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How to Improve Reading and Comprehension

By Andre Trudel (CTC Tutor)

The development of analytical, critical thought is the most important skill a student can learn . For this, it is important to improve reading and comprehensions with online english tutoring. Unfortunately, much schoolwork focuses less on the development of analytical thought. But, focuses more on a habit of memorization and recitation. This is true across all subjects, and is especially relevant in English and Social Studies classes. So it is vital to improve reading and comprehension with online english tutoring.

Given a text-based analysis assignment, students far too often choose to repeat the points a teacher makes in class, instead of developing their opinions . Moreover, some teachers will assign a source-based question requiring some degree of analysis, but will not provide explicit directives. This is problematic.

Hence, the aim of this guide is to provide an analytical framework, from which a student can begin to engage with and critically discuss a text. The value (and aim) of this approach is both

(i) To engender greater reading comprehension skills; and,

(ii) To emphasize greater informal reasoning skills in a student.

Both of these are important, useful skills to have, and are as equally applicable to formal education as to everyday life.

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Reading comprehension is characterized by a close, careful, and critical assessment of the text. This includes not only understanding what an author says, but also how and why they say what they do. The what of a text is the most straightforward aspect, and examines what the author says.

Asking ‘so what?’ is usually the best method of determining the author’s point. The how concerns the author’s reasoning – what is the process by which they move from their premises to their conclusion? Careful examining an author’s arguments can be quite instructive. Often upon close examination arguments that were once persuasive lose much of their appeal.

Finally, the why of a text puts the text in historical perspective. Altogether too often a text loses much significance without an understanding of the social milieu in which it was produced. Assessment in terms of these three aspects will lead to greater comprehension on the part of a student. This brings us now to our critical assessment process.

Process to Improve Reading and Comprehension

The following is a general process I have found useful to increase comprehension and analysis skills:

(i) For a given text, read the first few and last few paragraphs first. This should help to give the student a general idea of the author’s train of thought; where the author’s ideas begin and end.

(ii) Next, read through the entire text, whether it is a chapter or chapter section, at a reasonable pace without stopping. Do not make notes. Reading out loud sometimes helps here as well.

(iii) Read through the text again, but this time make paragraph summaries. So after each paragraph has the student write a sentence or two about that specific paragraph, detailing what the point of the paragraph is. While doing this, students should remember to:

          (a) make note of how the author starts the paragraph, in a similar fashion
to (i), above, and;

          (b) note how the author ends the paragraph.

Doing both (a) and (b) should not only elucidate the author’s line of reasoning, but also give the student a point of reference should they forget what a specific chapter was about.

(iv) Finally, have the student create a list of their paragraph summaries on a separate sheet of paper. Ideally, this will help them to understand the author’s train of thought. And the reasoning the author employs to reach their conclusion.

This process need not be followed precisely. Students frequently respond differently to different steps of the process, and it is best to find out which steps work best for the individual students.

It is also important to note that the process above applies equally well to both the more technical writing found in social or critical thinking classes. Whatever medium an author is using, they are still trying to convey some meaning to their audience, and to prove a point to us, whatever that point may be.

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Poetic writing and storytelling may focus less on rigid argumentation and more on style. But that does not mean that they are trying to prove a point any less than any other writer.

Once the student has completed their summary, they are in a better position to assess the author’s reasoning. Have the student ask themselves if the author’s train of thought makes sense. If the author actually makes the point they said that they would make, and if the student agrees with the conclusion the author comes to.

This is sufficient to provide a firm basis from which a student can meaningfully respond to a text. (Note that we have no need to lay out the fundaments of logic here; an intuitive grasp of what counts as a good argument should suffice.

Of course, if a student struggles with identifying what counts as good reasoning and what does not, it may be useful to outline some of the basic concepts of good argumentation, adapted to their specific needs).

Final Words

Finally, it is worth noting that analytical processes such as this one are meant to enhance a student’s appreciation of a text, not hinder it. While close analysis frequently seems pedantic and largely useless, especially to students who are unused to rigorous examination of a text. It is often only when we understand the deep structure of an author’s reasoning that we cull the most meaningful conclusions.

And it is when we have a grasp on those conclusions that our understanding of the text may flourish, and we come to appreciate its import overall. All this happens when you improve reading and comprehension habits with online english tutoring.