Comprehension

COURSE NO 1129 – TECHNICAL AND COMMUNICATIVE ENGLISH

MARIA BHUIYAN
LECTURER
DEPARTMENT OF HUMANITIES
KHULNA UNIVERSITY OF ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY (KUET)
Comprehension

 What is ‘comprehension’?
 Comprehending/ understanding/ grasp/ grip etc.
 The ability to understand
 The act or capability of understanding, especially writing or speech
Comprehension

 Formal Comprehension

 Informal Comprehension
Techniques of Reading Comprehension

 Reading
 Studying
 Previewing
 Prediction
 Inference
 Skimming
 Scanning
Reading VS Studying
Techniques of Reading Comprehension:
Previewing

 First, one previews.

 Before approaching a text, a great deal of information

about it can be obtained by previewing
Techniques of Reading Comprehension:
Previewing
 Title  Bibliographies

 Blurb (the information on the back of  Acknowledgement

the book or on the inside covers)

 Table of contents

 Index

 Illustrations

 Prefaces

 Introductions
Techniques of Reading Comprehension:
Previewing
 Look at the following titles or headings and write down what you think is the
likely content of each book or article.

a. Blueprint for Greentown?

b. Love’s Real Estate
c. If it wasn’t for the jokes
d. Boat People Adrift in London
e. On the road with scrap and straw
Techniques of Reading Comprehension:
Previewing

 A. The gipsy way of life.

 B. An ecological community for the future

 C. Vietnamese refugees who arrived by the sea

 D. A caring religious community

 E. Community help for juveniles

Previewing using illustrations
Techniques of Reading Comprehension:
Prediction

 Secondly, one predicts.

 One of the most important reading skills is prediction,

anticipating what is to come next in a text.
Techniques of Reading Comprehension:
Prediction

 We all have certain expectations about any material that we choose

to read, and there are various clues to help us predict the probable
nature of the subject matter and its development and treatment.
 How will the writer end this sentence or paragraph?
 What do I expect to come next?
 How will the story continue?
 How will it end?
Techniques of Reading Comprehension:
Prediction

Look at Worksheet 2.1

Techniques of Reading Comprehension:
Inference
 All men are mortal.
 Socrates is a man.
 ——–
 Therefore, Socrates is mortal.
Techniques of Reading Comprehension:
Inference
 Inference
is a conclusion reached on the basis of
evidence and reasoning.

 Unfamiliar words
 Implied meaning
Techniques of Reading Comprehension:
Skimming
 Skimming is reading a text quickly to get a general idea of meaning. It can be contrasted with
scanning, which is reading in order to find specific information, e.g. figures or names.

 Example:
A learner taking a reading exam decides to approach text by looking at the title, introductions, and any
diagrams and sub-headings, then skim reading to get a clear general idea of what the text is about.

 In the classroom
Skimming is a specific reading skill which is common in reading newspapers, messages and e-mails. It is
important that learners understand that there is no need to read every word when skimming, so often
teachers set this as a timed task to encourage speed.
Techniques of Reading Comprehension:
Scanning
 Scanning is reading a text quickly in order to find specific information, e.g. figures or names. It
can be contrasted with skimming, which is reading quickly to get a general idea of meaning.

 Example
A learner taking a reading test needs to scan a text on population rates quickly to find out if a series of
statements about the population figures are true or false.

 In the classroom
As the above example shows, scanning is a specific reading skill which is often used in combination with
others such as skimming and intensive reading. Learners need to learn different ways and understand that
choosing how to read is an important step in building reading skills.
Skimming & Scanning

Worksheet 2.1