LESSON III.

THE RECEPTIVE SKILLS Characteristics of the reading process: (Romero &

Romero, 1985)
A. READING
1. Reading is a complex process.
Introduction
Reading is a complex process because there are
What is reading? This is one question that seems so
many factors involved that may affect one’s
easy, yet it is full of complexities.
performance in reading. Word recognition,
Leu & Kinzer (1987) defines reading as a identifying and making sense out of the words
development, interactive, and global process being read are also a few of the requisites towards
better comprehension of the text.
involving learned skills. As for Tarigan (2008), it is a
process carried out and used by a reader 2. Reading is a two-way process.

to acquire message which is conveyed by a writer Reading is not just receiving, or absorption of
through words and could be known and seen ideas; it is an interaction or communication
between the author and the reader. When the
by reader.
reader fails to understand the text, he may have a
Some definitions give emphasis on the mental problem of poor comprehension, thus
processes involved in reading, while communication gap between him and the author
occurs. The reading act is complete only when the
others deal with the values derived from the
reading is put to use in some way, like
process. No matter how reading is defined, they
communicating with others in discussion,
all boil down to one thing: reading involves the use reporting,
of a code that has to be interpreted for
summarizing, etc.
meaning (Romero & Romero 1985).
3. Reading is largely a visual process.
As a college student, your workload may be
For one to be able to read well, he has to have good
overwhelming. Unlike in high school, you
eyesight.
need to read a lot now that you are in college if you
4. Reading is an active process.
want to succeed on all your undertakings
The reader constructs meaning from a text and
in this new phase of your life. You have to develop
may have different interpretation of what he reads
proficiency and fluency in reading.
because of his experiences and knowledge. As a
Reading defined: reader reads, he asks questions and looks for
points to which he agrees or disagrees.
➢ Reading is decoding written symbols.
5. Reading makes use of a linguistic system which
➢ Reading is getting meaning from printed page. enables readers to be more effective users of
➢ Reading is putting meaning into the printed written language.
page. A reader would do better if he knows the syntax,
orthography, and morphology of a language.
➢ Reading is the process of interpreting the
Having said this, he could interact more effectively
written symbols.
with the printed page.
➢ Reading is the process of communication
between author and reader.
6. Effective reading is partly dependent on the The individual, at this stage, uses word-recognition
reader’s prior knowledge or background techniques automatically, and is almost
experiences. completely independent in reading. He reads with
understanding in the subject areas, extends his
A person’s knowledge of the topic facilitates
dictionary independently, and begins to use
comprehension.
reading as a tool in problem solving.
STAGES OF READING
e. Stage of Refinement in Reading Abilities,
a. Pre-Reading Stage Attitudes, and Tastes

During this stage, the individual is engaged in a The individual reader has acquired independence
program of experiences aimed to enhance his oral in locating and utilizing a variety of materials, is
language development to a level equal to or aware of varied purposes for reading and has
greater than the level of materials for beginning developed skills of critical evaluation of material
reading. Experiences are provided for concept read. His reading interests are extended, and his
development. The individual is also trained literary tastes refined. This refinement process
auditory and visual discrimination, listens to, tells, actually begins with initial reading instruction and
and discusses stories and learns basic work and proceeds into adult life.
study habits. To develop his mental, physical,
Importance of Reading
emotional, and social readiness for reading, further
experiences are provided. ✓ Reading is good for the brain. It makes us well-
informed and smarter because we gain
b. Initial Reading Stage
access to various knowledge.
The individual begins to use picture, context, and
configuration clues to recognize words and then ✓ Reading inspires you. Yes, reading can be a
goes on to beginning instruction in phonetic and source of inspiration especially when you
structural analysis techniques. He learns to use and encounter good things on the material that you
handle books, acquires the understanding that read. For example, if you read the story of a person
reading yields information, and begins to develop who succeeded in life despite his hardships, one
skills in finding main ideas, anticipating outcomes, who rose from rags to riches, this will give you
making inferences, finding details, and noting more energy to strive until you reach your dream.
sequences.
✓ Reading can be a source of recreation. Reading
c. Stage of Rapid Progress about something you enjoy can be a
The reader extends his use of a variety of word- form of relaxation; it can ease tension in your
recognition techniques and begins muscles and heart.
to use the dictionary for word meaning for word
✓ Reading makes you a better writer. When you
meaning, spelling, and pronunciation. He extends
read, your vocabulary and spelling are
his vocabulary and comprehension skills, he reads
with understanding a greater variety of materials, enhanced. You also get exposed to various writing
and he begins to read independently for techniques, which unconsciously, you will be able
information and pleasures. to imitate these writing techniques.

