2. Learning Objectives
To understand the importance of scanning and
skimming.
To apply skimming and scanning skills to quick
read and zoom in respectively, on required
information.
3. Introduction
Have you encountered these difficulties before?
1) Slow reading
2) Comprehension answers copied wrongly
3) Spelling mistakes made when copying from
text
4) Unable to complete Booklet A or B in time.
5) Reads several times to understand a passage.
These are all signs of poor reading skills!
4. What's Scanning?
Scanning is a search for a specific piece of
information buried in a sea of information, for
example, in Compre OE or Cloze.
Scanning happens in real-life too:
1)Performed by a computer to search for viruses.
2)Looking out for a friend in a sea of faces.
3)Searching for landmarks to reach a destination.
Q: What's the sea of information in each case?
5. Scanning for information
Scanning skill helps you in Booklets A & B by
helping you find information you want quickly.
Some of the possible uses of scanning:
1) When searching for key words
2) When searching for contextual clues
3) When searching for compre's direct answers
4) When asked to quote a word/phrase from text
Good scanning skill helps you effectively
locate key information while ignoring others.
6. Scanning in action
Since scanning helps you to find the
information you want, how does it work?
One important part of this skill is to see which
words belong together as a meaningful unit or
sense unit.
A sense unit is the equivalent of the NAVAP
(Noun, Adjective, Verb, Adverb, Prepositional)
phrase.
Each NAVAP Phrase is a key idea.
7. Sense units
Sentence: The heroic and quick-thinking
firefighters arrived quickly after the alarm and
put out the flames so fast that little was burned.
Sense units: The heroic and quick-thinking
firefighters / arrived quickly / after the alarm /
put out the flames / so fast / that little was
burned.
Each of these belong to one sense unit or
NAVA phrase.
8. Sense units identified
Noun phrase – The firefighters
Verb phrase – arrived quickly / put out the
flames / little was burned.
Adjectival phrase – heroic and quick-thinking
Adverbial phrase – after the alarm / so fast
9. Tips in sensing Sense Units
1)Know what you are looking for. This sounds
simple but if you don't have an idea of what you
are looking for in the first place, you will not
find it!
2)Sense units are made up of NAVA Phrases. So
look for them.
10. Skimming
Skimming is a cousin of scanning.
Instead of looking for answers, you quick read
the NAVA phrases to form an overall idea of
the text.
It helps you form an early understanding.
It also activates your own knowledge about
the topic.
This will build your comprehension as you read
a second time.
11. Learning Activity
Skim and scan the sense units of this sentence for
the answers to the questions.
In the centre of the beach stood ten platforms,
where a large army of helpers held up the kites,
and a row of tense competitors holding the lines
of their kites waited for the countdown to
release their kites.
Q: What is the text's story about?
Q: Which word in the text has the same
meaning as 'many people'?
12. Learning Activity Answers
In the centre (Pre P) of the beach (NP) stood
ten platforms (NP), where a large army of
helpers (NP) held up (VP) the kites, and a row
of tense competitors (NP) holding the lines of
their kites (VP) waited for the countdown
(AdvP) to release their kites. (VP)
The story is about kite-flying competition.
The word is 'army'.
13. Discussion
What does scanning do?
What does skimming do?
How do they work?
14. In Summary
Scanning helps you to locate key ideas
effectively in Compre OE and Cloze Passages.
Skimming gives us an overall idea of the text.
Scanning involves spotting groups of words or
NAVA phrases as these represent key ideas for
answers. Skimming is the reading of NAVA
phrases in the beginning stage.
