Reading Skills

In this lecture we shall:

Define reading, its purpose, types
Practice the types of reading
Learn about reading comprehension
Practice some reading skills: skimming and scanning
Identify useful phrases: significance and function
 READING

What is reading?
 It is the complex process of recognizing written symbols and making
meaning out of them.
 Keywords: complex, process, recognize, symbol, meaning

 During the reading process:

1. we use our eyes to receive written symbols (numbers, letters,
punctuations, spaces etc.)

2. we use our brain to put the symbols into words, sentences,

paragraphs, text etc in order to communicate information back to our
brain, to those of others or both.
 Why do we read?

• Mental stimulation: studies have shown that reading as a mental stimulation

activity slows the progress (or possibly prevent) of Alzheimer’s disease and
Dementia. Doing puzzles, playing games such as chess and learning new
languages also help in cognitive stimulation

• Stress reduction: a good story is proven to be relaxing as one imagines

descriptions. It is also possible that what we read can bring us tranquility.

• Knowledge acquisition: gaining new bits of information which can be helpful in

many aspects of life e.g. examination, personal lifestyle etc.

• Vocabulary expansion: one gains more words that can consolidate vocabulary.
This can also boost self-esteem/confidence during conversations. It can help in
learning new languages. As one gains exposure to how some words are used
they will ameliorate their speaking and writing skills
Improves focus and concentration: makes one pay attention to a particular
story, article, topic etc. for a time without or with minimal diversion of
attention.

Acquisition of writing skills: as one reads, one learns good writing styles, new
words etc. which may improve personal writing skills. The influence of an
established writer on a budding one has proven to be very good. Same applies to
musicians, painters, carpenters, etc.

Analytical thinking skills: helps to analyze details through character, plot etc.
analysis of a writing. As one reads more writings, critical thinking becomes
frequent

Free entertainment: many books, articles etc. are entertaining. E.g the Harry
Porter series, ‘Ananse’ stories etc.
There might be many reasons why someone might read a text. The purpose is a key
factor when it comes to choosing a reading style/method: how we read, and in what
depth.

For example: “a mother checking whether the lyrics of a song are suitable for her children
to hear will most likely be looking through the text for particular words or phrases she
thinks are inappropriate. On the other hand, someone trying to learn the lyrics by heart
will probably read the same lines a number of times (and may even read them out loud to
try and reinforce the words).”

The purpose of the text from the writer’s point of view: Texts don’t exist in a vacuum.
The owner (writer) had a reason for doing so. Sometimes, the writer’s and the reader’s
purpose are the same, or similar, other times, they might not. The writer has a message
they want to convey and they encode this message in the words and style they choose.
The reader then tries to decode the message by reading the same words. This encoding
and decoding doesn’t simply exist on the level of meaning, but also on the level of
purpose.
 Types of reading

 Skimming:

Skimming is sometimes referred to as gist reading. Skimming may help

in order to generally know the basic content of a text.

Example: You might typically do this with a magazine or newspaper and

would help you mentally and quickly shortlist those articles which you
might consider for a deeper read. You might typically skim to search for a
name in a telephone directory.

 Disadvantage: Comprehension is very low and understanding of overall

content very superficial.
 Advantage: one quickly gets important information
Scanning: involves getting your eyes to quickly scuttle across
sentence and is used to get just a simple piece of information.
Interestingly, research has concluded that reading off a computer
screen actually inhibits the pathways to effective scanning and thus,
reading of paper is far more conducive to speedy comprehension of
texts. In scanning, special attention should be paid to the
introduction and the conclusion of texts

Advantage: helps locate specific information; helps in fast planned

eye movement; helps train a child in word identification and helps
acquire reading and spelling skills

Disadvantage: comprehension is low, attention is not paid to details

Intensive Reading: this is also called critical reading. It involves
reading a text for important information, logic, truth, accuracy,
merit of ideas stated and the usefulness of such ideas, to draw
conclusion or make judgement based on personal experiences,
research findings or beliefs etc.

Advantages: 1. It helps understand vocabulary by deducing the

meaning of words in context. 2. It helps with retention of
information for long periods of time and knowledge resulting from
intensive reading persists in your long term memory. 3. It helps
draw a definite conclusion.

Disadvantage: more time consuming than scanning or skimming

Extensive reading: involves reading for pleasure. Because there is an element of
enjoyment in extensive reading it is unlikely that students will undertake extensive
reading of a text they do not like. It also requires a fluid decoding and assimilation of
the text and content. If the text is difficult and you stop every few minutes to figure
out what is being said or to look up new words in the dictionary, you are breaking
your concentration and diverting your thoughts.

Advantages: 1. helps to imagine descriptions 2. helps to relate ideas and concepts 3.

helps associate ideas with concrete items.

Day and Bamford (1998) have documented the benefits of extensive reading, which
include: Development of a positive attitude toward reading in a second language,
Motivation to read more, Increased reading fluency, Gains in vocabulary and
grammar knowledge, Improvement in writing in the second language.

