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What is reading?
I Traditional d~finitiops of readirig ~tate th~t ~earning to, read means le.a ming to pronounce
words and to recognize words and dedu~e their meaning. H9weve~, ~s titne g~es on, many pro-
pose more appropriate -definitions of readirtg sinc.e a good num,ber s~1ll adhere to t~e old notion
· that reading is just a very simple process.
· The following presents what renow~ed figures have to··s'ay about _the complexity of the
reading process. Examine them carefully ~nd figure out what they have 'm col'nmon. . .

1. "Reading maketh a full man; conference a ready man, and .wri;ting ,an _exact man."
. . - Fr.ancis Bacon
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2. "Reading, after a certain age, diverts the· mind too much from its creative pursuits, I
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of thinking.'.' · 1
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-Albert Einstein
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~-- 3. "What. do we read? The message is not ~omethiilg giv~n in advance- or .given at
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all-but something created by interaction between writers and readers as partici.:.
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I pants in a particular communicatiye situation." ·.. . . ',
- Roy Harris in Rethinkin g Writing (2000)
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4. "Reading is asking questions of printed text. And reading with comprehension

,, becomes a matter of getting ·yoµr questions answered."
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~- · - Fr~nk Smith in f?.eading Without Nonsense (1997)

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5. . "R~ading is a psycholinguistic guessing game. It involves an interaction between
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thoaght and la:r~guage. Efficient reading does not result from precise perception ~ni
identification of all elements, but from skill in selecting ~he fewest, most productivti
cues necessary to produce guesses · which are right the first time. The ability to
anticipate t~at which has not been Seen, of course, is vital in reading, just as the
· ability to ,anticipate what has not yet been heard is.vital in listening." . ·
'· - Kenneth Goodman in Journal of the Reading Specialist (1967)

6. ~'T~e greatest g~ft is the passion forreading. It is cheap, it consoles, it distracts, it excites,
it gJves you knowledge of the world and experience of a wide kind. It is a moral
illumination." ' - · ·
.. - Elizabeth Hardwick
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j 7· "~iteracy-: practices are almost always fully integrated with, interwoven into, con-
1 stltlited as Par!: of, t~e very texture of wider practices that involve talk, interaction,
~ valll:es, and beliefs." ·
l - James Gee in Social Linguistics and Literacies (1996)
 8. "Reading is a dyn~mic proces~ ill' which the reader interacts ~it~ t~e, text to con-
struct meaning. Inherent in constructing ,meaning ·is the 'reader's ability to activate
prior knowle~ge, use reading strategies and adapt' to the reading situation."
- Ma. Cecilia Crudo '(2005)
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9. "Reading is an interaction between tp.e reaqer and-the written language,' through

_ which' the reader ,attempts to .reconstruct message frorp. the writer. Readi~g-is also
sampling; selecting,. predicting, comparing .and· confirming activity in which the
reader selects a sample of useful cue's' based on what·he se·es and' wlia.t he expects to .
see."
- W.S. Gr.ay

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More Views on Reading.

