Using questioning technique to improve reading comprehension for the first year students at hong lam economics and technology college

Ministry of Education and Training VINH UNIVERSITY ——--[[-—— ĐÀO THỊ THANH HƯỜNG USING QUESTIONING TECHNIQUE TO IMPROVE READING COMPREHENSION FOR THE FIRST YEAR STUDENTS AT HONG LAM EC

Ministry of Education and Training VINH UNIVERSITY

—— [[-——

ĐÀO THỊ THANH HƯỜNG

USING QUESTIONING TECHNIQUE TO IMPROVE READING COMPREHENSION FOR THE FIRST YEAR STUDENTS AT HONG LAM ECONOMICS AND TECHNOLOGY COLLEGE

(SỬ DỤNG KỸ THUẬT HỎI DE PHAT TRIEN KY NANG DOC HIEU

CHO SINH VIEN NAM THU NHAT, TRUONG CAO DANG KINH TE

KY THUAT HONG LAM)

Field: Theory and Methodology of English Language Teaching

Code: 601410 Master thesis in Education

Supervisor: NGUY EN THI KIM ANH, MA

NGHE AN, 2013

Iam also grateful to the lecturers of Department of Foreign Languages, Vinh University and of Post Graduate Department, Foreign Language College

of Vietnam National University, Hanoi for their interesting lessons and suggestions, which aroused the thesis for this study to be realized

I truly wish to thank all the colleagues and the students at Hong Lam Economics and Technology College for their assistance and co-operation in giving me valuable information

Last but not least, I would like to acknowledge my debt to my family, whose support and encouragements greatly contributed to the completion of

my study

ABSTRACT

The important role of reading comprehension is apparent for any student who has success in his command of foreign language in general, English in particular For students at Hong Lam Economics and Technology College, reading has been paid more attentions to as the students have to take the examinations which are grammar- and reading- based However, they have encountered a lot of difficulties in reading comprehension In order to help the students improve their reading, the teachers have tried to apply many techniques in teaching One of the effective techniques they have used is questioning, the elicitation technique of teaching that is student-oriented and advocated today

To begin with some elemental definitions, this paper discussed some basic knowledge of reading comprehension, of questions The author carried out two survey questionnaires for teachers and students and then analyzed the data obtained to discuss about teachers and students’ attitude towards reading comprehension, towards the textbook used, their difficulties in teaching and learning reading comprehension The situation of using questioning technique

in developing students’ reading comprehension at Hong Lam Economics and Technology College were also discussed

This study has also given some suggested strategies to more effectively applied questioning technique and helps students to obtain desirable results in learning reading comprehension

Description of teachers’ experience in teaching English

Teachers’ attitudes towards reading comprehension skills

Teachers’ opinions about the textbook

Teachers’ difficulties in teaching reading comprehension skills

Teachers’ techniques to minimize the difficulties in teaching reading comprehension skills

Teachers’ ways of exploiting questioning technique

In what stage of the reading lesson teachers often use questioning technique

Types of questions asked by teachers

The frequency of questions communicatively made by students in class

Techniques used by teachers to make questioning technique more effective

Students’ experience in studying English

Students’ attitude towards reading comprehension

Students’ opinions about the textbook

Students’ difficulties in completing reading comprehension tasks

Whether questioning technique can help students

The often performers of questions in class

The stage(s) of the reading lesson students answer to questions

Types of questions students find interesting to answer

Students’ difficulties in answering teacher’s questions

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1.5 Significance of the study 6

CHAPTER 2 THEORETICAL BACKGROUND 8 2.1 Theoretical background of reading comprehension 8

2.1.2 Definitions of reading comprehension 10

2.2.1 Relationship between reading and other skills 17 2.2.2 _ The roles of the teacher and the students in a reading I8

lesson

2.2.4 The three stages of a reading lesson 22

CHAPTER 4 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION 40

4.2.1 Teachers and students’ attitude towards reading

4.2.2 Teachers and students’ opinions about the textbook 56

“New Cutting Edge- Elementary”

4.2.3 Teachers and students’ difficulties in teaching and 57

learning reading comprehension

4.2.4 The situation of using questioning technique in 59

4.2.5

5.1

5.2

developing students’ reading comprehension at Hong

Lam Economics and Technology College

Suggested questioning strategies

CHAPTER 5 CONCLUSION

Conclusion and Pedagogical Implications

Limitations and Suggestions for further study

APPENDICES : Questionnaire for teachers

Questionnaire for students

CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale of the study

The process of regional and global integration in Vietnam has resulted in

an increasing demand for English language teaching across the country Now, learning English is not only an interest but also a practical thing for many people Learning English means learning four related skills: listening, reading comprehension skills, speaking and writing In teaching and learning English

as a foreign language in Vietnam, reading has always received a great deal of attention This is understandable English is learnt and taught in a non-English environment, so reading is not only one of the four language skills that students of English need to acquire but also a means of further study According to Carrell [10, pg 68], “for many students, reading is by far the most important of the four macro skills, particularly in English as a second or

a foreign language”

