Improving vocabulary through contextual clues The meaning of contextual clues A wide vocabulary is a key to good reading comprehension.

There are number of techniques to widen one s vocabulary, but the best among them is the use of contextual clues. Contextual clues are words or phrases in the text acting as clues to the meaning of a difficult term in the selection. This vocabulary-building strategy involves the whole text plus the personal experiences of the reader. Kinds of contextual clues 1. Sense of the sentence The sense of the sentence clue involves the whole sentence. The reader has to get the general sense or meaning of the sentence to get some ideas about one unfamiliar term used in the sentence. The question plus the answer must have some connection with the unfamiliar term. Ex. a. You can not easily change the stand of an obdurate person. Question: What can you say about a person who does not welcome change? Answer: He is not flexible Obdurate means not flexible. b. The strong wind will make your hair appear scraggly. Question: What becomes of hair that is not combed? Answer: It is not orderly. It is untidy, or disheveled. Scraggly means irregular, unkept, disorderly, untidy. 2. Use of synonym Synonyms are words that have the same or nearly the same meaning. If the text uses a word that is synonymous to a different term in the text, that synonym can be used by the reader as his guide in getting the meaning of the difficult word. The presence of the synonym in the sentence is signaled by a comma, dash, parentheses, a link or a series of synonymous terms, or a restatement of the difficult term in more familiar words in a phrase, or another sentence. There are several ways of recognizing synonyms in a sentence. These are: a. By commas to separate the appositive from the other words in the sentence. y The Volvo, a car, costs a million pesos.

y The conundrum, a riddle, is one of the ancient forms of Philippine poetry. b. By parentheses y She wants to establish a liaison ( a close bond) with the officers. y Give me the penultimate (next to the last) syllable of the word. c. By dashes y The Visconde suspects are scions descendants of rich and famous politicians. y A claque a group of persons to clap at a performance was made to stand up near the stage. d. By restatement or expression of the word in a more familiar term. Restatement through an appositive: a clergyman, a priest, wields tremendous influence on every member of the community. Restatement through a phrase: the clergyman saying the Mass in the new chapel is wearing a white robe with a purple hemline. Restatement through a clause: A clergyman, who considers the church his permanent residence, gave me a golden rosary. e. Linked synonyms: The author gives a word or series of words that are closely related in meaning to the unfamiliar term. The proceedings of the Visconde case in the court indicate a chaotic, disorderly, confused, or mudled application of social justice. 3. Use of examples The examples in a sentence have common traits or characteristics. To use as clues to the meaning of a difficult term in the sentence, the reader has to study these examples to discover what their similarities are, then associate these similarities with the word he does not understand, to know exactly what the unfamiliar term means. The comma in the punctuation mark used to signal the presence of examples in the sentence. Examples. a. Novels, poetry, drama, short stories, and folk tales belong to fictional genre. Genre category or class of literary works. b. The gadgets he was allowed to examine are: hair dryer, mixer, heater, and polisher.

Gadgets-devices to help you do a task c. The pious people like the friars, pastors, and nuns play a great role in uplifting the spiritual life of the villagers. 4. Use of comparison and analogy The clue to the meaning of the unfamiliar word is given by the word compared to the target word. Comparing the difficult term to another word will reveal similarities that can be used by the readers as clues to the meaning of the difficult term. Expressions such as: similar to, like, as as, and the same are what the text uses in comparing things, places, and persons. Examples: The lion is as ferocious as a crocodile that is capable of gobbling up a whole human being.

