IMPROVING THE READING SKILLS AND COMPREHENSION OF PURPOSELY

SELECTED GRADE 10 STUDENTS AT RUNRUNO NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL

THROUGH THE USE OF SQ3R METHOD

RESEARCHERS
BANIH, KATHERINE R.
BEADOY, LORIE MAE A.
BEADOY, JANIMAR A.
BINAY-AN, AIZA D.
CONCEPCION, LORELIE S.
CONDE, CAROLYN B.
DULNUAN, JULIET I.
EBARDE, GERLYN F.
ESTELONG, SHEENALYN JOY A.
FRANCISCO, APRILYN J.
GUIMBONGAN, JANELYN F.

An Action Research
Presented To The
Nueva Vizcaya State University
In Partial Fulfilment To
ProfEd 13: Teaching Internship

JUNE, 2023
CONTEXT AND RATIONALE

The ability to read contributes a big factor in a person’s success as there is

a significant connection between literary and academic achievement. For Leu and
Kinzer (1987:9) reading is development, interactive and global process in solving
skills. According to Grabe and Stroller (2019), it is the process of acquiring
knowledge and information regarding the intent of witness.
Moreover, reading is useful for language acquisition. Provided that
students more or less understand what they read, the more they read, the better
they get at it (Haumer (2007:99). And students, in order to pass through their
different subjects, they must at the very least know how to read and comprehend
what they are reading. In a study conducted by Scientific Research Publishing in
2021, 80% of Filipino students did not even reach the minimum level of
proficiency in reading. It is stated that the Philippines shared a significant rate of
low performances among all DISA-participating countries and economies. One
possible reason for this is many Filipino learners do not have the reading habit in
learning. (Luz, 2007)
It is undeniable how the Covid-19 affects the lives of every Filipino
especially their physical and mental ability. In the study conducted by United
Nation Children’s Funds (UNICEF), less than 15% of school children can read
simple tests, about 3 of 20 children at most due to more than 70 weeks of school
closure since the Covid-19 pandemic. And in the opening of the schools, World
Bank reported that 9 out 10 children at late primary age are not proficient in
reading (Daez, 2022).
Thus, being comprehension as the main objective of reading, it is one of the
reading competencies that every student has to develop. Based on finding, over
80% of the Filipino student’s around the age of 15 got a rating of 340 points in
reading comprehension, lower that the average of 487 points making Philippines
ranked last among 79 countries (www.manilatimes.net)
Through different activities teachers are assessing improvements towards
students who have difficulties in reading and comprehending texts from the K-12
Curriculum. Often time’s teachers may appear to lecture and use teacher-directed
instruction more frequently than using student-centred strategies just to fill the
difficulties of learners. (Casing, 2018).
The SQ3R strategy is a reading comprehension method named for its five
steps: survey, question, read, recite and review. It helps students think about the
text while they are reading. Research shows that students using SQ3R reading
comprehension accomplished reading activities better than those who did not. By
using SQ3R strategy, students can retain several reading pages, they can take
down notes in their own words, recite and review them (Asiri, A. and Momami, M.
2017). Several teaching reading comprehension strategies have been introduced
but SQ3R is a matchless strategy in terms of its comprehensive effect. This
strategy equips students for more systematic and structured reading techniques,
so they comprehend the text in a better way. SQ3R makes students active and
cooperative, it develops an intrusive, dynamic attitude towards learning and
doubles the cognitive processes of successful learners. (Asiri and Momami, 2017).
For these reasons, the researchers are motivated to conduct this research to
improve both the reading skills and comprehension among the selected Grade 10
students of Bascaran National High School, Bascaran, Solano, Nueva Vizcaya for
the school year 2022-2023.
In the DepEd Order no. 14,S. of 2018, which pertains o the Policy
Guidelines of the Administration of the Revised Philippines Informal Reading
Inventory in which it is stated that Department of Education supports “Every
Child a Reader Program” which aims to make every Filipino child a reader and a
writer at his/her grade level (https://www.deped.gov.ph) In a research study
published by Research Gate entitled, “The Philippine Informal Reading Inventory
(Phil-IRI) Program: A Critical Analysis,” which critically analysed the said
implementation of Phil-IRI in schools that drew setbacks on literacy improvement,
writing and reading proficiency of the learners in which teachers were not
adherent nor consistent to program interventions which they are already
bombarded with workloads in their teaching tasks and so many paper- works for
submission, apart from the time consuming reading interventions.
Somehow, SQ3R is also a reading strategy designed to help students
improve their comprehension, memory, and efficiency in reading. Briefly, this
strategy aims to familiarize students with the material for easier understanding to
illustrate the importance of active review so that information is stored not only in
the short term memory, but also in the long term memory. A basic premise is that
we remember information when it is connected to our emotions and when we can
interconnect the ideas (www.https://umanitoba.com). By setting a purpose for
the reading, asking questions, taking notes, reviewing both notes and the text in
relation to another, readers are able to delve more deeply into a text compared to
merely reading or even reading and responding (www.teachthought.com).
With the same goal, Phil- IRI, conforming to the primary program of DepEd
which is the “Ever Child a Reader Program” (ECARP) and SQ3R Method being
designed to help process and increase retention of written information
(https://www.weber.edu) and helps students to efficiently and actively work on
reading and understanding (educational) texts (https://www.toolshero.com)
Since the researchers are designated to observe students form Junior High
School, they noticed that most students have difficulty in reading and
understanding what they have read, therefore, improving both is their primary
concern. One way to improve these difficulties is to select appropriate strategy,
hence the SQ3R strategy.
II. Action Research Questions

