Introduction To Reading Comprehension Skills z2s31

What do you know about reading? For each statement, write T (true) or F (false) 1.

To understand a text, you should read every word in it.

2.

It is a good idea to say the words aloud when you read.

3.

Reading more slowly improves comprehension.

4.

Knowing every word is necessary for comprehension.

5.

While reading, you should always look up the meaning of unfamiliar words.

6.

All you need to improve reading ability is to enrich vocabulary.

7.

To read well, you need to know the pronunciation of every word.

8.

Learning grammar is the only way to improve reading ability.

9.

You can read all kinds of texts (books, newspapers, etc.) the same way.

10.

Reading in different languages requires some different reading methods.

Definitions Reading is a psycholinguistic process by which the reader, a language reconstructs, as best he can a message which has been encoded by a writer as a graphic display” (Goodman, 1971) “Reading comprehension is a complex process which involves conscious and unconscious use of various strategies to build a model of the meaning which the writer is assumed to have intended. The model is constructed using schematic knowledge structures and the various cue systems the writer has given (e.g., words, syntax, macrostructures, social information) to generate hypotheses which are tested using various logical and pragmatic strategies.” (Johnston, 1983) “Reading comprehension is a process of making sense of a written text. However, it is not a ive one-way decoding process. Instead, it is an active two-way process in which the reader and the text interact i.e.. the reader tests clues from the text against his knowledge to arrive at an understanding of the text acceptable to the reader.” (Clara Wong Kee, 1997)

WHAT IS READING? AN INTERACTION BETWEEN READER & WRITER THROUGH TEXT TO COMMUNICATE MESSAGES, FACTS, & FEELINGS

FORMAL SCHEMATA

I LOVE MY WIFE, MY SONS & MY JOBS. I WANNA BE THE RECTOR OF UKI ONE DAY LISDA

I OVE MY WIFE, MY SONS MY JOBS. I WANNA BE THE RECTOR OF UKI ONE DAY PARIN

IF YOU THINK YOU CAN OR YOU CAN’T, YOU ARE CORRECT

CONTENT SCHEMATA (BACKGROUND KNOWLEDGE)

= Message of the text, i.e. knowledge shared by the writer and the reader Among the followings, which is easier for you to comprehend?

THE USE OF THE SIMPLE LINEAR REGRESSION ANALYSIS & THE REGRESSION LINE EQUIVALENCE IN DATA CALCULATION

HOW AMIGDALA AFFECTS HUMAN LONGTERM MEMORY

THE LEARNING OF ENGLISH IN INDONESIAN FORMAL SCHOOLS

Reading Skills • • • • • • • • • • •

Previewing Getting the Meaning of Words (Contextual Clues & Word Analysis) Sentence Comprehension Identifying/ Determining the Topic & the Main Idea of Paragraph Determining Functions of Sentences in a Paragraph Determining Types of Paragraph References & Connectives Understanding Table & Graphs Scanning Skimming Identifying/ Determining the Subject & the General Though/Thesis of an Essay/Article • Determining Functions of Paragraphs in an Essay • Inferencing • Summarizing

Essences of Reading in a SL/FL Learning • Reading helps you learn to think in the new language • Reading helps you build a better vocabulary. • Reading makes you more comfortable with written form of the new language • Reading provides you ‘models’ for better writing • Reading is the best way to master the new language if you live in a country where the new language is not used daily.

Reference Mikulecky, Beatrice S. and Jeffries, Linda. 2007. Advanced reading power: extensive reading, vocabulary building, comprehension skills, reading faster. New York: Pearson Education.