PAAVAI COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING

COMMUNICATIVE ENGLISH-HS8151

UNIT-II

1.READING COMPREHENSION

2.PARAGRAPH WRITING

3.PREPOSITION

4.CONJUNCTIONS

5.GUESSING THE MEANING OF THE WORDS IN CONTEXT

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 1.READING

Reading is one of the most important academic tasks faced by students; it is equally
important in the commercial working world. You may have to listen to people or read a variety
of texts ranging from a short email to a voluminous book or lengthy report every day. Just as the
purpose of active listening is to make sense out of what you hear, the purpose of reading is to
make sense out of what you read. You can read to understand a topic or enrich your knowledge
about a topic; to derive pleasure; to understand what is happening around you. At times you may
have to read something entirely new. On the other hand, at times you may have to connect the
ideas on the text to what you already know. If you do not know anything about a subject, then
pouring words of text on that subject into your mind is like pouring water into your hand.

Understanding and Interpreting Ideas

In order to understand and interpret written material we need to read it with a critical eye.
The following guidelines may help you in developing a critical eye:

 Identify the type of passage (specific science, general science, or non science)
 Pay attention to the first one-third of the text that gives you an idea about the topic and
scope, author’s purpose and structure of the passage
 Look for author’s intention-to discuss, to argue, to compare and contrast, to explain, or to
persuade
 Find out the author’s tone—opinionated, argumentative, descriptive, factual, or even
handed
 Identify the main and supporting ideas
 Get to the gist of each paragraph
 Do not get obsessed with too many specific details
 Attack the text; do not just read it
 Think about what you are reading
 Paraphrase the complicated parts in order to understand them

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  Ask yourself questions to understand

 Jot down notes or underline important parts

 Do not let unfamiliar topics puzzle you. Once you read the text and infer meaning from
context, you may be able to understand and interpret
 Read for structure; ignore details

Let us look at the following passage and try to apply the guidelines given above to
understand and interpret the ideas:

The universe is fifteen billion years old, and the geological underpinnings of the earth
were formed long before the first sea creatures slithered out of slime. But it is only in the last
6000 years or so that men have descended into mines to chop and scratch at the earth’s crust.
Human history is, as Carl Sagan put it, the equivalent of a few seconds in the fifteen billion year
life of the planet. What alarms those that keep track of the earth’s crust is that since 1950 human
beings have managed to consume more minerals than were mined in all previous history, a
splurge of a millisecond in geologic time that cannot be long repeated without using up the finite
riches of the earth.

Now read carefully the following table in order to check your understanding and
interpretation of this short passage.

Question Answer
What type of passage is this? General science
What is the topic and scope? Earth’s crust and consumption of minerals
There is true cause for concern at the escalating
What is the main idea? consumption of the earth’s minerals in recent
years
What does the author do?
Informs and explains
(discuss/argue/explain/inform/persuade)
What are the supporting details for the main Human history is equal to few seconds in the
idea? fifteen billion year life of earth and human

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 beings have consumed more minerals than ever

before
What is the author’s tone? Factual
What do the words underpinnings, slithered,
Underpinnings=formation, slithered=moved,
slime, splurge mean in the context of their
slime=dirt; splurge=large amount
sentences?
Researchers are alarmed to observe that there
is an alarming increase in the consumption of
How can you paraphrase the last sentence?
minerals and earth will soon run out of
minerals
The author gives specific details in order to
finally arrive at the main idea there is true
What is the structure of the passage? cause for concern at the escalating
consumption of the earth’s minerals in recent
years

DEVELOPING A READING STRATEGY

You will, in formal learning situations, be required to read and critically think about a lot
of information from different sources. It is important therefore, that you not only learn to read
critically but also efficiently.

The first step to efficient reading is to become selective.

If you cannot read all of the books on a recommended reading list, you need to find a way
of selecting the best texts for you. To start with, you need to know what you are looking for.
You can then examine the contents page and/or index of a book or journal to ascertain whether a
chapter or article is worth pursuing further

Once the suitable piece is selected the next step is to speed-read.

