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READING COMPREHENSION

Speed Building
Many adults never get out of the habit of reading words; something they are in habit of, since childhood. Reading words leads to slower reading whereas if you learn to recognize thought patterns, your reading speed will increase.

(A) Looking for Sign Posts!

Coming back to our strange city example, when you drive through a strange city you are always on a lookout for the signposts and landmarks. By looking at them you are able to tell yourself that something is expected. Similarly certain words instantly tell you a lot about the structure of a passage. For example, if a sentence begins, on the one hand, you would expect to find an on the other hand later in the sentence. These structural signposts show an alert reader whats going to happen later in a passage. Here are some structural signposts to look out for on the CAT. Yet again special attention should be given to the words/phrases given within inverted commas ( ), because invariably these words/phrases have particular relevance in context of the passage.

Change is Upfront: Trigger Words

Take a look at the following example First paragraph: Most people believe that the UFOs have extraterrestrial origin Second paragraph: HOWEVER (trigger word), scientists have unearthed enough evidence Their genesis lies in the obscure labs sponsored by CIA. In this example the trigger word signals that the second paragraph will modify or qualify what was gone before. A trigger word at the beginning of any paragraph is a sure sign that this paragraph will disagree with what was stated in the preceding one. _____________________________________________________________________ Page : 1

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____________________________________________________________________ Trigger words are important even if they do not appear at the beginning of a paragraph; they always signal a change of meaning, even if it is only within a sentence. Here are the trigger words that often appear in the Comprehension passages. Although (even though) Despite (in spite of) However Nonetheless On the other hand While But Except Nevertheless Notwithstanding Unless Yet

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Continuing Words
Some structural signposts let you know that there will be no contradiction, no change in path. If you see a first of all it stands to reason that there will be a second and perhaps a third. Other signs of continuation: By the same token In addition Likewise Similarly This (implies a reference to preceding sentence) Thus (implies a conclusion)

YinYang Words
One of frequently occurring types of passage contrasts two opposing view points and certain words immediately give this away. See if you can supply the second half of the following sentences: 1. The traditional view of the causes of global warming focuses on the burning of fossil fuel. (Second half: However, the new view is that there is some other cause.) 2. Until recently, it was thought that the Mayan civilization was destroyed as a result of drought (Second half: However, now we believe that space invaders destroyed them.) 3. The classical model of laissezfaire capitalism does not even admit the possibility of government intervention (Second half: But the rock and roll version of laissezfaire capitalism says, Let me just get my checkbook.) _____________________________________________________________________ Page : 2

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____________________________________________________________________ 4. Before 1960, it was commonly assumed that the atom was the smallest particle in the universe. (Second half: However, after 1960 scientists began to suspect that there was something even smaller.) Whenever you spot a yin word, you should realize that there is a yang on the way. Some other yinyang words: Yin Generally most scientists think on the one hand the old view the widespread belief Yang (however, this time . . . ) (but Doctor Spleegle thinks . . .) (on the other hand . . . ) (however, the new view . . .) (but the believes . . .)

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Getting Through the Passage Faster

Structural elements like these can help you understand a passage faster, with less reading. When you spot one of these signposts, make a mental note. If it actually starts a paragraph, you might begin your threeword synopsis of the paragraph with a big but. A structural signpost is usually more important to your understanding of a passage than any individual fact within that passage.

(B) Improving Speed Simple points to remember

Many of us have the habit of reading out loud. Try to avoid this. Read in your mind. This will, in some measure, help you increase your reading speed. Likewise avoiding use of a pen or pencil that runs alongside words also needs to be avoided, for it hinders speed. The pen/pencil could, however, be handy for marking the important points in the passage.

(C) Pre-reading, Skimming, Scanning and Prediction

CAT RC reading requires you to redefine the word reading. Here reading can be categorized under three heads:
If the subject matter of the passage is entirely new to the student, it might help if s/he does the reading twice: the first reading to be a birds eyeview or a pre-reading exercise only. The birds eye-view may constitute reading the opening couple of statements, the first statement of each body paragraph, and the concluding couple of statements. A birds eye view will afford the students a good grasp of the main idea of the passage. Such pre-reading will also enable the student to decide what to look for and read in the second assay.