For students of Hong Lam Economics and Technology College, reading is even more important than other three skills of speaking, listening, and writing because they need to use their reading skill for their study in ESP (English for Specific Purposes) After completing two seventy-five-period- courses on basic English, Hong Lam’s students have a course on English for accountants, English for chefs or English for electricians, etc depending on their majors

However, most of them find reading the toughest and the most boring skill Their reading ability is still far from the satisfaction for various reasons The students lack motivation and interest in what the teacher is discussing With a view to helping their students, the teachers keep searching and applying more effective methods, more suitable techniques to better the

teaching and learning of the reading comprehension As a teacher of English for more than eight years at Hong Lam College, the author realizes that students really actively react to questions made during reading lessons They are eager to make and answer questions and more motivated to study

All of the above reasons have inspired the author to conduct a study on

“Using Questioning technique to Improve Reading Comprehension for the 1 Year Students at Hong Lam Economics and Technology College.” 1.2 Scope of the study

Although questioning technique can be effectively adapted in many English lessons, this paper places a stronger focus on questioning technique that teachers employ in reading lessons to improve reading comprehension for the first year students at Hong Lam Economics and Technology College 1.3 Aims and Objectives

Within the scope of the study, we focus on measuring the effectiveness

of applying questioning technique on improving the 1-year students’ reading comprehension The study findings will be used as the base in giving some pedagogical implications for teachers

To complete the overall aim of the study, the following objectives must be obtained:

“Clarifying the nature of reading comprehension in accordance with some important points in teaching this skill

s* Investigating the real situation of teaching and learning reading comprehension of the first year students to find out advantages as well as problems facing both teachers and students in reading lessons

“ Giving suggested ways of using questioning technique to improve reading comprehension for the first year students at Hong Lam Economics and Technology College

1.4 Research hypothesis

The study aims at testing the hypothesis:

“The questioning technique can improve reading comprehension of/ for the first year students at Hong Lam Economics and Technology College

1.5 Significance of the study

This study has been carried out to search for a better and more effective way to develop students’ reading skills Its findings hopefully would help the 1* year students find out the suitable way for improving their reading comprehension Regarding teachers, the study would raise their awareness concerning the topic and provide them with useful pedagogical suggestions in deciding to use the new teaching method to better develop their learners’ reading skills Finally, with regard to researchers, those who happen to share the same interest in the topic could certainly rely on this research to find reliable and useful information for their related studies in the future

1.6 Organization of the study

The study consists of five chapters

s* Chapter 1 is the Introduction, which states the rationale, scope, aims, significance, method and organization of the study

s* Chapter 2 reviews the literature relevant to the topic of the study and summarizes some selected studies on reading comprehension, questioning technique, which serve as a theoretical and methodological foundation of the study

s* Chapter 3 presents the research methodology of the study It provides information about the participants, the instrumentation, and the data collection procedures and data analysis

+ Chapter 4 is the main part of the study that reports and discusses the main findings according to the research questions

“+ Chapter 5 is the conclusion that summarizes the main findings, presents the implications and limitations of the study and finally gives some suggestions for further research

CHAPTER 2 THEORETICAL BACKGROUND

This chapter reviews theories related to definitions of reading in general and reading comprehension in particular, types of reading and teaching reading comprehension It also summarizes some studies on types of English questions and questioning technique that have been conducted so far 2.1 Theoretical background of reading comprehension

2.1.1 Definitions of reading

The term “Reading” is widely used in practice However, reading is differently defined due to the areas of defining in terms of activities or goals That is the reason why no definition of reading can possibly include all points

of views and features Moreover, each one’s definition only reflects what reading means to that person

However, a careful considered definition of reading is very necessary for the teachers when they teach reading because reading is the most critical aspect of any teaching programme and teachers have to decide what they will teach in the classroom Herein, I would like to mention some definitions of reading extracted from different sources on the theme

Harmer [16, pg 153] considers reading as a mechanical process that

“eyes receive the message and the brain then has to work out the significance

of the message” He not only focuses on two actions that dominated by the eyes and the brain but also the speed of the process “a reading text moves at a speed of the reader”, which means that the reader who decides how fast he wants to read the text

Sharing the same view, Smith [28, pg 102] defined “reading is understanding the author’s thought” It means that the readers “read the author’s mind not the author’s words”