5. Use of antonyms and contrast Words or phrases that are opposite or approximately opposite in meaning are called antonyms. These do not give the exact meaning of the word, but they give a good understanding of each word. The presence of an antonym in the sentence is indicated by the word but, or other key words signaling opposite or near-opposite meanings. Example 1. A man who is adroit has several ways of solving his problems; an inexperienced man, on the other hand, can think of only one remedy to his problem. 2. I am a whiz at figures, but dull in language learning. 6. Knowing the structure of the word Being aware of the structure or parts of the word is another way of recognizing the meaning of an unfamiliar word. The prefixes, suffixes, and the root words have their own meanings, and if these are combined with the other words in a sentence, they will serve as hints to the correct meaning of the unknown word. Example. 1. How many corners does a tetrapack have? 2. Have your pedicure in Bob s beauty parlor. 3. She stood there immobile. Structure Meaning

Tetra Pedi Cure Im Mobile

four foot take care not moving

Improving reading comprehension Reading is the process of getting meaning from the book and bringing meaning into it. Getting meaning from the book means knowing the author s point of view and merging this with the reader s point of view to make the whole reading material understandable. The derivation meaning proceeds from the author to the reader. This process of forming meaning about the text is called bottom-up processing. However, if the formulation of meaning proceeds from the reader to the author, that is: the reader must first use his prior knowledge or background experiences to understand the author s viewpoint, this kind of understanding the text is called top-down processing. The other names given to this latter and better kind of reading are: interactive and schema reading. This schema reading makes use of the reader s schemata to make the reading material meaningful. Schemata refer to all knowledge the reader has stocked or stored in his memory since the time he was conceived. An abstract representation of this old knowledge in his mind is called a schema. It is believed that the reader has schematic representations of people, things, places, events, animals, occasions, etc. in his mind. When he reads, he recalls or activates these schemata or stores knowledge. An understanding of the reading materials will suit if the reader has the schemata that match with the information in the text. Therefore, to understand the printed symbols in the book, in the reader has to bring his wealth of vivid concepts into the pages of the book. A concept is the condensed form of experience that takes a definite form in one s mind. The information on these concepts in the brain determines success in reading or results in a deeper and higher level of comprehension. Comprehension is a process of constructing meaning with the use of some clues in the text and of the schemata or background knowledge of the reader about the text. It then creates an

interaction between the author and the reader. The derivation of meaning does not come from text the alone, but also from the reader s mind, specifically, his prior knowledge or experience. This prior knowledge necessary in comprehension takes different names, namely: schemata, stored knowledge, experience, background, knowledge, old knowledge, and reader s knowledge. Whatever name it takes, this serves as the core or main ingredient in the reading act. Since the reader always consults his schemata to understand the text, he can say that this is one strong indicator of his reading ability. It is logical therefore to state that poor schemata result in poor reading ability. How do these schemata operate in the reading process? When a person reads or tries to understand a reading material, he goes up into his brain, specifically, his cerebral cortex, to find there the right schemata that will match with the information from the book. The matching or relationship between the old knowledge or schemata of the reader with the new knowledge or information in the book results in comprehension or understanding of the printed matter. Actually, reading involves two psychological processes: sensation and perception. Sensation is awareness of something due to stimulation of the sense organs. The sense organs primarily involved in reading are the eyes. When one reads, he makes the eye movements of stopping or fixation of the eyes, interfixation or stopping of the eyes from one point to another, return sweep or sweeping of the eyes at the end of the line to the beginning of the next line; and regression or backward or right to the left movement made in a reverse direction. These eye movements are triggered by the foveal areas of the retina hit by the light from the printed symbols or letters. As soon as the sensory cells of the retina are hit by the light rays from the letters, they produce chemical changes creating nerve currents that instantly travel up to the optic nerves situated at the middle of the brain. Impulses are brought to the gray matter of the cerebral cortex. This portion of the brain arouses the reader s past experiences about the word by association of this prior knowledge with it, and perception occurs. Thus, when one begins to read, he falls back on the store of knowledge (schemata) in his memory. This implies that developing a good reader is giving him a lot of opportunities to make relationships or associations between the new the old knowledge. Every individual begins to store schemata in his brain at the time of conception. This is possible through his travelling experiences, reading activities, and mingling with other people. Using prior knowledge and clues in the text, the reader understands the reading materials. His understanding of the text ranges from simple to complex or from complex to simple. This