This action research sought to document the use and effectivity of SQ3R
Method in improving the reading skill and comprehension through the use of Phil-
IRI Assessment tool for Grade 10 at Runruno National High School, School Year
2022-2023
Specifically, this study sought to answer the following questions:
1. What is the Pre-test reading comprehension level of selected Grade 10
students through the use of PHIL-IRI?
2. What is the post-test reading comprehension level of selected Grade 10
students after applying the SQ3R Method through the use of PHIL- IRI?

POST- TEST CHECKLIST

GRADE 10 STUDENTS RESULT

Reading
BANNAWAG Reading Skill
Comprehension
Percentage Level Percentage Level

RANG-AY

SANIATA
 Table 01. Post-Test Checklist
3. Is there a significant difference between pre-test and post-test comprehension
levels of selected Grade 10 students after applying SQ3R Method using the PHIL-
IRI Assessment Tool?
III. Proposed Innovations, Intervention and Strategy

PHILIPPINE INFORMAL READING INTERVENTION

This study method developed on basis of research in cognitive psychology
which promotes enhanced learning of reading materials. Before applying the
SQ3R method, the learners are first given pre-test using the PHIL-IRI Reading
Screening Test for Grade 10 to ensure the learners comprehension level with
fluency.
Results will be determined through the use of Phil- IRI Oral Assessment
Tool in which Word Recognition and Level Comprehension will be computed
using PIRI Oral Test Criteria as presented in Table 02.

LEVEL WORD RECOGNITION COMPREHENSION

Independent 97% - 10% 80%- 100%

Instructional 90% - 96% 59% - 79%

Frustration 89% - below 58% - below

Table 02. PIRI Oral Test Criteria

Phil-IRI Background Information
Phil- IRI refers to the revised assessment tool composed of as set of graded
passages administered to the whole class and to individual students, which was
designed to determine a student’s reading level. It used as a classroom-based
assessment tool aims to measure and describe the learners reading performance
in both English and Filipino languages in oral reading, silent reading and
listening comprehension. The Phil-IRI data shall also serve as one of the bases in
planning, designing/redesigning the reading instruction of the teachers and the
school’s reading programs or activities to improve the over-all school’s reading
performance.

