HOW TO DEAL WITH READING COMPREHENSIONS

How to improve the comprehension Skills in CompetitionsReading comprehension is a very important part in most of the competitive exams. It is clear that in such exams knowledge of English language is tested through Reading comprehensions, vocabulary test, error findings and expressionistic questions like essay writing or precise writing. Among all these tests we can easily prepare for vocabulary and grammar (error findings) as we can easily get the prepared material for their preparation but rest of the things need special attention because we hardly get any guideline to prepare them. Here we discuss about how we can improve the reading comprehension.Before we move further let me ask you a very basic question that why in these exams we are given such passages to comprehend? What is the need of this?The answer is very clear that in all the work places we need to do some paper work and documentation of things, and those things are circulated in the whole office, we come across voluminous data which we are supposed to understand and work accordingly. Except this, sometimes the companies also circulate its literature to introduce new things or policies to its employees which are in complicated and very formal language and difficult to understand at once, while reading such things we need to make out the meaning or the motto behind such documents. These tests of reading comprehension let the employers know that how much a candidate can figure out of a written material.The topics which are generally discussed in the reading comprehension are:EconomyHistoryPoliticsSportsBiographiesNarrativeScience & technologyBusinessSocial issuesOthersSuch topics are very easy to be discussed but In the passages the language which is used is not a very easy one. And in the questions mainly w are asked of title of the passage, similar words from the passage and questions related to the passage.Main hurdles The main hurdles in this process are:Lack of reading habit: We generally don’t read too much or if we happen to read then also we simply read the written material with a bird’s eye view which does not make any sense.Choice of the reader: Most of the readers like to read fiction but in reading comprehension tests we are vary rarely confronted to fiction. Mainly, there are articles or write ups which are not very interesting to most of the readers.Boring passages: those, who don’t have good reading habit, try to read fictions and if they are given non-fictions they soon find them quite boring. So it is very important to continue or develop such inclination towards boring passages also.Wrong way of reading: is there any right way or wrong way of reading? Yes, of course. If you take too much time in solving the reading comprehension part then surely it’s going to give you a shortage of time for other questions. So if you read slowly then it’s a wrong way of reading.Poor vocabulary: Since we have left learning meanings and reading we are short of new words in our language. While reading a passage what hampers our speed is a term or word which we are not acquainted of. We waste most of our time in guessing what could be the meaning of this particular word in a particular passage.Solutions Develop reading habits.Make your vocabulary rich. Read and learn new words. The best way to learn new words is to use them in your conversation.Reading comprehension becomes wearisome sometimes but try to complete it at a stretch. Always remember that whatever you read gives you some knowledge and you gain something new so there is no harm in reading. Even if you feel it tedious keep going through them. After all it also depends some what on your will power.While reading keep making some mental pictures of the read things.Always record the timing of your reading and set the targets.Control the stimuli if they affect you adversely like cell phone, snacks, door bells etc.Contract the whole paragraph in a phrase so that when you move ahead to the next paragraph the previous one will also remain in your mind.The most important things are practice and determination. Without these two things we can do nothing.How to read Read actively. It helps you remember the things and makes the mental pictures.Don’t run pen under the lines while reading. It decreases the speed.Read in the phrases, i.e. , while reading move your eyes on the whole phrase or as much as you can see at once(this is called increasing eye span). Don’t just focus on a word only.Don’t utter the words in mind and also don’t read aloud while dealing with a passage in exam.it may slow down the speed.Use the different symbols for classifications. Classification here means that you can classify the things according to your questions and also can give them some symbols.E.g.: some categories for classifications could be: difficult words, main idea, change of thought, arguments, details, fact, data etc.And the symbols could be: * (main idea), #(change of thought), @ (arguments), =(facts)You can change the symbols or strategies as you wish.I hope this compact guiding material is helpful to you in preparing for the reading comprehensions.Thank you.With best wishes,BHANUPRIYA