University of Education Lahore

Department of English

Course Title: Academic Reading and Writing

Programme: B.S English

Course Code: ENGL 1116

Instructor Name: Ms. Farzana Ashraf

Reading Comprehension

1st Lecture
 Reading Comprehension

• What is Reading?

• What is the Purpose of Reading?

• What is Reading Comprehension?

• Reasons for Poor Comprehension

 What is Reading?

• “Reading is an interactive, problem-solving process of making

meaning from texts.”
(Literacy for Learning, The Report of the Expert Panel on Literacy in Grades 4 to 6 in Ontario, p. 61.)

• “Reading is an act of communication in which information is

transferred from a transmitter to a receiver”
(Smith)
What is the Purpose of Reading?

For Pleasure and Enjoyment

To Search for Simple Information
To Obtain an Overview of the Text
To Identify the Central Idea
To Develop a Detailed Critique of the Text
To Integrate Information
Reading Texts for Pleasure and Enjoyment

• Extensive Reading:
Extensive reading is used to obtain a general understanding of a
subject and includes reading longer texts for pleasure, as well as
business books.
Examples:
 The latest marketing strategy book
 A novel you read before going to bed
 Magazine articles that interest you
To Search for Simple Information

• Skimming:

Skimming is used to quickly gather the most important information, or

'gist'. Run your eyes over the text, noting important information. Use
skimming to quickly get up to speed on a current business situation.
It's not essential to understand each word when skimming.
Examples of Skimming:

• The Newspaper (quickly to get the general news of the day)

• Magazines (quickly to discover which articles you would like to read
in more detail)
• Business and Travel Brochures (quickly to get informed)
Scanning:

• Scanning is used to find a particular piece of information. Run your

eyes over the text looking for the specific piece of information you
need. Use scanning on schedules, meeting plans, etc. in order to find
the specific details you require. If you see words or phrases that you
don't understand, don't worry when scanning.
Examples of Scanning

• The "What's on TV" section of your newspaper.

• A train / airplane schedule
• A conference guide
To Obtain an Overview of the Text

• to get a general feel for the material, to determine whether it is

relevant, useful, up to-date, and to get a sense of how the topic is
treated by the author. This is likely to be the main purpose behind
your reading when:
• You are doing initial library research for an essay, tutorial, research
report or similar assignments.
• You need to decide which texts are most relevant or useful for your
assignment.
To Identify the Central Idea

• to extract the essence of what the written material is trying to

convey.
• For example, you might want to identify the major finding in an
experimental article in a journal, or the core issue of a discussion
paper.
To Develop a Detailed Critique of the Text

• On many occasions, one may need to master fully the material in a

book, journal article or manual so that one can evaluate its
arguments, perspective, and/or evidence. This will require you to:
• Read the material thoroughly.
• Make effective and relevant notes.
• Keep an open mind by being aware of your own ideas and opinions
regarding the issues involved.
To Develop a Detailed Critique of the Text

By developing a critique of the text, one can

• Summarize a text
• Write a Book or Article review
• Integrate the text into one’s own writing
What is Reading Comprehension?

• Comprehension is the "essence of reading" (Durkin, 1993). It is a

complex thinking process that requires the reader to construct meaning
from the text

• Reading comprehension is the ability to read text, process it and

understand its meaning. An individual's ability to comprehend text is
influenced by their traits and skills, one of which is the ability to make
inferences.
Three Levels of Comprehension

• Literal
• Interpretative
• Applied
The Literal Level

• The literal level focuses on reading the passages, hearing the words or
viewing the images.
• It involves identifying the important and essential information. With
guidance, students can distinguish between the important and less
important ideas
The Interpretive Level

• At the interpretive level, the focus shifts to reading between the lines,
looking at what is implied by the material under study.
• It requires students to combine pieces of information in order to make
inferences about the author's intent and message.
The Applied Level

• Understandings at the literal and interpretive levels are combined,

reorganized and restructured at the applied level to express opinions,
draw new insights and develop fresh ideas.
Reasons for Poor Reading Comprehension

• Poor Vocabulary
• Poor Memory Skills
• Poor Logical Thinking Skills
• Poor Visualizing Skills
Poor Vocabulary

 Vocabulary is essential for success in reading comprehension

 Students cannot understand what they read without understanding

what most of the words mean
Poor Memory Skills

• Short Term Memory

• Long Term Memory
• Working Memory
 Short Term Memory

Holds information in the mind only for a short period of time while it
is being processed
 Long Term Memory

Where processed information is permanently stored

Prior Knowledge
 Working Memory

• Is an intermediary and active memory system in the information

processing area of the brain
• It is an important memory system and one that most of us use
everyday.
• Sentence comprehension depends heavily upon Working Memory. It
helps us understand sentences that are lengthy
Example:
“Do every problem on page 15 and all of the problems on page 16
before checking your answers at the back of the book.”
Poor Logical Thinking

• Logical thinking is the process in which one uses reasoning

consistently to come to a conclusion
• Problems or situations that involve logical thinking call for structure,
for relationships between facts, for chain of reasoning that make sense.
• There is no reading without reasoning or reading is reasoning.
Poor Visualizing Skills

• Visualizing means to form a mental image of an idea or to imagine it.

• Visualizing is the ultimate key in reading comprehension

• If a person cannot visualize information he/she cannot access that

information
References:

• https://faculty.ontariotechu.ca/hughes/Reading/ReadingProcess.html

• https://www.ukessays.com/essays/languages/definition-of-
reading.php

• https://weallcanread.com/the-cause-of-poor-reading-skills/
Thank You