Active strategies to develop reading skill

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(1)UNIVERSITY OF GUAYAQUIL FACULTY OF PHILOSOPHY, LETTERS AND SCIENCES OF EDUCATION EDUCATIONAL PROJECT PREVIOUS TO THE LICENCIADO(S) DEGREE IN EDUCATION SCIENCE Major in English Language and Linguistics TOPIC: Active strategies to develop reading skill. PROPOSAL: Design of interactive software with activities focused on active strategies.. AUTHORS: Alvarado Lucas Kelvin Iván González Cedeño Samanta Jessenia TUTOR: MSC. Galo Donoso. GUAYAQUIL-ECUADOR 2017.

(2) ii. UNIVERSITY OF GUAYAQUIL FACULTY OF PHILOSOPHY, LETTERS AND SCIENCES OF EDUCATION AUTHORITIES. MSc. Silvia Moy-Sang Castro DEAN. MSc. Alfonso Sanchez CARRER DIRECTOR. MSc. José Zambrano García SUB-DEAN. Ab. Sebastián Cadena Alvarado GENERAL SECRETARY.

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(4) iv. Guayaquil, 13 de Marzo de 2018.. MSc. SILVIA MOY-SANG CASTRO, Arq. DECANO DE LA FACULTAD DE FILOSOFÍA, LETRAS Y CIENCIAS DE LA EDUCACIÓN. Ciudad.-. Para los fines legales pertinentes comunico a usted que los derechos intelectuales del proyecto educativo con el tema: Estrategias Activas para desarrollar la competencia lectora Propuesta: Diseño de un software interactivo con actividades centradas en estrategias activas. English Topic: Active strategies to develop reading skill. Proposal: Design of interactive software with activities focused on active strategies. Pertenecen a la Facultad de Filosofía, Letras y Ciencias de la Educación. Atentamente,. ______________________________ Alvarado Lucas Kelvin Iván C.I. 0927282459. ____________________________ González Cedeño Samanta Jessenia C.I. 0923836092.

(5) v. UNIVERSIDAD DE GUAYAQUIL FACULTAD DE FILOSOFÍA, LETRAS Y CIENCIAS DE LA EDUCACIÓN SISTEMA DE EDUCACIÓN SUPERIOR PRESENCIAL. PROYECTO. TEMA: Active strategies to develop reading skill. PROPUESTA: Diseño de un software interactivo con actividades centradas en estrategias activas.. APROBADO. ……………………………… Tribunal No 1 ……………………… Tribunal No 2. ……………………… Tribunal No 3. ______________________________ ____________________________ Alvarado Lucas Kelvin Iván González Cedeño Samanta Jessenia C.I. 0927282459 C.I. 0923836092.

(6) vi. EL TRIBUNAL EXAMINADOR OTORGA AL PRESENTE TRABAJO. LA CALIFICACIÓN DE: ______________. EQUIVALENTE A: ______________. TRIBUNAL. ____________________. ___________________. ______________.

(7) vii. DEDICATION. I dedicate this work and every day of my life to my family who trusts and believes in me, making me see that I can go beyond the limitations imposed by the life. To my wife, my friend and life partner "Tatiana “and especially to the almighty who guide every step in my life, my Heavenly Father.. Kelvin Alvarado Lucas.

(8) viii. DEDICATION. This research is dedicated to the most important people in my life: To my parents because thanks to them with their effort and dedication I have gone ahead. For this reason, I hope to surpass myself putting my dedication in body and soul as they have done with me. Especially, I would like to dedicate the development of this project to our lord "Jesus Christ" who has been the fundamental pillar to overcome every difficult circumstance in my life i. Samanta González Cedeño.

(9) ix. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT. First of all, Almighty God I thank you for the gift of life. To my parents, my wife, my teachers and friends who always encouraged me to fulfill my dream and to accomplish another step in my personal and educative development. I thank especially to my family for the patience, dedication and help in the achievement of this goal, so important for all of us. Special thanks to the teacher Galo Donoso, for the constant encouragement, patience and guidance.. Kelvin Alvarado Lucas.

(10) x. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT. I would like to thank to people who have been unforgettable during whole my life. In a very special way, I thank to my parents and my family for the great encouragement and persistence, who helped me discover new possibilities, with their wisdom and understanding during this stage of my life. To my friends, for the encouragement and affection in the difficult moments. To the teenagers who took part in this research and to the educative community of “Mercedes Moreno Irigoyen” public high school where we carried out this work, to whom I respect greatly. With great affection I would like to express my admiration for the teacher Galo Donoso, Thank you so much for believing in our work.. Samanta González Cedeño.

(11) xi. GENERAL INDEX PRELIMINARY PAGES FRONT PAGE ...........................................................................................................I REGISTRATION SIGNATURE AUTHORITIES ......................................................II TUTOR’S REPORT.................................................................................................III COPYRIGHT DECLARATION ............................................................................... IV APPROVAL DECLARATION .................................................................................. V QUALIFICATION DECLARATION........................................................................... ii DEDICATION .........................................................................................................Vii ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ........................................................................................ IX GENERAL INDEX .................................................................................................. XI INDEX OF CHARTS ............................................................................................ XVI INDEX OF GRAPHICS ....................................................................................... XVII INDEX OF ANNEXES ......................................................................................... XVII REPOSITORIO NACIONAL DE CIENCIA Y TECNOLOGÍA ............................ XVIII NATIONAL REPOSITORY SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY .............................. XIX ABSTRACT ........................................................................................................... XX RESUMEN………………………………………………………………………...…..XXI INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................1 INTRODUCCIÓN .....................................................................................................2 CHAPTER I ..............................................................................................................3 THE PROBLEM .......................................................................................................3 Context of the investigation......................................................................................3 CURRENT SITUATION ...........................................................................................3 SCIENTIFIC FACT ...................................................................................................4 CAUSES ...................................................................................................................4 PROBLEM OF THE INVESTIGATION ....................................................................5 OBJECTIVES ...........................................................................................................5 General .....................................................................................................................5 Specific .....................................................................................................................5 QUESTIONS OF THE INVESTIGATION ................................................................5 JUSTIFICATION ......................................................................................................6.

