CHAPTER 4

SCANNING AND SKIMMING

Reading can be fun and tiring at the same time. Even more so when you have to
read a lot of books or text. When you don't have much time and don't want to waste
time reading something that doesn't really matter, you need to learn speed reading
techniques. There are some speed reading techniques that we can use to increase
the effectiveness of our reading.

A. SCANNING
One of the most important comprehensive skills is the ability to skim the entire
reading material quickly. There are two types of cursory reading (Fleming, 1968).
One of them is to read quickly to find answers to a very specific question such as
name, date, telephone number, and so on. This way of reading is often called
scanning. So, scanning is a speed reading technique to get information without
reading anything else.

  The practice of learning how to scan certain information can be done well for
certain information can be done well by using a variety of reading material that is
usually read by scanning in functional reading activities.

   Experts on scanning to obtain certain information have developed special skills

that are different from other ways of reading. During moving the eyes to quickly
see the entire reading material, the reader does not absorb meaning but only
recognizes that the things he is looking for, it seems as clearly as if it was printed
in bold. Some people can reach speeds that are almost unreliable in scanning.

In everyday life scanning is used among other things to:

1. Look for a telephone number

2. look up words in the dictionary

3. look for entries in the index

4. look for statistics

5. look for television shows

6. look for a list of trips

reading scanning steps, if you want to get satisfying results from this speed reading
technique, follow the steps below:

1. Look at the table of contents and preface at a glance

2. briefly review the background of writing a book

3. read the introduction briefly

4. search the table of contents for important chapters.

5. read the conclusions section (if any)

6. glance at the bibliography, index list, or appendix.

The following is conveyed an example of the application of this technique.

“OAP Halts Wagon with Pram An old aged pensioner managed to stop a ten ton
wagon using only a pram, making the wagon reverse for three quarters of a mile
through a park. 83-year old Mrs Norah Padstow was playing with her grandson,
Wayne, in Jubilee Park, Dudley, last week when she saw a ten-ton wagon
attempting to take a short cut along a pedestrian-only path across the park. Furious
that he was breaking the law and putting children at risk, she pushed her pram in
front of the wagon and refused to move. The driver, Mr Eric Smithson, argued with
her for some time but eventually had to reverse all the way back to the ring road.
MrsPadstow told our reporter, “I knew he wouldn’t knock me down if I stood my
ground. Wagon drivers keep using the park as a short cut to avoid the traffic jams
in the town centre but they shouldn’t do it and one day a child will get hurt!” Mr
Smithson was not available for comment.”

Referring to the text above, the following questions are submitted relating to
factual information that can be approached with scanning technique.

No. Question Answer

01. Who stopped a ten-ton wagon? An old aged pensioner
02. How old was Mrs. Norah Padstow? She was 83-year old
03. What was her grandson’s name? He was Wayne.
04. What was the name of the driver of the He was Mr Eric Smithson
ten-ton
wagon?
05. What did Mrs Padstow tell the reporter? “I knew he wouldn’t
knock me down if Istood
my ground.”

B. SKIMMING
Skimming is a technique of reading at high speed to look for things that are
important or the main idea of a reading. A very useful reading skill is skimming.
Which involves readers in passing and quickly to get an overall and general
impression. Some situations that require the use of skimming are:

1. examine a chapter in a book, before studying it seriously in order to get an idea

of the general scope of that chapter.

2. sample several pages of novels or other types of writing to determine whether

the written work is valuable reading.

3. Quickly examine an article on a controversial issue to find the author's views,

without regard to the author's specific arguments.

4. examine the reading material to assess whether the reading contains the type of
information we are looking for.
5. examine the reading material to determine whether the reading can be
understood or is too difficult.

Function of Skimming

The function of using skimming technique is to get an overview of a text and get
main points. Skimmers move quickly through texts, ignoring and skipping
paragraphs, sentences, and words to gather necessary information without wasting
their time. The major function of skimming technique is to gather the gist of a text.

Steps to read skimming:

1. make a question about what we will look for in a book.

2. browse the table of contents or preface, whether the information we need is

there.

