| What is Strategic Reading? | | | | teacher must break down the process into "digestible" |
| In the ESL classroom, what and how to read go hand | | | | pieces. I still feel that the biggest challenge is to train |
| in hand. Strategic Reading is helping the student to | | | | our pupils to read critically especially during reading.I feel |
| comprehend what he or she is about to read by | | | | that even my strong pupils find this difficult. |
| offering a plethora of pre-while-post reading strategies | | | | - Reading should be purposeful. Pupils should have a |
| to the student. | | | | clear purpose in reading, whether it is to find a |
| Why Strategic Reading? | | | | relationship between a paragraph, to find a connector, |
| Reading is an extremely complex activity and one of | | | | to find the big picture of the text, to complete an |
| the most important skills in language learning. There are | | | | authentic, meaningful task, etc. Purposeful reading, while |
| different levels to reading and so many different | | | | reading is what teachers should be getting at. |
| factors are involved facilitating actual comprehension. | | | | - Students have to know why they read-first, in a |
| Authentic reading comprehension implies deep | | | | structured and guided way. One good way to do this |
| understanding, ability to infer, analyze, apply and | | | | is reading together paragraphs. Here, a teacher breaks |
| evaluate. It is important for ESL pupils therefore to | | | | down the process in order to model thinking alouds |
| know how to read and to be able to deal with a text | | | | and corresponding reading strategies so even weaker |
| independently. | | | | students can follow and participate in the class |
| What makes teaching Strategic Reading problematic? | | | | interaction. It is even better if the text relates to them |
| Many of the skills teachers have to teach the kids in | | | | and they are genuinely interested in reading it. Final |
| English as a Second Language are skills they have not | | | | Words |
| acquired in their own language in terms of | | | | - Remember, not every strategy is suited for |
| paragraphing, summarizing, paraphrasing, finding the | | | | everyone. ESL teachers cannot possibly use |
| main idea, supporting details, the list goes on. Yet, | | | | everything that is suitable in one class / week / month |
| teachers are required to do this in a second language | | | | term / year. |
| even to kids who are weak. Many of the skills require | | | | - Practice one strategy at once that is applicable to |
| a deep cognitive awareness which some students | | | | very simple texts. Then, it will work out. |
| don't have. | | | | - Spend an appropriate and reasonable amount of |
| Many times some of the questions which are asked in | | | | time to develop and train your students with the |
| exams test higher cognitive ability and not English | | | | strategy. |
| ability. This leads to frustration both on the part of the | | | | - Review, Repeat and review again! Don't assume that |
| teacher and the pupils. | | | | because you have taught it once, that the students |
| What you can Do as an ESL/EFL Teacher | | | | remember them. They need tons of recycled |
| - When planning, take into account the specific | | | | deliberate practice that is not at one go. |
| learner.The lower performer the learner the more the | | | | |