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Everyday English 2
Everyday English 2

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8 Summary of Session 2

Well done for completing the reading session of the course! In it, you have covered reading techniques such as skimming, scanning and detailed reading, which are useful for identifying the main points and highlighting key information. You have also explored the difference between fact and opinion and how to spot opinions disguised as facts.

Here are the key learning points from this session.

  • It is likely that you do a lot of reading every day without realising it.
  • It is easier to read and extract information from texts that are laid out well, for example with headings, short paragraphs and bullet points.
  • Skimming is useful when you are deciding whether to read something; it involves reading the title and headings and looking at the pictures to get an idea of what it is about.
  • Scanning is useful when you are looking for specific information; it involves looking through the text to find key words and phrases.
  • When reading a text in detail, it is more important to set up a rhythm of reading than to understand every word or phrase; go back to words you don’t understand later rather than rereading or looking up their meaning there and then.
  • Recognising prejudice and bias, and the difference between fact and opinion, is very important when reading, as prejudice, bias and opinion are likely to exclude other points of view.
  • Identifying why something has been written helps you decide quickly how you are going to approach it.
  • Texts that have different purposes – for example, to explain, describe or persuade – use different features in order to provide information in the most effective way for that purpose.
  • Similarly, different kinds of text – a report, a poster, a greetings card – have different layouts and styles.
  • Reports are usually divided into sections which can include Contents, Terms of Reference, Introduction, Methodology, Findings, Conclusion, Recommendations and Appendices.

Hopefully by completing this session your confidence with reading has improved. Continue to practise these skills and you will move from being a good reader to a great reader!

You can now go to Session 3 [Tip: hold Ctrl and click a link to open it in a new tab. (Hide tip)] .