SKKN APPROPRIATE QUESTIONS CAN IMPROVE HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS’ READING SKILLS.

SKKN APPROPRIATE QUESTIONS CAN IMPROVE HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS’ READING SKILLS.SKKN APPROPRIATE QUESTIONS CAN IMPROVE HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS’ READING SKILLS.SKKN APPROPRIATE QUESTIONS CAN IMPROVE HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS’ READING SKILLS.SKKN APPROPRIATE QUESTIONS CAN IMPROVE HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS’ READING SKILLS.SKKN APPROPRIATE QUESTIONS CAN IMPROVE HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS’ READING SKILLS.SKKN APPROPRIATE QUESTIONS CAN IMPROVE HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS’ READING SKILLS.SKKN APPROPRIATE QUESTIONS CAN IMPROVE HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS’ READING SKILLS.SKKN APPROPRIATE QUESTIONS CAN IMPROVE HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS’ READING SKILLS.SKKN APPROPRIATE QUESTIONS CAN IMPROVE HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS’ READING SKILLS.

1 INTRODUCTION

As an international language, English offers a source of benefits to young people First and foremost, English assists young people to acquire more knowledge As more and more materials namely books, lectures and videos as well are printed or constructive in English As a result, people with English proficiency tend to stand a chance of exploring deeper anything without being prevented by language barrier Secondly, reading and speaking English fluently

is the best advantage for people who want to go abroad They will have no interference of language in communicating with foreigners Besides, learning English will help young people find good jobs Almost all companies enquire employees to be knowledgeable about some languages, especially English

Of course, more and more people want to use it as a means of communication at work, in business and tourism As a teacher, the researcher isaware that English has been one of the compulsory subjects in secondary schools and high schools in Vietnam English is also one of the subjects for the Entrance Examination of some national and international university However,

in teaching and learning English as a foreign language, reading has always received a lot of attention Therefore, how to teach and learn reading skills effectively requires many efforts from both teachers and learners

Many students in Tri An High School confronted five major obstacles in reading such as: the habits of word-by-word reading, excessive focus on details rather than main ideas, poor vocabularies and limited background knowledge A lack of receptive vocabularies is big obstacles for them to understand longpassages with too many difficult words Most of the students feel scared and worried when they have to read long and difficult passages Although the literature so far has pointed out so many methods that can be applied in the reading class, this research exclusively focused on some questions that may help

students understand the passage and choose the suitable answers This matter has inspired the research to carry out the research with the hope that through this study, the researcher will have better teaching approaches so as to improve

2- LITERATURE REVIEW

2 1- Definition of reading and reading comprehension

Reading is an important skill to help people learn from human knowledge and experience Through reading, knowledge has greatly contributed to the

guistic guessing game, in which the reader actively interacts with the text to construct meaning

According to Harmer (1989: eading is an exercise dominated by the eyes and the brain The eyes receive messages and the brain then has to work

2.2- Purposes for doing reading

There are so many different reasons for doing reading and that we read in different ways for different purposes (Nuttall 2000:2) These different purposes, generalized into the following two main categories: We read for pleasure and for information in order to find out something or in order to do something with the information you get Grellet 2001:4) are to get information, to respond to curiosity about a topic, to follow instructions to perform a task, for pleasure, a musement, and personal enjoyment to keep in touch with friends and colleagues, to know what is happening in the world, and to find out when and where things are Hedge 2000:195)

2 3- Classification according to purpose

According to purpose, reading is categorized into four types: skimming, scanning, extensive reading and intensive reading

2.3.1- Skimming, scanning

Skim-read and scan-read are necessary reading techniques for

general sense or the gist of a reading text

Nuttall y skimming, we mean glancing rapidly through the text to determine whether a research paper is relevant to our own work or in order to keep ourselves superficicially informed about matters that are not of

Grellet (1 hen skimming, we go through the reading material quickly in order to get its main points or the intention of the writer, but not to find the answer to specific questions When scanning, we only try to locate specific information and often we do not even follow the linearity of the

Through the two reading techniques are important for quick and effective reading, they should not be selected separately because a text can be best

tackled by a combination of strategies So after skimming and scanning,

tasted, others to be swallowed and some few to be

2.3.3- Extensive reading

Extensive reading is generally associated with reading large quantities with the aim of getting an overall understanding of the material Lewis and Hill (1992: xtensive reading means students have a generalunderstanding of the text without necessarily understanding eve

-learning in order to train them to read directly and fluently in the foreign language for their own enjoyment without the aid of the teacher However, extensive reading can be best achieved only through an instructional program Extensive reading sometimes involves skimming and scanning as strategies to gain general sense of a text, skimming for the gist and scanning for some key details