Previous researches have shown that reading is more than recognizing printed letters'. or
words and that it is also a very ·complex process that requires careful att~ntion. Through the
years, ~ore relevant views on reading emerge giving us a better picture of what it really is and
-how it happens: The following condenses the views forwarded by experts recognized for their
effort of.unlocking the mysteries behind the reading proces~. 1'hese will guide you throug~ as
you further hone your ability to read and to fully understand the reading process.
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. Reading is ·a complex system of deriving meaning from print
that req1.,1ires all of the .following: (1) the skills and knowledge to un-
.derstand how phonemes, or speech sounds, are ·connected to ·print,
• National ·.Reading (2) the ability to decode unfamiliar words, (3~ the ability to read fluent-
Panel (2002) ly, (4) sufficient background information or schema .and vocabulary .
to foster reading comprehension, (5) the development of appropriate
active strategies to derive meaning from print, and (6) thedevelop-
ment and maintenance of a motivation to read.
I . Reading is (1) gC>ing beyond merely decoding the symbols on
the page, (2) thought of as making meaning, (3) an understanding
• Robert Ruddell, of what the writer is saying, (4) an interaction between the reader
Matha Rapp and the writer in a specific context, (5) involved with predicting and
·. Ruddell, and.Harry verifying predictions, (6) influenced by one's purpose for reading, (7) .
Singer (1994) influenced by other factors that involve knowledge, distractions, and
what one does when he/she is reading, (8) indicative that ·the amount
of information that is known 'about something one is reading prior to ·
reading is directly proportionate to how easy or hard it is to read.
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· Good readers (1) are active readers, (2) have clear goals in
' mind for their readir::ig, (3) constantly evaluate whether the text, ·and
their reading of it, is meeting their goals, (4) preview a text, (5) make
predictions, (6) construct, .revise, and question the meanings they
meaning of unfamiliar words
• Nell Duke .and David · make as they read, (7) determine the
Pearson (2002) and concepts in the text, and they deal with inconsistencies or gaps
. as needed, (8) capitalize and fuse their prior knowledge with material
in the _text, (9) think about the.authors of the text,' their style,. beliefs,
and intentions, historical ,:nilieu, (1 0) monitor tlieir .u_nders~anding of
the text, making adjustment~ in their reading as nece~sary, (11) eval-
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uate the text's q'uality 'ancifyal,Ue1 and ~_eact !o -the te~t in a ·.rarige
of ,ways, .both .. intel~ectuall,y and emo~~onally, . ( ~ 2) , re~d diff~rent
kinds qf text diffe~!=)~tly; (13). when reading narr~t1ve, att~~d closely
to the setting and characters, (1.4) when reading expository text
they. . frequently construct ~nd _revise su~maries of what they hav~
read, (15) ,recognize !hat text proce~s.mg o,ccus~ ,n9t or_ly . during
"reading" but also .d~nng . s,hort breaks taken during r~admg, even
after the .ilreadipg" it~elf has ceased, (16).look ijt comprehension as -'
a ·consuming, contfn~ous., and c~·mplex act_ ivity, 'but one that is both .
: satisfyihg and productive. , · ·, · · .

Reading is (1) not ,ri:erely a· basic:skill, (2) a Very complex process~

Christine Cziko, (3) a problem solvinQ ' and sense making, (4) is not the same._ as de:
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Cynthia Greenleaf, coding, and (5) ·situationally ·bounded. They also believ~ that pr"9fi.
Lori Hurwitz, Ruth cient readers share some key c~a-racteristics. They·are (1) ment!3lly
Schoenbach(2000) engaged, (2) driven lo read and to learn, (3) socially active ·aroUhd
reading t€lsks and (4) strategic in. monitoring the interactive process-
es that assist comprehension. · · · ·

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Skills Required for-Proficient Reading j
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. The National Reading Panel (2002) suggests that the ability to read requires proficiene;
in a number of language domains. These language domains include: · . · ·!
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• The ~bility to di~tinguish and manipulate the individual sounds-of
Phonemic Awareness langu. age ,'
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• The understanding of how letters are linked to sounds (pho-,·
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Phonics nemes), patterns •of lett~r-sound correspondences and spelling
in English; and how to apply this knowledg·e when ·readers read ··
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' • The ability to read orally with speed, accwacy, and vocal expres~'
. sion; Fluency'is important because it provides a bridge between:
/I Fluency word recognition and comprehension. - Fluent readers d9 notj
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.I have to concentrate on decoding ·so they can focus their efforts'
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on making meaning of the text. . ..1.
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• · The knowledge of words etymology, structure, p·art of speech~
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/ and what they mean; is a large category that includes listening
vocabulary, speaking vocabulary, reading vocabulary, and.writin,g
Vocabulary vocabulary; can be learned ' indirectly (e.g., thro~gh b,ein,g_read
to, through conversations with adults) or directly (e.g., througti
.sp~cific word •instruction-or through strategies such as breaking
longer words down into familiar parts). -

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• The complex cognitive 'proce$s in which . a reader intentiona'l)Y
Readmg arid interactively engages with the· text; the process of mak.in,g
Comprehension sense of what 'is .bein,$;J read ·