Phil-IRI Graded Passages

Refers to informal assessment tools used to record individual student’s
performance in oral reading, silent reading and listening comprehension.

Reading Levels
Instructional- it is the level at which the pupil can profit from instruction.
Independent- it is the highest level at which a pupil can read independently and
with ease without the help or guidance of the teacher.
Frustration – this is the lowest level. The pupil shows withdrawal from reading
situations by refusing to read.
Non Reader- a pupil who is unable to recognize and sound our letter-sound
connections for single consonants, consonant blends, and others.

SQ3R METHOD
As reading skills and comprehension has always been a problem for
teachers during Independent and Cooperative Learning (ICL) as well as on Class
Discussion which one main reason is the poor reading habits, the SQ3R Method
not only enables student to improve their reading skills but also makes the
reading process less difficult and more interesting.
(www.multidisciplinaryjournals.com)
After obtaining the result, the steps improve their reading skill and
comprehension will start using the SQ3R Method for approximately 1 month.
Through this sequence, the readers are expected to increase their understanding
of the text by engaging in the reading process both before, during and after
intentionally. (www.muic.org )
1. Survey (S): initially, the readers start by reviewing the assigned text in order
to gain an initial understanding of it by paying attention to its most obvious
elements, such as headings, bolded text, or available charts. The first skim
provides readers a framework for what will be presented in the text.
2. Question (Q), also called Query: from this initial preview, the readers are in
the disposition to start generating questions about content of the text. For
example, they could convert the titles into questions, or they could create more
general questions such as “what is the text about?” or “how could the content of
this text be beneficial for me?”
3. Read (R1): as the readers engage in the reading of the text itself, they do it
actively, having as a background the work done in the two previous steps. Thus,
the questions which were generated during the preview of the text help readers
to focus.
4. Recite (R2): also called Retrieve or Recall: as readers move through the
text, they recite or rehearse the answers to their initial questions, using their
own words. Tis can be done either an oral or written form, and it is aimed to
support the personal formulation and contextualization of the content of the text.
5. Review (R3): after the reading is completed, readers review the content of
the text by repeating back to themselves what the main ideas of the text were, by
using their own words.
 To further understand the five steps, the SQ3R Method is as presented
through the table elaborated by the Academic Success Corner of Oregon State
University.
HOW TO
HOW TO SURVEY HOW TO READ HOW TO RECITE HOW TO REVIEW
QUESTION
 Look over the  Turn  Look for  Say it out in  Look over
material: title, heading into answers to your own your reading
preview, questions your words notes and quiz
headings,  Ask what? questions  Write a yourself on
visuals, bolded Who? Why?  Write in the summary of the
words, And How? margins the paragraph information
summary  Underline or or section  Make
 Read the highlight  Write notes or connections
summary if important notecards of between
possible concepts information readings and
 Think about  Break up the  Create a mind notes from
backgrounds reading into map or class
knowledge or chunks graphic  Revisit it
information  Take breaks organizer of weekly and
when the ideas and test yourself
needed how they on new and
relate old material
each week.

WHY
WHY SURVEY? WHY READ? WHY RECITE? WHY REVIEW?
QUESTION?
It gives you the big  It helps you  It’s how to get It helps you  It helps you
picture to stay information retain retain
It helps you decide focused on from the information after information
what’s important the reading textbook you read it from week to
You can connect  It gives you a  It’s good It checks for your week
information to purpose preparation level of  It helps you
what you already (looking for for your understanding prepare for
know the answer) lectures and It’s a way to exams, papers
It prepares you to and creates discussion interact with the and
read interest  It’s an essential reading and stay assignments
 It’s good part of test awake
practice for preparation
quizzing
yourself on
topic

Table 03. Strategies to use to prepare for Reading, Engage Reading and Review
Reading

