Checking your assumptions or predictions
In their daily lives, human beings make assumptions or predictions. For example, you anticipate the emotions of the people you meet based on your observations; you anticipate the interest in reading a book based on its cover; the presence of valet parking in front of a restaurant leads you to conclude that the cost of eating in that restaurant is probably prohibitive, etc.
When you make predictions or assumptions before you start reading, you are trying to guess what is coming up in your reading. If you are reading about the impact of climate change on human health, you are already thinking about some of the possible health problems caused by global warming. For example, airborne pollens, which affect air quality, cause allergic reactions in some people. So you should check the accuracy of your predictions later on while reading. When the prediction proves to be correct, it will allow you to learn something that will become more firmly anchored in your memory. When it is not, it still allows you to learn something, to anticipate differently when a similar situation arises with other texts.
Evaluating predictions and generating new ones are necessary actions to construct meaning from what you read. Clues about the information in a text and your knowledge enable you to predict what will happen next. You continue reading to validate, reject, modify or even generate new hypotheses based on the new clues you encounter in the text you are reading. Hypotheses allow you, as a reader, to motivate yourself to continue reading and to help you understand what happens next.
Bear in mind that it is important not only to look for information that confirms your assumption, but also to consider information that does not confirm it.
Advantages
Checking your assumptions as you read allows you to either adjust your reading intention if you find information that doesn't match it, or simply switch to another text if it doesn't match what you are looking for. It helps you to keep your focus on the content of the text and to stay more active while you read.
To get started
Questions to ask yourself :
- Is my prediction right? Is it confirmed in the text?
- Can my prediction or hypothesis be contradicted when reading the text?
- Does the information in the text contradict my prediction?
- If my prediction is not correct, do I have enough evidence to reject it?
If your hypothesis or prediction has not been disproved from the reading a text you have completed, this does not necessarily mean that it is confirmed. It may be disproved later in the text or when reading another text, because you had not taken all the elements of the subject into consideration, for example.
Exercice :
When you make assumptions about the content of the text before you start reading, have the reflex to validate or invalidate them as you read.
With a classmate, you can practise making predictions out loud and then check them as you read the text. The more incorrect your predictions or assumptions are, the better it will be to demonstrate that you need to systematically revise the accuracy of your predictions as you read.
Example :
From the following text entitled Innovative atlas puts Indigenous knowledge on the map — literally — to help tackle climate crisis, what are your predictions? What will the text be about from the title? What are we going to learn ? Write ideas on a piece of paper.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/science/climate-change-climate-atlas-indigenous-knowledge-1.6384612(Published : March 15, 2022)
To go into more detail, point out the elements that contradict or confirm the initial predictions and explain why these are rejected or confirmed.
Self-questioning
As you read, self-questioning consists of looking for answers to questions you asked yourself before you started reading (Schmitt, 2005). These questions are developed from the title and subtitles of a text that you will have changed into a question, for example.
Questions will direct your attention to the parts of the text that are more relevant to you and help you find the important information (Zwiers, 2008). The challenge then is to formulate a good question that will help you make connections between the ideas in a text and your prior knowledge.
Advantages
The formulation of questions helps to define a reading intention and the answers contribute to constructing the meaning of the text. Self-questioning helps to process information as it arises, improves retention of information, facilitates recall at the appropriate time and develops synthetic thinking.
To get started
When you tackle sections of a text, chapters:
- Change the title into a question;
- Look at the possible questions at the beginning or end of the chapter;
- Try to answer the questions Who? What? Where? When? How? Why? Make these questions specific to your topic, for example: Who invented this method? What are the advantages or disadvantages of...? How can this idea be applied in practice? And when?
Exercise :
Using a text you have chosen, turn a title into a question.
While reading, the idea is to find questions that summarise the information read. In other words, you read the answer and find the question.
Cautionary note:
The success of these strategies or actions depends on your seriousness and perseverance. You can partner with colleagues who want to study and revise the material seriously.