(12) xii. CHAPTER II .............................................................................................................8 THE THEORETICAL FRAME ..................................................................................8 Background ..............................................................................................................8 Theorical Foundation ...............................................................................................8 Reading skill Definition .............................................................................................8 Types of Reading .....................................................................................................9 According to the speed employed ...........................................................................9 Mental reading .........................................................................................................9 Oral reading............................................................................................................10 According to the methodology of Reading ............................................................10 Intensive reading or reading for detail ..................................................................10 Sub-types of intensive Reading .............................................................................11 Selective Reading ..................................................................................................11 Skimming ...............................................................................................................11 Scanning ...............................................................................................................11 Critical Reading ......................................................................................................12 Study reading .........................................................................................................12 SRQ4 method ........................................................................................................13 Analytic Reading ....................................................................................................13 Extensive Reading .................................................................................................13 The Importance of Reading Skill Acquisition .........................................................14 Reading Difficulties ................................................................................................16 Reading difficulties identified in the classroom......................................................17 Speech sound disorders ........................................................................................17 Stage of Reading Skill Acquisition ........................................................................18 Decoding ................................................................................................................19 The interpretation ...................................................................................................20 Retention ................................................................................................................20 Active Reading Strategies......................................................................................21 Definition of Active Reading Strategies .................................................................21 The importance of teaching reading strategies .....................................................22 To improve reading habits .....................................................................................22 To reduce study time ............................................................................................ 22.

(13) xiii. To power your memory to the max ........................................................................22 To increase concentration level while reading ......................................................23 Types of Active Reading Strategies ..................................................................... 23 Prio-Knowledge Strategies ....................................................................................23 Brainstorming .........................................................................................................23 Group Discussions ................................................................................................ 23 Visual Supports ......................................................................................................24 Pre-questions .........................................................................................................24 Vocabulary Preview ...............................................................................................25 Prediction ...............................................................................................................25 Note Taking Strategies: Highlighting and Underlining...........................................25 Highlighting .............................................................................................................25 Underlining .............................................................................................................26 Concept and mind mapping ...................................................................................26 Concept mapping ...................................................................................................26 The super notes .....................................................................................................29 Visual Strategies ....................................................................................................29 Educational resources to teach reading skill .........................................................30 Reading documents ...............................................................................................30 Teaching and Learning reading skill with ICT .......................................................30 Definition ................................................................................................................30 The importance of ICT-based learning in reading skill ..........................................31 Types of ICTs resources ........................................................................................31 Blogs.......................................................................................................................32 Book Social networks .............................................................................................31 Virtual Teaching Platforms .....................................................................................32 Multimedia resources .............................................................................................32 Tablet......................................................................................................................33 Digital books ...........................................................................................................33 Process in active reading strategies ......................................................................33 The difference between strategy and technique ...................................................34 THEORICAL FOUNDATIONS ...............................................................................35 Pedagogical Foundation ........................................................................................35.

(14) xiv. Meaningful learning theory.....................................................................................36 Types of Meaningful Learning According to Ausubel ............................................37 Learning by Representations .................................................................................37 Learning by Concepts ............................................................................................38 Learning by propositions ........................................................................................38 How to choose effective teaching resources .........................................................38 Psychological Foundation ......................................................................................39 Ausubel’s theory from Psychological point of view ...............................................40 Epistemological Foundation ...................................................................................40 Reading and previous knowledge..........................................................................41 Technological Foundation ......................................................................................42 Sociological Foundation .........................................................................................42 Legal foundation .....................................................................................................44 Glossary .................................................................................................................47 CHAPTER III ..........................................................................................................49 METHODOLOGY ...................................................................................................49 Methodological investigation ..................................................................................50 Population and sampling ........................................................................................51 Population ..............................................................................................................51 Sampling ................................................................................................................51 Operationalization of the variables ........................................................................53 Independent Variable .............................................................................................53 Dependent Variables .............................................................................................53 Methods of investigation ........................................................................................55 Techniques and instruments of investigation ........................................................55 Interview .................................................................................................................55 Surveys ..................................................................................................................56 ANALYSIS OF RESULTS: Correlation between variables ...................................74 Objective 1 .............................................................................................................74 Objective 2 .............................................................................................................74 Objective 3 .............................................................................................................75.

(15) xv. Objective 4 .............................................................................................................75 Conclusions and recommendations ......................................................................76 Conclusions ............................................................................................................76 Recommendations .................................................................................................77 CHAPTER IV ..........................................................................................................78 THE PROPOSAL ...................................................................................................78 Title of proposal......................................................................................................78 Justification ............................................................................................................ 78 Objectives ..............................................................................................................79 General ...................................................................................................................79 Specifics ................................................................................................................79 Theorical Aspects ..................................................................................................79 Linguistic Aspect ....................................................................................................79 Sociological Aspect ................................................................................................80 Pedagogical Aspect ...............................................................................................80 Psychological Aspect .............................................................................................81 Psychological Aspect .............................................................................................82 FEASIBILITY ..........................................................................................................82 Administrative Aspect ............................................................................................82 Financial Aspect .....................................................................................................82 Technological Aspect .............................................................................................82 Legal Aspect...........................................................................................................83 DESCRIPTION OF PROPOSAL ...........................................................................83 Conclusions ............................................................................................................85 BIBLIOGRAPHY ....................................................................................................86 WEBSITE ...............................................................................................................92 APPLICATION OF THE INSTRUMENTS OF THE INVESTIGATION ............... 105 ENCUESTAS DIRIGIDAS A LOS ESTUDIANTES ............................................ 106 INTERVIEW TO THE ENGLISH TEACHER ...................................................... 107 INTERVIEW TO THE ENGLISH TEACHER ...................................................... 109 ENTREVISTA AL PROFESOR DE INGLÉS ...................................................... 111 INTERVIEW TO SCHOOL DIRECTOR.............................................................. 114 ENTREVISTA AL DIRECTOR DE LA ESCUELA .............................................. 117.

(16) xvi. RUBRIC FOR ASSESSING ACTIVITIES ........................................................... 120. INDEX OF CHARTS CHART # 1 .............................................................................................................51 CHART # 2 .............................................................................................................52 CHART # 3 .............................................................................................................53 CHART # 4 .............................................................................................................57 CHART # 5 .............................................................................................................58 CHART # 6 .............................................................................................................59 CHART # 7 .............................................................................................................60 CHART # 8 .............................................................................................................61 CHART # 9 .............................................................................................................62 CHART # 10 ...........................................................................................................63 CHART # 11 ...........................................................................................................64 CHART # 12 ...........................................................................................................65 CHART # 13 ...........................................................................................................66 CHART # 14 ...........................................................................................................67 CHART # 15 ...........................................................................................................68 CHART # 16 ...........................................................................................................69 CHART # 17 ...........................................................................................................70 CHART # 18 ...........................................................................................................71 CHART # 19 ...........................................................................................................72 CHART # 20 ...........................................................................................................73 CHART # 21 ...........................................................................................................74 CHART # 22 ...........................................................................................................84. INDEX OF GRAPHICS GRAPHICS # 1 ......................................................................................................27.

