10 Reading Skill

Mrs. Bhavna Dave

epgp books

 

Unit Structure:

 

9.0 Learning Outcome

 

9.1 Introduction

 

9.2 Significance of reading

 

9.3 Techniques of reading

 

9.4 Check your progress

 

9.5 Types of Reading

 

9.6 Check your progress

 

9.7 Reading skills

 

9.8 Strategies to improve reading skill

 

9.9 Check Your Progress

 

9.10 Let us sum up

 

9.0 Learning Outcome:

 

With the help of this unit, you will be able to:

 

1.      have a clear understanding of the nature of reading

 

2.      understand the significance of reading skill

 

3.      specify the different levels of reading comprehension

 

4.      recognize the various skills involved in reading

 

5.      distinguish between skimming and scanning

 

6.      describe the different types of reading

 

7.      identify various strategies to improve reading skill

 

9.1  Introduction:

 

Reading is an essential activity in our daily life. It is done with a purpose. Generally we read either for information or to seek pleasure. The type of reading you do or the way you read a text varies according to the purpose in reading. Thus reading is a selective activity. Reading speed varies according to content and purpose.

 

Reading is an interactive process that goes on between the reader and the text, resulting in comprehension. The text presents letters, words, sentences, and paragraphs that encode meaning. The reader uses knowledge, skills, and strategies to determine what that meaning is.

 

It includes:

  • Linguistic competence
  • Discourse competence
  • Socio-linguistic competence
  • Strategic competence

 

According to Francis Bacon, ‘Reading maketh man’. Reading is an artistic skill and not a mechanical process. It interprets a written word into a spoken word. Thus reading is both intelligent and meaningful.

 

9.2 Significance of reading:

 

Learning to read is important not only for language learning, as for pronunciation or knowing grammatical structures, but for a variety of other reasons. We need to learn reading to be able to:

  • Get information for some purpose, or to get to know about some topic, the answer to a question, or the solution to a problem.
  • To learn how to perform a task in our work or our daily life, for eg. to know how an appliance works or how to cook a new recipe.
  • To keep in touch with friends through letters or understand official correspondence.
  • To know when or where something will take place or what is available, for eg. consulting timetables, programmes, announcements, notices, menus or advertisements.
  • To know what is what is happening or has happened from newspapers, magazines and reports.
  • To gain enjoyment or excitement by reading stories, novels, poems, songs or scripts to act in a play, etc.
  • To be able to perform tasks on our own such as playing a new game, solving a puzzle, etc.

 

9.3 Techniques of Reading:

 

1.  Skimming:

 

It is an activity in which the reader’s eyes run over a text quickly to get a general idea or gist of it.

 

Why and How of skimming:

  • To note what is included, examine the preface, table of contents and section headings in chapters.
  • To decide if it is easy enough or worth reading, sample various pages in a story book or novel.
  • To get the author’s view, sample the introduction, topic, sentences of paragraphs, conclusion of a controversial article.
  • To get the framework of the topic, examine introduction, the main points, section headings, illustrations or maps, conclusion of chapters.
  • To decide whether to read, examine headlines, illustration, topic sentences in introductory paragraph of newspaper articles.

 

Advantages of skimming:

  • Improves average reading speed
  • Saves time and labour
  • More output in less time
  • Gives plenty of reference information and fund of knowledge
  • Keeps one abreast of new developments
  • Serves as a consolidated technique for revision at the time of examination

 

Disadvantages of skimming:

  • Does not give the reader a full comprehension of the content as chunks of material are left in between
  • All reading material is not well organized, so meaningful skimming is not possible.

 

2.  SCANNING:

 

Scanning refers to reading a book or text for specific information.

 

How to scan:

  1. Decide in mind what you want to search for.
  2. Glance rapidly down the page or column expecting the information to stand out.
  3. Chapter titles, headings of chapter divisions, side headings, italic section headings etc. will function as signposts.
  4. Move the eyes across the pages briskly so that what is sought for, strikes the eyes.
  5. Note down or highlight the required specific information, reading the passage keeping in mind the pre-reading questions and then focus on specific information.

 

Advantages of scanning:

  1. Scanning allows the reader to efficiently gather information, which may be scattered throughout a long piece of writing.
  2. It encourages the reader to research in a purposeful way.
  3. It helps to avoid distractions.

 

Disadvantages of scanning:

  1. Scanning can be monotonous.
  2. The technique is not suited for long periods of study, as it is easy to lose concentration.
  3. Although scanning is a good way to quickly gather facts, it is not always thorough and a key fact may be overlooked.
  4. The context in which a fact appears may affect its meaning. Without reading the surrounding text, it is easy to misinterpret the true significance of a fact.

 

9.4TYPES OF READING:

 

1.  LOUD READING:

 

Objectives of loud reading:

  1. To enable students to read with correct pronunciation of vowel and consonant sounds, articulation, accentuation, fluency and intonation.
  2. To enable students to read with expression.
  3. To rest students’ knowledge of speaking words, phrases and sentences.
  4. To give practice.
  5. To understand the meaning.
  6. To prepare pupils for effective silent English.

 

Merits of loud reading:

  1. Helps to learn proper method of reading
  2. Develops the skill of speech and giving lectures.
  3. Mistakes related to pronunciation can be corrected.
  4. It trains various sensory organs such as eyes, ears, mouth, etc.
  5. Students learn by imitation which is a natural method of learning.

 

Demerits of Loud reading:

  1. Not a source of pleasure.
  2. Does not help in penetrating the meaning since symbol is translated straight in sound.
  3. If the student becomes habitual he cannot become an extensive reader.
  4. All the students do not pay heed to the student reading.
  5. Just a few students are benefitted.
  6. Not allowed in public places.
you can view video on Reading Skill

 

9.13 References:

  • http://www.ehow.com/about_6533094_reading-skills_-scanning-vs_-skimming.html#ixzz34ElhAwsT
  • http://www.ehow.com/how_8384978_read-fast-better.html
  • Teaching of English, ES-344, Indira Gandhi National Open University School of Education, New Delhi
  • HalbeMalati, (2005): Methodology of English Teaching, Himalaya Publishing house , Mumbai.
  • Bhatia K. K: New Techniques of Teaching English as a Foreign Language