Teaching ESL Reading

GSL520 Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL) Saint Michael’s College Summer 2012 Li Li (lli2@smcvt.edu)

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Li Li (lli2@smcvt.edu) • 10 June 2012

Contents

Emotional Words1

Contextual Words2

Li Li (lli2@smcvt.edu) • 10 June 2012

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Emotional Words

Strong Words Weak Words Ambiguous Words

Assertive Wordse.g.• always• never • only• definitely, etc

Uncertainty e. g. • almost• seem • appear• perhaps• likely• possible, etc

e. g. • apparently• Somewhat• seemingly• appear• ostensible

Li Li (lli2@smcvt.edu) • 10 June 2012 3

Exercise 1

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Read the following paragraph and answer the question:

The identity of the Beowulf poet is also uncertain. He apparently was a Christian who loved the pagan heroic tradition of his ancestors and blended the values of the pagan hero with theChristian values of his own country and time. Because he wrote in the Anglian dialect, heprobably was either a monk in a monastery or a poet in an Anglo-Saxon court located north ofthe Thames River.

Text Source: Educational Testing Service (ETS). (2009). The Official Guide to the TOEFL iBT with CD-ROM, Columbus, OH: McGraw-Hill

Key: B

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Why does the author of this passage use the word “apparently” in paragraph 5?

A. He is not certain that the author of Beowulf was a ChristianB. He is mentioning facts that are obvious to the readersC. He is giving an example from a historical referenceD. He is introducing evidence about the author of Beowulf

Question:

Causal Relation-ship

Compare &

Contrast

Contextual Words

Li Li (lli2@smcvt.edu) • 10 June 2012

Source: Google Image

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Compare & Contrast

Comparison Contrast

Li Li (lli2@smcvt.edu) • 10 June 2012 5

• Compared with

• like/alike, in the same way/manner, resemble, likewise, similarity, etc

• Unlike • on the other hand, as

opposed to, different from, on the contrary, instead of, rather than

Causal Relationship

CauseEffect

Purpose

• Because• Since• On account of• Due to• Result from• Contribute to• In that• Given• Owing to• Thanks to

• Thus• Hence• Therefore

(ergo) • Lead to• Result in• Accordingly• As a result/• Consequently• The outcome

is…

in _______ to

with a ______ to

in an ______ to

Li Li (lli2@smcvt.edu) • 10 June 2012 6

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Exercise 2 Read the following paragraph and answer the question:

With the advent of projection, the viewer's relationship with the image was no longer private, as it had been with earlier peepshow devices, which was a similar machine that reproduced motion by means of successive images on individual photographic cards instead of on strips of celluloid. It suddenly became public. At the same time, the image that the spectator looked at expanded from the minuscule peepshow dimensions of 1 or 2 inches (in height) to the life-size proportions of 6 or 9 feet.

Text Source: Educational Testing Service (ETS). (2009). The Official Guide to the TOEFL iBT with CD-ROM, Columbus, OH: McGraw-Hill

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Question:

Which of the following is mentioned in the paragraph as one of the ways the Mutoscope differed from the Kinetoscope?

A: Sound and motion were simultaneously produced in the Mutoscope.B: More than one person could view the images at the same time with the Mutoscope.C: The Mutoscope was a less sophisticated earlier prototype of the Kinetoscope.D: A different type of material was used to produce the images used in the Mutocope.

Key: B

Recommended Learning Materials

Reading

The Economist

Huffingtonpost

The New Yorker

Dictionaries

Lingoes

Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of Synonyms

For more information: please visit my wiki >>>>>>>>

Li Li (lli2@smcvt.edu) • 10 June 2012 9

See You in Next Class

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Li Li (lli2@smcvt.edu) • 10 June 2012