means that reading comprehension does not follow a linear or sequential emergence of thoughts, but rather an interactive or interdependent involvement of mental operations. Hence, a simple understanding may trigger a higher-level understanding or vice versa. In understanding the text, the reader goes through these levels of thinking: Level 1- literal comprehension The ideas or meanings formed by the reader at this level are directly stated in the selection. These ideas are elicited by questions beginning with What, When, Where, Which, etc. Level 2 interpretative comprehension The reader forms ideas or meanings indirectly or implicitly stated in the selection. These meanings are embedded between or among the lines, so at this level, he must be good at reading between the lines. Unlike the first level, these ideas can t be pinpointed in the text, because these are merely his inferences or guesses about the selection. But the kind of inferences he makes reveals the quality of interpretation he has about the text. The ideas he forms in this level are usually elicited by questions beginning with Why and How. Level 3 critical analysis or critical evaluation This level requires the reader to evaluate or weigh the facts, events, character s viewpoints, then make judgments about the worth of these and the effectiveness of the way they are presented in the selection. Level 4 application and reaction This refers to the integration of ideas with previous experiences so that new insights and understanding may result. This level is also called reading beyond the lines , because the meanings or ideas derived from the story are to be practiced or incorporated in real-life situations. Level 5 Creative thinking This is the highest level of understanding. Through this he creates new ideas or new ways of expression with the use of whatever understanding he got from the text. The higher levels of comprehension, such as the inferential, critical, and creative reading, involve thinking that is greater in abstraction. Eshell (1988) compares and contrasts these three higher levels of comprehension in this manner.

Inferential comprehension describes the reader s understanding and ability to recognize connotative meanings of words and figurative language; it involves constant decision making. Critical reading compares previous experience to elements in the new materials such as content, style, expression, information and ideas, opinions, or values of an author. Creative reading, on the other hand, makes the reader incorporate the ideas and information garnered from being into new and creative problem solutions. Critical and creative reading are similar in that they both involve higher and more difficult levels of thinking and comprehension, interaction of the reader with the substance of reading material, and a search for personal use and meaning in reading. These three higher levels of comprehension lead the reader to metacognition. Metacognition is a learning process that teaches the learner to be more sensitive or aware of his ways of thinking as he performs the higher levels of thinking. It is learning how to learn, or developing increased ability to comprehend by increasing awareness of his thoughts pattern. Importance of critical and creative thinking The word critical comes from Greek term Krinein meaning to judge or to discern. The reader criticizes a reading material by forming a judgment or evaluation about it. Creative reading on the other hand is a kind of reading that requires the reader to produce new ideas, new insights, and new products through the extensive use of his imagination, flow of ideas, ability to see relationship between his own peculiar background experiences and his reading activities, and ability to determine direct and indirect comparison. A reader, however, cannot immediately create new thing, unless he first criticizes or evaluates that on which the new product is based. Hence, what precedes creative reading is critical reading. In comparing and contrasting these two kinds or reading, creative reading means making new ideas, while creative reading means reacting to others thoughts and to one s old ideas. Creative reading helps the reader develop his own taste in literature. In other words, it gives him the power to discriminate and appreciate the different forms of literature, such as short stories, essays, plays, poetry, etc. these literary forms are all product of creative minds, and just like the paintings of artists, and these creative products serve to fire imagination, the seat of creativity.

Kinds of Reading Depending on the reader s purpose and manner of comprehending the text, he may perform one or more of these kinds or reading 1. Skimming this is the easiest and fastest kind of reading. If a reader skims the reading material, he just reads the signpost or clues in the selection such as the headings and topic sentences. As he passes over the text swiftly to get an overview of the selection, he skips those that are not interesting to him. 2. Scanning when the reader s purpose is to locate a particular information in the text, he resorts to this kind of reading-scanning. He does this by browsing over the pages and giving a quick look over them. The focus of his eyes then is this particular information. But to find the target of his eyes easily, he must first identify the key words or important phrases related to this particular information. 3. Idea reading- this is to get the main idea of the material. This involves the three psychological processes of reading sensation, perception, and comprehension. Sensation and perception occur almost simultaneously, so idea reading means making quick decisions regarding the significance of the clues in the selection, and this happens only if the reader rapidly associates these new clues with his past knowledge. 4. Exploratory reading this is done when the reader wants to know how the whole selection was presented. Some examples of reading materials that lend themselves to this kind of reading are: essays, long articles in magazines, and short stories. More time spent for this kind of reading. 5. Critical reading this makes the reader weigh facts, information, or ideas presented in the selection, so that he, too, can form judgments or conclusion about them. This is not swift reading because to criticize means to have enough time to form valid conclusions about the object of criticism. 6. Analytic reading a careful examination of each work to identify work relationship is the main purpose of analytic reading. This kind of reading is most needed in activities that require a lot of inquisitive thinking like reading mathematical theorems and scientific formulae. 7. Narcotic reading this is done by a person who wants to get rid of his everyday troubles, depressions, frustrations, problems etc. through reading magazines, stories, novels, essays, etc. seemingly, he considers the reading materials as having a narcotic effect like a drug or opium that dulls the senses and makes one unconscious or unaware of realities in life.