Besides, Goodman [13, pg 19] points out reading as psycholinguistic guessing game It deals with how language and thought are interacted within a sociolinguistic context Especially, Buzan [8, pg 38] finds that all common reading definitions only relate to a part of the process and an accurate definition of reading must contain the full range of reading skills, or reading

as a seven-part process which comprises the following steps:

Recognition: You are concerned with understanding of alphabetical symbols This step occurs instantly before physical reading begins Assimilation: This step starts with word then to the eye and via the optic nerve to the brain

Intra- Integration: This step refers to the link of all parts of the information being read with all other appropriate parts

Extra- Integration: This step requires learners to bring all of their previous knowledge to what they read, making appropriate connections, analyzing, criticizing, appreciating, selecting and rejecting

Retention: This step requires the basic storage of information of the readers

Recall: This process shows the ability of the readers to get back the storage when it is needed

Communication: This process includes written and spoken language in which information is used immediately or eventually It also contains very crucial and often neglected human function: Thinking- “thinking

is your ongoing extra integration

Although those reading definitions are of different attitudes to reading, they seem to have some features in common It is because they all concentrate

on the nature of reading To make this point clear, Abbot, Wingard, Greenwood and McKeating [3, pg 81] shows that

“Here are two broad aspects or levels First there is basically visual task, that of deciphering the marks on the page, the brain receiving signals, from the eyes Secondly, there is cognitive task, that of interpreting the visual information, so the one is not simply “barking at print””

Deriving from those opinions, reading is considered a process in which

a reader looks at and understands what has been written out

2.1.2 Definitions of reading comprehension

In teaching reading, it is necessary to understand the nature of reading comprehension What the teacher understands about it will have a great influence on what he or she teaches in the class He would know what to teach and how to make his reading lesson effectively In fact, methodologists have been providing different definitions of reading comprehension

According to Grellet [15, pg 33]: “Reading comprehension or understanding a written text means extracting the required information from it

as efficiently as possible.” The author means that reading comprehension is an activity which aims at decoding the meaning of word combination in the text

in the most efficient way

Also concerning the reading comprehension, Richards and Platt [25, pg 229] provide a clearer point of view: “Reading comprehension is best described as an understanding between the author and the reader The emphasis is on the reader’s understanding of the printed page based on the individual reader’s unique background of experience Reading is much than just pronouncing words correctly or simply what the author intends It is the

process whereby the printed pages stimulate ideas, experiences and responses that are unique to an individual”

According to the above authors, reading comprehension is not only simply understanding what is written, but also is what stimulates students to remember from their experiences That knowledge is then used to get meaning out of printed page, but in the mind of the readers which includes not only facts or details but also emotion, belief and critical evaluation

From these opinions, it can be concluded that reading comprehension is

a process of understanding what is conveyed in the text It does not mean that the reader needs to understand every single word in the text but actively work

on the text and extract the required information efficiently

2.1.3 The importance of reading

Deriving from some of definitions of reading above, we find that reading is a very important factor in language acquisition It is important because it is considered an essential skill both at school and afterwards Reading takes its place alongside the development of oral ability in the school program Reading also gives us as readers a lot of opportunities to contact with different contexts in our daily life Byrnes [9, pg 46] provides three reasons for the importance of reading as follows:

Firstly, it offers language learners another area of success We should accept that not all students will be good speakers and at least give them credit

if they become good readers

Secondly, it gives the students a skill which they can use on their own (i.e it is a key to self- access work)

Thirdly, it is likely to be one of the skills that most students will need in the long term Certainly, it is one that they will always be able to put to use That is, they can read even if they do not get any opportunities to speak

Generally, no one can deny that reading brings readers an ocean of knowledge of different areas They can learn more experience of life Then they have necessary benefits to avoid difficulties in mutual understanding in communication such as: culture shock, language shock due to different cultures, habits, and languages Moreover, reading is also an important way of expanding students’ receptive knowledge of language and _ stimulating students to talk and write

However, all reasons mentioned earlier show that in terms of classroom activities, it is good for students to read but we can not assume that all students are efficient readers Much depends on how well they have been taught to read in their mother tongue

“aloud reading involves looking at a text, understanding it and also saying it Its purpose is not just to understand a text but to convey the implication to someone else.”