The use of self-questioning depends on your ability to formulate questions that are relevant and cover the material. You should use contents that you feel comfortable with.
This method may not be applicable to all subjects, so it is up to you to judge its relevance.
Example : :
From Moreillon, J. (2007). Chapter 5. Reading Comprehension Strategy three: Questioning. In Collaborative strategies for teaching reading comprehension: maximizing your impact. American Library Association.
- Ask:What does the title of the chapter mean? What do I already know about the subject?
- Question your purpose for reading the chapter. Why am I reading this? What do I want to get out of it?
- Look at questions the author may have at the beginning or end of the chapter.
Refer to this technique each time skimming a text is necessary.
Keep in mind your reading intention
In the preparation stage of your reading process, you saw that a reading intention (hyperlink) guides your approach according to the nature and scope of the task to be carried out: making a summary, preparing an oral presentation, familiarising yourself with the content of a text to attend a course, etc. Depending on your intention, certain types of reading are to be preferred: traditional, indicative or selective, diagonal, active and analytical reading (Bertrand and Azrour, 2004). Thus, depending on the objective you need to achieve, you will have to determine your way of reading.
Advantages
By choosing a way of reading that is appropriate to the reading intention, you will be able to achieve the goal you have set for yourself in an efficient way.
To get started
Questions to ask yourself :
- What was my reading intention at the beginning?
- What are my expectations as a reader of the text I am reading?
- How will I achieve my objective?
- What is the most appropriate way to read my text (selective, analytical, diagonal, etc.)?
- Do I need to read a few passages or the whole text?
- Do I need to do several readings of the texts?
- What should I note down as I read?
Exercise :
In a written assignment where you have to use one or more texts, choose one to do this exercise. This text could be a section of a chapter or an article.
Depending on your intention for the text, read it diagonally to see if it matches your reading intention. You can also use selective reading to do this.
Process for an indicative (or selective) reading :
- Identify the cover page, title, author's name and status;
- Identify the year of publication and the name of the publishing house;
- Read the table of contents, to understand the nature of the content and its components;
- Consult the index and glossary (if applicable) to identify the themes;
- Do a quick read of the introduction and conclusion;
- Do a full (attentive and critical) reading of the commentary at the back of the book.
Process for diagonal reading :
- Identify the constituent elements (introduction, development, conclusion and the parts and sub-parts of the development);
- Identify the structure of the text (informative, argumentative, narrative);
- Look for key words;
- Pay attention to the beginning, middle and end of a paragraph (often contain the essential elements);
- Pay attention to words in italics, bold, underlined sentences, tables, figures and statistics;
- Look for linking words (connectors, relation markers). They link ideas, announce arguments, conclusions, etc;
- Do not do continuous reading.
Process of active reading :
Once you have selected your texts, use active reading to go deeper into their content.
Caution: underlining a little or too much is not active reading.
The proposed technique is to use a lead pencil (to be able to erase if necessary) to identify the important elements:
- Box the key words (they occur frequently in the text)
- Circle the linking words;
- Underline the main ideas and restate them in your own words in the margin;
- Use brackets for main passages (definitions, arguments, explanations, examples, statistics, figures, etc.);
- Put abbreviations, comments or annotations in the margin;
- Use arrows, symbols, colours to link ideas;
- Identify and number the parts if necessary.
Process for analytical reading :
This type of reading consists in breaking down a text in order to better analyse it (Ruph, 2010). In order to fully understand a text, it is important to analyse each of its parts (each sentence and each paragraph plays a role in a text).
- Identify the articulations (titles and subtitles)
- Examine the relationships between paragraphs
- In each paragraph, identify structural markers (firstly, secondly, etc.) and relationship or transition markers (however, nevertheless, furthermore, etc.)
