Schema Theory and Reading

Comprehension
Schema theory is an explanation of how readers use prior knowledge to comprehend and
learn from text .The term "schema" was first used in psychology by Barlett as "an active
organization of past reactions or experiences" (1932,p.201); later, schema was introduced in
reading by Rumelhalt (1980), Carrell (1981) and Hudson (1982) when discussing the important
role of background knowledge in reading comprehension (all cited in An, 2013).

The fundamental principle of the schema theory assumes that written text does
not carry meaning by itself. Rather, a text only provides directions for readers as
to how they should retrieve or construct meaning from their own previously
acquired knowledge (An, 2013).

Comprehension According to the Schema Theory

According to schema theory, comprehending a text is an interactive process

between the reader’s background knowledge and the text. Efficient comprehension
requires the ability to relate the textual material to one's own knowledge. As Anderson
(1977, p.369) point out, "every act of comprehension involves one’s knowledge of the
world as well."

Reading comprehension operates in two directions, from bottom up to the top and from the top
down to the bottom of the hierarchy. Bottom-up processing is activated by specific data from the
text, while top-down processing starts with general to confirm these predictions. These two
kinds of processing are occurring simultaneously and interactively, which adds to the concept of
interaction or comprehension between bottom-up and top-down processes (Carrel and
Eiserhold, 1983. Cited in An, 2013).

The Three Levels of Comprehension

1. Reading comprehension is the ability to process information that we have read and to
understand its meaning. The three levels of comprehension are :Literal Level: It is
simply what the text says and what actually happens in the story. This is a very
important level of understanding because it provides the foundation for more
advanced comprehension. It focuses on reading the passages, hearing the words or
viewing the images. It involves identifying the important and essential information. With
guidance, students can distinguish between the important and less important ideas.
2. The Inferential Level: It involves determining what the text means. Determining
inferential meaning requires you to think about the text and draw a conclusion. ,
 the focus shifts to reading between the lines, looking at what is implied by the
material under study. It requires students to combine pieces of information in
order to make inferences about the author's intent and message. Guiding students
to recognize these perceived relationships promotes understanding and decreases the
risk of being overwhelmed by the complexities of the text being viewd, heard or read.
3. The Critical Level: In this level we are analyzing or synthesizing information and
applying it to other information. Understandings at the literal and interpretive levels
are combined, reorganized and restructured at the critical level to express
opinions, draw new insights and develop fresh ideas. Guiding students through the
applied level shows them how to synthesize information, to read between the lines and
to develop a deeper understanding of the concepts, principles, and implications
presented in the text.

Comprehension Skills
1. Sequencing: Sequencing refers to the identification of the components of a story,
such as the beginning, middle, and end, and also to the ability to retell the events
within a given text in the order in which they occurred. The ability to sequence
events in a text is a key comprehension strategy, especially for narrative texts.
2. Graphic Organizer: A graphic organizer, also known as knowledge map, concept map,
story map, cognitive organizer, advance organizer, or concept diagram, is a
communication tool that uses visual symbols to express knowledge, concepts,
thoughts, or ideas, and the relationships between them. With the use of a graphic
organizer, the children should be given an activity where they are required to
state the before, during and after occurrences with Piped Piper in the story. They
should recall the main points of what happened before the Piped Piper, what was
happening while the Piped Piper was in the town and what happened after he left.

What is the interactive reading?

An interactive reading model attempts to combine the valid insights of bottom-up and top-
down models. It attempts to take into account the strong points of the bottom-up and top-down
models and tries to avoid the criticisms leveled against each, making it one of the most
promising approaches to the theory of reading today (McCormick, T. 1988).

The interactive reading model, or IRM, is a reading model that recognizes the
interaction of bottom-up and top-down processes simultaneously throughout the
reading process.

The IRM is based on the idea that readers do not just read words and sentences but
also make predictions. This prediction process involves both bottom-up processing,
where readers attempt to determine the text’s meaning based on their knowledge
of individual letters and how they are arranged into words, and top-down
processing, where readers rely on their past experiences with similar situations
in order to make sense of new information.
 Reading Activities
Here are 10 activities that will get your students to actively engage with a text and increase their
understanding while reading.