This kind of activity seems to be more popular in the language classroom It focuses on the pronunciation of words in the text rather than

understanding When reading a text, students come across many new words and phrases that they do not know how to pronounce The teacher, in this case may help his students pronounce words by reading the text orally and loudly Aloud reading is often applied for beginners and limited in upper classes because of some reasons Firstly, it takes up a long time as students often read slowly when they focus on pronunciation They consequently have not enough time to deduce the meaning of the text or complete comprehension exercises Secondly, because students are concerned with pronunciation, they hardly understand the meaning of the text as Lewis and Hill [19, pg.110] mention: “Asking a student to read aloud also means that he may concentrate inadequately on their meaning He may read correctly but afterwards will not be able to tell what he has read”

That is the reason why, only for the early stages of foreign language learning, aloud reading should become an established part of a lesson to help the beginners read words, phrases with correct stress and intonation in a

sentence

b Silent reading

Silent reading is the nearest approach to the essence of reading Because only by reading silently can the readers best comprehend the written materials in the shortest possible time

According to Broughton, Brumfit and other linguistics [6, pg 92], the nature of silent reading skills is far from uniform It is changeable according

to the use to which it is being put Some of them are mentioned as follows:

e To survey material which is to be studied, to look through indexes, chapter heading and outlines

e To skim- particularly when one item of information is being sought in a mass of other printed information

e To gain superficial comprehension, as when reading for pleasure or preparing to read aloud

e To study the content of what is read in some detail

e To study the language in which the material is written

Through these ways of using reading, the readers’ depth and detail of understanding, of comprehension will be improved effectively

2.1.4.2 According to the purposes of reading

a Skimming

Skimming is commonly used in reading comprehension It is one of specific reading techniques necessary for quick and efficient reading There have been many definitions of skimming

Greenwood [14, pg 92] writes: “the reader goes through particular passage such as newspaper article merely to get the gist”

In this term, Grellet [15, pg 272] has the same opinion but it is clearer than that of above author He wrote: “Skimming consists of quickly running eyes across the whole text for its gist Skimming gives readers the advantage

of being able to predict the purpose of the passage, the main topic, or message

or possibly some of the developing or supporting ideas.”

Considering the two opinions, it can be concluded that skimming is a skill that enables readers to get the main point of the text without being concerned with details They only go through the text very fast to get general sense or the gist of it

In brief, skimming is a very useful study technique to help the learner organize his thoughts and specify what information he can get from a book, so

that his reading is more efficient Hence, skimming should be applied in teaching reading to help students have an overview of what they read

b Scanning

Similar to skimming, scanning is a necessary technique in reading efficiently Brown [7, pg 308] defines scanning as follows: “Scanning is quickly searching for some particular piece or pieces of information in a text” Sharing the same opinion with Brown, Williams [29, pg 100] emphasizes: “Scanning occurs when a reader goes through a text very quickly

in order to find a particular point of information.” It reveals that the key to scanning is to decide exactly what kind of information we are looking for and where to find it

In addition, Grellet [15, pg 293] gives a more detailed definition of scanning: “When scanning, we only try to locate information and often we do not even follow the linearity of passage to do so, and scanning is far more limited since it only means retrieving what information is relevant to our purpose.”

These authors have the same point that while scanning, reader does not need to read from cover to cover, they only look for the information they want

by running their eyes rapidly along the lines It can be practised with the great range of texts such as dictionaries, maps, advertisements, labels, etc This kind of reading is very useful in reading selectively

In general, both skimming and scanning are effective techniques for quick and efficient reading It is advisable to make use of them to improve reading comprehension skills for students in reading classes

c Intensive reading

Intensive reading is also widely used in a reading class It is an effective way to explore the text, to go deeply into the meaning and the organization of the text

According to Grellet [15, pg 304] “Intensive reading means reading short texts to extract specific information This is an accuracy activity involving reading for details.”

In addition, Nuttall [22, pg 23] writes: “Intensive reading involves approaching the texts under the close guidance of the teacher , or under the guidance of a task which forces the students to pay great attention to the text The aim of intensive reading is to arrive at a profound and detailed understanding of the text: not only of what is meant but also of how the meaning is produced ”

From the mentioned opinions, intensive reading’s aim is to achieve full understanding of the logical arguments, attitudes, and purposes of the writer

as well as his linguistic means to achieve these purposes

Sharing the same opinion with Nuttall, Grellet [15, pg 312] defines:

“Intensive reading is usually a classroom oriented activity in which students focus on linguistic or semantic details of a passage Reading calls students’ attention to grammatical forms, discourse markers and other surface structure details for the purpose of understanding literal meaning, implication, rhetorical relationships and the like”

In short, intensive reading is a basic classroom activity It is really effective if the teacher and his students know how to fully exploit this activity

in class with the help of reading exercises

d Extensive reading

Extensive reading is also called “reading for fluency” The students read long texts to have general understanding, to develop fluency in reading

or to relax This is an activity involving global understanding just as Grellet [15, pg 314] confirms: “Extensive reading means reading longer texts, usually for one’s own pleasure This is a fluency activity mainly involving general understanding.”

In Brown’s opinion, besides practising fluency, extensive reading helps students enrich their language elements because it is one of the keys to achieve reading ability, linguistic competence, vocabulary, spelling and writing [7, pg 301]

And to Nuttall [22, pg 168], this kind of reading is also a very useful skill for students to widen their knowledge as he wrote: “The best way to improve one’s knowledge of foreign language is to go and live among its speakers The next best way is to read extensively in it.”

