Reading to understand

Reading to understand

B.S. WARRIER

Heard about the 4R and SQ3R method? These are defined ways to learn more effectively.

GATHERING POINTS: Silent reading usually leads to better comprehension. PHOTO: MOHAMMED YOUSUF

Instances when we should read aloud have been touched upon earlier in these columns.

But most of the time, we shall not be reading to enjoy poetry, or correct errors in pronunciation. So, it is not necessary to read aloud always. In fact, reading aloud has its own defects.

Suppose, we are reading a newspaper to quickly have an idea of the important news items. By reading aloud, we cannot do that. On the other hand, silently glance through the headlines and read selectively. We read only what is of interest to us. This is possible by reading silently and not loudly. By reading aloud for a long time, we feel tired because of wastage of energy. Hence, for studying for a long time, we have to read silently.

There is yet another defect in loud reading. We go on reading at a steady speed. Certain ideas may be difficult to grasp.

To digest them, we may have to pause, think for some time and then proceed. A loud reader may not be able to do this. He goes on reading a whole lesson at a stretch at the same speed and then think that he has studied the chapter. The truth is that he has passed through the sentences without following what they meant. You may read silently while studying lessons. Read slowly when you find a passage difficult. Read fast if you feel that a certain portion is easy. If you come across something which you know well, skip it. All these are simple steps which anybody can easily follow.

Experts have made detailed study on reading and have suggested some good methods. We shall go into a couple of them that help improve study habits.

The 4R method

Keep in mind four words starting with the letter R: read, recall, reflect and review.

Read: not just read mechanically, but read carefully, understand every point, question anything unclear, and find the answer to the questions.

Recall: Stop after a portion has been read, try to remember what you just finished reading, go back to the text if you cannot remember something, and try to write the formula or draw the sketch, if any, in the portion you have read. You should be thorough with what you have learnt. Only after making sure that you have learnt it well, should you proceed further.

Reflect: After some time when you are free, you may try to think about what you have learnt. Perhaps you will be able to connect the new knowledge with something you already have in mind. This will help you keep the ideas firmly in the mind, and to apply the knowledge in a new situation.

Review: After a long time, you may try to look back on what you studied. At this stage, you may have forgotten certain things you had studied earlier; but you can quickly bring them back to mind by glancing through the text.

The SQ3R method

The letters stand for survey, question, read, recite, and review.

Survey: Before you start reading, go through the title, headings, subheadings, pictures and their captions, graphs, charts and maps. You may also look at the chapter summaries, conclusions and review questions.

Question: While surveying, raise questions such as why you should read the text, what prior knowledge you have on this subject, and how reading this will help you.

Read: This is the most significant activity. Read with full concentration, focusing your mind on the lesson content, underlining the most important phrases and merging pictures or graphs, if any, with the explanation in the text. Adjust your reading speed to suit the difficulty-level of the passage you are reading.

Check if you get the answers to the questions you had raised in the beginning. Try to find answers to the questions at the end of the chapter.

Write what you find to be very tough, and also the matter you have to memorise, such as poems or definitions. Solve numerical problems. Try to draw sketches from your memory. Read again what you could not grasp fully in the first reading. Use a dictionary to get the meaning of words. Make notes covering the essential points. Read in manageable chunks.

Recite: Soon after reading a section, try to summarise in your mind what you just finished reading.

Try to recite it in your own words. Which means that you have to speak it aloud. This is the most effective method for transferring material from one's short-term memory to long-term memory.

If necessary, improve your notes. Answer the questions orally.

Recitation enriches learning, since it involves seeing, saying and hearing. This process powerfully hammers the material in your memory.

Review: This has to be done at intervals to confirm fully your learning. You should be able to answer all the questions. Any area which is not clear to you should be learnt again.