Lesson 1: Levels of Reading Notes

Lesson 1: Levels of Reading Overview Reading is the process of gathering information, ideas, thoughts and even opinions with the aid of written documents. This human activity has been considered to be very effective in broadening the knowledge and awareness of people in their surroundings. Reading...

Lesson 1: Levels of Reading Overview Reading is the process of gathering information, ideas, thoughts and even opinions with the aid of written documents. This human activity has been considered to be very effective in broadening the knowledge and awareness of people in their surroundings. Reading can open the minds of people to worlds they never imagined could possibly exist. It is indeed significant to value reading for it helps in preserving one’s thought that might or can affect other people’s lives. Not all texts need to be understood denotatively nor connotatively; it depends on what the text requires you to understand. However, being able to unfold the surface and at the same time the underlying meaning of particular statement is a challenging task for it does not only involve linguistic knowledge but also the wisdom of the realm of the world and life experiences. In this module, you shall learn the levels of reading and the levels of signification: denotation and connotation. Lesson Proper Reading, again, is an active interaction between the reader and the text, but the reader is more involved in the process as s/he will be the one to make meaning of what is being read. These are few of the many reasons why we read. We read to get a general information of a text. There are readers who are global learners. They are the ones who need to see a bird’s eye view to have a better grasp of what is to be read. Then, we read to get specific information. Most of you do this when you do research, information-gap reading exercises. Obviously, this is done with the goal in mind of determining salient points in the text. Lastly, we read out of interest or pleasure. When you read pieces of literature that give you that emotional response, you enjoy the reading process. Which among the reasons do you find suitable to your preference? Reading is considered to have levels coming from different accounts. In this module, we will feature two: In the learning module of Castigador, he identified 5 levels. First, the literal comprehension, this is basically understanding the lexical items and surface meaning of the text being read. This level is crucial as this will be the scaffolding of the succeeding levels. Second, the interpretative comprehension, this level is understanding beyond the surface level leading to a more in depth discernment of the text. Third, the critical evaluation, this level demonstrates a deeper perception of what is being read. In here, the reader breaks down the text and process its parts to evaluate its content. Fourth, the integrative comprehension, this level is when the reader puts into application what he/she has processed from the text. When you read a book on how to be a better learner and you apply the tips you got from the text, that is you integrating. Fifth, the creative comprehension, this is more of the imaginative and innovative part of reading. When reading, the reader comes up with ideas s/he drawn out form the material and produce something out of it. Like doing experiments. In relation to the levels of reading comprehension, Nuttall (2005) identifies five basic question types commonly used for reading. The first of these is literal comprehension. By this she means that if readers do not understand the literal meaning of a particular text, then they are probably not going to get very much else out of that text. The second is reorganizing or putting the information in the text into a different order. Then come questions of inferring or ‘reading between the lines’. Writers do not always state explicitly what they mean. An efficient reader can infer meaning not explicitly stated in the passage. This may be seen as an intellectual skill as opposed to a reading skill by some, although there is clearly a measure of overlap. Question types requiring a measure of personal response are often to be found in literary passages where the reader has to argue for a particular personal response supported by reference to the text. The last type of ques- tion is quite sophisticated and not all students would need it. Questions of evaluation would require the reader to assess how effectively the writer has conveyed her intention. If the writing is intended to convince or to persuade, how convincing or persuasive is it? In reading, the most important element is the text (written discourse). Text is immensely significant in all aspects of communication. Communication is characterized using sentences in connected stretches of language. Reading materials depict this very concept as written texts are manifestations of how language is patterned and most significantly, they are marked by coherence. Without this, reading would be a burden. In text, there are surface text and deep text Surface Text: explicit expression of knowledge Deep Text: occurs during processing, leaving knowledge implicit. Implicit messages are those that are not stated but are understood as they are implied in the message itself. Moreover, Connotation