(17) xvii. GRAPHICS # 2 ......................................................................................................28 GRAPHICS # 3 ......................................................................................................58 GRAPHICS # 4 ......................................................................................................59 GRAPHICS # 5 ......................................................................................................60 GRAPHICS # 6 ......................................................................................................61 GRAPHICS # 7 ......................................................................................................62 GRAPHICS # 8 ......................................................................................................63 GRAPHICS # 9 ......................................................................................................64 GRAPHICS # 10 ....................................................................................................65 GRAPHICS # 11 ....................................................................................................66 GRAPHICS # 12 ....................................................................................................67 GRAPHICS # 13 ....................................................................................................68 GRAPHICS # 14 ....................................................................................................69 GRAPHICS # 15 ....................................................................................................70 GRAPHICS # 16 ....................................................................................................71 GRAPHICS # 17 ....................................................................................................72. INDEX OF ANNEXES ............................................................................................93 ANNEXES # 1 ........................................................................................................94 ANNEXES # 2 ........................................................................................................98 ANNEXES # 3 ..................................................................................................... 100 ANNEXES # 4 ..................................................................................................... 104 ANNEXES # 5 ..................................................................................................... 121.

(18) xviii. REPOSITARIO NACIONAL EN CIENCIA Y TECNOLOGÍA FICHA DE REGISTRO DE TESIS TITULO Y SUBTITULO: Estrategias Activas para desarrollar la competencia lectora. PROPUESTA: Diseño de un software interactivo con actividades centradas en estrategias activas. AUTOR/ES: Alvarado Lucas Kelvin Iván González Cedeño Samanta Jessenia. TUTOR: MSc. Galo Donoso REVISORES:. INSTITUCIÓN: Universidad de Guayaquil. FACULTAD: Facultad de Filosofía, Letras y Ciencias de la Educación. CARRERA: Escuela de Lenguas y Lingüística. inglés - francés TÍTULO OBTENIDO: Licenciatura en Ciencias de la Educación Mención Lengua Inglesa y Lingüística FECHA DE PUBLICACIÓN: N. DE PAGS: ÁREAS TEMÁTICAS: Educación – Lenguaje extranjero –inglés básico. PALABRAS CLAVE: INGLÉS, VOCABULARIO, RECURSOS AUDIO VISUALES,. MOTIVACIÓN, ACTIVIDADES INTERACTIVAS. RESUMEN: Este proyecto de investigación tiene como objetivo ayudar a los estudiantes del octavo curso en la escuela secundaria pública "Mercedes Moreno Irigoyen" a facilitar la lectura. Al considerar la implementación de algunas herramientas de investigación obteniendo como resultado la falta de interés y un bajo rendimiento académico en la materia. El proceso de enseñanza y aprendizaje puede convertirse en un método tedioso y difícil mediante el uso de técnicas repetitivas. Por lo tanto, se propone la implementación de un software con recursos que aumente la atención de los estudiantes en los temas impartidos al agregar motivación a través de actividades interactivas. N. DE REGISTRO (en base de datos):. N. DE CLASIFICACIÓN:. DIRECCIÓN URL (tesis en la web): ADJUNTO URL (tesis en la web): ADJUNTO PDF:. SI. CONTACTO CON AUTORES/ES: Alvarado Lucas Kelvin Iván González Cedeño Samanta Jessenia CONTACTO EN LA INSTITUCION: Escuela de lenguas y Lingüísticas Facultad de Filosofía, Letras y Ciencias de la Educación. Teléfono: E-mail: 0997632249 [email protected] 0961068963 [email protected] Nombre: Msc. Alfonso Sanchez – Director de Lenguas Teléfono: (04) 2294888 EXT. 123 E-mail: [email protected]. x. NO.

(19) xix. REPOSITARIO NACIONAL EN CIENCIA Y TECNOLOGÍA FICHA DE REGISTRO DE TESIS TITULO Y SUBTITULO: Active strategies to develop reading skill. PROPUESTA: Design of interactive software with activities focused on active strategies AUTOR/ES: Alvarado Lucas Kelvin Iván González Cedeño Samanta Jessenia. TUTOR: MSc. REVISORES:. INSTITUCIÓN: University of Guayaquil. FACULTAD: Faculty of Philosophy, Letters and Sciences of the Education. CARRERA: Language and Linguistic School. English - French TÍTULO OBTENIDO: Licenciatura en Ciencias de la Educación Mención Lengua Inglesa y Lingüística FECHA DE PUBLICACIÓN: N. DE PAGS: ÁREAS TEMÁTICAS: Education – Foreign language – Basic English. PALABRAS CLAVE: BASIC ENGLISH, VOCABULARY, AUDIO VISUAL RESOURCES,. MOTIVATION, INTERACTIVE ACTIVITIES. RESUMEN: This research project aims to help the students of of the eighth grade at “Mercedes Moreno Irigoyen” public high school to facilitate the reading skill . By considering the implementation of some research tools obtaining as a result the lack of interest and a low scholastic accomplishment in the subject. The teaching and learning process can become a tedious and difficult method by use of repetitive techniques. Therefore, it is proposed the implementation of a software with resources that increase the students' attention in the imparted topics by adding motivation through interactive activities. N. DE REGISTRO (en base de datos):. N. DE CLASIFICACIÓN:. DIRECCIÓN URL (tesis en la web): ADJUNTO URL (tesis en la web): ADJUNTO PDF: CONTACTO CON AUTORES/ES: Alvarado Lucas Kelvin Iván González Cedeño Samanta Jessenia CONTACTO EN LA INSTITUCION: Escuela de lenguas y Lingüísticas Facultad de Filosofía, Letras y Ciencias de la Educación. SI. NO. x Teléfono: E-mail: 0997632249 [email protected] 0961068963 [email protected] Nombre: César Marín.