Speed reading is also often referred to as skim-reading or scanning. Once you have
identified a relevant piece of text, like a chapter in a book, you should scan the first few

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 sentences of each paragraph to gain an overall impression of subject areas it covers.
Scan-reading essentially means that you know what you are looking for, you identify the
chapters or sections most relevant to you and ignore the rest.

When you speed-read you are not aiming to gain a full understanding of the arguments or
topics raised in the text. It is simply a way of determining what the text is about.

When you find a relevant or interesting section you will need to slow your reading speed
dramatically, allowing you to gain a more in-depth understanding of the arguments raised. Even
when you slow your reading down it may well be necessary to read passages several times to
gain a full understanding.

Strategy for reading:

SQ3R is a well-known strategy for reading.

SQ3R can be applied to a whole range of reading purposes as it is flexible and takes into
account the need to change reading speeds.

SQ3R is an acronym and stands for:

• Survey
• Question
• Read
• Recall
• Review

Survey

This relates to speed-reading, scanning and skimming the text. At this initial stage you
will be attempting to gain the general gist of the material in question

Question

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 It is important that, before you begin to read, you have a question or set of questions that
will guide you - why am I reading this? When you have a purpose to your reading you want to
learn and retain certain information. Having questions changes reading from a passive to an
active pursuit. Examples of possible questions include:

• What do I already know about this subject?

• How does this chapter relate to the assignment question?

Read
Now you will be ready for the main activity of reading. This involves careful
consideration of the meaning of what the author is trying to convey and involves being critical as
well as active.

Recall

Regardless of how interesting an article or chapter is, unless you make a concerted effort
to recall what you have just read, you will forget a lot of the important points. Recalling from
time to time allows you to focus upon the main points – which in turn aids concentration.
Recalling gives you the chance to think about and assimilate what you have just read, keeping
you active. A significant element in being active is to write down, in your own words, the key
points.

Review

The final step is to review the material that you have recalled in your notes. Did you
understand the main principles of the argument? Did you identify all the main points? Are there
any gaps? Do not take for granted that you have recalled everything you need correctly –
review the text again to make sure and clarify.

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3.2 DEVELOPING ANALYTICAL SKILLS

Developing critical and analytical skills seems to be difficult at the initial stage. But by
following defined steps a learner can start using those skills.

Critical and analytical thinking

Critical and analytical thinking is a key part of reading skills. Sometimes teachers
comment that students not found to be analytical enough in their assignments. Critical and
analytical skills mean to closely look at the details and not to attempt anything superficially.

Read the points. Evaluate whether the given materials are appropriate and up-to-date.Find out
the relevance of the points given by the writer.Judging the opinions, arguments or solutions of
the writer.Analysing the logic presented in the passage. Finding out whether the author is biased
or assuming things. Checking whether the evidence and arguments absolutely support the
conclusions.

1. Identifying the main line of reasoning in what you read or write.

2. Critically evaluating the main line of argument given by the writer.
3. Finding out the inference of the writer.
4. Evaluation of evidence in the text.
5. Identifying the writer’s conclusions.

3.3 DEDUCTIVE AND INDUCTIVE REASONING

Deductive Reasoning

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 In reading a passage deductive reasoning is applied in order to understand information.
Deductive reasoning can be called a higher order thinking skills. The student has to use rules or
laws and to draw a valid conclusion based on the information given. In deductive reasoning, the
reader tries to deduce something from the passage and this is called logical syllogisms.

Steps to Understand:

If the student uses certain strategies, logical deductions will become easier for him.
Deduction generally has three parts. They are i) the rule ii) a given fact and iii) a conclusion.
The first part of the deduction, called the rule, is the most critical component. The rule actually
predetermines the conclusion which the reader can draw from any fact.

Deduction rules have two critical parts. They are Universal Deduction and Particular
Deduction. Universal Deduction applies to all but Particular Deduction applies to only some. An
example of a universal statement about all members of a class or set would be: ‘All dogs can
run’. An example of a particular statement which applies to only some members is some dogs are
hunting dogs. The Deduction Rule can also either be positive or negative. Whether it is positive
or negative, predetermines the conclusion to be positive or negative.