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____________________________________________________________________ Skimming means: Read some; Leave some. The students should develop the habit of reading for idea that requires them to skip unnecessary/ supporting detail. There may be a small phrase in a sentence that is worth noting. The rest needs to be skipped. Skimming is useful for noting the important points of the passage. Scanning is like looking for a needle in a pile of grass. Your eyes may be looking at the grass, but not actually seeing it as the focus is only on the needle. This is literally like Arjunas focus on the birds eye. Scanning is useful for locating specific detail, where you know in which paragraph the detail may lie. Prediction means trying to anticipate what may lie ahead. Trying to predict not only helps build focus, but also increases reading speed.

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(D) Eye Span; Column Reading

Increase your eye span Reduce fixation.
If we read word for word, our eye-sight will be moving left to right across the entire width of the text. This is not only tiring, but also time consuming. Since the students know by now that reading of the entire passage is not needed to answer the RC questions, they should develop the habit of moving across the length of the passage skipping the text on the margins of their eye span. This will speed up reading without seriously jeopardizing the comprehension of the passage. Linked with the eye span is the technique of column reading. Let us try out an experiment. Take any article on the editorial page of a newspaper, preferably on an abstract subject, of which you have no prior knowledge. The article may run into 3-4 columns. Try going through any one column of the article, skipping the rest. Then put the paper down and write down the main idea of the article on a sheet of paper. You will find that invariably you are able to get the main point of the article by reading one column/ part of the text only. Likewise you may treat the text width of a reading passage as consisting of columns and glance through only the part within your eye span.

(E) Phrase Reading

The RC passage is not a collection of words. It is rather an expression of ideas. The ideas are in phrase form. The grammatical structure of the sentences is irrelevant for the purpose of reading comprehension. Only the structurally important phrase needs to be read carefully. We need a lot of practice so as to develop the habit of reading for the relevant phrases, not for the words/sentences.

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(F) Varying reading speed:

All the content of the reading passage is not equally important. So why should you spend uniform time? The reading has to be at varying speed: speed through the content till you come across something very important slow down here, even mull what is being discussed here then speed up again when the content is repetitive or elaborative detail that you can always infer or predict We do not prescribe a set reading style. Select the one that you are comfortable with. Also vary the style as per the type of reading topic involved and the type of questions that you have to answer. After all, you cannot have the same speed for a work of fiction and for an abstract topic on philosophy. The varying reading speeds will help you make the most efficient use of the limited time available and at the same time improve your comprehension.

A word of Caution: Speed with Accuracy

Capacity to read fast is definitely an advantage, though you should bear in mind that reading for speed alone could be counter-productive. Speed reading is not the ultimate aim. The aim is to answer the questions correctly and to make the fullest use of your capacity. The need for assimilation: Reading is assimilation learning and all learning is a digestive process. On the face of things, it seems that there is a tradeoff between speed and assimilation if the reader goes twice as fast he assimilates half as much but it need not be so. Assimilation is somewhat faster if you are able to relate your knowledge of the subject to the material you are reading. This is not to say that if you are not familiar with the subject matter you will not be able to assimilate well. You may just take a little longer and this will not reduce your speed drastically.

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____________________________________________________________________ Key Point: Assimilation is measured by the quality of retention of information and the ability to recall relevant information. If you try to look at words rather than look for their meaning, you are being passive instead of being proactive. This approach may increase your speed but do nothing for assimilation. It is therefore a question of striking the right balance between speed and comprehension and reading flexibly.

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Toolkit

RC tests your ability to answer the questions correctly rather than your ability to read fast. Hence, regardless of how fast you can read a given text, it is the accuracy of the answers to the questions that matters in the test. Even if your reading speed is just average, you can maximize the accuracy by using appropriate techniques. Cracking the RC is a right combination of speed and technique.

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