摘要：Abstract This study was an attempt to determine the impact of formal instruction of references and conjunctions on reading comprehension of Iranian ESP students. To do so, 72 male and female sophomores majoring in computer sciences were selected randomly from two classes at Shabestar Azad University, each class consisting of 36 students. To make sure of their homogeneity, CELT (Comprehensive English Language Test) was administered to the classes. Then, they were assigned into experimental and control groups. Afterwards, a pre- test was administered to the groups. The experimental group received formal instruction including activities to help them recognize references such as (pronouns,) and functions of conjunctions such as (therefore,), while the control group received no treatment. Following the instruction, a post-test was administered to the groups. The statistical analyses indicated that the participants in the experimental group outperformed the participants in the control group on reading comprehension tests, suggesting that there is a positive relationship between formal instruction of references and conjunctions and reading comprehension ability of Iranian ESP students.
关键词：Reading comprehension;discourse analysis;ESP;cohesive ties ;