Base on the intervention, the effectiveness of SQ3R Method which is

designed to help process and increase the retention of written information will be
applied to the 30 purposely selected Grade 10 students at Runruno, National High
School for the school year 2022-2023.
Chapter IV. Action Research Methods

A. Respondents/ Other Sources of Data

The researchers employed a purposive sampling design. The participants
were 30 selected Grade 10 students, from the three (3) sections namely,
Bannawag, Rang-ay and Saniata in Runruno National High School. Table 1 shows
the number and names of the selected respondents who will undergo through
SQ3R Method to improve their Word Recognition and Comprehension Level.
SECTION NAME OF STUDENTS
1. Bango, Janrey
2. Basilio, Redentor
3. Binwag, Tristan
4. Bugarin, Richmond
5. Conde, Hanslee Jade
BANNAWAG
6. Dogwe, Jhonwayne
7. Guillermo, Mark Dave
8. Ramos, Jether
9. Suelo, Darrel
10. Tuguinay, Jeramil
11. Bungalan, Jojie Jhen C.
12. Takid, Julife
13. Cipriano, Nora
14. Mangili, Jheyra
15.Dela Cruz, Jade
RANG-AY
16. Inway, Mark
17. Guay, Aldrin
18. Timbreza, Jamie
19. Vicente, Joeron
20. Tumapang, Renier
21. Mines, Winston
22. Corinto, Abel
23. Corinto, Stanley
24. Julio, Chrisman
25. Sioco, Azer John
SANIATA
26. Calugay, Rogine
27. Francisco, Lovely
28. Palecpec, Beverly
29. Neri, Devine
30. Sioco, Joy
Table 04. The Participants
 This research employed a quantitative-Descriptive Method since the
objectives of the researchers are to determine the level of reading skills and
comprehension before and after the intervention, the percentage significant
difference of the Pre-Test and Post-Test results.
The first measurement would serve as the Word Recognition Marking
System for Graded Passages presented on Table 05 while the second
measurement is for Oral Reading Comprehension Test Criteria presented in
Table 06.
Results will be obtained every end of weekdays (Friday) for one month to
monitor their improvements. Checklist is as presented below.
Name:
Section:
Miscue Marking Comment WR Level
Mispronunciation
Substitution
Refusal to
Pronounce
Insertion
Omission
Repetition
Reversal
Table 05: Word Recognition Error Marking System for Graded Passages

Name of Students No. of Correct Answers Comprehension Level

BANNAWAG
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
RANG-AY
11.
12.
13.
14.
 15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
SANIATA
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
Table 06: Oral Reading Test Criteria for Comprehension

B. Data Gathering Methods

The conduct of this study is presented in the conceptual schema illustrated
in Fig. 2 which is the Process of Applying SQ3R Method.
As show in the table, the study centres on following the sequence of
Survey-Question-Read-Review-Recite-Method. A quasi-experimental research
method/design of investigation was used in this study. It is to explore whether
the SQ3R Method is effective in improving the Reading Skill and Comprehension.
The level of students Word Recognition and Reading comprehension is obtained
after administering the SQ3R Method and performing on evaluation every end of
the school week after intervention.
The result of the Pre-Test and each Post-Test would be compared to
determine the significant difference in the level of Reading Skills and
Comprehension of the learners.

01 Administering Test Questionnaire on Selected Grade 10

Students for Pre-Test

02 Data Analysis, and Computation for Word Recognition and

Reading Comprehension Level
 03 Introducing and Applying SQ3R Method

04 Checklist and monitoring every end of school/week

05 Data Analysis, Computation of Significant difference on the

level of Word Recognition and Reading Comprehension

06 The Result is final.

C. Research Instrument

PHIL-IRI READING SCREENING TEST FOR GRADE 10

Instruction: Read well the passages and answer the questions that follow. Write
ONLY the letter that corresponds to the correct answer.