d. Stage of Extended Reading Experience and ✓ Reading can make you a good conversationalist.
Rapidly Increasing Reading Efficiency What do we get from reading? A lot of ideas. When
you have a lot of ideas, you have a lot to share 2. Skimming. This reading technique is used for
when talking with others. looking for main ideas in a text, without going into
the details. Under this technique, we read quickly
READING TECHNIQUES
to get the main points and skip over the detail.
Reading is one good habit that can do wonders in a https://literarydevices.net/skimming/
person’s life; it can even change
When skimming, try to do the following:
human life significantly. It can entertain us, amuse
➢ Don’t read everything.
us, and enrich us with knowledge and
experiences. ➢ Read the first and last sentences of the
paragraph.
If you want to become a better and more
comprehensive reader, mastering these ➢ Read the introduction and the summary.
techniques can help you a lot.
➢ Read a few examples until you understand until
1. Scanning. This is a reading strategy that is used you understand the
for getting some specific points by looking at the
concept they want to illustrate.
whole text. When you do the following, you do
scan technique: 3. Comprehensive Reading. When undertaking
comprehensive reading, your aim must be clear in
a. Looking up the meaning of a word in a dictionary
mind. Student must read carefully and slowly in
b. Finding a telephone number in a directory order to get information and understand the text.

c. Finding statistical information in tables, charts, The following are necessary to do comprehensive
graphs reading:

d. Finding the answers to certain questions from a a. Vocabulary Recognition

text
Students should be able to analyze words, use the
e. Looking up a name from the telephone dictionary, and use context clues.
guidebook
b. Sentence Comprehension
Procedures for Scanning
Here are the techniques to understand a sentence:
a. Keep in mind only the specific information to be
1. Sentence analysis
located.
Analyzing the parts of the sentence, knowing the
b. Decide which clues will help to find the required
subject and the verb, etc. will help students
information.
understand the meaning of the sentence.
c. Move your eyes as quickly as possible down the
2. Recognizing punctuation marks
page to find the clue.
Students should recognize the meaning and use of
d. Read the section containing the clues to get the
punctuation marks in order to know the ideas the
information needed.
writer wants to convey.
Scanning trains students to think of clues in finding
3. Recognizing reference terms
specific information and to move their eyes rapidly
to obtain the information quickly using clues like A reference term is a word used to replace another
word/words, alphabetical order, numbers, etc. word so that the writer does not have to repeat the
same word again and again.
4. Recognizing signal words B. LISTENING
A signal word is a word or phrase that functions as Listening is the ability to accurately receive and
a connector in a sentence, between sentences, or interpret messages in the communication process.
between paragraphs. It is the process of receiving, constructing meaning
from, and
Examples of signal words
responding to spoken and/or nonverbal messages.
addition: and, as well as, besides
It is an active process by which we make sense of,
cause –effect relationships: hence, due to, as a
assess, and respond to what we hear.
result
It requires concentration, which is the focusing of
condition: if, when, unless
your thoughts upon one particular topic.
contrast: but, though, despite
Listening vs Hearing
comparison: like, unlike, in the same way
A person who receives and understands
doubt or hypothesis: possibly, probably information or an instruction, and then chooses

emphasis: above all, really, in effect not to comply with it or not to agree to it; one is
hearing what others are saying, and another is
sequence or order of events: first, later, eventually,
etc. trying to understand what it means.

examples and restatements: for example, that is, ➢ Hearing – refers to the sounds that enter your
namely: ears. It is a physical process that
c. Paragraph analysis provided you that you do not have any hearing
problems.
The student learns to:
- It happens automatically or naturally.
1. Find the topic;
- It is passive.
2. Find the main idea;
- It is more of physiological.
3. Find major supporting details;
4. Find minor supporting details. ➢ Listening – is done by choice. It is interpretative
action taken by someone in order to understand
d. Interpreting illustrations and potentially make meaning of something they
Pictures, tables, maps, etc. must be interpreted hear.
properly. - It is a physical and mental process; active; learned
4. Critical Reading process; a skill

To be able to read critically, the student must learn - It is more of psychological.

