U N I V E R S I D A D E F E D E R A L DE S A N T A C A T A R I N A P ó S - G R A D U A Ç S O EM I N G L Ê S E L I T E R A T U R A C O R R E S P O N D E N T E T H E E F F E C T S OF M A I N IDEA I D E N T I F I C A T I O N I N S T R U C T I O N ON EFL S T U D E N T S ' R E A D I N G C O M P R E H E N S I O N A N D S U M M A R Y W R I T I N G POR R O S E A N N E R O C H A T A V A R E S D i s s e r t a ç ã o s u b m e t i d a à U n i v e r s i d a d e F e d e r a l de S a n t a C a t a r i n a p a r a a o b t e n ç ã o do g r a u de M E S T R E EM L E T R A S F L O R I A N Ó P O L I S S E T E M B R O , 1991
ii
A o s m e u s pais, O s a i r e R o s e n i .
iii E s t a d i s s e r t a ç ã o foi j u l g a d a a d e q u a d a e a p r o v a d a em s u a f o r m a fin al p e l o p r o g r a m a d e P ó s - G r a d u a ç ã o e m I ng l ê s p a r a a o b t e n ç ã o d o g r a u d e M E S T R E E M L E T R A S opçeío I n g l ê s e L i t e r a t u r a C o r r e s p o n d e n t e 11 1v o I . R i s t o f f C O O R D E N A D O R -
T
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Dra. Loni K r e i s T a g li e b e r O R I E N T A D O R A B A N C A E X A M I N A D O R A :-&JVUÀ
1
Dra. Loni K r e i s T a g l i e b e r Dr. J o s é L u i z M e u r e r Dr. H i 1 ár i o-iTnSci o B o h n F l o r i a n ó p o l i s , 06 d e s e t e m b r o d e 1991.iv A C K N O W L E D G M E N T S I am g r a t e f u l to m a n y p e o p l e w h o c o n t r i b u t e d t h e i r i d e as and f a i th to t h e d e v e l o p m e n t of t h i s thes i s. I w o u l d li k e to e x p r e s s my s i n c e r e t h a n k s to: all t he p r o f e s s o r s of t h e p r o g r a m of P d s - g r a d u a ç ã o em i n g l e s e l i t e r a t u r a c o r r e s p o n d e n t e for t h e i r i n s i g h t s in t o so m a n y a s p e c t s of E n g l i s h ; the m e m b e r s of t h e r e a d i n g l a b o r a t o r y of U F S C w h o m a d e me a c u t e l y a w a r e of the i m p o r t a n c e of " r e a d i n g " ; t he t e a c h e r s and s t u d e n t s of C o l é g i o de A p l i c a ç ã o in F l o r i a n ó p o l i s w h o m a d e the c o l l e c t i n g of d a t a p o s s i b l e ; P r o f e s s o r Dr. G i l e s L. I s t r e w h o s e a s s i s t a n c e wa s i n v a l u a b l e t h r o u g h o u t d a t a a n a l y s i s ; and f i na l l y , C N P Q and C A P E S for t h e f i n a n c i a l s u p p o r t . A b o v e all, s p e c i a l t h a n k s to P r o f e s s o r D r a . L o ni K r e i s T a g l i e b e r w h o s e c o n s t a n t e n c o u r a g e m e n t , s u p p o r t and c o n s t r u c t i v e c r i t i c i s m m a d e the c o m p l e t i o n of t h i s t h e s i s p o s s i b l e . F l o r i a n ó p o l i s , 06 de s e t e m b r o de 1991
V T H E E F F E C T S OF M A I N ID E A I D E N T I F I C A T I O N I N S T R U C T I O N O N E F L S T U D E N T S ' R E A D I N G C O M P R E H E N S I O N A ND S U M M A R Y W R I T I N G R O S E A N N E R O C H A T A V A R E S U N I V E R S I D A D E F E D E R A L DE S A N T A C A T A R I N A 1V91 S u p e r v i s i n g P r o f e s s o r : Loni K r e i s T a g l i e b e r A B S T R A C T T h i s s t u d y e x a m i n e d the e f f e c t s of m a i n idea i d e n t i f i c a t i o n i n s t r u c t i o n on B r a z i l i a n E F L s t u d e n t s ’ r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n and s u m m a r y w r i t i n g of e x p o s i t o r y texts. T w e n t y - f o u r low level E F L s t u d e n t s of C o l é g i o de A p l i c a ç ã o , a p u b l i c h i g h - s c h o o l in F l o r i a n ó p o l i s , S a n t a C a t a r i n a , p a r t i c i p a t e d in th e s tu dy . S u b j e c t s w e r e d i v i d e d into two g r o u p s : an e x p e r i m e n t a l g r o u p and a c o n t r o l g roup. The e x p e r i m e n t a l g r o u p r e c e i v e d i n s t r u c t i o n on i d e n t i f y i n g ma i n i d e a s in e x p o s i t o r y t e x t s w h i l e t he c o n t r o l g r o u p r e