Business & Technical Writing

Presented to: Dr. Muhammad Siddique Malik

 GROUP MEMBERS

Ahmed
Ahsan Iqbal Shahid Butt Ali Haider
Hussain
(BCS18-009) (BCS18-020) (BCS18-043)
(BCS18-032)
 TOPICS
◦ Business Reading
◦ Skills used in Business Reading
◦ Methods of Reading Skills
◦ Stages of the Reading Process
◦ Comprehension Skills
◦ Techniques to improve Comprehension Skills
 BUSINNESS READING

Business reading is the ability to

understand and interpret various
documents including diagrams, directories,
correspondence, manuals, records, charts,
graphs, tables, and specifications.

Highlight the information missing, verify

the figures and numbers and eliminate
irrelevant information.
SKILLS USED IN BUSINESS READING

Verifying requires comparing technical information that has been

transferred from one place to another to be sure that it has been
transferred accurately.

Comprehending detail is reading printed technical information,

then determining if statements about it are accurate.

Proof reading is reading printed technical information for the

purpose of error detection and its correction.
The component skills or sub-skills emphasized in
effective reading

Following directions Summarizing or making

generalizations
Perceiving document structure

Perceiving relationships Selecting relevant information

Identifying relevant information

Recognizing main idea
Locating facts or specifics

Recognizing comparison
information Reading with partner to detect errors

Interpreting symbols, graphics, or

acronyms Recognizing errors: transpositions,
typographical and mechanical,
Recognizing sequence of information additions and omissions

Ahmed
 METHODS OF READING SKILLS
Skimming:
◦ Skimming is used to quickly gather the
most important information. It’s not
essential to understand each word when
you are skimming.
◦ Run your eyes over the text, noting
important information. Use skimming to
quickly get up to speed on a current
business situation.
 How to Skim?
◦ Read the title if there is one.
◦ Read the introduction or the first paragraph if there is one.
◦ Read the first sentence of every other paragraph.
◦ Notice any pictures, charts, or graphs.
◦ Notice any italicized or boldface words or phrases.
◦ Read the summary or last paragraph if there is one.
◦ Read for which audience the text was written.
◦ Read a what type of text it is.
◦ Read what the purpose of author is and the general content of the text.
Examples of Skimming

◦ The Newspaper – to quickly get

the general news of the day
◦ Magazines – to quickly
discover which articles you
would like to read in more detail
◦ Business Brochures – to
quickly get informed
 Scanning

• Scanning is a reading technique to be

used when you want to find specific
information quickly.
• Scanning is used when a specific piece of
information is required, such as a name,
date, symbol, formula, or phrase, is
required.
 How to Scan?
• State the specific information you are looking for.
• Try to anticipate how the answer will appear and what clues you might
use to help you locate the answer. For example, if you were looking for
a certain date, you would quickly read the paragraph looking only for
numbers.
• Use headings and any other aids that will help you identify which
sections might contain the information you are looking for.
• Selectively read and skip through sections of the passage.
 Examples of Scanning

◦ A google search list on the

internet.
◦ A bus / airplane schedule
◦ A conference guide
Extensive Reading

◦ Reading longer texts for deeper

understanding e.g. story books, novels,
magazines etc.
◦ The aims of extensive reading are to build
reader confidence and enjoyment.
◦ Extensive reading is always done for the
comprehension of main ideas, not for
specific details.
Intensive Reading
◦ Reading shorter texts to extract specific
information
◦ Intensive Reading, sometimes called
"Narrow Reading“
◦ A common example is reading a chapter
to answer questions. This requires a
slightly different scaffolding in order to
have a success.

Ali Haider
 Pre-Reading Stage Reading Stage Post-Reading Stage

 Set a purpose for reading  Ask questions  Reflect on what you have read

 Set goals for reading  Summarize  Revise interpretations

 Determine a plan for reading  Identify main ideas  Summarize main ideas
STAGES
OF THE
READING  Activate background  Make connections  Draw conclusions
knowledge
PROCESS
 Make predictions  Make inferences  Seek additional information

 Visualize
 Use fix-up strategies
 Understand new vocabulary

 Create interpretations
 COMPREHENSION SKILLS
Comprehension Skills
◦ Comprehension skills are the strategies a
reader uses to construct meaning and retrieve
information from text. 
◦ Comprehension skills are very much like
thinking skills .
◦ Comprehension skills are also cognitive
processes which can be broken into steps and
taught explicitly.
 DEPENDENCE OF COMPREHENSION

Comprehension depends on Attention

In order to understand what is to read, readers must be actively engaged in the
process
Experiment for attentiveness
◦ Reader read a passage of text in the usual way.
◦ Ask some basic questions about the content
◦ See if the reader answers them.

◦ Use a similar level text and present the questions before the reading.
Remind Reader
To look for answers to the questions while he or she processes the text.
Vocabulary is a foundation for
comprehension
◦ For a professional, nearly all words
should be known when reading a
business document.
◦ If a reader does not know more than
three or four words a page, then
vocabulary may be an issue for
comprehension.
◦ We can build vocabulary skills by using
more words. Words must be used many
times before they become a part of the
working vocabulary. Shahid
 TECHNIQUES TO IMPROVE
COMPREHENSION SKILLS
Pre-Reading Elements
Reading is made up of words, sentences, and paragraphs. These are the
building blocks of reading. Before you begin reading, you need to find
the beginning, middle, and end of paragraphs. You need to examine
how a paragraph is put together.
 Paragraph
• A paragraph is a group of sentences. Paragraph tells you a complete set
of thoughts. Looking at the first page of what you will be reading on
your own. Locating the first paragraph. Here are some points to keep in
mind while reading comprehension.
• Finding the first sentence and look for the meaning.
• Finding the last sentence to understand complete concept.
• To know How many sentences are in the middle?
• To know How many sentences are in the whole paragraph?
Paragraph Beginning
◦ Choose the most important sentence in this paragraph. You can choose only
one.
◦ The most important sentence in a paragraph is called the topic sentence.
The topic sentence tells you what the rest of the paragraph is about
(overview).
Hint
◦ The topic sentence is often found at the beginning of the paragraph.
Paragraph Middle
• Look at rest of the paragraph and find a detail. A detail is a small thing that
tells you something more about the topic.
• The middle of the paragraph is the place where details are added to the
paragraph topic.

Hint
• Details are likely to be located in the middle of the paragraph.
Paragraph Ending
◦ Choose the concluding sentence (result) of the paragraph.
◦ The concluding sentence is what the topic and details build up to. The
concluding sentence often sums up the paragraph.

Hint
◦ The concluding sentence is often located at the end of the paragraph.
◦ Sometimes the concluding sentence will give you an idea about what the
next paragraph will be about.
That’s All from Our Side
Any Questions ?
End