(20) xx. ABSTRACT. The following study attempts to analyze the incidence of active strategies to develop reading skills by designing of interactive software with activities focused on active strategies. The principal problem identified was reading difficulty such as hesitations while reading, lack of knowledge of words, repetitions, reading from memory or invention of the text. The theorical framework provides a clear and easy understanding of main concepts and variables used in the research. The present work was carried out at “Mercedes Moreno Irigoyen” public high school, Zone 8, District 3, Province of Guayas, Guayaquil Canton, during the school year 2017 – 2018. The researchers of this work applied variety methods and techniques such as observation, interviews and surveys with open questions in order to gather firsthand information examined and compiled through the “Dinamed” formula. As a final result, it can be highlighted that the active strategies has positive incidence in the development of the reading skill since they facilitate and make more dynamic the learning. and provide an innovative and. satisfactory solution to overcome the reading difficulties. Key words: Active strategies, Reading skill, Interactive software.

(21) xxi. RESUMEN. El siguiente estudio intenta analizar la incidencia de estrategias activas para desarrollar habilidades de lectura mediante el diseño de software interactivo con actividades centradas en estrategias activas. El principal problema identificado fue dificultad para leer, como vacilaciones durante la lectura, falta de conocimiento de las palabras, repeticiones, lectura de la memoria o invención del texto. El marco teórico proporciona una comprensión clara y fácil de los principales conceptos y variables utilizados en la investigación. El presente trabajo se realizó en la escuela pública "Mercedes Moreno Irigoyen", Zona 8, Distrito 3, Provincia de Guayas, Cantón Guayaquil, durante el año lectivo 2017 - 2018. Los investigadores de este trabajo aplicaron métodos y técnicas de variedades como la observación, entrevistas y encuestas con preguntas abiertas para recopilar información de primera mano examinada y compilada a través de la fórmula "Dinamed". Como resultado final, se puede destacar que las estrategias activas tienen una incidencia positiva en el desarrollo de la habilidad lectora, ya que facilitan y hacen más dinámico el aprendizaje y proporcionan una solución innovadora y satisfactoria para superar las dificultades de lectura. Palabras clave: estrategias activas, habilidad de lectura, software interactivo.

(22) INTRODUCTION The present educative project is framed in the institutional Plan of at “Mercedes Moreno Irigoyen” public school by encouraging and establishing a comfortable and adequate educational atmosphere in order to facilitate the teaching and learning process through meaningful activities with the principal objective to analyze the relevance of active strategies to develop reading skill. The main problem is linked to reading difficulties. Among them, deficiencies in decoding, a poor vocabulary, lack of prior knowledge, memory problems and lack of reading strategies. Therefore, the researchers recommend the application of active strategies to get over the reading issues in an enjoyable and interactive way. Moreover, it is necessary to mentioned that in this investigation, the methodology employed were the bibliographic and field research. The first chapter I is related to the problem, causes, goals, investigation questions and justification of the present project. The chapter II concerns the theoretical framework involving concepts and theories in order to offer broad definitions of variables. Moreover, it is included the foundations in which is focused on this project. The chapter III is linked to research’s methodology including techniques of investigation such as questionnaires used through surveys and interviews. The chapter IV is related to the proposal considering its justification, objectives, feasibility and description.. 1.

(23) INTRODUCCIÓN El presente proyecto educativo se enmarca en el Plan institucional de la escuela secundaria fiscal "Mercedes Moreno Irigoyen" al fomentar y establecer un ambiente educativo cómodo y adecuado para facilitar el proceso de enseñanza y aprendizaje a través de actividades significativas con el objetivo principal de analizar la relevancia de estrategias activas para desarrollar habilidades de lectura. El problema principal está relacionado con las dificultades de lectura. Entre ellos, deficiencias en la decodificación, un vocabulario pobre, falta de conocimiento previo, problemas de memoria y falta de estrategias de lectura. Por lo tanto, los investigadores recomiendan la aplicación de estrategias activas para superar los problemas de lectura de una manera agradable e interactiva. Además, es necesario mencionar que en esta investigación, la metodología empleada fue la investigación bibliográfica y de campo. El primer capítulo I está relacionado con el problema, las causas, los objetivos, las preguntas de investigación y la justificación del presente proyecto. El capítulo II se refiere al marco teórico que involucra conceptos y teorías para ofrecer amplias definiciones de variables. Además, se incluyen las bases en las que se centra este proyecto.. El capítulo III está vinculado a la metodología de la investigación, incluidas las técnicas de investigación, como los cuestionarios utilizados a través de encuestas y entrevistas. El capítulo IV se relaciona con la propuesta considerando su justificación, objetivos, factibilidad y descripción.. 2.

(24) CHAPTER I THE PROBLEM Context of the investigation The problem described in the present research work is related to the difficulty with reading proficiency development, which was identified within a student population between twelve and thirteen years in the eighth grade EGB at “Mercedes Moreno Irigoyen” public school, Zone 8, District 3, Province of Guayas, Guayaquil Canton, during the school year 2017 – 2018. This educational institution is located in 11th St. # 1431 between Portete Av. and Argentina St. It has 60 years serving the children of Guayaquil. It was founded on June 5th, 1957 with 160 students; it currently works in two shifts with about 1200 students from first to tenth grade EGB. The school director name is Msc. Noralma Diaz Holguin with 15 year of experience in the educational field. Besides, there is only one English teacher in the afternoon shifts with a workload of 3 hours per week in the eighth year. CURRENT SITUATION The problem was detected while one of us was performing her teaching practices in the institution and by conducting. an educative. research through different investigation techniques with the main objective of gathering first hand data. Based on the classroom context, the researchers noticed that students demonstrated a variety of difficulties while reading. The main didactic resources were markers, an eraser, English books and a radio. It can be mentioned that the institution have technological resources which are not applied in the English area. Furthermore, the students were very bored and they showed low motivation to learn. As result of that, a few group of learners participated in class’ activities.. 3.

(25) Another relevant factor observed was the traditional strategies employed in teaching and learning process of reading development did not have a structure that promotes a meaningful learning. Considering difficulties previously mentioned, our experiences about problem were exposed and discussed with the educative community representatives who agreed with us in achieving an effective and a short-term solution to this situation through the present educative project, which was unanimously accepted by teachers’ staff and the chairwoman. SCIENTIFIC FACT The difficulty in developing of reading skill among learners aged twelve to thirteen years of the 8th grade at “Mercedes Moreno Irigoyen” public high school, Zone 8, District 3, Province of Guayas, Guayaquil Canton, during the school year 2017 – 2018.Considering to the evidences obtained through the field research and during the meeting with the English teacher, the researchers realized that the problem stems from primary school causing a poor scholar achievement reflected in worrying grade reports, lack of knowledge of basic words. Hence, a bad spelling and a wrong pronunciation of elemental vocabulary. Besides, the difficulty to find the main ideas in a text and many case the total lack of the comprehension of the reading context. CAUSES . The lack of active reading strategies implementation.. . The need of proper didactic tools for reading skill developing.. . Not enough practice in reading activities.. . Contact with English texts just in class time.. 4.

