The Joy in ReadingThe Joy in Reading by Teresa Wuby Teresa Wu

November 19, 2008

Soochow University

If you have come here to hear me tell If you have come here to hear me tell a secret “short cut” to reading original a secret “short cut” to reading original

texts, you will be disappointed…texts, you will be disappointed…because there are NO short cuts!because there are NO short cuts!

Much of what I’m going to tell you, Much of what I’m going to tell you, you already know. But you already know. But knowing knowing and and doingdoing what you what you know is right are two very different know is right are two very different things…things…

There are, however, some There are, however, some “reminders” “reminders” that I can go over with you. You’ve that I can go over with you. You’ve

heard them all before but it won’t heard them all before but it won’t hurt hurt to hear them again…to hear them again…

20062006 亞洲國家多益成績比較表亞洲國家多益成績比較表 (English Career June 2008 No.27)(English Career June 2008 No.27)

國家 聽力 閱讀 總分 排名印度 392 335 726 1

菲律賓 381 307 688 2

中國 318 277 595 3

新加坡 328 235 563 4

香港 302 243 545 5

韓國 288 253 541 6

台灣 285 238 523 7

泰國 286 215 501 8

日本 257 196 453 9

The following diagram shows a The following diagram shows a typical vicious circle typical vicious circle (( 惡性循環惡性循環 ) )

among many among many students who are having problems students who are having problems reading original texts, whether it be reading original texts, whether it be

a novel, an article in the a novel, an article in the newspaper,newspaper,magazine or a textbook chapter.magazine or a textbook chapter.

Vicious Circle for Poor ReadersVicious Circle for Poor Readers

OutlineOutline

1. Problems students encounter

2. Evidence of the problem

3. Possible solutions /study tips

4. Result – Discover the Joy in Reading

Problems Students Encounter Problems Students Encounter Vocabulary ‧ “Not knowing enough vocabulary words is

my biggest problem;

‧ “There are too many words that I’m not familiar

with;

‧ “I spend too much time looking up words in the

dictionary;

‧ “A word may have more than one definition;

‧ “I try to guess the word from the context but I

still look the word up in the dictionary because I want to know the word

completely.

Reading Problems (cont’d) Reading Problems (cont’d)

Comprehension (understanding)

‧ “I can’t understand the sentence/paragraph/

article completely;

‧ “Even if I know every word in the sentence/

paragraph, I still can’t understand what the

author is trying to tell me;

‧ “I read the article two or three times but I still

can’t understand the main point of the article;

Reading Problems (cont’d) Reading Problems (cont’d)

Length of time to read an article ‧ “I read so slowly; ‧ “There’s too much to read and it’s so long;

I can’t finish my assignment;

‧ “I have no patience to read for a long time;

‧ “I can’t remember what I read before; therefore,

I can’t make the connection between what was

read and what I’m reading… ‧ “It takes too long to read the article/unit in

English.

Reading Problems (cont’d)Reading Problems (cont’d)

Motivation ‧I just don’t see the need to read it in English; ‧ I don’t feel like reading it;

‧ I’m not interested in the subject/topic;

‧ I don’t know why but I’m just not motivated to improve my English;

‧ Why do I have to learn English? I don’t see myself

using English in my career.

Reading Problems (cont’d)Reading Problems (cont’d)

Translation

‧ Will a good translation help me in dealing with

an original text in English? ‧ Often, the Chinese translation does not

match the English original text;

‧ It is not directly translated; so, I can’t follow

what the author wants to say.

Reading Problems (cont’d)Reading Problems (cont’d)

Miscellaneous

‧ “I can’t even understand the exercises in the

unit, how can I follow the explanation/lesson;

‧ “There’s a lot of cultural references which I

don’t understand and therefore, I miss the

complete meaning of what the author is

trying to describe; ‧ “I’m not able to “read between the

lines,”” (can’t make inferences or draw

conclusions)

Evidence of ProblemEvidence of Problem

‧Students avoid reading an original text in English, students avoid speaking English outside the classroom;

‧ English is regarded as an end (to pass tests), rather than a means to an end;

‧ Students associate every English article/story with grammar analysis/new vocabulary words to learn;

‧ Lack of cultural literacy; not having prior knowledge to understand the text.

We’ve looked at:We’ve looked at:

‧‧ Problems students are encountering; Problems students are encountering;

‧‧ Evidence of this problem. Evidence of this problem.