Seven Steps To Design A Successful Reading Lesson Plan.

1. The Aim

What is your objective when designing your lesson? Do you want your learners to:

Be able to read for gist?

Be able to read for detailed information?

Be able to preview/survey a text?

Be able to use prior knowledge to understand a text?

Be able to locate referents?

Be able to infer meaning from context?

Be able to summarize a passage?

Be able to speed read?

Be able to think critically?

2. Preparation

To prepare your learners for the reading tasks, start with

A warm-up such as a tongue twister, a command drill, or a riddle. This shouldn’t take more than 2 or 3
minutes.

A lead-in. This stage is intended to prepare the learners for the reading task. Examples of lead-ins
include vocabulary pre-teaching, discussing a quote related to the topic, a word list that the students
have to study in groups to guess which words will be used by the writer in the text, etc.

Think of a task that will help the SS read and understand the text.
3. Strategy Teaching And Modeling

Depending on the aims of the lesson, choose a strategy (e.g. activating prior knowledge, predicting,
guessing the meaning of difficult words from the context, questioning, summarizing, using graphic
organizers….) and teach it explicitly using another short text (just to demonstrate how the strategy
should be used.)

4. Strategy Use/Practice.

Learners have to use the strategy you explained in the previous stage. They have to apply it to
understand the current text.

5. Comprehension Tasks

For a deeper understanding of the text, assign comprehension exercises such as:

Finding an appropriate title for the text.

Locating referents (i.e. what do these words refer to?)

Sentence completion

Matching

Comprehension questions,

True or false statements,

Chart completion (i.e. information transfer)

….

6. Reviewing

Reviewing consists of checking to what extent the learners understood the text and how much they
can recall. This can be done in different ways:

Retelling the story

Writing a short paragraph using the ideas they got from the text.

Using graphic organizers to organize what they have learned from the text
Completing a chart with the most pertinent information from the passage.

Summarizing the text.

7. Connecting

Learners have to connect what they have read with themselves, with the world, and with other
related texts they have read.Teachers in this stage typically try to answer the follwing question:

How does the topic of the passage relate to the learners’ lives?

1. Skim for the main idea

Before students get into the nitty-gritty of the text, have them skim the text for a general overview.
Encourage them to look at headings, visuals, and bold words. These things will help students find the
main topic or purpose of a reading quickly.

Teach your students the basics of how to skim a text with Ellii's lesson on Skimming & Scanning.

2. Scan for specific information

Prepare a few questions that ask for specific information such as names, dates, times, and numbers.
This will give students an idea of the scope of a reading.

3. Summarize or paraphrase

Put students in pairs then have them read one paragraph at a time silently. When they finish, ask
them to take turns summarizing or paraphrasing the paragraph they've just read.

4. Use context clues

As students read, have them circle any unfamiliar words or expressions. Before they reach for their
dictionaries or phones, have them take a closer look at the words preceding and following the
unknown terms. Using context clues, see if they can figure out their meaning.
5. Make predictions

After students have read a paragraph or section, have them pause and say what they think is going to
happen next.

6. Annotate the text

As students read, encourage them to note their reactions to the text in the margins.

They can place a question mark when they don’t understand something, a star when something is
important, and an exclamation mark when they are surprised.

7. Consider other perspectives

After students have read the text one time, ask them to read it again and pretend they are reading it
from someone else’s point of view.

8. Participate in a jigsaw activity

This collaborative technique works well for longer texts.

Assign each student to a “jigsaw” group then give each student a section of the text to read. When
they have finished, have them get together with members from the other groups who've been
assigned the same section.

In these new groups, students discuss and become “experts” on their section. Students then return to
their original “jigsaw” groups and teach their group members about their section.

9. Put text in order

Cut up the reading and have students put it in order. This activity requires students to think logically
as they examine sequencing words and transitions.
10. Create a Venn diagram

Students are often asked to read articles that compare and contrast two or more topics. (For example,
see Ellii’s lesson on J-Pop Vs. K-Pop.)

What Are The Stages Of A Writing Lesson Plan?

