Research on Reading strategies in English Learning

【Abstract】 Language teaching researchers have been carrying out researches into the cultivation of English reading strategies， both in China and abroad. The researcher conducted a series of researches on English reading strategies， in order to apply it in English teaching and learning ， as well as improve the students' reading ability.

【Key Words】 Reading strategy， reading ability， English learning

【摘要】閱讀是語言學習中的重要活動。國內外學者一直對如何培養學習者的閱讀策略進行研究。這使得對閱讀策略的研究也越來越重要。文章作者對英語閱讀策略進行了一些探究，以期把這些閱讀策略運用到英語教學中以提高學習者的閱讀能力。

【關鍵詞】閱讀策略；閱讀能力；英語學習

1.Nature of Reading

Reading is the primary means for independent learning， whether the goal is performing better on tasks， learning more about subject matter， or improving language abilities. Smith （1978， P.81） says， "Reading is an active problem-solving-process". The eyes receive messages and the brain then has to work out the significance of these messages." The reading transaction involves the reader's acting on or interpreting the text， and the interpretation is influenced by the reader's past experiences， language background， learning strategies， and cultural framework， as well as the reader's purpose for reading" （ Hudelson， 1994， cited in Nunan）. Generally speaking， reading is a complex skill --- as demonstrated by the definition of reading， the abilities of readers， the strategy use of learners and the many purposes for which we read. Therefore， reading strategies should be conducted by the teachers in teaching in order to improve students' reading ability.

2.Classifications of Reading Strategies

Over the years， numerous strategies to teaching reading have appeared. The researcher believes that these strategies are not just teaching reading； rather， they are guiding and assisting learners to develop as independent readers， writers， and learners.

（1）Bottom-up Strategy

In bottom-up processing， the readers build up a meaning from the black marks on the page： recognizing letters and words， working out sentence structure. They can make conscious use of it when an initial reading leaves them confused. For example， sometimes if readers cannot believe that the apparent message was really what the writer intended； this can happen if their world knowledge is inadequate， or if the writer's point of view is very different from their own. In that case， the readers must scrutinize the vocabulary and syntax to make sure they have grasped the plain sense correctly. Thus bottom-up processing can be used as a corrective to 'tunnel vision' （ seeing things only form readers' limited point of view）.

（2）Top-down Strategy

Top-down strategy， which emphasize the overall construction of meaning from connected or whole texts， and draw on the reader's and writer's schemata and personal experiences. This kind of strategy processing is used when readers interpret assumptions and draw inferences. The readers make conscious use of it when they try to see the overall purpose of the passage， or get a rough idea of the pattern of the writer's argument， in order to make a reasoned guess at the passage step. This enables readers to predict the writer's purpose， the likely trend of the argument and so on， and then use third framework to interpret difficult parts of the passage. The top-down strategy gives a sense of perspective and makes use of all that the readers bring to the passage： prior knowledge， common sense， etc， which have sometimes been undervalued in the reading class.

（3） Skimming and Scanning strategies

Barnet（1989） makes the following statements： Skimming is a strategy for going through the reading material quickly in order to get the gist of it， to know how it is organized， or to get an idea of the tone or the intention of the writer. Scanning is a strategy which readers only try to locate specific information and often they do not even follow the linearity of the passage to do so.

When readers use skimming strategy， first they should know predicting is the core of skimming and previewing is the core of scanning which involves using the table of contents， the appendix， the preface， the chapter and paragraph headings in order to find out where the required information is likely to be.

（4） Summarizing Strategy

Baltimore （1989） argues that summarizing is putting the writer's message in shorter form. There are two forms of summarizing： reducing information and selecting information. Reducing information： You cover all of the information in a selection. You may use the writers' statements， or you may put the information in your own words. Selecting information： You pull out some of the information in a selection to fit a purpose you have.

Summarizing which is an essential reading comprehension strategy because it involves selecting what most important from a reading passage and committing that to memory stage.

3.Summary

In conclusion， the goal of language education is not only to teach learners linguistic data but also teach them how to learn. A teacher must be knowledgeable about the reading strategies and stages of reading that students pass through. They must be competent in techniques for training reading strategies. They need to know many methods， not just one or a few. There is no single reading method which can work for every student who has his own unique reading problem.

References：

[1] Baltimore， Esther Minskoff Ph.D.（2002）. Teaching reading for struggling learners. [M] U.S.A.

[2] Block， E.L. （1986）. The comprehension strategies of second language readers. [J] TESOL Quarterly， 20， 463-464.

[3] Carrel， P. L. J. & Eskey， D. J.（1988）. Interactive approaches to second language reading. [M] Britain： Cambridge University Press.

作者簡介：

孫秀萍，女（1976.8-），彝族，云南雙柏，講師，研究生，主要從事英語學科教學、跨文化交際研究。