Page 93 - DENG102_COMMUNICATION_SKILLS_II

Communication Skills-II

notes introduction

Each one of us spends a lot of time on reading. We begin our day by reading the newspapers.
During the day, we read our e-mails, letters and other books and magazines. We also read banners
and advertisements on the boards. The success of any business organization depends upon the
ability of its executives to read and understand the material given in office manuals, newspapers,
magazines, books, journals, letters, reports, business reports, etc., quickly and adequately.
Independent reading is a term used in educational settings, where students are involved
in choosing and reading material (fiction books, non-fiction, magazine, and other media) for
their independent consumption and enjoyment. Teachers often lament that students don’t read
enough, and that as a result their skills are weak, their literary experience thin, their general
background knowledge deficient. Usually Independent Reading is conducted alongside the
ongoing curriculum in the classroom. Independent Reading can be tied to assessment and
evaluation or remain as an activity in itself.

6.1 What is reading?

Reading is a dynamic process in which the reader interacts with the text to construct meaning.
Inherent in constructing meaning is the reader’s ability to activate prior knowledge, use reading
strategies and adapt to the reading situation.

This definition of reading as a dynamic, interactive process means that, a good reader is no longer
defined as one who demonstrates mastery of a series of isolated skills, but rather as a person who
can apply reading strategies independently and flexibly. Valid reading assessments therefore
evaluate students’ ability to apply their knowledge, skills and strategies to reading situations that
are representative of those they encounter in their daily lives.

6.1.1 reading objectives

Readers think and use text differently depending on the types of text and their purpose for
reading. Three purposes for reading can be described as follows:

reading for literary experience

l It involves reading novels, short stories, poems, plays and essays.

l It requires exploration of the human condition and the interplay among events, emotions
and possibilities.
l It requires knowing what and how an author might write in a specific genre and forming
expectations of how the text will be organized.

l It involves looking for how the author explores or uncovers experiences.
l It requires engaging in vicarious experiences through the text.

reading for information

l It involves reading articles in magazines and newspapers, chapters in textbooks, entries of
business, encyclopedias and catalogs, entire books on particular topics.

l It requires awareness of the features found in this type of prose such as charts, footnotes,
diagrams, subheadings and tables.

l It requires obtaining general information (e.g., scanning a magazine article or obtaining
information for a research project).

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