Inductive Reasoning

To define Inductive reasoning, it is the logical process of drawing general conclusions

from the observations of particular things. In traffic signals, when we cross the road we observe
the signal and proceed. When we do like that on the other sides, hundreds of two wheelers and
four wheelers are waiting. They are doing so because red signals are on. How do we know that
red signals have stopped those vehicles? We have come across similar situations so many times
and have come to the conclusions like that.

When we engage in this kind of thought process, we are using inductive reasoning. We
are making observations and we are noticing patterns in our observations and drawing general
conclusions. Inductive reasoning is often applied in day to day life without even being aware of
it. Inductive reasoning cannot guarantee 100% of true conclusions. Hence it can be stated that

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conclusions arrived at by induction reasoning are only probable, and the degree of probability in
an inductive conclusion is dependent on the quality of the sample and the logic of the
interpretation.

3.4 EXTENSIVE READING

Extensive Reading is an aid to language learning by means of a large amount of reading.

While reading a large quantity of text, priority is given to confidence and reading fluency.
Students in general, don’t have the habit of reading extensive readers. This is due to many factors
such as i) lack of interest of students ii) lack of scope in the syllabus, etc., in schools and
colleges, Only short passages are given for reading practice. But for training the students in
reading, extensive reading can be taken up as an approach. Some believe that learning how to
read means focusing the attention on the meaning and not on the language of the text. In the
extensive reading approach, long texts are read by students for general understanding for the
purpose of enjoying the texts.

Extensive reading cannot be taken up as a detailed study. The reader has to read fast and
thus they are able to develop their fluency. Among many books suggested, the reader can be
allowed to have his own choice. The teacher of his individual interest can arrange for buying
many books and keep them in the class library leaving the readers to select. The teacher can
arrange for review presentations by selected students before other students.

3.5 CRITICAL READING

Reading comprehension is divided into literal comprehension, interpretative

understanding and critical reading. Critical reading requires readers to pass judgment on the
authenticity, logicality and effectiveness on the basis of understanding the literal meaning of a
text. Besides, critical reading urges readers to ask questions while concentrating on the text with
the purpose of a better understanding of the contents.

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Reading critically does not, necessarily, mean being critical of what you read.

Critical reading means engaging in what you read by asking yourself questions such as, ‘what is
the author trying to say?’ or ‘what is the main argument being presented?’ Critical reading
involves presenting a reasoned argument that evaluates and analyses what you have read. Being
critical, therefore - in an academic sense - means advancing your understanding, not dismissing
and therefore closing off learning.

To read critically is to exercise your judgement about what you are reading – that is, not taking
anything you read at face value. When reading academic material you will be faced with the
author’s interpretation and opinion. Different authors will, naturally, have different slants. You
should always examine what you are reading critically and look for limitations, omissions,
inconsistencies, oversights and arguments against what you are reading.

In academic circles, whilst you are a student, you will be expected to understand different
viewpoints and make your own judgements based on what you have read. Critical reading
involves presenting a reasoned argument that evaluates and analyses what you have read. Being
critical, therefore - in an academic sense - means advancing your understanding, not dismissing
and therefore closing off earning.

When reading academic material you will be faced with the author’s interpretation and opinion.
Different authors will, naturally, have different slants. You should always examine what you are
reading critically and look for limitations, omissions, inconsistencies, oversights and arguments
against what you are reading.

As a critical reader you should reflect on:

• What the text says: after critically reading a piece you should be able to take notes,
paraphrasing - in your own words - the key points.

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• What the text describes: you should be confident that you have understood the text
sufficiently to be able to use your own examples and compare and contrast with other writing on
the subject in hand.

• Interpretation of the text: this means that you should be able to fully analyse the text and
state a meaning for the text as a whole.

Critical reading means being able to reflect on what a text says, what it describes and what it
means by scrutinising the style and structure of the writing, the language used as well as the
content.

Critical reading involves the discovery, analysis, and interpretation of the text.

Non-critical readers satisfy themselves with only information but critical readers go further
and try to identify the style of writing and the meaning of the text.

