Augmentation of Newspaper Reading - A Command Device for Communication

              Augmentation of Newspaper Reading - A Command Device for                                                        Communication 

                        Reading is indeed to the mind what food is to the body

                                                                                             - Joseph Addison

                 These famous words by Addison, an essayist, portray the importance of reading skill for each and every individual in his/her learning process. On this view, this piece of writing, aims to describe about the significance of the reading skill among the students of English to acquire and exchange the information without any difficulties. It is often found that the students even in this modern society are weak in reading skill. Though they have learned English for many more years including grammar and vocabulary, they are unable to speak without any interruptions and they find difficult even to read a text properly. To avoid this difficulty of the students, the newspaper can be used as a tool in the English Classroom to inculcate their reading ability.

Introduction:-

Newspaper is a device which carries information from all around the globe. It is a light-weight; handy paper that can be read at any time. It plays a vital role in the humanity as it brings us a clear picture, about the deeds around us.  It is not a paper with only a collection of news but has a bundle of exciting things from inspiring valuable quotes to unbelievable facts. Furthermore, it is one of the medium that gives us authentic first hand information.

Reading the newspaper is the best way to learn a Language. This type of learning has three dimensions, i.e. to learn the expressions, to observe the print and to learn the spelling of the words. In general there are some feature articles of all sorts, such as food, health, fashions, inventions, medicine, politic issues are found in the newspaper. The world is changing and developing at a very rapid pace. So it is a must for the learners to keep reading such articles so as not to be left out of this globalize world.

As one gets into the habit of reading, it gives the mental satisfaction and an intellectual development in language skills. It also helps to analyze men and matters and offers relaxation to the mind. Reading in the English classroom is considered to be a purposeful activity for language acquisition and for sharing information and ideas. It becomes easy to the students if he/she trained to comprehend the patterns of relationships between words. The ultimate goal in reading is of course, to make meaning from the text, and to grasp the information conveyed in the content. Almost all the students who enter into the mixed ability classroom are literate in English; and they are able to read in English but many of them are not in the habit of actually using this ability in practice.  However, the purpose of the present study is to inculcate this practice by promoting the reading skill of the students through newspapers.

Reading Strategies:

. This section will show you how to use six different strategies to read the newspaper smartly. It is useful to remember that strategies used for reading, can successfully help the students to acquire the techniques in their reading aptitude. Using them, they aim to get the maximum benefit from their reading with the minimum effort.

1. Previewing:

                  This method is used to analyze the titles, headings, photo captions, figures and charts etc, to get a sense of the structure and content of a reading text.

2. Predicting:

                This is used to make predictions about content and vocabulary, to make predictions about text structure and to make predictions about the writing style.

3. Skimming and Scanning:

              Skimming helps for a quick survey of the text and scanning for getting specific information. Skimming is used to identify the main ideas of a text. For instance, when we read the newspaper, we’re probably not reading it word-by-word.; instead we often skim when we have lots of material to read in a limited amount of time. There are many strategies that can be used in skimming. Some people read the first and last paragraphs by using headings, summarizes and other organizers as they move down the page or screen. Some might read the title, subtitles, subheading, and illustrations and others read the first sentence of each paragraph. These techniques are useful when we're seeking specific information rather than reading for comprehension. Skimming works well to find dates, names, and places. It might be used to review graphs, tables, and charts.

Nevertheless, Scanning is a technique we often use when looking up a word in the telephone book or dictionary. It also involves in moving our eyes quickly, down the page seeking specific words and phrases. Scanning is also used when we find a resource to determine whether it will answer our questions. Once we have scanned the document, we might go back and skim it.

4. Guessing from the Context:

This is used to learn the meaning of the unknown words by having the prior knowledge of the subject as clues.

5. Paraphrasing:  

In this method, the reader will comprehend the newsitem by rephrasing (restating) the information and the ideas in the text.

6. SQ3R strategy:

         This involves surveying, questioning, reading, reciting and reviewing a text.

 Thus the above mentioned strategies will no doubt assist the learners to increase their speed of reading, at the same time becoming an efficient and an effective readers.

Methods  to be Avoided:

Eye Jumping:

                      Less fixation on words (especially on hard words) because of great speed and hurry which creates the incompletion in understanding.

Sub-vocalization:

                        Process of speaking each word as you read, which makes reading a physical activity rather than purely a mental activity.

Regression or Re-reading:

                      Prevention in the flow of reading, which formulates comprehension extremely difficult.

Methods to be followed:

Fixation Method:

                        Using fingers to read each word along with the lines from left to right by using the eye movements effectively.

 Read from Head:

                        Reading the passage from the head and not from the mouth by avoiding Sub-vocalization.

Keep Moving:

                       Scanning over the complete passage which usually gives clarity in meaning instead of going back to the words.

Refer dictionary:

                     Developing the habit of referring the dictionary instead of skipping the words.

Simplify the language:

                    Understanding the ideas clearly by simplifying the language in your way.

Conclusion :

Thus the enjoyment of the pleasure of reading a newspaper is not such a Himalayan task that cannot be achieved however great the obstacles may be. If the will is there, the students can find out the way to enhance their reading level through regular practice as per the words of Bacon in his “Of Studies.”

                                Reading maketh a full man,

                               Conference a ready man, and

                               Writing an exact man.

                                            - Francis Bacon

Reference :

Kaushik, Sharda, Bajwa, Bindu (2009) A Handbook of Teaching English. Orient Blackswan Private Limited.

Verghese, C. Paul (2007) Teaching English as a Second Language. New Delhi: Sterling Publishers Pvt Ltd.