To summarize, extensive reading is one of good ways to improve one’s knowledge of a foreign language because its aim is to cover the content of text in the shortest possible period of time In the language classroom, the teacher must introduce some suitable reading materials to students, as it is useful for them to form a good habit of reading

2.2 Teaching reading comprehension

2.2.1 Relationship between reading and other skills

In the process of teaching and learning English, it is very crucial for learners to realize the integration of language That is the possibilities of other aspects of foreign programme Therefore, reading skill is closely related to writing, listening and reading comprehension skills Understanding relations will help learners succeed

According to Rivers and Temperly [26, pg 258], reading skill is not a single skill but an integrated- language skill Firstly, reading is related to

writing That is when students are asked to summarize or continue the reading material such as resume, end of a story, short descriptions of the characters,

etc

Secondly, reading is concerned with listening comprehension Students may listen to a story, a play, etc, then read it or read first and “listen to a worthwhile reading or dramatic presentation of what they have read The aural element adds vividness and life to the reading unit” (Rivers and Temperly, [26, pg 259]) They further note that “Practice in direct reading of a text which is readily accessible to the students at their present level of knowledge, while they are simultaneously listening to a taped model reading it

in meaningful and expressive segments, can help students develop useful habits

of anticipation and syntactic identification in both of these skills.”

Thirdly, that is integration of reading and speaking skills Reading materials serve as a fundamental source for oral presentations as they can base

on these ideas they have read to discuss or debate for their own purposes This

is the best way for them to share what they have been reading with others

To summarize, those combinations between reading and, writing, listening, speaking skill should be put into serious consideration when teaching and learning English as a foreign language

2.2.2 The roles of the teacher and the students in a reading lesson

2.2.2.1 The roles of the teacher

It is natural that in a reading lesson, the students must work actively and individually It does not mean that the teacher has nothing to do Discussing the roles of the teacher in teaching reading, Richard-Amato [24, pg 241] emphasize: “The first role is to facilitate communicative process between all participants in the classroom, and between these participants and the various

activities and text The second role is to act interdependently within the learning teaching group”

In Richard and Amato’s point of view, the teacher is an organizer of resources He also plays the role as a guide within the classroom procedures and student’s activities during the lesson

Being concerned with the roles of the teacher in teaching reading, Harmer [16, pg 213] gives an opinion that the teacher needs to create interest

in the topic and task He also needs to work as an organizer, observer, feedback organizer and prompter

e An observer: While students are reading, the teacher can observe their progress since it will give him valuable information about how well his students are doing individually or collectively, and will tell him whether to give them extra time, or move to organize feedback more quickly than he has anticipated

e A feedback organizer: When the students have completed the given tasks, the teacher can lead a feedback session to check if they have completed the task successfully or not He may start by having his students compare their answers in pairs or in groups and then ask for their answers When asking students to give answers, it is effective to ask them where in the text they found the information This will help him recognize his students’ problems if their answers are inappropriate

e A prompter: When students are reading the text, it is also necessary

to draw their attention to the language features in that text He may direct his students to certain features of the text construction clarify ambiguities and make them aware of issues of the text structure which they have not come across previously

Referring to this issue, Moore [21, pg 5] adds: “The teacher is an environmental engineer who organizes the classroom space to fit their goal and to maximize learning The way the physical space of the classroom is organized can either help or hinder learning.”

In this case, it is plausible to create an environment of a communicative classroom where meaningful and useful reading activities are carried out, so that the students can best acquire reading skills and practice other language skills

In general, the teacher must be aware of what they need to do in a reading lesson Playing their roles well will certainly help the teacher lead successful reading lessons It will help students understand the text efficiently, and at the same time improve considerably their reading skills

2.2.2.2 The roles of the students

In communicative language teaching, the learners are regarded as the centre of the lesson It is true in every reading lesson During the reading process, the students play the role of active and creative listeners as well as readers

In a reading lesson, students must take an active role as listeners They need to listen to the teacher’s instructions and explanations carefully to find out the way of recognizing information and way of deducing new words or grammatical structures

The students must also be active and flexible readers It is wise if they work on their own during the reading process, make full use of the class time

to read and do the exercises to achieve a full understanding of the text It is necessary for them to find a suitable reading strategy and use their background knowledge to fulfill their tasks because the significance of the text as well as the information is not always directly stated in printed pages

In summary, students are the key factor to decide the success of a reading lesson Teacher and students are interrelated to each other during the process of teaching and learning reading skills

2.2.3 The roles of reading materials

The roles of the reading texts must be paid attention to in teaching and learning reading skills because an appropriate text is very important in building up pupils’ reading competence (Broughton et al., [6, pg 102])