 Critical readers try to understand the purpose, tone, and style of the author and also
his/her treatment of the topic.
 Creative thinking and critical thinking are an integral part of critical reading; without one
the other cannot function.
 While reading a text, your creative ability enables you to come out with innovative ideas
and your critical faculty leads you towards judging and evaluating the arguments.

A Checklist for Critical Reading is as Follows:

 Whom will I report to?

 What is the author’s main purpose?
 What is the scope of the text?
 Does the author discuss an idea/argue for or against/explain/evaluate and provide
suggestions?

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  What is the author’s tone? Is it opinionated/argumentative/descriptive/factual/even
handed?
 Has the author given substantial evidence to prove his/her ideas?
 Has the author provided necessary statistics/visual aids in support of his /her discussion?
 Has the author drawn reasonable inferences?
 Do you agree with the author and if not, why?
 Are you biased because of your prior knowledge of the topic?

What does it mean to read critically?

Critical reading is a decision-making process. It requires that you ask many questions
while you read. When you read critically, you notice not only what is written but how it is

written. All authors have a purpose when they write. Your job as a critical reader is to
figure out the author’s purpose. Critical reading sometimes involves reading twice: once to
become familiar with the material and a second time to analyze it. During your second reading,
ask questions like the ones below and make notes in the margins of the reading or on paper. The
more you read critically, the more you’ll automatically ask questions like these while you read.

Why is critical reading essential in college? One of the hallmarks of college learning is
asking questions. Unlike high school, where the focus is on learning facts, college students often
ask questions and explore new ideas. Critical readers ask many questions as they read. How can I
read more critically? Ask yourself: Why was this material written? What is its purpose? Is the
intent to inform? To persuade? To compare? To illustrate? To entertain? To spur you to action?
Who is the author? What qualifies this person to write about this subject? Why did the author
write this? How can I find out more about this author? In the front of the book? At the end of the
journal article? On the Internet? From my professor? In the library? Might the author be biased?
Does the author belong to any group that might influence his/her point of view? Does the author
have anything to gain if I take what s/he has written as fact? Does the author present both sides

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of the issue? Does the author omit information that would not support his/her viewpoint? A fact
can be verified; an opinion is based on personal evaluation. Critical readers must be able to
distinguish between fact and opinion. Where is the information published? Who published it?
What is the reputation of the newspaper, the magazine, the journal, or the publisher? Is material
typically well researched? What kind of language does the author use? Authors carefully select
their words and readers need to notice these words. Do any words connote emotions? (For
example, an author who wanted to stress patriotism might deliberately use words like “freedom,”
liberty,” and “democracy.”) Do any words try to persuade you? Do the words try to paint a
certain picture? How does the writing make you feel? Does the author omit anything?
Admittedly, this seems like a difficult question to answer; nonetheless, it’s important to ask. You
may need to read other material on the subject in order to discover the answer. But the answer to
this question is the essence of critical reading. If the material is trying to persuade you of
something, it is important to find out what might be omitted or suppressed. Is the material well-
reasoned and logical? Does the author provide facts to support general statements? If the author

expresses opinion, is it supported by facts? Is the sequence of ideas logical? Is the

material well organized? Do the author’s conclusions logically follow from the information
given? Are there any irrelevant details or facts? Are there any inconsistencies? What do you
bring to the reading? Do you have any background knowledge that can help you read this subject
more critically? Do you have any opinions that might make it difficult for you to read this
material critically? Do you agree or disagree with what the author says?

Critical reading means that a reader applies certain processes, models, questions, and
theories that result in enhanced clarity and comprehension. There is more involved, both in effort
and understanding, in a critical reading than in a mere "skimming" of the text. What is the
difference? If a reader "skims" the text, superficial characteristics and information are as far as
the reader goes. A critical reading gets at "deep structure" (if there is such a thing apart from the
superficial text!), that is, logical consistency, tone, organization, and a number of other very
important sounding terms.

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3.6 READING ARTICLES IN NEWSPAPERS

A newspaper is a daily encyclopedia. Newspaper reading is of course a mark of our

civilization. Thousands of newspapers are published every day throughout the world. They are
published in different languages also.