In short, for second or foreign language learners, both intensive and extensive reading are of great importance as they act as a means to gain knowledge but also to develop

2.4- Types of reading comprehension questions

According to GMAT (Graduate Management Admission Test), there are 4

types of reading comprehension questions

According to JoAnn Miller (2009:31), Main idea questions ask students

to identify the "primary purpose" or "main point" of the passage In order to answer these questions correctly, students must be able to identify the thesis of the passage and those ideas that support this thesis

The main idea is the central, or most important idea in a paragraph or passage It states the purpose and sets the direction of the paragraph or passage The main idea may be stated or it may be implied When the main idea of a paragraph is stated, it is most often found in the first sentence of the paragraph However, the main idea may be found in any sentence of the paragraph The main idea may be stated in the first sentence of a paragraph and then be repeated or restated at the end of the paragraph The main idea may be split The first sentence of a paragraph may present a point of view, while the last sentence presents a contrasting or opposite view

To find the main idea of any paragraph or passage, ask these questions:

1 Who or what is the paragraph about?

Common question stems

Which of the following most accurately states the main idea of the passage?

The primary purpose of the passage is to

The passage is primarily concerned with which of the following?

The author of this passage is primarily concerned with

The main point made by the passage is that

What is the topic of this passage?

What is the main idea of this passage?

Which title best reflects the main idea of the passage?

How to identify correct answer

Main point questions ask students to identify the importance of the author's point Students must identify which ideas in the passage play a supporting role and which idea is being supported In many ways, this is similar

to identifying the premises and conclusion to a critical reasoning argument The correct answer to a main point question is often a paraphrase of the conclusion

or thesis statement of the passage Common incorrect answer choices are those that feature supporting ideas These answer choices are appealing to many test-takers because the material presented in them is true and based upon the passage

Ex 1:

The Nobel prizes, awarded

annually for distinguished work in

chemistry, physic, physiology or

medicine, literature and international

peace, were made available by a

fund established for that purpose by

Swedish philanthropist, Alfred

Bernhard Nobel The prizes, awarded since 1901, are administered by the Nobel Foundation in Stockholm In 1969, a prize for economics endowed by the Central Bank of Sweden was added Candidates for the prizes must be nominated in writing by a qualified authority in the field of competition Candidates are judged by Swedish and Norwegian academies and institutes on the basis of their contribution to mankind The awards are usually presented in Stockholm on December 10, with the King of Sweden officiating, an appropriate tribute to Alfred Nobel on the anniversary of his death Each prize includes a gold medal, a diploma, and a cash award of about one million dollars

(Retrieved from http://engleza-fse.edu.ro/?q=content/test-reading-1)

Choose the best option (A, B, C or D) which contains the main idea of the following paragraph.

A The Nobel prizes B Great contribution to mankind

C Alfred Nobel D Swedish philanthropy

Explanation: (A) is the correct answer After skimming reading the passage,

the readers think about the meaning of the whole text They identify the ideas about the Nobel Prizes in the passage which play a supporting role

Ex 2: Soccer players learn many skills when

playing soccer Soccer players learn how to

dribble and pass the ball They also learn how to

control the ball so they can eventually score Most

importantly, soccer players learn how to work

together with their teammates

What is the main idea?

A They also learn how to control the ball so they can eventually score

B Soccer players learn how to dribble

C Soccer players learn many skills when playing soccer.

2.4.2- Supporting idea

Supporting idea questions are often prefaced by "according to the

passage" or "the passage states that" Most of the questions that fit into this category could be called "find the fact" as they rely on your ability to find a specific piece of information, often contained in two or three sentences

These questions tend to be more difficult than main idea questions because they require a more detailed recollection of the test If necessary, students can return to the text and quickly re-read a few sentences

Unlike main idea questions which are more generic in their question stem, these questions tend to incorporate an idea specific to the passage in the question stem.

Factual and negative factual questions ask about specific details and facts that are often provided in a single line of text Sometimes students will be directed to the paragraph that contains the answer

Common question stems:

1 Factual questions:

+ According to the passage, why did ?

+ According to the information in paragraph 2, where did ?

+ Which of the following is true, according to the passage?

+ The author uses as an example of

+ The author mentions in the third paragraph because it was

2 Negative factual questions:

+ The author mentions all of the following in the passage EXCEPT + In the passage, the aothor does NOT provide a specific example of + According to the information in paragraph 3, which of the following is NOT

3 Vocabulary questions:

line 9?

eaning to which of the following?