Now, let’s look at: Now, let’s look at:

‧‧ Some possible solutions to the Some possible solutions to the problem ofproblem of reading an original text in English reading an original text in English

Needed Changes in Attitude towards Needed Changes in Attitude towards Reading English in its Original TextReading English in its Original Text

‧ Change from “I CAN’T do it”

to “I CAN do it;”

‧Be willing and aware that you need to get rid of old habits;

Attitude (con’t)Attitude (con’t)

‧Commitment to change – telling yourself that you can no longer to find excuses for yourself; for example, “My English is so poor;”

‧Be willing to put in time on previewing and reviewing every lesson; taking notes;

‧Don’t try to seek “instant gratification;”

不要求 “立竿見影”的效果

Attitude (cont’d)Attitude (cont’d)

‧Be open/tolerant to incompletion and ambiguity;

‧ Start from easy and work up to difficult ones; be patient, knowing that it’ll take time;

‧ Ask questions (during break, after class, during office hours)

Some Tips Some Tips for for Reading Textbook Chapter Reading Textbook Chapter

a) Read the first and last two paragraphs of the chapter; get an overview of what the chapter

is about;

b) As you read the chapter, look for and highlight definitions of key terms and examples of those definitions;

Textbook Chapter (cont’d)Textbook Chapter (cont’d)

c) Use the margins ( 書頁空白處 ) by numbering any lists of items, series of points with 1,2,3;

d) Take notes on the most important points;

organize them in a notebook and test yourself.

e) Make a “to do” list of things that need to be

gotten done every day (preview, review,

organize notes, etc.)

More Possible SolutionsMore Possible Solutions

Vocabulary in Context

Speed Reading

Intensive and Extensive Reading

Do you remember our problems Do you remember our problems with vocabulary?with vocabulary?

Problems Students Encounter Problems Students Encounter Vocabulary ‧Not knowing enough vocabulary words is

my biggest problem;

‧There are too many words that I’m not familiar

with;

‧I spend too much time looking up words in the

dictionary;

‧A word may have more than one definition;

‧I try to guess the word from the context but I

still look the word up in the dictionary because I want to know the word

completely.

Here is a suggestion Here is a suggestion for your for your

vocabulary problems vocabulary problems

Vocabulary in ContextVocabulary in Context從上下文猜字義字義從上下文猜字義字義

Vocabulary in Context (cont’d)Vocabulary in Context (cont’d)

1. I could not convince my friend to go on a picnic instead of to a restaurant. He was _______ in

his desire to eat a formal meal.

2. Usually if restaurant food is poorly prepared, I

don’t criticize the waiter. Instead, I _______

the manager.

3. After eating at bad restaurants, the meals at the Elite Café look wonderfully ______ , as appealing as water to a person in a desert.

Vocabulary in Context (cont’d)Vocabulary in Context (cont’d)

4. Knowing the slightest mistake meant losing his job, the waiter carried the expensive wine glasses _________ from the kitchen.

5. Restaurants sometimes keep food unrefrigerated until it is almost bad, until it smells _____ and looks ________.

6. The cooked meat was rotten and obviously ____.

Vocabulary in ContextVocabulary in Context

1. I could not convince my friend to go on a picnic

instead of to a restaurant. He was adamant

in his desire to eat a formal meal.

2. Usually if restaurant food is poorly prepared, I

don’t criticize the waiter. Instead, I reprimand

the manager.

3. After eating at bad restaurants, the meals at the

Elite Café look wonderfully enticing, as appealing as water to a person in a

desert.

 

Vocabulary in Context (cont’d)Vocabulary in Context (cont’d)

4. Knowing the slightest mistake meant losing his job, the waiter carried the expensive wine glasses gingerly from the kitchen.

5. Restaurants sometimes keep food unrefrigerated until it is almost bad, until it smells gamy and looks raunchy.

6. The cooked meat was rotten and obviously inedible.

You need to practice this skill…You need to practice this skill…

According to research, in order to According to research, in order to remember a vocabulary word, one remember a vocabulary word, one needs to be exposed to it for at least 32 needs to be exposed to it for at least 32 times in his/her various readings. This times in his/her various readings. This means you must read a lot. There is NO means you must read a lot. There is NO short cut!short cut!

Other problems – Other problems –

‧‧ ComprehensionComprehension ‧ ‧ Length of time spent Length of time spent readingreading

Reading Problems (cont’d) Reading Problems (cont’d)

Comprehension (understanding)

‧ “I can’t understand the sentence/paragraph/

article completely;

‧ “Even if I know every word in the sentence/

paragraph, I still can’t understand what the

author wants to say;

‧ “I read the article two or three times but I still

can’t understand the main point of the article;

Reading Problems (cont’d) Reading Problems (cont’d)

Length of time to read an article

‧ “I read so slowly;

‧ “I have no patience to read for a long time;

‧ “I can’t remember what I read before; therefore,

I can’t make the connection between what was

read and what I’m reading… ‧ “It takes too long to read the article in

English.

