Reading Assessment Essay

In chapter 7, Taking Notes From Reading Material, my scores for the pre- assessment (550) and the post assessment (750) increased slightly. One process that made my score increase was that I initially did not understand how to effectively highlight my material. Highlighting is so very critical because a person could waste time and energy when they could be doing other assignments. For a moment I thought the author had gone back into time and took a look at my notes from yesteryears. I was a perfect example of a passive learner who would highlight un-important phrases and sentences until I had a colored a lot of nothing. Active learners highlight less and try to grasp as much as they can while reading, thus avoiding re-reading. The highlighting issue was definitely a weakness of mine, but I will apply the techniques from the text to curb that problem. While not a great highlighter I can say that my note taking ability has always been a strong suit for me. I plan on taking some steps from the lesson to improve on that as well. Effective note taking saves time and makes learning easier to retain. 3 In Chapter 8, Improving Reading Comprehension, my pre-assessment scores (550) and my post assessment scores (650) are almost identical. I believe that to be because most of the reading I had never experienced before or it could have been due to the fact that I have been out of school a very long time. Nevertheless, there are certainly some habits that I need to build upon to improve my personal reading comprehension. Knowing your purpose and reading responsibility is very important while learning. A person’s reading purpose could be for their own greater good, to just challenge themselves, or to just be intent. One’s reading responsibility allows you to be able to answer questions during an exam or just keeping for use later on. If a person doesn’t have a purpose or responsibility they have no direction and time is wasted. I did learn that being more engaged helps me learn better. In Chapter 9, Revving Up Your Reading, my scores for the pre-assessment (350) and the post assessment (600) nearly doubled. This was in result to the fact that speed reading is totally new to me. I have never experienced or taught how to speed read so this is a new learning curve to me. One weakness that I discovered about myself if that I prefer to read moving my lips or out loud slightly. According to the text, talking to yourself while reading tires you out, slows you down, and it limits one’s comprehension. This is a sign of a passive reader, which also is referred to as low gear. Low gear generates 100-300 words per minute. Everyday reading (magazines, newspapers) would be considered as middle gear. This generates 300-600 words per minute. High gear puts out about 600-1000 words per minute and is mostly used for skimming and pre-viewing. 4 The first activity (page 201) helped me understand a few traits that I learned about myself. Though I am a slow reader, I have been able to take good notes, understanding the information and having a fairly wide vocabulary. To keep my mind from wandering I am going to make an attempt to become a faster reader, which should help me focus better and not lull myself into a daze. The phrasing activity (page 241) was a very interesting challenge. Phrasing allows active readers to take a key word or thought and put a slash in between key words or phrases. This allows a person to get information without reading it verbatim. While most passive readers read one word at a time, phrasing allows a person to read more effectively and saving time in the process. My next reading project I plan on using phrasing and becoming a more passionate, engaged reader which in turn helps me retain what I am reading. The steps and ideas that I have learned will enable me to become a better reader who enjoys while learning. Speeding up my reading in addition to my note taking skills should allow me to finish more projects faster and then be able to move on to something else. Reference 5 Beale, A. M. (2007). Success Skills: Strategies for Study and Lifelong Learning. Mason OH: South-Western Cengage Learning.