How to identify correct answer

In trying to identify the correct answer, it is extremely important that studentsstick quite close to the text The words "according to the passage" should be taken seriously Answers that seem logical but are not directly supported by the text should be avoided

Ex 1: Sally went shopping after school Friday

and all day on Saturday and she bought a lot of

new outfits On Sunday her mother took her to

the outlet mall so she could finish buying

clothes for the new school year She also

bought school supplies so she would be

prepared for her classes

What is the main idea of this paragraph about Sally?

The main things that this paraghragh is about is the fact that Sally spent the weekend shopping

What are supporting details?

Supporting details are examples and extra information that help you understand the main idea

What are some supporting details in this paraghraph?

- Sally bought new outfits

- Sally bought school supplies

Ex 2: (1) Due to increasing costs, there will be two changes in the tuition

First, reimbursement has been reduced from 100 percent to 60 percent of tuition costs for each course

example, if you pay $1,000 for a course, and earn at least a C in that course, you will be reimbursed in the amount of $600 (4) Second, employees will now be limited to $2,000 in reimbursement expenses per year (5) Thus, if your tuition per course equals $1,000, you will be reimbursed $600 per course for each of your three courses but only $200 for the fourth course because you will have reached the $2,000 limit (6) Any additional courses in that year will not be reimbursed

Explanation: This paragraph follows a very common pattern It starts

with the topic sentence (sentence 1) Then it offers support for that topic

sentence in the form of details and examples Sentences 2 and 4 give the details

of the change in the tuition reimbursement program Sentences 3, 5, and 6 give

(sentence numbers are in parentheses):

Main idea (1)

Detail (2)

Example (3) Detail (4)

Example (5,6)

2.4.3- Reference questions

According to Kate Hardin (2014): Reference questions ask about the meanings of pronouns and demonstratives such as they, it, he, she, which, who, that, and this The goal of these questions is simple: you need to decide what the pronoun or phrase refers to You probably already do this automatically

reading passages Reference questions are one of relatively few question types that very basically test a skill that is necessary to read well

Common question stems

The word in the second paragraph refers to

The

The phrase in paragraph 4 refers to

How to identify correct answer:

Before the readers check to answer such a question, they have to remember two things:

1 The referent almost always comes after the reference word (highlighted word) in the passage

2 The referent isn't always the closest word to the reference word

Here are some of the reference words (highlighted words) they might be asked about:

1 Personal pronouns/adjectives: he, him, his, she, her, hers, it, its, they, them, theirs

2 Reflexive pronouns: himself, herself, itself, themselves

3 Demonstrative pronouns/adjectives: this, that, these, those

4 Other reference words: some, few, any, none, several, both, here, there, most, many, one, ones, another, other, others, the former, the latter

Read the four answer choices carefully then substitute each one of them for the highlighted word Read the sentence again with the answer choice and check if it makes sense.

Example:

A survey is a study, generally in the

form of an interview or a questionnaire,

which provides information concerning

how people think and act In the United

States, the best-known surveys are the

Gallup poll and Harris poll As anyone

who watches the news during campaigns

presidential knows, these polls have

become an important part of political life in the United States

interviews on local television news shows While such interviews can be highly entertaining, they are not necessary an accurate indication of public

opinion First, they reflect the opinion of only those people who appear at a

certain location Thus, such samples

can be biased in favor of commuters,

middle-class shoppers, or factory

workers, depending on which area the

news-people select Second, television

interviews tend to attract outgoing

people who are willing to appear on

the air, while they frighten away others

who may feel intimidated by a camera A survey must be based on a precise,

representative sampling if it is to genuinely reflect a broad range of the population.

A North Americans B interviews

Explanation: (B) is the correct answer they interviews

in paragraph 2

2.4.4- Inference

The inference type can be recognized by the word "infer", or "imply" or

"suggest" in the question prompt Inference means something that is only suggested in the text, it is not something that is directly stated The readers need

to be able to understand all the concepts in the reading passage and from them

be able to logically see what else the author is trying to imply

The readers will have to make connections and assumptions to answer this style of question Unlike factual questions, answers will not often be found

in a single line of text

Common question stems

It can be inferred from the passage that

In paragraph 4, the author implies that

Which of the following can be inferred from the passage?

How to identify correct answer

The correct answer to these questions is usually an obvious logical consequence of a sentence in the text The logical consequence will be extremely clear The difficulty in these questions resides in finding the specific sentence in the passage that provides the premise for the conclusion in the correct answer Stay away from answer choices that do not directly and closely follow from a statement in the passage, even if this statement seems plausible based upon the general idea of the passage or commonly accepted knowledge

Example: Read the passage Then answer the question below.