In William’s opinion, reading material is any piece of written language

It may come from the integrated course book which includes reading texts, from the supplementary reading comprehension and reading skills books containing texts and exercises, from the real life (authentic texts) or simulated texts ([29, pg 23]) He further discusses some criteria which are very useful for the teacher in choosing texts for reading lessons Reading materials should not contain a large amount of language that is too difficult for most of the class In addition, a purposeful reading can occur with specially prepared texts that imitate real life counter parts but simple language Furthermore, the topic

of the text plays an important role because how difficult or easy a text is depends not only on the language of the text but on what sort of knowledge the learners bring to the text and how much they like to read it

Discussing about choosing texts, Nuttall [22, pg 62] gives three following criteria:

e Suitability of contents: materials that students will find interesting, enjoyable, challenging, and appropriate for their goals in learning English

e Exploitability of contents: a text that facilities the achievement of certain language and content goals, that is integratable with other skills (listening, reading comprehension skills, and writing)

e Readability: a text with lexical and structural difficulty that will challenge students without overwhelming them

To the teacher at the secondary school, the textbook will be the main source of reading materials for his students in the reading class He sometimes can use texts outside the textbook which are both suitable for the students’ level and interesting enough to attract their attention and encourage them to read 2.2.4 The three stages of areading lesson

A reading lesson can be divided into three stages which are pre- reading stage, while- reading stage and post- reading stage Each of these stages carries its own features and purposes and requires different techniques and strategies (William, [29, pg 37])

2.2.4.1 The pre- reading stage

In a reading lesson, the pre- reading stage is an important one because

it creates motivation and positive attitudes towards the reading text for students It will focus their attention on what they are going to read Concerning the purposes of the pre- stage, Williams [29, pg 37] writes:

“What the pre- reading phrase tries to do is:

- To introduce and arouse interest in the topic

- To motivate learners by giving a reason for reading

- To provide some language preparation for the text”

In general, in the pre- reading stage, it is necessary to set a good preparation for students, provide them with the sense of what they are going

to do in their reading lesson

2.2.4.2 The while- reading stage

2.2.4.2.] Aims

While- reading stage is the main part of a reading lesson Without this stage, the students will lose the chance to deal with the text to understand the writer’s purpose and clarify the text’s content in detail Williams [29, pg 38] points out the aims of the while- reading stage:

- To help to understand of the writer’s purpose

- To help to understand of the text structure

- To clarify the text

He also gives the teacher some questions to ask himself in order to deal with the above- mentioned aims:

1 What is the function of this text?

2 How is the text organized or developed? (e.g.: a narrative, an explanation with various examples, an argument and counter argument)

3 What content or information is extracted from the text?

4 What may the reader deduce from the text?

5 What language may be learned from the text?

6 What reading styles may be practiced?

It is clear that, question (1) deals with the aims of understanding, the writer’s purpose, question (2) helps to recognize the text structure and the rest help to clarify the text content

The answers to these questions will be a guide for the teacher in this stage Depending on their answers, the teacher will choose suitable activities for students which focus them on exploiting the meaning of the text, and develop their reading skills

2.2.4.2.2 Activities

Studying the reading lesson, Robinson and Good, [27, pg 92] suggests

a Wide range of activities in the while- reading stage:

1 Deducing meaning 6 Following instructions

It is clear that all the activities suggested by Robinson and Good can be included in the two categories mentioned by Williams, i.e reading for general understanding first, and the reading for specific information In the while- reading stage, to direct students to the general understanding of the text, the teacher may ask them to guess the title, to match the heading, etc He also may ask students to find out the specific information in the text by answering the questions, to use the information in the text for completing tables or diagrams Furthermore, the students can focus only on individual language item by deducing the meaning of the new lexical items, etc

In this aspect, Mathews, Spratt and Dangerfield [20, pg 67] suggest a number of reading skills in accordance with activities

1 Jumbled sentences or paragraphs

Understanding the 2 T circles the referential devices in a text and SS relation between work out what they refer to

sentences and 3 T gives students a passage in which the logical clauses connectors are blanked out Students have to read the

passage and work out what the connector must be

4 Prediction exercises: Students only read the first line

and then predict the next

có 1 Multiple choice or True/ False questions

Recognizing the

2 Discussion on the style of the text

3 Parallel passage in different styles

Recognizing the 1 Jumbled paragraphs

organization of a text 2 Discussing the function of particular paragraphs

Making inferences True/ false or discussion questions on _ possible

interpretation of the text

2 Pre- questions focusing on specific information

1 Information transfer activities

2 Note- taking on the order of events or emotion in a Reading for details | text 3 True/ false questions

4 Jigsaw reading

Indeed, there are various activities the teacher can choose for his students in this stage It is, however, essential to be flexible in this task The selection of any of them depends on the nature of the reading text and the level

of the students Besides selecting suitable activities, during the while- reading stage, the teacher should bear in mind his roles of an organizer, observer, assessor and prompter as mentioned in the last part, the roles of teacher 2.2.4.3 The post- reading stage