Disadvantage: mainly literary meaning is gained

 Rate of reading

Skimming: 800 words per minute with 50% comprehension

Reading takes 250-500 words per minute with 70%

comprehension

Studying takes 200-300 words per minute with close to

total comprehension

Source: Edward Fry in his book Skimming and Scanning

 Reading skills (Mikulecky, 1990)

Automatic decoding: Being able to recognize a word at a glance.

Previewing and predicting: Giving the text a quick once-over to be able to guess
what is to come.
Specifying purpose: Knowing why a text is being read.
Identifying genre: Knowing the nature of the text in
order to predict the form and content.
Questioning: Asking questions in an inner dialog with the author.
Scanning: Looking through a text very rapidly for specific information.
Recognizing topics: Finding out what the text is about.
Classification of ideas into main topics and details: Categorizing words and
ideas on the basis of their relationships; distinguishing general and specific.
Locating topic sentences: Identifying the general statement in a paragraph.
Stating the main idea (or thesis) of a sentence, paragraph or passage: Knowing
what the author’s point is about the topic.
Recognizing patterns of relationships: Identifying the relationships between
ideas; the overall structure of the text.
Identifying and using words that signal the patterns of relationships between
ideas: Being able to see connections between ideas by the use of words such as
first, then, later.
Inferring the main idea, using patterns and other clues.
Recognizing and using pronouns, referents, and other
lexical equivalents as clues to cohesion.
Guessing the meaning of unknown words from the context. Using such clues as
knowledge of word parts, syntax, and relationship patterns.
Skimming. Quickly getting the gist or overview of a passage or book.
Paraphrasing. Re-stating texts in the reader’s own words in order to monitor
one’s own comprehension.
Summarizing. Shortening material by retaining and re-stating main ideas and
leaving out details.
Drawing conclusions. Putting together information from parts of the
text and inducing new or additional ideas.
Drawing inferences and using evidence. Using evidence in the text
to know things that are unstated.
Visualizing. Picturing, or actually drawing a picture or diagram, of
what is described in the text.
Reading critically. Judging the accuracy of a passage with respect to
what the reader already knows; distinguishing fact from opinion.
Reading faster. Reading fast enough to allow the brain to process the
input as ideas rather than single words.
Adjusting reading rate according to materials and purpose. Being
able to choose the speed and strategies needed for the level of
comprehension desired by the reader.
 SQSR Reading-method (Robinson, 1970) 

SQ3R is a reading strategy formed from its letters:

Survey Question Read Recite Review

Before you read, Survey the text:

 the title, headings, and subheadings
 captions under pictures, charts, graphs or maps
 review questions or teacher-made study guides
 introductory and concluding paragraphs
 summary
Question while you are surveying:

 Turn the title, headings, and/or subheadings into questions

 Read questions at the end of the text or after each subheading
 “What did my instructor say about this chapter or subject 
when it was assigned?”
 “What do I already know about this subject?”

When you begin to Read:

o Look for answers to the questions you first raised
o Answer questions at the beginning or end of chapters or study guides
o Reread captions under pictures, graphs, etc.
o Note all the underlined, italicized, bold printed words or phrases
o Study graphic aids
o Reduce your speed for difficult passages
o Stop and reread parts which are not clear
o Read only a section at a time and recite after each section
Recite after you’ve read a section:
o Orally ask yourself questions about what you have just read, or
summarize, in your own words, what you read
o Take notes from the text but write the information in your own words
o Underline or highlight important points you've just read

• Reciting: 
The more senses you use the more likely you are to remember what
you read Triple strength learning: Seeing, saying, hearing
Quadruple strength learning: Seeing , saying , hearing, writing!

Review: an ongoing process

 A reading plan

Day One
After you have read and recited the entire chapter, 
write questions in the margins for those points 
you have highlighted or underlined.
If you took notes while reciting, 
write questions for the notes you have taken 
in the left hand margins of your notebook.
Complete the form for a critical reading review
Day Two
Page through the text and/or your notebook to re-acquaint yourself 
with the important points.
Cover the right hand column of your text/note-book 
and orally ask yourself the questions in the left hand margins.
Orally recite or write the answers from memory.
Develop mnemonic devices for material which need to be memorized.
Make flash cards for those questions which give you difficulty.
Days Three, Four and Five
Alternate between your flash cards and notes and test yourself 
(orally or in writing) on the questions you formulated.
Make additional flash cards if necessary.
Weekend
Using the text and notebook, make a Table of Contents - list all
the topics and sub-topics you need to know from the chapter.
From the Table of Contents, make a Study Sheet/ Spatial Map.
Recite the information orally and in your own words as you put
the Study Sheet/Map together.
As you have consolidated all the information you need for this
chapter, periodically review the Sheet/Map so that at test time 
you will not have to cram.
 Properly we should
read for power. 
Man reading should be
man intensely alive.
The book should be a 
ball of light. 

Ezra Pound 1885 - 1972

American poet
Robinson, Francis Pleasant. (1970). Effective study.
New York: Harper & Row.