(26) PROBLEM OF THE INVESTIGATION What is the relevance of active strategies in the development of reading skills in students of eighth grade at. “Mercedes Moreno Irigoyen”. public high school, Zone 8, District 3, Province of Guayas, Guayaquil Canton, during the school year 2017 – 2018?. OBJECTIVES General To determine the incidence of active strategies to develop reading skill through bibliographical and field analysis to design interactive software with activities focused on active strategies.. Specific 1. To define the active strategies through bibliographical field research and statistical analysis. 2. To describe reading skills through bibliographical, statistical and field analysis. 3. To design interactive software with activities focused on active strategies through by means of the data the results obtained. QUESTIONS OF THE INVESTIGATION . What are foundations employed in the design of the theoretical framework?. . What methodological strategies will be proposed to obtain information about the problem?. 5.

(27) . What is the main goal of the design of interactive software with activities focused on active strategies?. . How will the interactive software encourage students’ motivation?. . Who will be the main benefiters of this educative project?. . How can active learning be applied for reading skills development?. . What types of activities can be applied to increase students’ interest in the English subject?. JUSTIFICATION The principal aim of this educational research lies in promoting the development of reading skill by implementing active strategies such as meaningful activities among learners of 8th year EGB at “Mercedes Moreno Irigoyen” public high school, Zone 8, District 3, Province of Guayas, Guayaquil Canton, during school year 2016 - 2017. Considering the social impact, it can be mentioned that the following work consists in facilitating reading competence for English Language Learners of 8th year EGB at “Mercedes Moreno Irigoyen”, who will get the major benefits of this project since they will be encouraged to practice reading exercises through fun and interactive activities such as comics which will allow them to feel motivated during the learning process and get over their reading difficulties. Hence, students will be able to raise their scholastic accomplishment. Moreover, appropriate didactic resources will be available by teachers in order to foster the teaching process of reading skill.. It must be highlighted that the current educative project is framed in the Good living National Plan, in the chapter six “National Objectives for Good Living” and in particular the 4th objective that points out “To Build. 6.

(28) Citizen Capacities and Potential” as well as in its policies 4.1 and 4.4 within its sections c and n respectively. Moreover, this research is linked to (LOEI) The Law of Intercultural Education taking into consideration the Title III, 7th chapter “Rights”, Art. 7, section b that is related to “Receive an integral and scientific education”. Besides, according to the Title I, unique chapter “Scope, Principles and Purposes”, in its, Art. 2, section z, that deals to intercultural and plurinational guarantees. As final point, this project also is related to the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) which was employed by Ministry of Education and Culture of Ecuador as reference to elaborate the current English Language Learning Standards. In its chapter number four “Language use and the language user/learner” and more specifically, in its article 4.3 “Communicative tasks and purposes”, sections 4.3.4 “Ludic uses of language” and 4.3.5 “Aesthetic uses of language”. Besides, Considering, the article 4.4 “Communicative language activities and strategies”, section 4.4.2 “Receptive activities and strategies”, subsection 4.4.2.2 “visual reception (reading)”.. 7.

(29) CHAPTER II THE THEORETICAL FRAME Background After carrying out a bibliographic research at School of Languages library at College of Philosophy, Letters and Sciences of Education. The researchers noticed that although among the its files there were similar projects to ours for example how to improve reading skill through ludic strategies , the present research work has been developed from another point of view by facilitating reading skill acquisition through active strategies such as multimedia activities. Taking into account aspects mentioned above, the current project is going to be performed at “Mercedes Moreno Irigoyen” public high school, Zone 8, District 3, Province of Guayas, Guayaquil Canton where any research work has been carried out employing active reading strategies. Furthermore, this project will be framed with the following foundations: Theorical, epistemological, pedagogical and technological.. Theorical Foundation Reading skill Definition According to (Oxford Advanced learner ’s Dictionary, 2013), Reading is “the skill or activity of getting information from books” (p.1181). By considering its etymology, the word reading comes from the Old English terms reading that has a Germanic origin linked to Dutch term raden that means to advice or interpret (online etymology dictionary, 2010) In addition, some. definitions. related. to. reading. skill. will. be. are. discussed below. "Reading skill is a process constituted by the knowledge of graphic symbols (written or printed) that serve to stimulate meanings of the past experience of the reader" (McDonald, 2016, pág. 32).. 8.

(30) Besides, “Reading skills lead a person to interact and gain meaning from written language. There are several components one must master which lead to independently comprehending the intended message being relayed in the written content” (Lestrud, 2013, págs. 2517-2518). Lakshmi (2010) defined the reading skill as: The process of pronouncing in loud way or reading silently a printed text, individual action that is done by moving the eyes through the lines, transforming visual and luminous signals into mental sonorous signals. Hence, reading implies to decode, understand and interpret. Reading also means electing, choosing, and distinguishing the most important elements from a text. (p.21) Department for Education and Skills (2005) highlighted that: Reading skill is not a solitary action; it is a verbal interaction between individuals. From the point of view of the individual dimension of knowledge, reading is a set of linguistic and psychological skills, ranging from the ability to decode written words to the ability to understand written texts. It allows drawing conclusions and making judgments about the content. (p.2) Types of reading According to the speed employed There are 2 types of reading according to the speed employed for developing it. Mental reading It is faster than the oral one since reading of a written text employs less time than to pronounce it. It is very useful to do a quick reading of the text or make a review before an exam (Taft, 2013).. 9.