The post- reading stage is the final but not the less/ least important stage of a reading lesson because it is time for students to apply what they have got from the text into real life communication In Williams’s opinions [29, pg 39], the post- reading stage aims

- To consolidate or reflect upon what has been read

- To relate the text to the learners’ own knowledge, interest or views

In summary, each of the reading stage carries its own aims and activities It is very effective if these three stages are combined flexibly and appropriately for an efficient reading lesson In the while- reading stage, it is necessary to help the students improve and develop sub- reading skills such as skimming, scanning, or reading for details If the students can acquire these skills, it is easier for them to understand efficiently the significance of the text To acquire these skills, students may be instructed to take part in various activities according to each skill There are numerous activities in this stage The teacher should be flexible in choosing them for their reading lessons In the process of reading, asking students to work in pairs or groups is also advisable This may enable students to feel more pleasant in reading, encourage them to work harder to improve and develop effective reading skills

2.3 Questioning technique

2.3.1 Types of questions

So far, there have been different ways to define “what is a question?" However, in Bang, e¢ al [2, pg 73], in language teaching, questions could be categorized under a variety of headings:

(i) Display and referential questions

Display questions are those, which ask for information, which the questioner already knows For example, when teacher asks students for information that is in the text, and the teacher has already read the text and knows the answers, those are display questions Teachers usually ask such questions in order that students can display to teachers whether or not they have read and understood the text

Referential questions, on the other hand, are those, which ask for information, which the questioner does not already know For example, when teachers ask students about the opinions, experiences, or ideas about how to apply what is in a text that the class has read, the questions are referential ones These are the types of questions that are most often asked outside the classroom However, most teachers ask more display questions

(ii) Closed and open questions

Closed questions are those for which a short answer is usually provided For example, people usually give very short answers to questions such as

“How old are you?’ and “What is your favorite fruit?” Closed questions do not supply people with much opportunity to create language output

Open questions, in contrast, are those to which a relative longer answer

is usually provided For example, for the same topics as are involved in the questions in the previous paragraph we could ask such open questions as:

“Why do you like that fruit so much?” Open questions supply students with

opportunities to create longer responses However, most teachers ask more closed questions

(ili) Convergent and divergent questions

Convergent questions are those to which there is usually one possible right answer Factual questions are usually convergent Answer to convergent questions can be short or long

For example:

- What is the fastest way to get from here to the university?

- Who won the world cup in 1994?

Divergent questions, on the other hand, have many possible right answers The classic divergent question is “What does the cloud remind you of? Divergent questions are recommended for encouraging creativity They are very good for problem solving where many possibilities need to be considered However, most teachers ask more convergent questions

2.3.2 Bloom’s taxonomy of questions (quoted in Bang, et al [2, pg 75])

In the 1950s, Benjamin Bloom of the University of Chicago developed taxonomy of questions designed to encourage teacher to ask more deep thinking questions This is presented below with examples:

(i) Knowledge questions ask students to remember or recognize information that is in their textbook or was told them by the teacher, e.g.: Example: - Where is the Amazon rainforest?

- What are three fossil fuels?

(ii) Comprehension questions ask for understanding when students have already been given this information

Example: - Explain how the greenhouse effect occurs

- What is the main cause of global warming?

(iii) Application questions ask people to use their understanding Example: - Do you think that the global warming will get worse? Why?

- From your experience, why don’t people recycle more things?

(iv) Analysis questions ask people to look at the individual parts of situation

Example: - Compare two different types of packaging in terms of their effects

on the environment

- What are the reasons for and against the use of solar powered cars?

(v) Synthetic questions ask people to use their skills to create new ideas

by combining or restructuring ideas

Example: - What would a plan for saving water in your community look like?

- What can be done so that poor people can have clean drinking water and sanitary facilities without doing too much damage to the environment?

(vi) Evaluation questions ask people to make judgments

Example: - Should we protect plants and animals even if they are of no value

to human?

- Should the proposed new high way be built?

2.3.3 Questioning

Questioning is a universally used activation technique in teaching, that

is, the teacher uses questions as a technique in his/her teaching, mainly within the Initiation-Response-Feedback pattern However, teacher’s questions are not always realized by interrogatives For example, the question: “What can you see in the picture?” may be expressed by a statement: “We'll describe what is going on in this picture.” or by the command: “Tell me what you can see in this picture.”