The writing lesson plan should include stages that guide the students to discover the distinctive features
of a model text, a genre such as formal letters, reports, or essays. Then, ideally, the students should be
invited to practice the language, the layout, and the format of the target genre we want to teach. This
should be followed by the process competent writers follow when writing, namely, planning, drafting,
revising, and editing. This is commonly referred to as Process Writing:

Reading a model text that represents a genre such as an email, a report, an essay, an advertisement, etc.

Understanding the text, studying the genre, and analyzing its distinctive features (e.g., the language and
the layout or format of the text.)

Assigning the topic and making sure the students understand it.

Planning (i.e., collecting ideas and making an outline)

Drafting (i.e., producing the first version of the task)

Revising (i.e., looking at the overall content and organization of ideas.)

Editing (i.e., tidying up the draft and checking for diction, grammar, spelling, and punctuation mistakes)

Producing the final draft

Structure of a Writing Lesson Plan

Writing Lesson Plan Stages

Stage 1 – Model Text

The first stage consists of providing a model text of a genre and analyzing its distinctive features. This
can be done by assigning well-designed guiding activities to help learners identify:

The characteristic language of the genre (formal or informal, the expressions or vocabulary and
grammar used to convey meaning.)

The linking words and transitions used to connect the sentences of the text.

The format or layout of the text.

Stage 2 -Practice

The practice involves working on the language and format of the genre. At this stage, the teacher assigns
well-designed guiding activities to train the learners in using the right type of language, linking words,
and layout. These can be in the form of matching, gap-filling, sentence completion, etc.

Stage 3 The Topic

Assigning the topic is not that easy. First, it has to be contextualized. Second, it has to be well
understood by the learners.

1. Contextualizing the topic

The writing topic should be contextualized and should answer the following requirements: who is
writing what to whom and why? Simply, asking the students to write about the advantages and
disadvantages of smartphones is not helpful and is purposeless. What should they write (i.e., what
genre?): an email, an essay, an article, etc. And who is the audience? Are they the readers of a
magazine, a friend, conference participants? Finally, why should they write about the advantages and
disadvantages of smartphones in the first place? Is it because they noticed that their mates have
become addicted to their smartphones? Is the writing a reaction to an article in a magazine?

An improved formulation of the topic should consider all these elements.

You have noticed that many of your school mates have become addicted to their smartphones. Write a
short article for the school magazine to talk about the advantages and disadvantages of smartphones to
raise their awareness of the positive and negative aspects of smartphones.
2. Understanding the topic

Learners should understand the topic. They should understand what genre they should produce, who
they should write to, and why they are writing about that topic. To make sure they understand the topic,
you may want to ask them to complete a chart.

What are you going to write? (The genre)

What are you going to write about?

Who is the audience?

What is the purpose of your writing?

Stage 4 – Process Writing

After understanding the topic, invite the students to go through Process Writing.

1. Planning

Learners are prompted to collect as many ideas about the topic as possible through tasks such as
brainstorming, discussions, chart filling, quick write, answers to questions, etc.

2. Drafting

This is the first version of the writing. Students shouldn’t be concerned with accuracy at this stage.

3. Revising

When they finish writing their first draft, students are encouraged to look at the overall organization of
the text, paying attention to whether the ideas included are relevant, getting rid of those that don’t fit,
and adding more ideas if need be. They should understand that the reader should be able to follow their
line of thoughts.

4. Editing

At this stage, learners focus on tidying up their drafts. They check diction (i.e., the choice of words),
grammar, and mechanics (e.g., spelling, punctuation, and capitalization.)
Editing can be done by the learners themselves (i.e. self-editing) or with the help of their peers (i.e. peer
editing).

5. Final draft

Teaching language Through Drama

Act out the Dialogue

1.One of the easiest ways to incorporate drama in the classroom is to have students act out the dialogue
from their textbooks. Simply pair them up, have them choose roles, then work together to act out the
dialogue.

Perform Reader’s Theater

2.Another good beginning exercise is to do Reader’s Theater. Hand out copies of a short or one-act play,
have students choose roles, and then read the play from their seats without acting it out. However, do
encourage them to read dramatically, modeling as necessary.