The markers will give you a good idea of how the ideas are related to each other (the facts, arguments, nuances made by the author). By analysing the text using these markers, you can ensure accurate understanding. By annotating the margins using techniques that will help to identify the structure of the text (e.g. numbering, short statement summarising the idea of the paragraph, arrows), you will be able to better perceive the structure of the text and see how the ideas progress.
Evaluating your comprehension
In our daily activities, we tend to monitor how we perform. For example, when we are doing an activity, such as running or playing a team sport, we often look for ways to improve. When we prepare a meal, we taste while we cook to make sure it tastes good. When we read, we should have the same kind of reflex to improve our efficiency.
Reading competence therefore includes the ability to evaluate your own understanding of what you read as accurately as possible. This evaluation allows you to become aware of what you understand and to use it to guide you (Zwiers, 2008). Thus, evaluating your comprehension will allow you to identify the cause of your comprehension and to modify your strategies to restore your comprehension.
Competent readers use a number of operations when they read a text: they will predict and elaborate, they will use means to restore a lack of understanding, they will question themselves to check their understanding, and they will pause to recall important information they have just read (Lachapelle, 1999). That said, competent readers do not focus on the details of a text, but rather on the overall message that the author is trying to convey (Zwiers, 2008).
The evaluation of reading comprehension consists, on the one hand, of being aware of your lack of comprehension, i.e. of the moment when the construction of meaning is interrupted. Reading strategies to remedy this can then be mobilised. On the other hand, comprehension evaluation includes the ability to be aware that sometimes, as a reader, you make false representations of what you read (Lachapelle, 1999). This awareness allows you to see the importance of approaching a difficult text or excerpt with strategies that will help you understand it better (e.g. rereading, adjusting reading speed, explaining an excerpt of a text to someone else, etc.).
Advantages
Helps you get the most out of your reading and understand your texts.
Keeps you focused on your reading intention, maintains your attention and motivation.
To get started
Evaluating your understanding involves pausing and recalling the key points. It is recommended that you take breaks every twenty minutes (or less, depending on your needs) and ask yourself how you would summarise or explain the main points of the text to someone else (Barbeau et al., 1997).
Rephrasing the main ideas of a text in writing is an excellent way of evaluating your level of understanding (see section on summarising or paraphrasing).
There are signs that will tell you that you have lost track of what you are reading (Zwiers, 2008):
- I can no longer form images in my head;
- I can't find answers to my questions;
- I have to reread a passage;
- I find it difficult to detach myself from the author's words to try to explain;
- My mind wanders, I think of something else despite my attempts to refocus on the task;
- What I read seems to contradict the previous ideas;
- I can't summarise or remember what I've just read;
- I can't predict what will happen next;
- I have difficulty making connections between ideas;
- Everything in the text seems important, or on the contrary, nothing seems relevant.
Questions to ask yourself :
To help you evaluate your comprehension:
- What is my level of understanding of the text or section concerned (clear, incomplete, not at all)?
- Can I rephrase ideas and explain them to someone else?
- Do I retain information from the text?
- What happens in my mind when I don't understand (quitting, negative thoughts, frustration, discouragement)?
- What is the cause of this lack of understanding (e.g. very specialised vocabulary, scientific text, new subject, ambiguous text).
Managing my understanding
Not understanding a text at first attempt (e.g. a scientific paper, a text dealing with a new subject) is quite normal, as ideas are often complex and it is important to invest the time and energy required to understand the content. In these circumstances, experienced readers know that it is sometimes necessary to repeat a reading in order to pin down the author's ideas (Dionne, 2008). Readers may also go back and forth in the text to make connections between ideas, use the context to acquire new vocabulary, etc. Like the writing process, a first reading consists of a first draft, while further readings consist of a revision of the text. Rereading the text makes it possible to note the parts that were not well understood and to re-process certain parts in order to better grasp their meaning.
