TEACHING READING

By Clarisa

Introduction In many second or foreign language

teaching situations, reading receives a special focus.

This presentation aims at describing three articles which seek to throw light on the principles and practice of teaching reading.

Dilemmas for the Development of Second Language

William Grabe

Introduction

Since the 1980s, a number of advances have been made in research on reading both in first and second language contexts. Although the advances in first language contexts have led to a number of improvements in reading instruction, the corresponding research in second language contexts has not made as much headway.

The reasons for these differences will be discussed in the form of dilemmas.

DILEMMAS FOR SECOND LANGUAGE READING INSTRUCTION

Dilemma 1

The many different contexts for L2 reading instruction.

How can any reading approach be relevant to all different L2 reading acquisition contexts?

One resolution is to ask researchers and relevant journals to promote replication, near replications, and overlapping research studies.

Dilemma 2

Few reading instruction curricula focus on text structure awareness as a consistent component. Nor is the ability to discuss and teach awareness of text structure well developed in a variety of L2 teaching contexts.

Controlling the formal aspects of language use in reading and writing is a way out from subordinate and marginalised uses of language- a means for empowerment.(Martin, 1989, Christie, 1992)

Dilemma 4

A large vocabulary is critical, not only for reading, but for all L2 language skills, for academic abilities, and for background knowledge.

How will a L2 student develop a similar amount of words as in L1?

In L2 reading contexts the best way to develop such a large vocabulary is to read extensively.

Dilemma 5

A further complication for students, in both L1 and L2 reading instruction situations, is that social contexts of the student’s home environment strongly influences reading development.

Dilemma 6

We learn to read by reading a lot, yet reading a lot is not the emphasis of most reading curricula. There is now considerable evidence that the best way to learn to read (as opposed to translating or studying) is by extensive reading.

School administrators do not typically support daily silent reading in class; teachers do not feel that they are ‘teaching’ when students are reading something enjoyable.

Classrooms and libraries must be supplied with reading resources that can excite students to read.

Dilemma 7

A critical component for comprehension is the ability to use appropriate reading strategies and to know when to use them and in what combinations, depending on different reading purposes and tasks.

We have to make students into strategic readers rather than teach them reading strategies.

Dilemma 8

The common assumption is that schema theory supports comprehension by calling up stable knowledge representations that support and interpret the text knowledge.

There are a number of problems associated with the schema dilemma.

With reading texts that are instructional, students are just as likely to activate the wrong information.

Much research is questioning the concept of schema theory as a theoretical orientation to a person’s prior knowledge and memory retrieval.

There are viable alternative interpretations of prior knowledge which need to be explored.

Dilemma 9

Students must learn to make the transition from learning to read to reading to learn other information.

Content-Based Instruction (CBI) has the potential to motivate students strongly, to develop strategic readers, to provide contexts for reading extensively, and to promote larger and more useful vocabulary.