The World Trade Organization

(WTO) has 150 member countries They

are looking to improve trade Trade

means the buying and selling goods The

WTO provides a place where these

countries can talk about what they need

The goal of the WTO is to make trade

grow by removing legal barriers between countries.

The WTO helps trade in several ways First, it asks countries to treat each other equally They should not give special trade deals to one country and not to another Also, these countries should not try to stop foreign products from any one country The idea is that goods and services should be able to cross borders

easily A second way to improve trade is to lower tariffs These are special

taxes for things bought and sold A third way to strength trade is to make sure that the rules will stay the same In order for people to invest their money, they need to feel secure for the future A fourth way is to allow greater competitions

between countries The central belief is that competitions make for a stronger economy.

The last way to improve trade is to help countries that are poor The need help coming up to the level of modern countries They can be helped by allowing them extra time to get their systems in order They can be given

priority in making deals with other countries.

helps poor ones get ahead It is one way of improving the lives of more people

in the world It asks countries to make laws that help this process Every year, more countries apply to be in the WTO They see membership as a good thing

Question: It can be inferred from the passage that

A the WTO helps remove political barriers between countries

th other organizations

C the WTO is a multi-national organization.

D few countries want to become a member of the WTO

Explanation: This question belongs to the inference one (C) is the correct

answer Because WTO has 150 member countries (A) is incorrect because the goal of the WTO is to make trade grow by removing legal barriers between countries (B) is incorrect because the last way to improve trade is to help countries that are poor (D) is incorrect every year, more countries apply to be in the WTO

2.4.5- Tone & Style

Tone & Style questions ask students to identify the attitude or mood of a

this question type is answer choices that are marked by one to three word phrases containing adjectives Tone questions test ability to recognize

an attitude or disposition of the author, which is signaled by the use of a handful

of trigger words Never base guess about the author's tone on a single word-this is not enough to define the tone of the entire passage

Tone & Style questions tend to be among the more infrequent question types

Common question stems

Why does the author mention in paragraph 2?

The tone of the author is best described as

The author refers to to indicate that

of ?

of ?

Example:

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer.

Ocean water plays an

indispensable role in supporting

life The great ocean basins hold

about 300 million cubic miles of

water From this vast amount,

about 80,000 cubic miles of water

are sucked into the atmosphere

each year by evaporation and

returned by precipitation and drainage to the ocean More than 24,000 cubic miles of rain descend annually upon the continents This vast amount is required

to replenish the lakes and streams, springs and water tables on which all flora and fauna are dependent Thus, the hydrosphere permits organic existence

The hydrosphere has strange characteristics because water has properties unlike those of any other liquid One anomaly is that water upon freezing expands by about 9 percent, whereas most liquids contract on cooling For this reason, ice floats on water bodies instead of sinking to the bottom If the ice sank, the hydrosphere would soon be frozen solidly, except for a thin layer of surface melt water during of warm and cold currents, which moderate climate, would be notably absent

Another outstanding characteristic of water is that water has a heat capacity which is the highest of all liquids and solids except ammonia This characteristic enables the oceans to absorb and store vast quantities of heat, thereby often preventing climate extremes In addition, water dissolves more substances than any other liquid It is this characteristic which helps make oceans a great storehouse of minerals which has been washed down from the continents In several areas of the world, these minerals are being commercially exploited Solar evaporation of salt is widely practised, potash is extracted from the Dead Sea, and magnesium is produced from sea water along the American Gulf Coast

writer Secondly, before students answer each question, try to determine what type of question is being asked Importantly, they find out the paragraphs whichhave the suitable information to answer the questions Then the students scan the passage slowly and carefully in order to find the answers Especially, they underline the ideas in the paragraph which are close to the requirements of the questions.

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the questions.

Although most universities in the United States are on a semester system, which offers classes in the fall and spring, some schools observe a quarter system comprised of fall, winter, spring, and summer quarters The academic year, September to June, is divided into three quarters of eleven weeks each beginning in September, January, and March: the summer quarter, June to August, is composed of shorter sessions of vary length

There are several advantages and disadvantages to the quarter system On the plus side, students who wish to complete their degrees in less than the

customary four years may take advantage of the opportunity to study year round

by enrolling in all four quarters In addition, although most students begin their programs in the fall quarter, they may enter at the beginning of any other quarters Finally, since the physical facilities are kept in operation year round, the resources are used effectively to serve the greatest number of students But there are several disadvantages as well Many faculty complain that eleven-

week term is simply not enough for them to cover the material required by most

college coursed Students also find it difficult to complete the assignments in such a short period of time

In order to combine the advantages of the quarter system with those of

the semester system some colleges and universities have instituted a three-term

trimester system In fourteen weeks, faculty and students have more time to