3. “Reading a book is like re-writing it for yourself. You bring to a
novel, anything you read, all your experience of the world. You
bring your history and you readit in your own terms.”
--Angela Carter
LANGUAGEREFLECTION
4. INTRODUCTION
ASSUMPTIONS ABOUT THE NATURE OF READING
How do you feel about these statments?
I Agree
I Partially agree
I’m not sure
I Strongly disagree
Ur, Penny.2002.ACourseinLanguageTeaching.CambridgeUniversityPress
5. Can you read this?
Ur, Penny.2002.ACourseinLanguageTeaching.CambridgeUniversityPress
6. How long does it take you to read this?
Ur, Penny.2002.ACourseinLanguageTeaching.CambridgeUniversityPress
7. Now, read this quickly.
Ur, Penny.2002.ACourseinLanguageTeaching.CambridgeUniversityPress
8. Can you read this?
Ur, Penny.2002.ACourseinLanguageTeaching.CambridgeUniversityPress
10. READING
WHAT IS READING?
Reading is one of the 4
language skills.
It is a receptive skill; the learner
receives information through
written form
It is the process of making
sense of a text.
11. READING
WHAT IS READING?
the meaning of the letters or symbols of
writing (ie. the English alphabet)
individual words
their meaning in connected speech
their meaning in discourse
In order to read, we must understand
12. There has to be a relationship between the reader and the text, in
which the reader performs various cognitive tasks and combines
his/her knowledge with the information in the text to make sense of
it.
READING
MORE THAN JUST KNOWING THE LANGUAGE
We are stimulated by
words, patterns or
discourse based on what
we already know. Such
knowledge is referred to as
schema (pl. schemata).
In order to make sense of any text, we must have a pre-
existing knowledge of the world. This is known as
interactive reading: when the reader brings his/her
knowledge to the text.
Cook: 1989
Hedge: 2000
13. READING
MORE THAN JUST KNOWING THE
LANGUAGE
When schemata is activated, we are able to
recognize what we read or hear because it fits into
the patterns of what we already know.
Dear son,
We regret to inform you…
Congratulations….
Unemployment increase…
14. READING
COHERENCE
We read text at word level, sentence level and text
level.
The connection between words
and sentences into a
comprehensible text is called
coherence.
15. READING
HOW WE RECEIVE LANGUAGE
We receive language in different ways, for different
reasons. These ways can be classified in two broad
categories:
Instrumental reading/listening:
language is received for a utilitarian
purpose
Pleasurable reading/listening:
language is received for personal reasons
16. READING
COHESION
We construct text using vocabulary and grammar.
Cohesion is the grammatical
links between the sentences
that help us understand the
text.
17. READING
HOW WE READ
What we read is almost always affected by “how” and
“why” we read.
We do not always read the
entire text. Sometimes we
read for specific information
and at others, we read for
detailed information.
We read different types of
texts for different reasons.
19. SUB-SKILLS
HOW WE READ
We read language in different ways, for different
reasons. These ways can be classified in two broad
categories:
Instrumental listening
Pleasurable reading
20. SUB-SKILLS
STRATEGIES FOR READING
Our reasons for reading influence the way we read.
The different ways of reading are called
SUBSKILLS (a skill that is part of a main
skill).
Scanning
Skimming
Reading for detail
Extensive reading
21. SUB-SKILLS
SCANNING
This subskill is used for reading through a text for
specific information.
When we look through the
phone book for a specific
number or business, we
usually don’t read the
entire text. We focus on a
specific piece of
information.
22. SUB-SKILLS
SKIMMING
This subskill is used for reading through a text to get
the gist of it, or to learn about the overall idea.
When we first open a newspaper,
we might read the headlines of all
the articles and sections to get an
idea of what is going on and what
we will want to read before we
start reading it in detail.
23. SUB-SKILLS
READING FOR DETAIL
This subskill is used for reading in a text with the
intent to get the meaning out of every word.
