READING as a

PHYSIOLOGICAL
PROCESS
LESSON 3
Physiological Processes

The functions of living organisms

and their parts, and
the physical and chemical factors 
and processes involved.
Here are known facts about
reading:

1. Reading involves both an

organic or physiological process
and a mental or cognitive
processes.
2. In the physiological process, the
most basic step is for the eyes to
see, identify, and recognize the
printed word or image.
 3. The light pattern from
the printed symbols hit
the foveal areas or closely
packed sensory cell or the
ritena.
4. In turn, this induces chemical
changes that create patterns of
nerve currents into the optic nerve
fiber.
5. Then these currents travel to a
center in the mid-brain.
transmits visual information from
the retina to the brain. 
 6. The stage of reading revolves
around the ability to identify and
recognize words which are the
smallest unit of visual identification
and meaningful recognition. But
the act of reading does not take
place if the letters are perceived in
isolation.
7. Finally, using the currents that
travel to the mid-brain, the
cerebral cortex interprets the
symbols.
 8. Studies show eye movement in
reading with the eye perceiving
and pausing on the printed
material horizontally from left to
right and top-to-bottom or right to
left and bottom-to-top.
9. Scientific experiments have also
shown that there are several eye
movements:

a. Fixation or the eye stopping

or getting fixated on the word or
words.
 b. Inter-fixation or the eyes
moving from stopping point to
the other

c. Return sweeps with the eye

swinging back from the end line to
the beginning of the next line.
 d. Short quick hop and jump
movements called saccades,
done especially by literate
people, to move ahead on a line
of print.
 e. Regression or backward
right-to-left movement in
case there is need to double
check what is being read.
 f. Span of recognition or the eyes’
recognition of the group of words.
It is believed that readers can add
to their reading ability by widening
the span or recognition by means of
chunking of phrases, a focus on the
total word pattern. As the span
widen, fixation decreases resulting
in increased speed in reading.
READING as a COGNITIVE
PROCESS

LESSON 4
 The mental or cognitive
process in the perception
of meaning is also known
as Comprehension
2 basic steps in Reading
Comprehension

1. the extraneous process that creates a

stimulus on the visual centers of the
brain.

2. fusion/interpretation/ construction
or “meaning” by the mind out of the
stimuli
2 steps involve other complex
processes to include:

* immediate arousal of associations in

the recognition of the written symbols
– their pronunciation, vocabulary
meaning, context, ect.

* other stimuli inclusive of what is

kinesthetic or auditory.
* These stimuli are distributed
to brain centers

* Synthesis or the fusion or

related inputs from brain
centers resulting in the
recognition of the meaning of
the printed symbols.
 Scientist have described the cognitive
process in reading:

“ Selecting and combining relevant

items of experience that are implied by
the immediate context, by the author’s
mood, tone, or intention, and by
everything the reader knows that
makes clear the meaning of the
passage” (Richards)
Levels of comprehension making
us aware of faculties of the mind at
work in each particular reading
activity:

1. Literal
2. Interpretative
3. Applied
4. Evaluative
Scientist also make reference to meta-cognition
which refers to higher comprehension skill
characterized by:

+ Self-awareness
+ Careful reading and greater retention
+ making previous assumptions or hypothesis
+ the deliberate and combine ability to reflect,
question, classify, summarize and predict
+ information reading which gives attention to
SQ3R
 Thank you
for listening 
 Biology Online(2001) Physiological processes, http://www.biology-
online.org/dictionary/Physiological_processes

Wilipedia (m.d) optic nerve, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Optic_nerve

(2008)Reading as a Physiological Process, Lesson 3, Developmental reading, ...

 pp.13-14

Villanueva, A. S. and Delos Santos R(2008)Reading as a Cognitive Process,

Lesson 4, Developmental reading, ...  pp.17-19