Reading comprehension: Concept, Phases, Levels, & Strategies

Reading comprehension is a foundational process and a vital tool for acquiring knowledge. It involves a dynamic interplay between a reader, a text, and a context. Its primary goal is either to acquire new knowledge or to verify existing understanding.

This process is highly interactive, constructive, and productive. When a reader engages in the act of reading, they go far beyond merely skimming pages. Instead, questions about the information naturally arise within the reader’s mind. During this process, readers might accept or even reject the information presented, all while actively striving to grasp the author’s intended meaning. This active engagement ultimately builds new knowledge and fosters the reader’s personal understanding.

Characteristics of Reading Comprehension

Reading comprehension possesses distinct attributes that define it as an advanced cognitive process:

Selective Process: Readers actively choose the necessary or relevant information to construct the meaning of the text, filtering out secondary details. The reader’s prior experience plays a crucial role in this process, aiding in the interpretation and construction of meaning.
Mental Representation: During comprehensive reading, the reader forms a mental representation of the text. This involves condensing and organizing the information, discarding irrelevant details, and retaining only what’s essential for understanding.

Generalization: Ultimately, the reader is able to draw generalizations about the content, achieving a solid grasp of the material.

The Nature of Text

A text is fundamentally a collection of signs with a communicative intent. It can also be defined more broadly as any object, material, or thing that carries meaning. Among its many forms, printed text remains one of the most common, and this section will focus on its key characteristics.

(For a broader understanding of text, you can also consult: Text: Definition, Structures, Types & Examples).

Printed Text

Printed text is defined as a set of encoded signs from a writing system. In essence, it comprises letters or graphic representations of a language that convey a message or meaning. Text is a fundamental component of study and one of the key elements of reading comprehension, alongside the reader and the context.

Text Structures

Texts, particularly academic texts, are organized using different internal frameworks known as text structures. These structures include:

Formal Structure: This refers to the text’s internal organization and how ideas are arranged. The typical order usually includes:
1. Introduction: The beginning of the text, where the topic is presented, and the reader is introduced to the context.
2. Body: The main part of the text, where the the content is developed, and supporting arguments are presented.
3. Conclusion: The closing of the text, where main points are summarized, and a final message or call to action is provided. This structure guides the reader through the text, facilitating understanding of the topic and ensuring a logical progression of ideas.
Semantic Structure: This structure ensures a text’s coherence and cohesion. It encompasses two key aspects:
- Textual coherence: Refers to the distribution, order, and logical connection between the ideas and different parts of the text. It ensures the text flows smoothly and that the ideas presented are logically related and easy to follow.
- Cohesion: Refers to the syntactic and lexical mechanisms that connect elements within a text. It involves the appropriate use of grammar, punctuation, and vocabulary to create a unified and cohesive whole. In essence, the semantic structure ensures the text is well-organized, logically structured, and easy to understand. It eliminates any inconsistencies or gaps in information, ensuring the message is conveyed effectively.

In Short: Cohesion is about how the parts of a text are linked together (linguistic ties). Coherence is about how the ideas in a text are logically connected and make overall sense to the reader.

Grammatical or Linguistic Structure: This structure refers to the intricate arrangement of words to form sentences and convey ideas within a specific language. It encompasses the organization of words, syntax, morphology, and the overall grammar of a language. This structure serves as the foundation for constructing well-written texts, where the appropriate selection and usage of words are paramount.

Phases or Stages of the Reading Process

The reading process is one of understanding ideas expressed in a medium, which evidently involves the act of reading. It consists of interacting with a text, scanning it, and deciphering the meaning given by the author. The reading process, based on how the text is approached, occurs in three key moments: pre-reading, through-reading, and post-reading.

Pre-reading: This initial stage of the reading process involves engaging with a text in a cursory manner to gain a general overview and establish a foundation for deeper understanding. This preparatory phase serves as a crucial step in preparing the reader for a more comprehensive and engaging reading experience.
Through-reading: Also known as while-reading, this second stage delves into the text’s content with greater depth and scrutiny. It engages both mechanical and internal aspects to fully grasp the author’s message. During this critical phase, the mind actively constructs mental representations, employs deductive reasoning, condenses information, and formulates personal interpretations, ultimately achieving a profound understanding of the text.
Post-reading: This is the final stage of the reading process and a crucial step in consolidating the knowledge and information gained during comprehensive reading. Through a series of directed activities, readers engage in self-regulated learning strategies to evaluate their comprehension and solidify their understanding of the text.

Levels of Reading Comprehension

As the name suggests, reading comprehension levels are the stages or degrees of understanding a reader can achieve during the reading process. These levels include:

Literal Level: At this initial stage, the reader grasps the explicit information in the text without adding or subtracting anything, simply taking in what is presented. This passive approach marks the beginning of the comprehension process.
Reorganization Level: In this level, the reader actively restructures the text to enhance understanding. They identify, classify, summarize, and analyze the essential ideas that convey the text’s meaning.