to: TYPES OF LISTENING
a. Examine the reliability of the material; • Appreciative Listening
b. Distinguish facts from opinions; - listening for pleasure and enjoyment, as when we
c. Draw inferences from the material. listen to music, to a comedy routine, or to an
entertaining speech.
- describes how well speakers choose and use structure.
words, use humor, ask questions, tell stories, and
• Critical/ Analytical Listening
argue persuasively.
- listening to evaluate a message for purposes of
• Emphatic Listening
accepting or rejecting it, as when we listen to the
- listening to provide emotional support for the sales pitch of a used-car dealer or the campaign
speaker, as when a psychiatrist listens to a patient speech of a political candidate
or when we lend a sympathetic ear to a friend.
- focuses on evaluating whether a message is
- focuses on understanding and identifying with a logical and reasonable
person’s situation, feelings,
- asks you to make judgements based on your
or motives. evaluation of the speaker’s arguments.
- there is an attempt to understand what the other - challenges the speaker’s message by evaluating
person is feeling. its accuracy and meaningfulness, and utility
• Comprehensive/Active Listening - uses critical thinking skills
- listening to understand the message of a speaker, Critical thinking Skills - the intellectually disciplines
as when we attend a classroom lecture or listen to process of actively and skillfully conceptualizing,
directions for finding a friend’s house. applying, analyzing, synthesizing, and/or
evaluating information gathered from or
- focuses on accurately understanding the meaning
generated by, observation, experience, reflection,
of the speaker’s words while
reasoning, or communication as a guide to belief
simultaneously interpreting non-verbal cues such and action.
as facial expressions,
It is the process by which people qualitatively and
gestures, posture, and vocal quality. quantitatively assess the information they have
accumulated, and how they in turn use that
- it is a particular communication technique that
information to solve problems and forge new
requires the listener to provide feedback on what
pattern of understanding.
he or she hears to the speaker.
Critical thinking skills include observation,
Three (3) Main Degrees of Comprehensive or
interpretation, analysis, inference, evaluation,
Active Listening
explanation, and metacognition.
1. Repeating - requires perceiving, paying
Critical thinkers are those who are able to do the
attention, and remembering.
following:
- repeating the messages involves using exactly the
1. Recognize problems and find workable solutions
same words used by
to those problems.
the speaker.
2. Understand the importance of prioritization in
2. Paraphrasing - requires thinking and reasoning. the hierarchy of problem-solving
It involves rendering the message using similar
tasks.
phrase arrangement to the ones used by the
speaker. 3. Gather relevant information.

3. Reflecting - involves rendering the message 4. Read between the lines by recognizing what is
using your own words and sentence not said or stated.
5. Use language clearly, efficiently, and with - What you remember is actually not what was said
efficacy. but what you think
6. Interpret data and form conclusions based on was said.
that data.
➢ Evaluating – It consists of judging the messages
7. Determine the presence of lack of logical in some way. At times, you may try
relationships.
to evaluate the speaker’s underlying intentions or
8. Make sound conclusions and/or generalizations motives.
based on given data.
- Effective listeners should deliberately reduce the
9. Test conclusions and generalizations. influence of their own
10. Reconstruct one’s patterns of beliefs on the viewpoint until they have first understood the
basis of wider experience. speaker’s ideas.
11. Render accurate judgments about specific In language learning, some teaching methods, such
things and qualities in everyday life. physical response, involve
✓ Therefore, critical thinkers must engage in highly students by simply listening and responding. There
active listening to further their critical thinking two distinctions involve in
skills. People can use critical thinking skills to
listening learning process and these are:
understand, interpret, and assess what they hear
in order to formulate appropriate reactions or 1. Intensive Listening – in which learners attempt
responses. These skills allow people to organize the to listen with maximum
information that they hear, understand its context
accuracy to a relatively brief sequence of speech.
or relevance, recognize unstated assumptions,
make logical connections between ideas, - more effective in terms of developing specific
determine the truth values, and draw conclusions. aspects
Conversely, engaging in focused, effective listening of listening ability.
also lets people collect information in a way that
2. Extensive Listening – in which learners listen to
best promotes critical thinking and, ultimately,
lengthy passages for general
successful communication.
comprehension.
Process of Listening
- more effective in building fluency and
➢ Receiving – it refers to the response caused by
maintaining
sound waves stimulating the sensory
learner motivation.
receptors of the ear.

➢ Understanding – it is the stage at which you

learn what the speaker means - the
thoughts and emotional tone.

➢ Remembering – this is retaining messages for at

least some period of time.