What does a newspaper generally contain? They are

i. Headlines
ii. Datelines
iii. News articles
iv. Feature articles
v. Editorial
vi. International News
vii. Business
viii. Technology
ix. Science
x. Health
xi. Sports
xii. Education
xiii. Obituaries
xiv. Weather
xv. Cover page story
xvi. Table of contents

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 All these sections play an important part and they all act together and make a newspaper. A newspaper
is any published paper that reports news of interest to the readers.
Tips for reading newspapers

1. Read a good, reliable newspaper.

2. Make sure it does not contain gossip and false stories
3. Cover all the interesting articles
4. Uses of a newspaper

Newspapers can be used

1. For improving the reading skills.

2. For enhancing the knowledge of current affairs
3. For improving pronunciation by loud reading.
4. For learning the sentence structures
5. For improving the writing skills
6. For improving the word power

READING GENERAL ARTICLES

When we read general articles in newspapers (e.g. The Hindu, The Hindustan Times, The Times of
India) or magazines (India Today, Outlook, The Week, Good Housekeeping), our aim is not to absorb the
whole text but to get an idea about the topic and its application areas. The writers of general articles also
know this aim, and hence they write in an easy-to-understand/ conversational style. The following are a
few tips for reading general articles.

1. Pay attention to the title, visuals, and the introductory paragraph to know the topic and scope.
2. Try to connect the ideas to understand the content. In order to create a dramatic impact, some
authors may not present the ideas in a logical sequence.
3. Think how you can use the ideas from the articles you read in your everyday life.
4. Enjoy the language, subtle humour and the examples used by the author.

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 3.7 JOURNALS

The structure of a particular journal is generally determined by its editors, though all journal
articles have a more or less similar structure beginning with an abstract and introduction and followed
by method, result, discussion, conclusion, and references. So while reading a journal article we need to
pay attention to each of these parts that will give us adequate information to understand the topic. In
fact, extracting information from a well-structured journal article is easier for us rather than eliciting
from less rigid types of texts.

The following are a few tips for reading journal articles:

1. Read the abstract first in order to get an overview about the whole article.
2. Read introduction to know the objectives of the article, the previous work done in this area and also
the rationale behind the work.
3. Understand the series of steps taken to accomplish the research/work from the results section.
4. Know the findings of the author from the results section.
5. Read the discussion section to interpret the results/to know what they mean.
6. Read the conclusion to understand the key issues related to the research topic or to know the areas
in which the research can be used.

2. PARAGRAPH WRITING
1. Working Principle of Air Conditioner
Air Conditioner is a device used to make a room, a hall or a building cool. It has five mechanical
components: 1. Compressor, 2. Condenser, 3. Evaporator coil, 4. Blower and 5. Chemical
refrigerant. The compressor is the heart of the system and it is controlled by the thermostat. It will
compress the gas to raise the pressure and the temperature of the refrigerant. The condenser of the coil
will collect this high pressure and high temperature of gas from the compressor. As the refrigerant
passes through the condenser coil as well as the cool air passes across the coil, the air absorbs heat
from the refrigerant. Because of this absorption, condensation takes place from a gas to liquid state.
Now, this liquid will reach the expansion valve to absorb the heat from the air and this cooled air is
delivered through tubes. Then, the refrigerant will go back to the compressor to start the cycle.

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 2. Reducing Environmental Pollution
Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into the natural environment which causes adverse
change. Environmental pollution includes air, water, land and noise pollutions. The factors that bring
out the changes in the environment are called ‘pollutants’. The two main factors for the environmental
pollution are ‘industrial revolution’ and ‘urbanization’. Both these factors have depleted the resources
and contributed much to the horrible conditions. To reduce water pollution, excessive usage of
detergents has to be limited to a minimum. In order to reduce air pollution, one can prefer bicycle or
electric cars instead of petrol or diesel engines. To reduce noise pollution, usage of loudspeakers during
festival occasions or election propaganda has to be avoided. To avoid land pollution, excessive use of
plastic bags and fertilizers can be avoided. On the whole, planting of trees and saplings will protect our
environment free from pollution by absorbing the carbon-di-oxide and emitting carbon- monoxide. ‘Go
Green’ project will definitely help to reduce environmental pollution.