(31) Mueller (2003 ) considered that: When you learn to read, the attention is focused on the syllables that form the words or words themselves and it is necessary to reread part of the text to understand the meaning. But by gaining mastery of reading, the eyes increase the ability of perceiving greater number of words, allowing reading the whole line with only two or three continued glances to make a fast and comprehensive reading. When the reading is developed mentally, it should be avoided to move the lips while reading to increase the speed of reading and understanding to a greater degree. (p. 56 - 57) Oral reading “It consists of reading out aloud and takes into account the intonation during reading because through it , we reflect meanings and expressions such as feelings, emotions, moods, such as joy, grief, disgust, irony, etc.” (Rasinski, 2003, pág. 19).When we read orally we modulate the voice following the punctuation indicated in the text which together with a good practice of the diction, make the text more expressive, understanding , attractive not only for the same reader but for the auditorium (Rasinski, 2003). According to the methodology of reading The intensive and extensive readings are two forms of reading that are mutually exclusive. Both can coexist within a society and thus serve as an indicator of cultural differences or the ways of teaching reading (Make & Lenier, 2001 ). Intensive reading or reading for detail “Intensive reading is also known as methodical reading which consists in the detailed construction of the meaning of a text.. 10.

(32) Therefore, it is a work of interpretation. Its objective is to develop the capacity of an autonomous critical analysis” (Graham, 2001, pág. 101). This type of reading is commonly applied to short texts, it is sought that students read methodically. Although it can also be employed for long texts, which allows the study of an entire work (Graham, 2001). Sub-types of intensive reading Selective reading Richardson, Morgan, & Fleener (2008) stated that: The majority of readers practice full reading where each word is read. This process spends too much time and is sometimes unnecessary. Moreover, it fills the memory of many details without importance. Selective reading consists of selecting interesting information. It includes 2 essential techniques: Skimming and The technique of locating or scanning. (pag. 39) Skimming Richardson, Morgan, & Fleener (2008) mentioned that: Skimming is the reduction of the number of words read without diminishing the understanding of the text. This allows you to focus on important passages while eliminating unnecessary reading. Different degrees of skimming can be applied according to needs and texts: a low or a very selective skimming. (pag. 42) Scanning The first difference with skimming is that the reader knows the information he/she is looking for. It is not used for all readings, but only when you need information or knowledge about a specific point (Richardson, Morgan, & Fleener, 2008).. 11.

(33) Critical Reading Make & Lenier (2001 ) considered that: Critical reading is an approach to literature that combines a methodological vision with common sense. The concept of critical reading refers to the technique or process of discovering ideas and underlying information in a written text. This requires an analytical, thoughtful and active reading. Critical reading, therefore, it is the preliminary step to the development of critical thinking. Besides, When this level of understanding is reached, the reader is able to accept or reject the idea of the author. (p.10) Study reading Study reading or SQ3R is a strateg0y based on a formula to raise memorization of written information (Barry, 2017). Harrington (2015) considered that study reading involves five stages: S = Survey: Examine the text to identify its objective and principal ideas. 1) Titles and Headings –. show the themes and reading. contents. 2) Images, italic or bold text – point out the key information. 3) Outline and conclusion – indicate the themes developed and reading objective. 4) Take notes. Q = Question: Formulate questions to find purpose and enhance attention. The questions can support comprehension of the text. R = Read: Answer the questions by taking down notes and underline the major ideas. R = Recite: The repetition facilitates to remember information and store in the long-range memory. Write a summarize employing your own words. R= Review: It is necessary to reexamine the material to understand and assimilate it. (p. 19 - 20). 12.

(34) SRQ4 method Moreover, Acurantes, Makalinao, & Villanueva (2002) mentioned that: It is a variety of SRQ3 method in which is added an R with different meanings in order to increase effectiveness of study techniques. The following methods can be added to SQ3R strategy. R = Reflect: The content of text must be relational to knowledge previously obtained which improves the opportunities of comprehension and assimilation of information = Write: To create mind maps, to summarize the content, to employ skimming method to point out and verify the facts, to jot down main information after reading – asking questions – reciting. (p. 66) Analytic Reading The analytic reading is the study and the organized explanation of a literary text. The adjective 'organized' assumes that the interpretation of the text, the explanation is a clear presentation with an introduction, a development in several parts connected by transitions and conclusion (Wright, 2012). An analytic reading is just a methodical form of reading. Extensive Reading Jacobs & Farrell (2012) proposed the following definition: It is to read a book or a certain amount articles in order to achieve a global understanding with the intention of obtaining pleasure. Extensive reading is a rapid reading which allows us to store the material quicker. It is not a superficial or a diagonal reading. Reading faster means to be are more active, more focused, improving understanding and retention of information. (P.78 -79). 13.

(35) The Importance of Reading Skill Acquisition “It is fundamental for the learning process of the students since through reading skill acquisition, students develop new knowledge, challenge the imagination, and discover the pleasure of thinking” (Yousef, 2016, pág. 25). Furthermore, Reading can innovate and foster the process of learning and writing. That is, the school plays a relevant aspect in the development of this practice (McNeil, 2012). “Reading is one of the most relevant skills that can be developed by the human being. Reading skill allows students to understand the reality in which they live and reach important conclusions about the world and how it is composed” (Lewis, 2007 , pág. 79). It is fundamental in the integration of the individual in the social and cultural daily life, reading opens up new perspectives, allowing the students to position critically in the reality that surrounds them (McNeil, 2012). In addition, the ability to read is essential for personal development since the premise that the social and economic progress of a country depends on the people's access to the indispensable knowledge is that is transmitted by printed words (Lewis, 2007 ). According to Saddleback (2012) "it is necessary to emphasize that reading is very important, because "it broadens and integrates knowledge, opens up ever more. horizons. of. knowledge,. enrich. vocabulary,. facilitate. the. communication, discipline he mind and expand awareness" (p.35). From another point of view, Glendinning & Holmström ( 2004) pointed that: The pleasures of reading are manifold. Although, we read to know, understand and reflect. We also read for the beauty of language, for our emotion, for our disturbance. We read to share, we read to dream and to learn to dream. By reading, individuals have a vision of events and are not limited to complying with what is imposed by others. (P.p 12-13). 14.

(36) Carsten, Oakhill, & Cain (2014) mentioned that: The strengthening of reading skill promotes: To develop creative thinking. Creativity promotes the development of a successful personal and professional life.. Many studies have shown that. reading increases brain power and creativity. To enrich your vocabulary. Every time we read, we find several new words. Therefore, it is very beneficial to increase our vocabulary of known words. Reading helps relaxation. It relaxes our whole being, relaxes our senses and allows us to work more quickly and productively. Personal development. When we read a biography or legendary personalities, we are influenced by them. It helps us develop our selfesteem. To strengthen control over language. Our knowledge of a particular language becomes stronger with the help of reading, especially through the reading of novels or dramas. (p.22). Furthermore, in his book the, Howard (2004) highlights that: Reading Increase brain Activity and Function. For example, when reading the word "house", the brain will search in your memory for everything you know about homes. Among the results, we will select the options that seem to be related to the context. Depending on whether the action takes place in Alaska or the equator, the representation of the house will be different. Besides, the dimensions of the building will vary, according to the elements of the book. Are rich or poor people who live in that house? And so on, until they form a coherent representation with the context. These thousands of operations were carried out in fractions of a second, and with a single word. Therefore, there are a great variety of the processes that takes place in the mind when reading any book or article. (p.59). 15.