3.Act out the Story

If students are reading a short story such as “The Chaser,” about the man who buys a “love potion” for
his unrequited love, have students act out the story or part of the story, working in groups and assigning
roles . This is particularly effective with “short-shorts”: brief, one-scene stories with limited characters.

4.Write the Dialogue for a Scene :Watch a brief clip of a movie without the sound on. Have students
write the dialogue for it and act it out.

More Advanced Activities

Once students have had some experience with the basics of character, dialogue, and stage movement,
they can move on to some more advanced dramatics, involving more of students’ own creativity and
critical thinking skills.

Act out and Put Words to an Emotion

Give students an emotion, such as “anger” or “fear”. Have students, either singly or in groups, first act
out that emotion then put words to the emotion.
2 Give “Voice” to an Inanimate Object:

What would a stapler say if it could talk? Or an apple? Have students write monologues with inanimate
objects as the character. A monologue is a short scene with just one character talking, either addressing
the audience, God, or himself or herself. Hamlet’s “To Be or Not to Be” soliloquy might also be termed a
monologue, for example.

After writing them, students can read the monologues aloud.

3 :Create a Character

Have students develop a character, writing a one-page profile on the character’s background,
appearance, personality, etc. Have them introduce the character to the class, explaining what interests
them about their character.

4:Write a Monologue

Using the character they’ve already developed, have students write a monologue for that character then
perform it.

5:Mime and Dubbing

Have students act out short scenes without dialogue. The rest of the class then supplies the dialogue,
developing the “script.”

6:Improvise

Put students in groups of two or three, and assign the characters and the situation to the groups,
perhaps using 3x5 index cards. Give a time limit of two to three minutes per scene. Students go from
there, extemporaneously creating the dialogue and movement themselves.

Drama is an effective tool that can be used to promote interaction and language skills in the ESL
classroom as well as create a class bonding experience.

TEACHING LANGUAGE THROUGH PROSE

The word prose has been derived from the Latin word, 'Prosa' or 'Proversa Oration' that means' straight
forward discourse'. Prose is a powerful medium of expressing ideas, facts, laws and principles.
The main aim of teaching prose is to enlarge the vocabulary, explain the structure of sentences and
grasp the ideas of the author.

The teaching of prose includes two types of lessons:

1. Detailed or Intensive Prose Lessons

2. Non-detailed or Extensive Prose Lessons.

Detailed Prose Lessons

In detailed prose lessons, the text book is read thoroughly word by word. Students are required to read
it not only for comprehension but for mastering the prescribed structure and vocabulary.

Non-Detailed or Extensive Prose Lessons

Non-detailed prose lessons aim at giving information and pleasure. Students are required to grasp the
meaning of new words according to the situation or context in which they are used.

Aims of Teaching of Prose

The aim of teaching English prose is for language development and literary development both. But at
the Junior Level, the chief aim is language development. This means that emphasis should be given on
the development of four basic skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing. Thompson & Wyatt said,
'To aim at literature is to miss the way to language. Aim at language is to pave the way to literature.'

The aims of teaching prose may be divided into two

(1) General Aims

1. To enable the students to read aloud prose lessons with correct pronunciation stress, intonation and
pause.

2. To enable the students to comprehend the thought and idea contained in the passage.

3. To enrich their active and passive vocabulary.

4. To enable the students to express the ideas contained in the passage orally and in writing.

5. To develop their interest for reading.

6. To enable them to write correctly.

(2) Specific Aims

The specific aims vary according to the subject matter of the prose lessons. The specific aims of different
types of prose lessons are:

(a) Descriptive:
(i) To develop the student's imagination and love for natural objects. (ii) To acquaint the students with
the writer's style.

(b) Story (i) To give certain facts and lessons through the story. (ii) To shape the student's character. (iii)
To develop interest for story reading. (c) Essay (i)To acquaint them with the style of essay writing.

(ii)To enable them to arrange the ideas in a systematic way. (d) Play (i) To make them speak
conversational English. (ii) To encourage the students to play different roles., (iii) To build their
character. (e) Biography (i) To get students acquainted with the life and deeds of great men. (ii) To
inculcate in them desirable sentiments and ambitions. (iii) To show them the path of character building.