1. PREPOSITIONS
A preposition is a word which occurs before a Noun or a Pronoun to express the relation
between it (Noun or Pronoun) and some part of the remaining sentences,

The book is on the table.

In this
example, the preposition On shows the relationship between the book and the table.

Prepositions of time

Preposition When to use Examples

in months in July; in September

year in 1985; in 1999

In seasons in summer; in the summer of 1969

in the morning; in the afternoon; in the

part of the day
evening
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 Duration in a minute; in two weeks

part of the day at night

time of day at 6 0' clock; at midnight

At
celebrations at the party; at the function

fixed phrases at the same time

after later than after school

Ago when happened in the past 6 years ago

before earlier than before Christmas

between time that separates two points between Monday and Friday

By not later than a particular time by Thursday

during through the whole of a period of time during the holidays

For period of time for three weeks

two points from a

from .... to period from Monday to Wednesday

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 past time of the day 23 minutes past 6 (6 : 23)

since point of time since Monday

no later than a
until particular time until tomorrow

To time of the day 23 minutes to 6 (5:37)

not more than a

up to particular Time up to 6 hours a day

during a period of
within time within a day

near close to Our house is near the supermarket.

next to Beside Our house is next to the supermarket.

Off away from The cat jumped off the roof.

Onto moving to a place The cat jumped onto the roof.

opposite on the other side Our house is opposite the supermarket

outside opposite of inside Can you wait outside?

Over Above The cat jumped over the wall.

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 Past going beyond Go past the post office.

around in a circle We're sitting around the campfire.

through going from one point to the other point You shouldn't walk through the forest.

I like going to Australia.

To Towards
I've never been to Africa.

4. CONJUNCTIONS

Conjunctions are used to connect words, phrases, and clauses. They coordinate the words together so
they make sense as a cohesive thought, sentence, or paragraph.
 You'll need to study all night if you want to pass tomorrow's test.
 Go to the store and buy some milk.
 Kristopher doesn't have enough experience. Therefore, we will not hire him.

5. Guessing meaning from context

Confronted with texts, language learners may be stuck by a shortage of vocabulary inventory and thus be
unable to understand what texts are about. The first thing that a learner does to understand a difficult word
is to look it up using the nearest dictionary. There are however techniques learners may use to get the
meaning of such vocabulary items. One of these techniques is guessing meaning from context.
No matter what level our students are in, they will often come across difficult words in texts they are
exposed to. Inferring and guessing meanings of unfamiliar words is a strategy which is worth developing.

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Guessing from context refers to the ability to infer the meaning of an expression using contextual clues.
These clues may be purely linguistic or situational:

 Linguistic context: the linguistic environment in which a word is used within a text
 Situational context: extra-linguistic elements that contribute to the construction of meaning this
may involve background knowledge of the subject.
What this amounts to is that learners should be able to infer the meaning of an unknown word using:

1. the meaning of vocabulary items that surround it;

2. the way the word is formed;
3. background knowledge of the subject and the situation.
Techniques for guessing

Texts are often full of redundancy and consequently, students can use the relation between different items
within a text to get the meaning. Our prior knowledge of the world may also contribute to understanding
what an expression means.

 Synonyms and definitions:

 Kingfishers are a group of small to medium-sized brightly colored birds
 When he made insolent remarks towards his teacher they sent him to the principal for being
disrespectful
 Antonym and contrast
 He loved her so much for being so kind to him. By contrast, he abhorred her mother
 Cause and effect
 He was disrespectful towards other members. That’s why he was sent off and penalized.
 Parts of speech
 Whether the word is a noun, a verb, an adjective or an adverb, functioning as a subject, a
predicate or an object.
 Examples
 Trojan is an example of a computer virus
 Word forms (the morphological properties of the word)

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  Getting information from affixes (prefixes and suffixes) to understand a word.
Examples: dis- (meaning not), –less (meaning without)…
 General knowledge
 The French constitution establishes laïcité as a system of government where there is a
strict separation of church and state.
These techniques help students get the meaning of words or at least narrow the possibilities. If need be
using the dictionary should be the last resort to fine tune  the understanding of a vocabulary item

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