8. Extensive reading if the reader spends his leisure time by reading any kind of material that is interesting to him, he will consider his act of reading extensive reading. 9. Intensive reading doing serious reading of books, periodicals, and other library materials for research work or a report is the main concern of this kind of reading. 10. Developmental reading in case the reading activities of a person are under a comprehensive reading program that consists of several stages starting from reader s preschool period to his collegiate level, developmental reading is the kind of reading that this reader submits himself to. He then goes through the following stages of developmental reading: a. Reading readiness in the nursery and kindergarten level b. Beginning reading in grades I and II c. Rapid growth in Grades III and IV d. Refinement and wide Reading in intermediate, high school, and tertiary level. Pathways to Better Reading Roldan (1994) says that for a better understanding of any reading material, one must remember the following: Know the essentials of reading Tangible and intangible factors affecting reading 1. Tangible factors a. Good eyesight, good hearing, and good general health b. Physical environment proper lighting ventilation, quiet room, comfortable furniture c. Legibility, format, and readability of the material 2. Intangible factors a. Proper frame of mind positive thinking b. Will to learn from one s reading self motivation, self-discipline, self-confidence, clear purpose, and concentration. Learn to read a difficult book To learn to read a difficult reading material is to concentrate on getting the main core or idea of the author, not on every difficult expression one encounters in his reading act. He must go on reading continuously without giving much attention to the unfamiliar or difficult words in the book.

Maintain a reading diet A good reading diet must consist of the following: 1. Academic or professional reading -50% (school texts, periodical, and journals for academic fulfillment) 2. Recreational readings -20% (fiction or non-fiction for personal enjoyment) 3. Current events -20% (magazines, newspapers for general information) 4. Spiritual reading 10% (religious books, pamphlets, and handouts for moral and spiritual upliftment) A schedule of reading for one hour (60 minutes) may be distributed this way: 30 minutes academic reading 12 minutes recreational reading 12 minutes periodical reading 6 minutes spiritual reading This schedule, depending on the amount of time one spends in reading, is flexible. The best reading diet, however, is one that requires a person to read good reading materials for 15 minutes.

Name: ____________________ Year and Section_____________ Quiz Communication Arts 1 Identify the word or phrase referred to by the following words. ______________1. The lowest level of comprehension. ______________2. The cause of eye movement during the reading act. ______________3. One factor that determines flexibility of schedule. ______________4. One cause of poor decoding or comprehension. ______________5. A kind of reading done during leisure time. ______________6. The best reading diet. ______________7. Amount of time spent for periodical reading. ______________8. Amount of time spent for academic reading. ______________9. A kind of reading that involves several stages. ______________10. Giving meaning to what you ve experienced. ______________11. A reading act that has an effect similar to drugs. ______________12. The fastest kind of reading. ______________13. Symbolical representation of a person s stock of knowledge. ______________14. A condensed form of reading. ______________15. A kind of reading where the readers criticize a reading material by forming judgment or evaluation about it. II. Essay Answer each of the following questions briefly and concisely. 1. How can you become an intelligent reader? 2. Is schemata an indicator of intelligence? Why ? Why not? Prepared by: Ms. Susan T. Villarazo Instructor 1