with multimodal texts within a virtual reading group. Over a period of five months, twelve students participated in the reading group via Zoom. Leveraging a case-study design with ethnographic elements, the study utilised unstructured interviews, digital diaries, field notes, and observations to collect data. The data was analysed thematically, aided by Quirkos, and the findings organised according to Sweet and Snow’s (2003) framework for conceptualising comprehension. The research revealed that students' motivation stemmed primarily from curiosity towards unfamiliar aspects of the texts (novelty) and interests. Among the three types of connections examined, personal connections were most prominent and facilitated higher levels of engagement. When students experienced a strong connection with the reading, they employed local St. Lucian dialect and other linguistic and cultural resources to articulate the depth of their convictions. Using their connections, the students critically analysed mainstream St Lucian conceptualisation of colourism and provided expanded perspectives on other themes. In constructing meaning, students analysed the author's depiction of minorities in illustrations within texts they encountered for the first time. The findings highlight the need for mainstream St Lucia and Caribbean definitions of culturally relevant texts to reflect students’ hybridised identities as influenced by local, regional, and international cultural references. Significantly, the research demonstrates that a reading group can complement curricular goals for Form Four English Language and English Literature classes. University of Cambridge 2024-04-06 Thesis Doctoral Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) eng https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/handle/1810/380455 embargo 2027-02-24 https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/bitstreams/93ab6d83-e7b9-4e0c-a405-0286e402f3b6/download e8d0d16fb941f5e7af8fa8c299b0c9a4 https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/bitstreams/104cd09d-001e-404d-b147-57db09c466d0/download 87eda9de84448d1f82354d60eee3eb5f http://purl.org/NET/rdflicense/allrightsreserved motivation, connection, identity, texts, curiosity, engagement, meaning-making.