3. attentively, browse at high speed every paragraph or section you encounter.

4. stop when you feel you find what you are looking for.

5. read with normal speed, and understand well what you are looking for.

For example, get the main idea of the paragraphs by reading the first and last
sentence:

Text I

“ There are now over 700 million motor vehicles in the world - and the number is
rising by more than 40 million each year. The average distance driven by car users
is growing too - from 8 km a day per person in western Europe in 1965 to 25 km a
day in 1995. This dependence on motor vehicles has given rise to major problems,
including environmental pollution, depletion of oil resources, traffic congestion
and safety. “

A.
There are now over 700 million motor vehicles in the world - and the number is
rising by more than 40 million each year.
This dependence on motor vehicles has given rise to major problems, including
environmental pollution, depletion of oil resources, traffic congestion and safety.
B.
While emissions from new cars are far less harmful than they used to be, city
streets and motorways are becoming more crowded than ever, often with older
trucks, buses and taxis which emit excessive levels of smoke and fumes.
In Mexico City, vehicle pollution is a major health hazard.
C.
Until a hundred years ago, most journeys were in the 20km range, the distance
conveniently accessible by horse.
Can it avoid being locked into congested and polluting ways of transporting
people and goods?
D.
In Europe most cities are still designed for the old modes of transport.
Other social effects have been blamed on the car such as alienation and
aggressive human behaviour.
Another example to improve ability reading skills and and practice your
understanding of using skimming speed reading techniques
Text II
The railroad was not the first institution to impose regularity on society, or to
draw attention to the importance of precise timekeeping. For as long as merchants
have set out their wares at daybreak and communal festivities have been
celebrated, people have been in rough agreement with their neighbors as to the
time of day. The value of this tradition is today more apparent than ever. Were it
not for public acceptance of a single yardstick of time, social life would be
unbearably chaotic: the massive daily transfers of goods, services, and information
would proceed in fits and starts; the very fabric of modem society would begin to
unravel.
What is the main idea of the passage?
(A) In modem society we must make more time for our neighbors.
(B) The traditions of society are timeless.
(C) An accepted way of measuring time is essential for the smooth functioning of
society.
(D) Society judges people by the times at which they conduct certain activities.
The main idea of the passage is that societies need to agree about how time is to be
measured in order to function smoothly. Therefore, you should choose (C).
Text III

Gold, a precious metal, is prized for two important characteristics. First of all, gold has a
lustrous beauty that is resistant to corrosion. Therefore, it is suitable for jewelry, coins, and
ornamental purposes. Gold never needs to be polished and will remain beautiful forever. For
example, a Macedonian coins remains as untarnished to day as the day it was minted twenty-
three centuries ago. Another important characteristic of gold is usefulness to industry and
science. For many years, it has been used in hundreds of industrial applications. The most recent
use of gold is in astronaut's suits. Astronauts wear gold-plated heat shields for protection outside
spaceships. In conclusion, gold is treasured not only for its beauty but also for its

(1) What is the topic of the text? Gold

(2) What is the main idea of the text? Gold is prized for two important characteristics.

C. Difference between Skimming and Scanning

Skimming Scanning
A fast reading method that gives you of A fast reading method that allows you
what the textis about having to read it to find the spesific information in a text
in full
Means reading the introduction, the Means going through an articel quickly
headlines, or the first phrase of a looking for a date or quote
paragraph
Implies not having read the text before Implies previously knowing the
information you are looking for
D. PURPOSE AND BENEFITS OF SKIMMING AND
SCANNING
       Skimming and scanning are speed reading techniques that are often done by
readers. Both of these techniques are actually very functional especially in daily
activities. A reading skill that is systematically arranged to get efficient results for
various goals, such as the following:

1. to recognize the topic of reading

2. to find out people's opinions

3. to find out the writing organization

4. to get the important parts that we need without reading the whole

5. to refresh what we have read

as for the benefits include:

1. can find a specific information needed from a reading text or book quickly and
efficiently

2. can explore many pages of the book in a short time

3. do not waste too much time searching for something desired from the book,
especially actions that do not support the search for information.