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On the
Road to Efficient Reading
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In many Third World colleges and universities
reading comprehension is recognized as the principal objective of language courses. The
students need to understand and use efficiently the information contained in up-to-date
sources in their respective fields of study. However, reading is just one of the basic
language skills that, together with speaking, listening and writing, form an indivisible
whole.
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For a number of years at the University of
Havana, we have been trying out different procedures to improve the language performance
of our students in the context of English for Academic/Specific Purposes. Research carried
out from 1985-89 has suggested the usefulness of developing listening comprehension skills
(frequently neglected) to pave the way to more efficient reading comprehension. So now, in
the first term here at the university, listening comprehension is emphasized, and in the
following term, reading comprehension takes up the leading role.
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In this reading comprehension stage, we used a
variety of exercises always ending with some sort of note- taking and summarizing. Yet,
not satisfied with the results, we felt that there was a missing link in the chain. In
other words, we were teaching our students to comprehend the information contained in the
text, but how could we determine whether they were able to use this information in a
purposeful manner? Herein, I am presenting two suggestions for meeting the cognitive needs
of EAP learners: One for undergraduate students of Mathematics and the other for those of
Geography.
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Locate the statement that does not correspond to
the explanation and draw the corresponding diagram: A very interesting and important
application of the hyperbola is that of locating the place from which a sound, as of a
gun, comes from. From the difference in the times at which the sound reaches two listening
posts, the difference between the distances of the posts from the gun can be determined.
Then, knowing the distance between the posts, the gun is located on a branch of a
hyperbola of which the posts are foci. Unlike the other conic sections, the hyperbola has
associated with it two lines which are its asymptotes. The position of the gun in this
curve can be found by the use of a third listening post. Either of the two posts and the
third are foci of a branch of another hyperbola on which the gun is located. Hence the gun
is at the intersection of the two branches.
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This exercise has a double purpose: First, to
develop a sense of coherence and textuality by determining the informative segment that
blocks the logical connection of the excerpt; secondly, to elicit a non-linguistic
response to the test on the part of the student (Grellet 1982). This second aim implies a
transposition of the information; in this particular case, the information encoded
verbally is decoded graphically. Thus, the information is transcoded.
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Other positive features of this type of exercise
are its brainstorming capacity, a high degree of background knowledge activation, and
higher mental demands for its successful solution. (When using this type of exercise, an
advanced student might explain the solution to his classmates, and the professor might
promote a general discussion, taking advantage of the cognitive potential of this
procedure.)
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Based on the graph below, answer the following
questions:
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I. Determine if the statements are True or
False:
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- Winter months in Darwin are extremely dry.
- Rainfall is highest in January.
- September is as dry as May in Darwin.
- There is an average rainfall of about 10" in March.
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II. Answer the following questions:
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- What is the average rainfall in October?
- When is it wetter than in February?
- Is December as wet as March in Darwin?
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III. Formulate simple statements with the
information contained in the graph:
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in |
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15 |
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300 |
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10 |
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200 |
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5 |
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100 |
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| Rainfall graph of Darwin, typical of the wetter parts of
the summer rainfall regions. Adapted from A
Regional Geography Part III,
by L. Dudley Stamp, Longmans, 1965. |
This second exercise is also related to the transcoding of information but in reverse: The
information encoded graphically is reformulated by the language user verbally. We highly
appreciate its didactic value because it simulates the demands of real-life communication
in the language class since geographers, in their normal professional activity, are often
faced with the task of explaining and verbalizing information contained in maps, graphs,
and diagrams.
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In this case the exercise is structured so as to
control the level of difficulty of the task presented: In (I) the student merely has to
decide if the statements coincide with the information represented in the figure; in (II)
s/he will have to produce the information in a controlled manner; in (III) s/he will
freely produce statements within his/her verbal scope, such as "Rainfall levels are
not steady throughout the year in Darwin." or "Winter is very dry in Darwin,
while summer is extremely wet." Both answering questions and formulating statements
are part of the professional requirements of this group of language users, thus the levels
of motivation are high.
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In our experience, these exercises have
successfully complemented the sets of exercises originally prepared and have made the
students realize that they can actually cope with the information of their specialty
formulated in a foreign language. We must always bear in mind that language learning has
to take into account not only the needs, but also the expectations of the language user.
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Moreover, these transcoding exercises activate
the comprehension process that is the cornerstone of efficient reading.
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- Grellet, F. 1982. Developing reading skills. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
- Neubert, A. 1985. Text and translation. VEB Verlag Enzyklopadie: Leipzig.
- Silva, J. de V. and S. Araujo. 1992. Designing ESP materials for university students. In
English Teaching Forum, 30, 4, pp 36-37.
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