(37) Reading Difficulties Teachers, psychologists and researchers have attempted to identify, especially in recent years, the main reading difficulties in children. “These educational issues have been investigated by professionals in different areas of knowledge since reading problems are linked to the low level of school accomplishment” (Kilpatrick, 2015 , pág. 43). The following ideas of some authors have been taken in account to point out the more common problems related to reading development. The developmental disorders of reading are manifested by locks, omission, interruption, word substitutions and among others (Konza, 2006 ). According to Clayton (2005) other possible reading problems can be: Many Students cannot find the key word, central message of the text. Besides, the discrimination of letters could be another problem due to teaching letter names or sounds in isolation without own meaning when it would be much more effective to teach with words endowed with meaning. Another aspect is to consider whether the students respect the punctuation and use the intonation. (p.43). Moreover, considering to the guide for Reading Difficulties and Solutions by Osborne (2009 ) " the present section will be cover the main reading difficulties: losing the place, losing focus, lack of understanding and memory problem" (p.98). The difficulties will be detailed below: First, "Losing the place or track of text: there are two different ways of losing the place: Fails of tracking of words or a line of text to the next. it can cause wasting time and difficult of comprehension" (Osborne, 2009 , pág. 101). Secondly, Lack of concentration while reading is due to different factor such as the poor interest in the topic which can be tedious, technical or simply boring (Osborne, 2009 ).. 16.

(38) Thirdly, Lack of understanding: reading is not just about decoding words, but it is to understand the written message of a text. Most of the research on children's reading difficulties has focused on the difficulties of decoding; In comparison, difficulties of understanding that have been less studied (Osborne, 2009 ). Finally, Memory’s failure: It is not necessary to memorize each word or phrase that have been read but “it is required to remember the main idea of a reading. When reading is finished and the aim of the topic cannot be recalled, it will be necessary to enhance the retention process" (Kilpatrick, 2015, pág. 48).. Reading difficulties identified in the classroom Speech sound disorders This type of difficulty is related to “phonemes which are omitted produced partially or are not produced properly” (Bowen, 2014 , pág. 35). They will be classified into four categories: addition, omission, distortion and substitution of sounds. 1) Omissions: Complete syllables or some words are skipped while reading. Many students read the letter or letters that they can be identified but they omit the unknown sounds. For example: ca for cash or fo for forehead (Bowen, 2014 ). 2) Additions: extra sounds are included in words due to readers have decoding problems and try to guess the words (Bowen, 2014 ). 3) Distortions: “this problem lies in the production of alternative sounds which provoke that the target sound can be mispronounced partially or totally” (McLeod, 2012, pág. 74). 4) Substitutions: The sounds are replaced for another such as tank for thank or bis for this. This type of error occurs when identifying or isolation of parts of an object failed (McLeod, 2012) .. 17.

(39) 5) The fear of reading out loud: “The fear of making mistakes and lack of interest in reading can be more the most common causes to avoid reading out loud” (Morris, 2013, pág. 76). Reading out loud often provokes feeling of frustration and shame in students by attempting to complete an activity since they can notice how their partners can read easily. Reading out loud can cause excessive sweet, red blotches in the face, tremors, palpitations, stuttering and other (Morris, 2013). 6) Lack of a proper didactic material Tomlinson (2011) pointed that: In the first place, it seems convenient to define what we are referring to with the concept of teaching materials. The ideas of what is a teaching material are numerous, and there is no an official definition. When talking about teaching material, it is not just about books and notebooks, but about any type of device designed and developed with the intention of facilitating a teaching and learning process. The lack of didactic tools “makes students to have a negative attitude towards teaching. For this reason, it is important to choose an adequate material to generate interest in students. Therefore, the didactic material is the principal responsible for providing students with good opportunities to develop his / her skills and competence during learning process. (P.225) Stage of Reading Skill Acquisition "In the process of reading, there are at least four stages, according to a psycholinguistic view: decoding, understanding, interpretation and retention" (Grainger, 2010, pág. 11). An effective reading should go through the following steps:. 18.

(40) Decoding Duffy ( 2009) considers that in the first step of reading process: The student decodes the written symbols. It is a superficial reading, although incomplete, it is essential to do it more than once in the same text. It is the moment when the student must write down the unknown words to find a synonym, an important stage to move on to the next step of reading, the understanding of what has been read. (p.76) Mayer (2010) considered that: Decoding refers to the process of translating a printed word into a sound. First, please read the following words aloud: dog, table, and jump. This is an example of decoding regular words and is sometimes called word identification skill. Regular words are commonly used words, i.e., words frequently found in printed material. Second, please read the following words, aloud: blud, wight, frish. This is an example of decoding nonwords (or decoding pseudowords) and is sometimes called word attack skill. (p.1) Understanding “After passing through the decoding stage, the student must capture the meaning of the text. Reading is to interact with the text, considering the role of the reader, the text, and the interaction between reader and text” (Duffy, 2009, págs. 81-82). Oakhill, Cain, & Elbro ( 2014) pointed that "in this case, understanding only occurs if there is affinity between the reader and the text; If there is an intention to read, in order to achieve a certain goal " (p.26). That is, reading should not be a technique resulting from mechanization. It must be an action in which student can reflect and rise about the object of knowledge. In addition, “Reading can be realized as an exercise of understanding and writing as an expression.. 19.

(41) In reading, individuals are also co-producers, for the inferences and prior knowledge that help them to understand the overall meaning of the text” (Oakhill, Cain, & Elbro, 2014, pág. 28). The interpretation The student will not easily find the answers in the text if he did not understand it, because only with a good understanding will the student be able to interpret meanings of the text that are not written literally” (Duffy, 2009, pág. 87). In the third stage of reading, the student must interpret a sequence of ideas or events that are implicit in the text. Retention In this last stage, the student must be able to retain the information processed in the previous stages and apply them: making analogies, comparisons, recognizing the meaning of the main or figurative language (Fry, 2012). The last step in the reading process is retention, which is referred to the storage of the most important information in long-term memory. “This stage can be realized in two levels: after the understanding of the text, with the storage the main topics or after the interpretation, on a more elaborate level”. (Duffy, 2009, pág. 91).. 20.