Adjust the pace
Sometimes it is necessary to adjust your reading pace when the content becomes difficult or easier, or depending on the type of text (novel, newspaper, case analysis, scientific text, etc.). Effective readers vary their reading pace according to the nature and level of difficulty of the text and also according to the set objectives. Indeed, some sections of the text can be skimmed quickly while others deserve more attention. Be careful, as in general, reading too slow «encourages more scope for pauses, boredom and loss of concentration, which inhibits comprehension and slows understanding» (Buzan, 2006). On the other hand, reading faster can be relevant if it does not prevent you from fully understanding the text or when it does not prevent you from thinking (mindtools.com).
Guessing unknown words and remembering their meaning
When you see a new word, using the context of the sentence (or text) to predict and construct meaning can also be effective. In order to understand a word and use it well in subsequent writing situations, it is often necessary to define the new concept(s), otherwise there is a danger of misunderstanding (Tremblay and Perrier, 2000). It is normal to have to learn vocabulary related to the discipline in which you are studying (Tremblay and Perrier, 2000). Learning this vocabulary will improve your understanding of texts, in particular by creating a personal lexicon and by using the dictionary and sometimes specialised dictionaries (e.g. Dictionary of Education).
Advantages
Helps to make sense of what seems ambiguous at first sight.
Helps to avoid misunderstandings and misinterpretations.
To get started
When you find it difficult to understand a text or an extract from it, reading the extract aloud until the ideas become clearer can be a useful thing to do. If it is a complex sentence, take time to work out the ideas in it. This can be achieved by rereading the challenging extract, perhaps several times and at different times.
Example from a text by Jim Cummins1
Bowen states that:
What really confirms for me the thesis that the choice of language to be used as medium of instruction is not the determining factor of pedagogical success is the availability of counterevidence, experiments where students studying in a second language matched or excelled over those studying in their mother tongue. This would not be expected to happen if Macnamara's 'balance effect' operates. (1977, p. 110-111)
Analyse the different parts:
- The thesis: the choice of language to be used as a medium of instruction is not the determining factor of pedagogical success
- What confirms this thesis = availability of counterevidence
- Counterevidence: Students studying in a second language matched or excelled over those studying in their mother tongue.
- Balance effect: it can be concluded that according to the «balance effect», students who study in a second language would have lower results.
To improve your reading pace
(adapted from Buzan, 2006):
- Use selectively the habits that slow down your reading: for example, use your inner voice only to emphasize important words to help you memorize;
- Try to decipher as many words as possible in one shot by breaking sentences into logical groups rather than focusing on each individual word.
For more information on how to improve your reading speed: Buzan, T. (2006). Speed Reading. Accelerate your Speed and Understanding for Success. BBC Active.
If you have difficulty understanding the meaning of a word, read on before rereading, as you may find elements necessary to understand it along the way:
- Continue reading the paragraph and try to anticipate what comes next;
- The beginning and end of paragraphs or chapters often contain important information;
- For a difficult text, read it once. Afterwards, rereading it more thoroughly makes it easier to make connections as it gives you the big picture.
To find the meaning of a word
(Zwiers, 2008)
Questions to ask yourself :
- What is the context of the word or sentence?
- What clues can help me understand the meaning of the word or sentence?
- What can the word or sentence mean in this context?
- Can I recognise parts of the word (prefix, suffix) and give them a meaning I know? What other words have similar parts?
Creating a personal lexicon to learn new vocabulary
Do you have a personal lexicon to help you learn concepts related to your field of study? Creating a personal lexicon (in a small spiral notebook) can be a great help in acquiring new concepts.
- In your lexicon, note down the meaning given by a general dictionary and a specialised dictionary (as the case may be).
- You can write the definition of the unknown word (circled, boxed or specifically identified) in the margin of the text in question.
- If the terms are not always clear, it is possible to use specialised dictionaries (e.g. education dictionary, thesaurus, etymological dictionary, etc.).
Sources :
[1] Cummins, J. (1979). Linguistic Interdependence and the Educational Development of Bilingual Children. Review of Educational Research, 49(2), Pp. 222-251.