Inferential Level: The inferential level involves linking the explicit information in the text with prior knowledge and experiences to draw conclusions or form ideas not explicitly stated. This process primarily takes place within the reader’s mind.
Critical Level: At the critical level, readers evaluate the text, accepting or rejecting what they read and comparing their criteria with those of the author. This level presupposes the successful completion of the previous levels and involves critical thinking.
Literary and Artistic Appreciation Level: This highest level of comprehension is reached when the reader can recognize and appreciate the aesthetic, intellectual, and even recreational qualities of the text or work. This appreciation enriches the reader’s experience as a thinking being.

Basic Internal Structures of Texts (Rhetorical Patterns)

Texts exhibit various internal structures that organize and convey their content effectively. These fundamental structures, often called rhetorical patterns, include:

Factual Structure: This structure presents facts, data, or information without needing to demonstrate or prove anything. As the name suggests, it focuses on presenting straightforward information, as seen in narratives or news articles.
Problem-Solution Structure: The author introduces a problem and then proceeds to offer a solution. They often support their ideas with arguments to convince the reader, a structure frequently employed in scientific articles.

Thesis-Proof Structure: This structure shares similarities with the problem-solution structure, but instead of presenting a problem, it introduces a thesis statement, typically related to a scientific, social, or philosophical topic. The author then develops their argument and defends their position using evidence and reasoning.

Reading Comprehension Strategies

To effectively grasp a text’s meaning, readers employ various strategies that guide their comprehension process. These strategies enable them to delve deeper into the text’s content, reaching higher levels of understanding. Here are some key strategies for reading comprehension:

Inferences: Inferencing involves drawing conclusions based on premises (statements or propositions). Readers form ideas not explicitly stated in the text but generated within their minds by combining the text’s content with their prior knowledge and experiences.

Anticipations: Anticipation occurs when readers predict the upcoming content of the text based on what they have already read. They form hypotheses about what might follow, actively engaging with the text.
Conclusions: Once they have finished reading, readers draw conclusions about the overall meaning and implications of the text. They summarize the main ideas and synthesize the information they have gathered.
Generalizations: Generalizations involve formulating overarching statements or principles based on the information presented in the text. Readers move beyond specific details to identify broader concepts and patterns.

Paraphrasing: Paraphrasing involves restating the text’s content in the reader’s own words. Readers demonstrate their understanding by expressing the ideas in a new way, ensuring they have effectively grasped the meaning.

Overview

Overview of Reading Comprehension Topics
Topic Area	Key Concept	Brief Description / Core Elements
What is Reading Comprehension?	Definition & Process	An interactive, constructive process between reader, text, and context to acquire or verify knowledge; goes beyond skimming to build personal understanding.
Characteristics of Reading Comprehension	Nature of the Process	It's selective (filtering relevant info), involves forming mental representations (condensing info), and allows for generalizations about content, influenced by prior experience.
The Nature of Text	Definition & Forms	A collection of signs with communicative intent; any object carrying meaning. Printed text is encoded signs (letters/graphics) conveying messages.
Text Structures	Organization of Ideas	Formal: Introduction, Body, Conclusion. Semantic: Coherence (logical flow of ideas), Cohesion (syntactic & lexical connections). Grammatical/Linguistic: Arrangement of words, syntax, morphology, overall grammar.
Phases of the Reading Process	Stages of Engagement	Pre-reading: Gaining overview, setting purpose. Through-reading: Deep engagement, constructing meaning, forming interpretations. Post-reading: Consolidating knowledge, evaluating comprehension.
Levels of Reading Comprehension	Depth of Understanding	Literal: Grasping explicit information. Reorganization: Restructuring text to enhance understanding (identify, classify, summarize). Inferential: Linking explicit info with prior knowledge to draw unstated conclusions. Critical: Evaluating text, accepting/rejecting information, comparing criteria with author's. Literary & Artistic Appreciation: Recognizing and appreciating aesthetic, intellectual, recreational qualities.
Basic Internal Structures of Texts	Rhetorical Patterns	Factual: Presents straightforward data/information (e.g., narratives, news). Problem-Solution: Introduces a problem and then resolves it (e.g., scientific articles). Thesis-Proof: Presents a thesis statement and defends it with evidence and reasoning.
Reading Comprehension Strategies	Tools for Understanding	Inferences: Drawing conclusions based on premises and prior knowledge. Anticipations: Predicting upcoming content. Conclusions: Summarizing overall meaning after reading. Generalizations: Formulating overarching statements/principles. Paraphrasing: Restating content in one's own words.