How to Practice Reading and Comprehension?
Before we set
out to practice anything, the first requirement is to measure our base
performance. This is the entry-level ability that we are changing into a skill.
This measurement is called the ‘Pre-test’. This performance gets compared with
that of the ‘Post-test’. We must expect an increase in scores. If there is no
increase, then our learning has not occurred.
So, take the
pre-test first, practice reading a chapter or section, and finally take the
post-test. The practice has to be systematic. Follow the guidelines given below
and you should be able to achieve better results.
PRE-TEST ON READING AND COMPREHENSION
How many words can you
recall, when 20 words are presented to you?
§
Write down 1 to 20 one below the other in
your book.
§
You will be presented with 20 words one
after the other one at a time
§
You will
have three seconds per word
§
Go through the words presented to you
§
Do not write anything while the words are
being presented
§
Just read the words and you will have
sufficient time to recall them afterward
§
Do not
slow down the video or stop it in the middle
§
This is
an attempt to just understand how well you can do
§
You now
have the opportunity to measure yourself
§
Recall the words you have seen
§
You can recall in any order
§
Check for accuracy later
§
Note down the number of correctly
reproduced words
§
All are four-lettered or five-lettered
words
Video ON pre-test
Answers at the end
Multiply the
number of correct answers by five and you will get the percentage. If your
accuracy is 40%, then it means that whatever you read you can remember 40%
only. So, to get 100% you will have to go through the material several times.
The Present Approach
The present
methodology is modeled to bridge the lacunae in the present pedagogical system.
·
Knowing what is read
·
Aligning reading speed with the speed of brain capacity
·
Filtering out unnecessary information
·
Directing memory and concentration
·
Regulating information processing
Whenever you
come across a word or a concept, try to create imagery for the same. Imagine
something about the word. Convert that word into something tangible.
For instance,
you came across the word "East" in the pre-test. You can imagine a
picture of a sun that is rising in the east. Creating imagery in the brain
takes just a fraction of a second. You have earlier seen that we can read a
word in less than 1/10th of a second. So you will have sufficient time.
When we keep
trying to remember the word without the corresponding imagery, we will be
wasting time and at the same time taxing our brain capacity. The processing of the
word doesn't take place hence it moves to short-term memory. The moment another
word is shown to you, the new word replaces the earlier word, irrespective of
how much effort you have put in. At the end of the presentation, you will be
left with only a handful of words. When you try to recall them, you will miss
out on a few more words.
We usually
cross-check – whether we can remember the word or not by – rereading it. This
is not the same as recall. Without ensuring how much information we have
already obtained, merely rereading the same material becomes less useful. So,
whenever you want to cross-check, do it by recalling it, especially in writing.
How to Practice
Accuracy
Read a
passage or paragraph. Close the book. Identify the keywords. Check with the
book how many are right. Check with the book how many are wrong. Check with the
book how many are missing. Note these down.
You aim to
increase the right and decrease the wrong and missing. Practice on different paragraphs and not on
the same ones. Continue until you get
100% accuracy.
How to Practice
Speed
Use a stopwatch
to note down how much time you take to read each paragraph. This you should do
after reaching at least 80% accuracy. Note down the time taken for each
paragraph. You aim to increase speed in reading without losing accuracy. The
time you take should keep reducing until you get to the minimum time
consecutively.
POST-TEST ON READING AND COMPREHENSION
How many words can you
recall, when 20 words are presented to you?
§
Write down 1 to 20 one below the other in
your book.
§
You will be presented with 20 words one
after the other one at a time
§
You will
have three seconds per word
§
Go through the words presented to you
§
Do not write anything while the words are
being presented
§
Just read the words and you will have
sufficient time to recall them afterward
§
Do not
slow down the video or stop it in the middle
§
This is
an attempt to just understand how well you can do
§
You now
have the opportunity to measure yourself
§
Recall the words you have seen
§
You can recall in any order
§
Check for accuracy later
§
Note down the number of correctly
reproduced words
§
All are four-lettered or five-lettered
words
Video ON
post-test
Multiply the number of correct answers by five and you will get the percentage. If your accuracy is 40%, then it means that whatever you read you can remember 40% only. So, to get 100% you will have to go through the material several times.
ANSWERS for Pre-test on Reading and Comprehension
1. Angel
2. Ball
3. Chair
4. Doll
5. East
6. Fruit
7. Grass
8. House
9. Index
10. Join
11. Keep
12. Land
13. Mart
14. Neck
15. Pond
16. Rain
17. Short
18. Table
19. Vice
20. Watch
ANSWERS for Post-test on Reading and Comprehension
1. Anger2. Bank
3. Crowd
4. Desk
5. Echo
6. Field
7. Glass
8. Hotel
9. Image
10. Jump
11. Kick
12. Lamp
13. Melt
14. Nest
15. Play
16. Ring
17. Shirt
18. Train
19. Vase
20. Waste
What are Reading and Comprehension
Five Pillars of Reading and Comprehension
Eight Mistakes in Reading and Comprehension
What are 64 Nava Vidya or 64 New Skills
30 Pointers to Reading and Comprehension
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