Ivan Dmitrich pictured himself autumn with its rains, its cold evenings, and
its St. Martin’s summer. At that season he would have to take longer walks about
the garden and beside the river, so as to get thoroughly chilled, and then drink a
big class of vodka and eat a salted mushroom or a soused cucumber, and then—
drink another. . . . The children would come running from the kitchen-garden,
bringing a carrot and a radish smelling of fresh earth. . . . And then, he would lie
stretched full length on the sofa , and in leisurely fashion turn over the pages of
some illustrated magazine, or, covering his face with it and unbuttoning his
waistcoat, give himself up to slumber.
The St. Martin’s summer is followed by cloudy, gloomy weather. It rains
day and night, the bare trees weep, and the wind is damp and cold. The dogs, the
horses, the fowls—all are wet, depressed, and downcast. There is nowhere to
walk; one can’t go out for days together; one has to pace up and down the room,
looking despondently at the grey window. It is dreary!
 Ivan Dmitrich stopped and looked at his wife.
“I should go abroad, you know, Masha,” he said.
And he began thinking how nice it would be in late autumn to go abroad
somewhere to the South of France . . . to Italy . . . to India!
“I should certainly go abroad also too,” his wife said.
“But look at the number of the ticket!”
“Wait, wait! . . . ”
He walked about the room and went on thinking. It occurred to him: what
if his wife really did go abroad? It is pleasant to travel alone, or in the society of
light, careless women who live in in the present, and not such as think and talk all
the journey about nothing but their children, sigh, and tremble with dismay over
every farthing. Ivan Dmitrich imagined his wife in the train with a multitude of
parcels, baskets, and bags; she would be sighing over something, complaining that
the train made her headache, that she had spent so much money. . . . At the
stations he would continually be having to run for boiling water, bread and butter.
. . . She wouldn’t have dinner because of its being too dear. . . .
“She would begrudge me every farthing,” he thought, with a glance at his
wife. “The lottery ticket is hers, not mine! Besides, what is the use of her going
abroad? What does she want there? She would shut herself up in the hotel, and
not let me out of her sight. . . . I know!”
Except from the story, The Lottery Ticket by Anton Chekov.

1. Which of the following sayings reflect the main problem of the story?
a. Don’t count your chickens before they hatch.
b. Love for money is the root of evil.
c. No wife can endure a gambling husband; unless he is a steady winner.
d. Shallow men believe in luck. Strong men believe in cause and effect.
2. What change in the trait of the two characters can be observed in the story?
a. ambitious – stingy
b. considerate – quarrelsome
c. contented- selfish
d. loving- unkind
3. What does the lottery ticket symbolize based on the behavior of the two
characters?
a. ambition
b. dreams
c. greed
d. success
4. What is the overall feeling created in the story?
a. cold
b. desperate
c. embarrassed
d. ominous
5. How is the woman perceived by the other character in the story?
a. burdened and boring
b. old and ugly
c. sentimental and reserved
d. introvert and weak
6. What is the main lesson that one can learn from the passage?
a. Desire for money can potentially ruin one’ relationship with other people.
b. People should not completely rely on game of chances.
c. Taking risk is not worth it after all.
d. Be mature enough to be responsible in one’s relationship.