Procedure of Teaching Prose Lesson

Procedure of teaching prose lesson involves the following steps:

(a) Preparation

(b) Presentation

(c) Recapitulation

(d) Home Assignment

Preparation

English is a foreign language,so proper preparation is required to motivate the students to learn English.
Under this following points are to be considered:

(I) General Aims (already discussed)

(II) Specific Aims (already discussed)

(III) Material Aids

The teacher makes the appropriate use of audio-visual aids to make the lesson interesting.

(IV) Previous knowledge

The teacher should know how much knowledge students already possess regarding the lesson. So that
he can give new knowledge by linking it to their previous knowledge.

(V) Introduction

The introduction is the important part to make the students ready to learn and start the lesson. As it is
believed that, ‘well begun is half done.’ The introduction has two purposes:

i (i) To bring the previous knowledge to consciousness.

ii (ii) (ii) To link the previous knowledge to the new knowledge to be given.
Introduction can be done in different ways. The teacher may start by asking some introductory
questions in order to test the previous knowledge of the students and then link it to the topic to be
taught. He may attract the student's attention by showing pictures, charts, models etc. and arouse their
curiosity. In the event of a continuing lesson, the teacher can ask questions on the portion of the lesson
already taught.

After this the teacher clearly explains the topic which he is going to teach and instructs the students to
open their books at the appropriate page.

Presentation

Presentation is the main part of the lesson plan. The lesson may be divided into two or more units. The
following sub-steps are followed in each unit.

I. Reading Aloud by the Teacher

Reading aloud by the teacher is called model reading. The teacher reads aloud the selected passage with
proper pronunciation, stress, intonation and pause. The speed of reading should be normal and audible
to the entire class. He should keep an eye on the class while reading aloud to see whether the students
are following the reading in their text books.

II. Pronunciation Drill:

Pronunciation drill should precede reading aloud. The words should be selected on the basis of the
pronunciation skills of the class. The selected words should be written on the blackboard one by one and
practiced.

Those words are selected which are:

- difficult to pronounce by the students

- commonly mispronounced by the students.

- containing the silent letter.

Reading aloud by the students

The teacher asks some students to read the passage aloud one by one. Loud reading by the students is
also called imitation reading as they try to imitate the teacher's pronunciation, pause and intonation.

IV Exposition of new words/ Phrases

The teacher selects the new words and phrases from the passage and explains their meanings. The
teacher can adopt different methods for explaining the meanings:
(i) By showing the object, model, picture or chart.

(ii) By using the word in sentence.

(iii) By giving synonym/ antonym.

(iv) By drawing a sketch or figure on the blackboard.

(v) By showing action or gesture

(vi) By translating the word in mother tongue.

Silent Reading

After exposition of new words/phrases, the teacher asks the students to read the passage silently. This
helps rapid reading, learning of new words and quick grasp of meaning. The teacher should supervise
the class while students are reading. Adequate time should be given to complete the reading of the
passage.

VI Comprehension Questions

After the silent reading, some questions based on the passage should be asked to test students'
comprehension of the passage. The following type of questions may be asked:

(i) By asking meanings of new words.

(ii) By asking short questions on the main portion of the passage.

(iii) To pick out different forms of words or phrases.

Recapitulation or Application Test

The purpose of recapitulation is to evaluate the extent to which the objectives of the lesson have been
achieved. The recapitulation is generally done with different types of questions. The question should be
from all the passages taught in different units. These questions are different from comprehension
questions. The questions can be as follows:

(i) Fill in the blanks (ii) Match the column (iii) Complete the lines (iv) Choose the correct answer

Home Assignment

Assigning home work is the final stage of a lesson plan. Home assignment is the basis for retaining
learning. It can be given in different forms:

(i) Use the new words in their sentences. (ii) Make a list of words related with a particular group or topic
(iii) Remember the spellings of new words. (iv) Write the answer of the given questions. (v) Some project
work may also be given.
 . Learning language through poetry
Poetry can pave the way for the learning and teaching of basic
language skills. It is metaphor that is the most prominent
connection between learning and poetry. Because most poetry
consciously or unconsciously makes use of metaphor as one of its
primary methods.
Poetry offers a significant learning process. There are at least two
learning benefits that can be
derived from studying poetry:
60
• The appreciation of the writer’s composition
process, which students gain by
studying poems by components
• Developing sensitivity for words and discoveries that may
later grow into a deeper
interest and greater analytical ability
Saraç (2003:17-20) also explains the educational benefits of
poetry as follows:
• provides readers with a different viewpoint towards
language use by going beyond the
known usages and rules of grammar, syntax and vocabulary,
• triggers unmotivated readers owing to being so open to
explorations and different
interpretations,
• evokes feelings and thoughts in heart and in mind,
• makes students familiar with figures of speech (i.e.
simile, metaphor, irony,
personification, imagery, etc.) due to their being a part of daily
language use.
As Çubukçu (2001:1) mentions, poetry is a rewarding and
enjoyable experience with
the properties of rhyming and rhythm both of which convey “love
and appreciation for the
sound and power of language.” At this juncture, it can be stated
that students become familiar
with the suprasegmental aspects of the target language,
such as stress, pitch, juncture,
intonation by studying poetry.
Moreover, poetry employs language to evoke and exalt
special qualities of life, and
suffices readers with feelings. It is particularly lyric poetry which is
based on feelings and
provides still another emotional benefit. Poetry is one of the
most effective and powerful
transmitters of culture. Poems comprise so many cultural
elements - allusions, vocabulary,
idioms, tone that are not easy to translate into another language (
Sage 1987: 12-13).

Teaching Oral Skill

1. Teaching Oral Skill

2. Introduction The oral skills will stress on a speech production which is tightly controlled in order
to correct formation habit of linguistic rules. • Fluent speech contains to reduce forms, such as
contractions, vowel reduction, and elision. • It is almost always accomplished via interaction with at
least one other speaker. • The variety of demands are in place at once; monitoring and understanding
the other speakers, thinking about one’s own contribution, producing that contribution, monitoring its
effect.
3. Teaching Oral Skills • Teaching a heterogeneous class of learners in an English- speaking
environment. • The biggest challenges in the classroom are lacked of motivation, getting students to
speak, and the use of the first language. • Large classes are often the norm overseas, limiting both
student opportunities to talk and teacher opportunities to provide feedback.

4. The Oral Skills Class • Who are the students? • What do they expect to learn? • What am I
expected to teach?

5. Activities The major types of speaking activities that can be implemented; • Discussions •
Speeches • Role Plays • Conversations • Audio media Oral Dialogue Journals

6. Discussions Students are introduced to a topic via a reading, a listening passage, or a video
media, and are asked to get into pairs or groups to discuss a related topic in order to come up with a
solution, a response, or the like. Example: • Planning versus Random • Students need to be reminded
that each person should have a specific responsibility in the discussion whether it keeps time. • Students
need to be clear about what they are to discuss, why they are discussing it, and what outcome is
expected.

7. Speeches • Topics for speeches will vary depending on the level of the student and the focus of
the class. • The teacher can provide the structure for the speech.

8. Role Plays • Suitable for practicing the socio-cultural variations in speech acts.

9. Conversations • Emphasis on having students analyze and evaluate the language that they or
others produce. • The most fundamental form of oral communication such as • One way to approach
this activity is to assign the students to find a native speaker to be friend, roommate, or colleague and
interact with the persons. • The next step is for the students to transcribe a portion of their interaction.
• Students are shown an example of a transcript and its notation before starting. • Communication
breakdown repairs learners who are required to record an interview with native speakers on a topic of
their choice and then report the results to the class.

10. Audio media Oral Dialogue Journals • Emphasized fluency and meaning negotiation rather than
accuracy. • Practice with fluency and attention to accuracy can be accomplished at the same time.

11. Assessment • There are two kinds of oral assessments. • Evaluation of classroom performance •
Important suggestion

12. Conclusion • Oral skills are not only necessary for communication in, and with, the English-
speaking world. The most profound impact on language teaching will come from the never-ending
developments. Various forms of technology not too far in the future that speech recognition to allow
actual oral communication as language educators, we must remain open to these new developments in
order to provide the best possible instruction for our students.