(42) Active Reading Strategies Definition of Active Reading Strategies One of the most accepted definition of active reading strategies by specialists in educative field is: “Reading strategies are procedures (set of steps, operations or skills) that a student acquires and uses in a conscious, controlled and intentional way as a flexible instrument to improve reading skill by learning meaningfully and solving academic problems " (McWhorter & Sember, 2012 , pág. 11). Furthermore, they can be defined as Set of skills that must have the teacher to order and facilitate learning. (McGuire,. 2008).Reading strategies provide students with the necessary resources to learn how to learn. The learning of these strategies allows students to be able to organize situations and solve problem related to reading (Leighton, 2015). Reading strategies are tactics that the reader uses to approach and understand the text. Every reader must use strategies to deal with the different topics through sampling actions to select elements that allow for anticipations, such as predicting about content of the text (McGuire, 2008, pág. 55). Moreover, McWhorter & Sember (2012 ) stated that: They are procedures used by readers to intensify the understanding and memory of what he/she reads, as well as to detect possible errors or misunderstandings. These strategies are responsible for the construction of an interpretation of the text and for the reader to be aware of what he/she understands and what he/she does not understand and therefore, to solve the problem. (p.33-34) According to Leighton (2015) considered that: The reader will vary the strategies according to the type of text (informative, narrative, etc.) which will allow students to exercise control over reading. It is important that the school encourages promotes meaningful reading situations and non-fictive experiences (p. 45). 21.

(43) The importance of teaching reading strategies To improve reading habits "Poor reading habits contribute to school failure since reading is the basis of study" (Walker, 2006, pág. 78). When applying active reading strategies, we start by losing the bad reading habits which include: the repetition of parts of the text without taking an overall idea of the content, the tendency to regress to the mean. Reading habits are the best and most powerful predictor of academic success, far more than the level of intelligence or memory (Boyd, Norfleet, & Zimmerman, 2014). To reduce study time Reading techniques to organize the information and take advantage of time can help students have more control in their life and get more time for study, and therefore, to have more free time (Whitton, 2015). The ideal is to read without distractions (television, noises, smells, etc.), in an orderly place, airy and with good light, and having a comfortable seat. Active strategies allow students to decrease time spent studying through the employment of techniques that will help them get a better understanding and increase retention level, a better perception of speed (Whitton, 2015). It is recommended to divide the very extensive or complicated topics into sub-tasks or smaller and manageable stages; it will allow you to go forward, without burdening you with so much work. Check your class notes each day (DeFratesDensch & Smith, 2016). To power your memory to the max It is important to be concentrated for understanding the contents in a successful way. At higher concentration, a greater memory capacity (Johan & Nor, 2016). Each time a new memory is formed, new synapses are created and the existing synapses are solidified. This means that reading will increase our short-term memory retention capabilities (Casale-Giannola & Schwartz, 2012).. 22.

(44) To increase concentration level while reading Boyd, Norfleet, & Zimmerman (2014) pointed out that the strategies: They promote the Improvement of attention and concentration in our societies that revolve around the Internet and "multi-tasking", our ability to concentrate is under attack from all sides. In 5 minutes of time, the average individual will divide his time between working on 1 task, check his emails, exchange messages with several people simultaneously (Facebook, Skype, etc.), read his Twitter account, check his smartphone and conversation with colleagues. This hyperactive behavior generates stress and slows productivity. When reading and employing active strategies, it's just the opposite. All our attention is directed towards the reading. (p.56) Types of Active Reading Strategies Prio-Knowledge Strategies Brainstorming This strategy promotes student to employ the Prio-knowledge. Therefore, before reading, “examine the material in that chapter: read the introductions and summaries, keep in mind the objectives and contents indicated” (Wilson, 2013, pág. 34). It will help reader to keep in mind the central and most relevant ideas related to the rest of the information. Group Discussions They are also known as forums, newsgroups or conferences. It consists of the development of a topic in an informal exchange of ideas, opinions and information, carried out by the group of students and led by another student who acts as a guide (PRASAD, 2005). It resembles the development of a class where students are engaged actively through questions and suggestions (PRASAD, 2005).. 23.

(45) Visual Supports Visual resources allow students to develop the prior knowledge. Get pictures or images related to the topic studied. The referential function of images is to explain or to synthesize a topic developed (Rogers, 2013 ). Besides, Rogers (2013 ) pointed out that: They are useful resources to use in reading activities. The fact of living in a society and an era dominated by the iconic sign raises questions about the effectiveness of the image with the word but it is evident that the word is not the only message. Students feel the suggestive power of the lights and the color. In our culture we automatically associate the vision of a fact with its existence: we identify the image with reality. (p.77) Pre-questions Before, during and after is the process of reading comprehension that involves going beyond the decoding of words within the text, answering questions after a literal reading, reading aloud, always reading alone and in silence or a simple identification of words (Bellanca, 2008). Roger (2013 ) stated that before reading is necessary: To formulate questions: 1) Why am I going to read? Set the purpose of reading 2) What do I know about this text? : Consider the reader's previous knowledge. 3) What is this text about? : Anticipate the theme. 4) What is its structure?: It analyzes the composition of its structure, its extension and writing. 5) What example is it related to the...? 6) Have you ever lived a similar experience?. (p.54). 24.

(46) Vocabulary Preview Unknown key vocabulary should be taught to readers before starting the reading in order to understand background information and enhance the comprehension of content (Bellanca, 2008). Prediction According to Gehler, Jancsary, Lampert, & Nowozin (2014 ), the prediction strategy allows: the reader to predict, according to his/her previous knowledge, the reading of words; it is important to understand that this is not guess of a word, but the understanding of meaning a word and its correct reading through information obtained previously. To acquaint you with content of a reading, it is suggested to make predictions by identifying images or headings before reading. Some questions can be considered in order to achieve an effective prediction: What do images mean to you? What do the headings or subheadings suggest about the reading? Do you know something about the present topics?.(p.88). Note Taking Strategies: Highlighting and Underlining Highlighting It consists of highlighting those ideas that the student considers important. They always use the texts given by the teacher. “This strategy assumes a detailed reading where the main ideas are distinguished from secondary one or what are not relevant. According to recent studies, this is the most used strategy by students” (Walker, 2006, pág. 86).. 25.