Therefore, perhaps a question, in the context of teaching, may be best defined as a teacher’s utterance, which has the objective of eliciting an oral response from the learner(s)

2.3.3.1 Aims of questioning

In class, questions are used for various aims According to Dung [1,

pg 133], teachers use questions in many stages of the lesson

In linguistic material introducing stage, questions are used to:

- Warm up the atmosphere before coming to a new lesson

- Lead in a new lesson

Set situations or context

Stimulate communication needs

- Give requirements and tasks to activities

- Give guiding questions to help students grasp new knowledge

- Check how students understand the new linguistic material already introduced

° In practice stage, questions are used to:

Check the content of a reading comprehension or listening comprehension

- Practice new linguistic materials

- Direct, suggest, make students concentrate on main points or points needing to be discussed carefully so that students can understand the lesson better

Practice listening and reading comprehension skills

Get information from students (facts, ideas, opinions)

° Using questions to test and assess students’ abilities

- Use questions to test and assess students’ abilities

2.3.3.2 Criteria for effective questioning

There have been numerous attempts to identify characteristics of effective questioning technique in the classroom Questions have been

classified according to various different criteria: what kind of thinking they try to elicit (plain recall, for example, analysis or evaluation); whether they are “genuine” or “display” questions (Does the teacher really want to know the answer or is he or she simply checking if the students do?); whether they are closed or open-ended (Do they have a single right answer or many) and many others

However, here, we only define “effective questioning” in terms of the desired response As language teachers, our motive in questioning is usually

to get our students to engage with the language material actively through speech; so an effective questioning technique is one that elicits fairly prompt, motivated, relevant and full responses If, on the other hand, our questions result in long silence, or are only answered by the strongest students or obviously bore the class, or consistently elicit only very brief or unsuccessful answers, then there is probably something wrong Here are some useful criteria for effective questioning for language teachers, according to Bang et

3.Interest: do learners find the question interesting, challenging, stimulating?

4 Availability: can most of the members of the class try to answer it? Or only the more advanced, confident, knowledgeable?

5 Extention: does the question invite and encourage extended and /or varied answers?

6 Teacher reaction: are the learners sure that their responses will be related to with respect, that they will not be put down or ridiculed if they say something inappropriate?

2.3.3.3 Ways of exploiting questioning technique in English teaching

According to Dung [1, pg 143], there are several ways of exploiting questioning technique in English teaching

e Using questions to exploit students’ available general knowledge Before teaching a new lesson, teachers can ask some questions to exploit students’ available background knowledge as well as direct and lead students’ attention to new content

The questions asked before a reading or listening lesson are the representative examples for this type of questions The decisive aim of these questions is to ask for the following contents:

- What do you know?

- What don’t you know?

- Do you want to find more?

e Using questions to give reasons for the next activities carried out meaningfully

Before teaching a new lesson, teachers can ask questions which, to answer them, require students carry out a task or a next task such as reading, listening, interviewing, etc In other words, these questions make the reading, listening, interviewing activities more motivating Also, as a result, they make the exercises implemented more meaningfully

For example:

- Do you know what is the longest river/ highest mountain/ biggest lake in the world? Read/Listen and find out

- Does your friend like these things? (List)

Talk to him and find out

e Using questions to set language situations and contexts

Situations or contexts are very important for students to learn a language The situation supplies them with necessary information to carry out activities Teachers can ask questions and use some pictures to set a language situation

For example: Look at the picture (supply them with a picture)

Where are these people? How do you know?

e Using questions to exploit necessary vocabulary for a new lesson For example:

- Which words can you use to describe your house?

- What are words and expressions you can add to the following list to describe a person

+ Appearance: tall, short + Character: friendly, helpful

+ Habits: getting up early, talk fast

e Reading comprehension/ listening comprehension questions

There are questions popularly used by teachers for teaching reading and listening skills To use these questions effectively, however, teachers have to know what types and levels of difficulty of those questions are In Dung [1, pg 144], types of reading comprehension and _ listening comprehension questions can be classified as follows:

(i) Classification of questions into categories on the basis of the

structure:

- Yes/no questions

- “Or” questions (alternative questions)

- Questions that are answered by selecting information in the text

- Questions that are answered by indirect ideas in the text

- Questions that require deduction and assessment to answer

In fact, the level of difficulty of questions depends not only on the complexity of questions’ structures but also on the content of responses required Thus, teachers should take these two elements into consideration to give questions suitable to learners’ level

e Eliciting questions

These are questions that give suggestions to make students contribute their own ideas, their information, their available knowledge and basing on that the learners can understand the lesson and practice using the language better

2.4 Summary

In this chapter, all the concerning theoretical background of reading comprehension has been presented First, some definitions of reading and reading comprehension basing on some linguistics scholars have been presented Second, teaching reading comprehension consisting of relationship