So, I’ll be speaking to you using language … because I can. This is one the
magical abilities that we humans have. We can transmit really complicated
thoughts to one another. So what I’m doing right now is, I’m making sounds with
my mouth as I’m exhaling. I’m making tones and hisses and puffs, and those are
creating air vibrations in the air. Those air vibrations are traveling to you, they’re
hitting your eardrums, and then your brain takes those vibrations from your
eardrums and transforms them into thoughts. I hope.
I hope that’s happening. So because of this ability, we humans are able to
transmit our ideas across vast reaches of space and time. We’re able to transmit
knowledge across minds. I can put a bizarre new idea in your mind right now. I
could say. “Imagine a jellyfish waltzing in a library while thinking about quantum
mechanics.”
Now of course, there isn’t just one language in the world, there are about
7,000 languages spoken around the world. And all the languages differ from one
another in all kinds of ways. Some languages have different sounds, they have
different vocabularies, and they also have different structures – very importantly,
different structures. That begs the question: Does the language we speak shape
the way we think? Now, this is an ancient question. People have been speculating
about this question forever. Charlemagne, Holy Roman emperor, said, “To have a
second language is to have a second soul” – strong statement that language crafts
reality. But on the other hand, Shakespeare has Juliet say. “What’s in a name? A
rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” Well, that suggests that maybe
language doesn’t craft reality.
These arguments have gone back and forth for thousands of years. But
recently, there hasn’t been any data to help us decide either way. Recently, in my
lab and other labs around the world, we’ve started doing research, and now we
have actual scientific data to weigh in on this question.
 So, let me tell you about some of my favorite examples. I’ll start with an
example from an Aboriginal community in Australia that I had the chance to work
with. These are the Kuuk Thaayorre people. They live in Pompuraaw at the very
west edge of Cape York. What’s cool about Kuuk Thaayorre, they don’t use words
like “left” and “right”, and instead, everything is in cardinal directions: north,
south, east and west. And when I say everything, I really mean everything. You
would say something like, “oh, there’s an ant on your southwest leg.” Or, “Move
your cup to the north-northeast a little bit.” In the fact, the way that you say
“hello” in Kuuk Thaayorre is you say, “Which way are you going?” and the answer
should be, “North-northeast in the far distance. How about you?”
[. . . ]
There are also really big differences in how people think about time. So
here I have pictures of my grandfather at different ages. And if I ask an English
speaker to organize time, they might lay it out this way, from left to right. This has
to do with writing direction. If you were a speaker of Hebrew or Arabic, you might
do it going in the opposite direction, from right to left.
But how would the Kuuk Thaayorre, this Aboriginal group I just told you
about, do it? They don’t use words like “left” and “right.” Let me give you hint.
When we sat people facing south, they organized time from left to right. When we
sat them facing north, they organized time from right to left. When we sat them
facing east, time came towards the body. What’s the pattern? East to west, right?
So, for them, time doesn’t actually get locked on the body at all, it gets locked on
the landscape. So, for me, if I’m facing this way, then time goes this way, and if I’m
facing this way, then time goes this way. I’m facing this way; time goes this way –
very egocentric of me have the direction of time chases me around every time I
turn my body. For the Kuuk Thaayorre, time is locked on the landscape. It’s a
dramatically different way of thinking about time.
[. . .]
I want to leave you with this final thought. I’ve told you about how
speakers of different languages think differently, but of course, that’s not about
how people elsewhere think. It’s about how you think. It’s how the language that
you speak shapes the way that you think. And that gives you the opportunity to
ask, “Why do I think the way that I do?” “How could I think differently?” And also,
“What thoughts do I wish to create?”
Except form the TED Talk, How Language Shapes the Way We Think by Lera
Boroditsky

7. Which of the following best describes the main idea of the article?
a. Language shapes our realities.
b. Language is a powerful tool to communicate ideas.
c. Language varies depending on geographical location.
d. There are about 7,000 languages spoken in the World.
8. How did the speaker prove her argument?
 a. She showed pictures of her grandfather at different ages.
b. She cited an estimated total number of languages spoken in the World
c. She specifically identified the location of her sample group.
d. She explained her research about a particular Aboriginal community.
9. How did the speaker develop the main idea?
a. Narratives
b. Cause and Effect
c. Problem-solution
d. Enumeration and examples
10. What kind of arguments did the speaker use in presenting her ideas?
a. Expert opinion
b. Research
c. Testimonial
d. Secondary information
11. Why did the speaker show the pictures of her grandfather?
a. To prove that blood related don’t necessarily speak the same language.
b. To point out that her grandfather cam form the same lineage of the
aboriginal community
c. To show that concept of time differs depending on the age of the person
d. To further explain that people perceive time differently.
12. What might be the best reason in using rhetorical questions in concluding her
speech?
a. To leave a lasting impression.
b. To refute her stand.
c. To challenge audience to reflect on the topic
d. To please the audience.

