READING ASSIGNMENT 2022/23

FOR JUNIOR STUDENTS

- Read 5 articles from broadsheets (text led,'quality' newspapers) about

different topics related to the final exam (matura) topics.
- Answer some relevant questions (3-6) of your choice below into your
notebooks.
- Write a short summary.
- Look up a few new words in a dictionary and write them into your
notebook. (Try to memorise them. 😊Use them in your sentences.)
- Send ALL the answers (handwritten) and the links into xooltime.
Present two or three articles in the classroom.
- Some of the top broadsheets are The Times, The Telegraph, The
Guardian.

a) Is there evidence to support the points made by the author?

b) Is there any indication of bias from the examples, tone or language used
by the author?
c) Can you think of anything that is left out of the text?
d) Are the ideas of others presented fairly and accurately?
e) What is the author trying to say?
f) Does the author present a balanced picture of the topic?
g) Is the author trying to persuade or inform the reader?
h) Does the author oversimplify complex ideas?
i) Do you agree with the points made by the author?
j) Are the conclusions logical?
k) Is the author's work credible?
l) Do the author’s ideas agree or disagree with your own experiences? How
so?
m) Why did you choose the article?

Your speech will be graded. (Presentation, fluency, pronunciation, grammar

accuracy, vocabulary)

Deadline - the end of March, 2023

QUESTIONS FOR CRITICAL THINKING

The statements below are descriptions of different ways you may respond to a text you
are reading. Each statement can be applied to a question you can ask when trying to
critically evaluate a text.

   For each statement below (1 - 10), select a question from the list that the
statement responds to.

1. You have a sense of the main idea of the text and you think you understand the
author's general 'message'.

2. You are not sure that the text you are reading is appropriate for you because it
contains too much detail or is too technical for your needs.

3. You think about whether the author is simply giving information or whether there is
an attempt to convince you to have a particular opinion about the topic.

4. When you finish reading the text, you feel that certain points related to the
argument were not dicussed sufficiently, or perhaps not at all.

5. When you finish reading the text, you feel that the author focused perhaps a little
bit too much on presenting an argument from one particular perspective. You feel that
there are different ways of regarding the topic, and this is not represented in the text.

6. You feel that the author should have discussed the topic in more detail in order to
achieve a fuller or more comprehensive analysis.

7. You may feel that the author has not used quotation or paraphrase in a completely
honest way. This is because you believe that the information from other writers was
carefully selected. As a result, you think that the author created a slightly different
argument from the one that the original writers intended.

8. The author has failed to convince you of his or her argument because the text is
mostly personal claims or opinions.

9. You have the impression that the author has quite a negative attitude towards the
content of the text. This is based not only on what the author says, but also how it is
said.

10. You eventually decide whether you accept the arguments presented by the author by
assessing all the evidence you can find within the text.

a) Is there evidence to support the points made by the author?

b) Is there any indication of bias from the examples, tone or language used by the
author?
c) Can you think of anything that is left out of the text?
d) Are the ideas of others presented fairly and accurately?
e) What is the author trying to say?
f) Does the author present a balanced picture of the topic?
g) Is the author trying to persuade or inform the reader?
h) Does the author oversimplify complex ideas?
i) Do you agree with the points made by the author?
j) Has the author written the text for a particular audience?