and Denotation are two principal methods of describing the meanings of words. Connotation refers to the wide array of positive and negative associations that most words naturally carry with them, whereas denotation is the precise, literal definition of a word that might be found in a dictionary. A part of Introduction to Communication Science dealt with levels of signification. The denotation which is the first order of signification, and connotation, the second order of signification. Simply, these levels were referred to non- verbal messages like when you see blue it is a color (denotation), but when connoted, it could represent something like peace, heavens. In relation to reading, we do the same thing When reading, explicit expression of thoughts in reading text may impact the reader that is why, at times, one must be politically correct to avoid offense, hurtful feeling, misunderstanding on the part of the reader. As readers, it is important to understand the power of double speaking since it can mitigate situations, where you can apply in your writing, or if used negatively, it can gain false trust. Doublespeak is language that deliberately obscures, disguises, distorts, or reverses the meaning of words. Doublespeak may take the form of euphemisms (e.g. "downsizing" for layoffs, "servicing the target" for bombing), in which case it is primarily meant to make the truth sound more palatable. It may also refer to intentional ambiguity in language or to actual inversions of meaning. In such cases, doublespeak disguises the nature of the truth. Doublespeak is most closely associated with political language. As readers, you must be keen on how the language is patterned and what messages are either explicitly or implicitly conveyed. Purposes of Doublespeak The purposes of doublespeak are varied. Since this is a human tactic, it's going to be complex and multi-faceted. That said, it's something to be avoided. Let's take a look at some of the root causes. To Be Politically Correct To Hide Negativity To Make Money To Perpetuate Lies News framing Today, we’re going to explore how news stories are framed and how that framing can shape our perception of events and people. Specifically, we’ll focus on identifying three key roles that are often assigned in news stories: the hero, the villain, and the victim. Let’s start with a quick discussion. Have you ever read a news story where someone was clearly painted as the hero or the villain? Maybe a politician, a celebrity, or even a company? How did that affect your view of the story? Framing refers to how information is presented in the media to influence how we interpret a story. It’s like looking at a picture through a frame—the frame can highlight certain parts of the picture and downplay others. In news framing, there are often three main roles that stories assign to people or groups: 1. The Hero – The individual or group portrayed as morally good, courageous, or doing something admirable. 2. The Villain – The person or group cast in a negative light, often blamed for causing harm or problems. 3. The Victim – The individual or group depicted as suffering from the actions of others, often seen as powerless or in need of help. These roles are powerful because they shape how we feel about the people and events in the story. Let’s look at a brief example. Imagine a news story about a firefighter rescuing a family from a burning building. In this case: The firefighter is the hero—brave, selfless, saving lives. The fire itself might be framed as the villain—dangerous, destructive. The family is the victim—in danger, in need of help. Now, let’s think about how this framing makes us feel. We admire the firefighter, fear the fire, and feel sympathy for the family. That’s the power of framing. This brings us to an important point: the way a story is framed can introduce bias. For example, a hero in one article could be framed as a villain in another, depending on the writer's perspective or the news outlet's agenda. Let’s consider an example. Suppose there’s a news story about a protest. One outlet might frame the protesters as heroes standing up for justice, while another might frame them as villains disrupting peace. The people watching these stories might walk away with very different opinions. So, how can we become more critical consumers of news?  Pay attention to word choice. Words like “brave,” “reckless,” or “innocent” can signal how someone is being framed. Notice who is quoted. Whose voices are included or left out? This can influence the framing. Consider what’s missing. What other perspectives could be relevant? What would the story look like if it focused on someone else’s experience? By asking these questions, you can start to see beyond the surface of the story and understand the deeper dynamics at play. As we wrap up, I’d like you to think about how this framing impacts not just individual stories, but broader public opinion. Framing can influence how we view entire groups of people, institutions, or issues. Remember, while the news is a powerful source of information, it’s also shaped by those who create it. By learning to identify framing, especially these key roles of hero, villain, and victim, you’re better equipped to understand and critically engage with the stories you read.