The passengers who had left Rome by the night express had to stop until
dawn at the small station of Fabriano in order to continue their journey by the
small old-fashioned local joining the main line with sulmona.
At dawn, in a stuffy and smoky second-class carriage in which five people
had already spent the night, a bulky woman in deep mourning was hosted in—
almost like a shapeless bundle. Behind her—puffing and moaning, followed her
husband—a tiny man; thin and weakly, his face death-white, his eyes small and
bright and looking shy and uneasy.
Having at last taken a seat he politely thanked the passengers who had
helped his wife and who had made room for her; then he turned around to the
woman trying to pull down the collar of her coat and politely inquired:
“Are you all right, dear?”
The wife, instead of answering, pulled up her collar again to her eyes, so as
to hide her face.
 “Nasty world,” muttered the husband with a sad smile
And he felt it his duty to explain to his travelling companions that the poor
woman was to be pitied for the war was taking away from her only son, a boy of
twenty to whom both devoted their entire life, even breaking up their home at
Sulmona to follow him to Rome, where he had to go as a student, the allowing him
to volunteer for war with an assurance, however, that at least six months he
would not be sent to the front and now, all of a sudden, receiving a wire saying
that he was due to leave in three days’ time and asking them to go and see him off.
The woman under the big coat was twisting and wriggling, at times
growling like a wild animal, feeling certain that all those explanations would not
have aroused even a shadow of sympathy from those people who—most likely---
were in the same plight as herself. One of them, who had been listening with
particular attention, said:
“You should thank God that your son is only leaving now for the front. Mine
has been sent there the first day of the war. He has already come back twice
wounded and been sent back again to the front.”
“What about me? I have two sons and three nephews at the front.” Said
another passenger.
“Maybe, nut in our case, it is our only son.” ventured the husband
“What difference can it make? You may spoil your only son by excessive
attentions, but you cannot love him more than you would all your other children if
you had any. Parental love is not like bread that can be broken to pieces and split
amongst the children in equal shares. A father gives all his love to each one of his
children without discrimination, whether it be one or ten, and id I am suffering
now for my two sons, I am not suffering half for each of them but double. . . .”
“True . . . true . . .” sighed the embarrassed husband, “but suppose (of
course we all hope it will never be your case) a father has two sons at the front
and he loses one of them, there is still one left to console him . . . while . . .”
“Yes,” answered the other, getting cross, “a son left to console him but also
a son left for whom he must survive, while in the case of the father of an only son
if the son dies the father can die too and put an end to his distress. Which of the
two positions is worse? Don’t you see how my case would be worse than yours?”
“Nonsense,” interrupted another traveller, a fat, red-faced man with
bloodshot eyes of the palest gray.
He was panting. From his bulging eyes seemed to spurt inner violence of an
uncontrolled vitality which his weakened body could hardly contain. “Nonsense”
he repeated, trying to cover his mouth with his hand so as to hide the two missing
front teeth. “Nonsense. Do we give life to our own children for our own benefit?”
The other travellers stared at him in distress. The one who had his son at the front
since the first day of the war sighed: “You are right. Our children do not belong to
us, they belong to the country . . . “
Except from the story, War by Luigi Pirandello
13. What is the story all about?
a. Couples who argue about the future of their families in the midst of crisis
b. Group of parents who have conflicting feelings regarding the condition of
their sons in times of war
c. People who display strong opposition against government
d. Rebellious sons who are against the decision of their parents
14. What historical event might have influenced the writer in developing the
story?
a. Bubonic plague
b. Cold war between Russia and US
c. Economic depression
d. World war
15. Which of the following lines favor the decision of the government?
a. “Maybe, but in our case, it is our only son,” ventured the husband
b. “Nasty world,” muttered the husband with a sad smile.
c. “Nonsense. Do we give life to our own children for our own benefit?”
d. You should thank God that your son is only leaving now for the front.
16. All of the following are realities depicted in the story except . . .
a. There is no a real winner in times of war.
b. Pain of parents who lost a child is incomparable.
c. Life becomes noble when one offers it for his country.
d. The highest honor that a child can give to his parents is by putting his life
for others before his own family.