A possible solution – A possible solution –

Speed Reading Speed Reading

Speed Reading SkillSpeed Reading Skill

‧By getting an overall idea of the story/article through its title / picture(s) / subtitles;

‧By reading the: first two paragraphs, first sentence of each successive paragraphs, last paragraph;

‧ By gathering prior knowledge on the topic;

‧ By learning to cluster words.

Speed Reading (cont’d)Speed Reading (cont’d)

Most students think that the faster they

read,

the more their level of comprehension

is likely

to diminish. This is true to a sense but

not completely. You need to find the

right speed whereby you are still

comprehending and taking in the

information efficiently.

Many students believe that they have to Many students believe that they have to

read read

every word in the article/story in order every word in the article/story in order

to understand it completely. This is to understand it completely. This is

NOT true. NOT true.

Let me show you…Let me show you…

By reading clusters of words, your reading By reading clusters of words, your reading

speed will increase and your understanding speed will increase and your understanding

will pick up too. will pick up too.

Let’s practice this with some numbers… Let’s practice this with some numbers…

Speed Reading Tests Available Speed Reading Tests Available OnlineOnline

FREE OF CHARGE!!!

http://www.rocketreader.com/ (10-day trial on different techniques for reading skills)

http://www.freereadingtest.com/free-reading-test.html (Reading test to find out your reading speed-wpm)

More Speed Reading tips (cont’d)More Speed Reading tips (cont’d)

‧ Do not try to read every word;

‧ No fingers or movement of the head;

‧ No sub-vocalization ( 閱讀時喉嚨不要不知 不覺的跟著念 );

‧ Push your eye down the page;

‧ Do not re-read.

Other Problems – Other Problems – motivation and othersmotivation and others

Reading Problems (cont’d)Reading Problems (cont’d)

Motivation ‧I just don’t see the need to read it in English; ‧ I don’t feel like reading it;

‧ I’m not interested in the subject/topic;

‧ I don’t know why but I’m just not motivated to improve my English;

‧ Why do I have to learn English? I don’t see myself

using English in my career.

Reading Problems (cont’d)Reading Problems (cont’d)

Miscellaneous

‧ “There’s a lot of cultural references ( 文化意涵 )

which I don’t understand and therefore, I miss

the complete meaning of what the author is

trying to describe; ‧ I’m not able to “read between the lines,” (can’t make inferences or draw

conclusions, 無法推論 )

First, you’ll need to ask yourself First, you’ll need to ask yourself some questions: some questions:

What I am interested in? What I am interested in?

How can I find something I’m interested How can I find something I’m interested in?in? Do I really need to learn English? Do I really need to learn English?

A possible solution - A possible solution -

pleasure pleasure readingreading extensive reading extensive reading

Remember! You need to read A LOT…Remember! You need to read A LOT…How? What? Where?How? What? Where?

Comparison of Comparison of Intensive and Extensive ReadingsIntensive and Extensive Readings

TYPE OF READING INTENSIVE EXTENSIVE

CLASS GOAL Reading accurately Read fluently

READING PURPOSE TranslateAnswer questions

Get informationEnjoy

FOCUS Words and pronunciation Meaning

MATERIAL Often difficultTeacher chooses

EasyYou choose

AMOUNT Not much A lot

SPEED Slower Faster

METHODMust finishUse dictionary

Stop if you don’t like it

No dictionary

Some Samples of Graded ReadersSome Samples of Graded Readers分級讀本樣本分級讀本樣本

Some Samples of NovelsSome Samples of Novels一般小說讀本樣本一般小說讀本樣本

Every emotion Every emotion expressed expressed

Where to find used booksWhere to find used books (( 二手舊二手舊書書 ))……

‧ Whose Books [www.whosebooks.com] a) 2F, 764, Chung-shan N. Rd. Sec. 6; Tien-mu, Taipei; ( tel) 2872-5366; b) 44, Lane 235, Chung Cheng Road Shih Lin, Taipei; (tel) 8861-5828

‧ Bookmooch

www.bookmooch.com

Some things to remember: Some things to remember:

Rome was not build in a day.

All things are difficult before they become easy. 倒吃甘蔗

Vicious Circle for Poor ReadersVicious Circle for Poor Readers

can be changed to…can be changed to…

Wonderful Circle for Better ReadersWonderful Circle for Better Readers

A JOY IN READINGA JOY IN READING for for the rest of your life! the rest of your life!