Someone reading a letter from
a loved one will read the letter
for detail.
24. SUB-SKILLS
EXTENSIVE READING
EXTENSIVE READING involves reading long pieces
of texts, although you may read in detail through
some parts and skim through others.
When we read on a specific
topic from a textbook for
academic purposes, we may
read using extensive reading.
25. READINGACTIVITIES
READING ACTIVITIES & TASKS
In the language classroom, students perform reading
activities which develop different outcomes
(comprehension, identify grammar structure,
vocabulary etc.) using a variety of material.
Identifying topics
predicting and
guessingreceptive reading
interpreting text
intensive reading
26. READINGACTIVITIES
IDENTIFYING TOPICS
In order to better comprehend text, students should
identify the topic of the paragraphs as they read
along. They can do this by constantly asking, “What
is this about?”.
Identifying the topics of
the paragraphs aids
students in getting the
main idea.
27. READINGACTIVITIES
PREDICTING & GUESSING
Predicting will allow students to react with the text by
having expectations and ideas about the purpose of
the text, as well as ideas about possible outcomes.
This is where schemata
most affects reading
outcomes.
Predicting is used
throughout the reading
task on many different
levels.
28. READINGACTIVITIES
RECEPTIVE READING
Students may read or research a text for sheer
enjoyment or entertainment. There is significant
reading based on his/her desire to learn more about
a topic.
Reading for pleasure is
considered receptive
reading.
29. READINGACTIVITIES
INTERPRETING TEXT
This type of reading involves critical reading/critiquing
content.
Critiquing is common in
advanced reading
activities such as in
comparative literature.
30. READINGACTIVITIES
INTENSIVE READING
This type of tasks requires students to read text to
examine language based on its grammar or lexical
constructions with the objective of furthering
language development through reading.
31. READINGACTIVITIES
READING MATERIAL
We use different types of material for different tasks
in reading.
Authentic material
Material that L1 users read.
Simplified or graded
materialMaterial written especially for
language learners.
33. READINGACTIVITIES
INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITIES
This phase provides an introduction to the topic of the
text and activities focusing on the language of the
text.
These activities can be:
• pre-teaching vocabulary
• lead-in to introduce the topic
• identifying the title
• predicting
34. READINGACTIVITIES
MAIN ACTIVITIES
This phase focuses on a series of comprehensive
activities developing different reading sub-skills and
tasks.
These activities can be:
• scanning
• getting the main idea
• reading for detail
35. READINGACTIVITIES
POST ACTIVITIES
This final phase develops activities which asks
learners to talk about how a topic in the text relates to
their own lives or gives opinions on parts of the text.
These activities may require that the learner use
language from the text.
These activities can be:
• giving an opinion
• reflexive reading
• interpreting text
36. REMEMBER
POINTS TO CONSIDER
To successfully carry out a reading activity, consider
the following:
It is important that students receive lots of extensive
reading practice in order to develop fluency in
reading.Reading sub-skills are taught based on the
learner’s age and first language reading ability.
Sometimes it will be necessary to teach the
alphabet first (as in the case of very young learners
or learners using other scripts, such as Chinese).
We must choose appropriate texts for our learners
which increase their interests for reading and
motivate them.
37. REMEMBER
Different reading comprehension tasks and
exercises focus on different reading sub-skills.
Teachers need to identify which sub-skill a task
should be focused on.
L2 learners must be taught the different strategies
to apply when evaluating different types of texts.
38. authentic material
coherence
cohesion
deduce meaning from
content
extensive
intensive
prediction
read for detail
read for gist
read for specific information
receptive skill
scan
These are some important terms on the
exam, but not limited to.
KEY VOCABULARY FOR READING
schema/schemata
skill
skim
subskill
task
text structure
topic sentence
top down / bottom up
39. END OF PRESENTATION
This presentation is designed for the exclusive use by
The Kennedy Institute for the
Teaching Knowledge Test
Preparation and Certification Course
All rights reserved. 2012