In our time we have come to live with the moments of great crisis. Our lives
have been marked with debate about great issues – issues of war and peace, issues
of prosperity and depression. But rarely in any time does an issue lay bare the
secret heart of America itself. Rarely are we met with a challenge, not to our
growth or abundance, or our welfare or our security, but rather to the values, and
the purposes, and the meaning of our beloved nation.
The issue of equal rights for American Negroes is such an issue.
And should we defeated every enemy, and should we double our wealth
and conquer the stars and still be unequal to this issue, then we will have failed as
a people and as a nation. For with a country as with a person, “What is a man
profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?”
There is no Negro problem. There is no Southern problem. There is no
Northern problem. There is only an American problem. And we are met here
tonight as Americans – not as Democrats or Republicans. We are met here as
Americans to solve that problem.
 This was the first nations in the history of the world to be founded with a
purpose. The great phrases of that purpose still sound in every American heart,
North and South: “All men are created equal,” “government by consent of the
governed,” “give me liberty or give me death.” Well, those are not just clever
words, or those are not just empty theories. In their name Americans have fought
and died for two centuries, and tonight around the world they stand as guardians
of our liberty, risking their lives.
Those words are a promise to every citizen that he shall share in the
dignity of man. This dignity cannot be found in a man’s possessions; it cannot be
found in his power, or in his position. It really rests on his right to be treated as a
man equal in opportunity to all others. It says that he shall share in freedom, he
shall choose his leaders, educate his children, and provide for his according to his
ability and his merits as a human being. To apply any other test – to deny a man
his hopes because of his color or race or his religion or the place of his birth is not
only to do injustice, it is to deny America and to dishonor the dead who gave their
lives for American freedom.
Our fathers believed that if this noble view of the rights of man was to
flourish, it must be rooted in democracy. The most basic right of all was the right
to choose your own leaders. The history of this country, in large measure, is the
history of the expansion of that right to all of our people. Many of the issues of civil
rights are very complex and most difficult. But about this there can and should be
no argument.
Every American citizen must have an equal right to vote.
There is no reason which can excuse the denial of that right. There is no
duty which weighs more heavily on us than the duty we have to ensure that right.
Excerpt from the speech, We Shall Overcome, by Lyndon Bainess Johnson

17. How did the speaker describe the situation of Negros in his speech?
a. They do not have permanent homes.
b. They do not receive government support.
c. They suffer injustice and inequality.
d. They experience discrimination.
18. How did the speaker make a valid support on his claim?
a. Citing the success and tragic stories in the past
b. Comparing US with other countries
c. Describing the horrendous condition of Negros
d. Making reference to the historical foundation of the state
19. At the beginning of the speech, the speaker seems to be biased against . . .
a. Americans
b. African American
c. Negroes
 d. Native American
20. The speaker mentioned that, Americans have fought and died for two
centuries, a tonight around the world they stand as guardians of liberty, risking
their lives. What can you infer about the author’s bias based on the
aforementioned lines?
a. Asserts the democracy that Americans fought for
b. Believes on what the Americans can do
c. Dislikes America for creating social injustice
d. Thinks that Americans are great
21. Which of the following lines directly support the change that the speaker
wishes to happen?
a. . . . rarely in nay time does an issue lay bare the secret heart of America
itself. . .
b. . . . .the rights of man was to flourish, it must rooted in democracy . . .
c. . . . there is only an American problem. . .
d. . . . to dishonor the dead who gave their lives for American freedom. . .