c e i v e d i n s t r u c t i o n on v o c a b u l a r y and g r a m m a r k n o w l e d g e . T h e s u b j e c t s ' E n g l i s h a nd P o r t u g u e s e r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n w a s a s s e s s e d t h r o u g h p r e and post t e s t s w it h m u l t i p l e c h o i c e and o p e n - e n d e d items. T h e s u b j e c t s ' s u m m a r y w r i t i n g w a s a l s o p r e and post t e s t e d by h a v i n g t h e m s u m m a r i z e e x p o s i t o r y t e x t s ( E n g l i s h and P o r t u g u e s e ) t h e y had read. The d i f f e r e n c e of m e a n s t e s t s p e r f o r m e d on t he d a t a s h o w e d that i n s t r u c t i o n on m ai n id e a i d e n t i f i c a t i o n e x e r t e d a s i g n i f i c a n t i n f l u e n c e on t h e r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n of s t u d e n t s in the e x p e r i m e n t a l gr o u p . H o w e v e r , r e s u l t s r e v e a l e d that i n s t r u c t i o n on m a in i d e a i d e n t i f i c a t i o n o n l y p a r t i a l l y i n f l u e n c e d s t u d e n t s ' s u m m a r y w r i t i n g . T h i s o u t c o m e s t r e n g t h e n s th e f i n d i n g s of p r e v i o u s r e s e a r c h in t he a r e a w h i c h suggest that t h e c u r r i c u l a r c o m b i n a t i o n of reading and w r i t i n g can i m p r o v e b o t h s k i ll s, and that n e i t h e r o nl y w r i t i n g n o r o n l y r e a d i n g i n s t r u c t i o n is s u f f i c i e n t to i n c r e a s e s t u d e n t s ' r e a d i n g and w r i t i n g qu ality.
vi T HE E F F E C T S OF M A I N I D E A I D E N T I F I C A T I O N I N S T R U C T I O N ON E F L S T U D E N T S ' R E A D I N G C O M P R E H E N S I O N AND S U M M A R Y W R I T I N G R O S E A N N E R O C H A T A V A R E S U N I V E R S I D A D E F E D E R A L DE S A N T A C A T A R I N A 1991 S u p e r v i s i n g P r o f e s s o r : L on i K r e i s T a g l i e b e r R E S U M O O o b j e t i v o do p r e s e n t e t r a b a l h o é e x a m i n a r a i n f l u ê n c i a do e n s i n o de i d e n t i f i c a ç ã o de i d é i a s p r i n c i p a i s em t e x t o s e x p o s i t i v o s na c o m p r e e n s ã o e e s c r i t a de r e s u m o s de a l u n o s b r a s i l e i r o s e s t u d a n d o I n g l ê s c o m o l í n g u a e s t r a n g e i r a . V i n t e e q u a t r o a l u n o s de n í vel b a i x o em l í n g u a i n g l e s a e m a t r i c u l a d o s no C o l é g i o de A p l i c a ç ã o , u m a e s c o l a p ú b l i c a em F l o r i a n ó p o l i s , S a n t a C a t a r i n a , p a r t i c i p a r a m do e s t u d o . Os s u j e i t o s f o r a m d i v i d i d o s em d o i s g r u p o s : e x p e r i m e n t a l e c o n t r o l e . 0 g r u p o e x p e r i m e n t a l r e c e b e u i n s t r u ç ã o em i d e n t i f i c a ç ã o de i d é i a s p r i n c i p a i s e o g r u p o c o n t r o l e e m v o c a b u l á r i o e g r a m á t i c a . A c o m p r e e n s ã o de l e i t u r a em i n g l ê s e p o r t u g u ê s d o s s u j e i t o s foi a v a l i a d a a t r a v é s de p r e e pós t e s t e s c o n t e n d o p e r g u n t a s a b e r t a s e de m ú l t i p l a e s c o l h a . A p r o f i c i ê n c i a na e s c r i t a de r e s u m o s foi t e s t a d a a n t e s e d e p o i s da i n s t r u ç ã o a t r a v é s de r e s u m o s de t e x t o s e x p o s i t i v o s (em i n g l ê s e p o r t u g u ê s ) que os s u j e i t o s e s c r e v e r a m d e p o i s de l id o os t e x t o s . Os c á l c u l o s e s t a t í s t i c o s r e a l i z a d o s p a r a o b s e r v a r a p r o b a b i l i d a d e de s i g n i f i c â n c i a da d i f e r e n ç a e n t r e m é d i a s d o s g r u p o s i n d i c a r a m que o e n s i n o de i d e n t i f i c a ç ã o de i d é i a s p r i n c i p a i s e x e r c e u um a i n f l u ê n c i a s i g n i f i c a t i v a na c o m p r e e n s ã o d o s s u j e i t o s do g r u p o e x p e r iment al . 'Jor o u t r o lado, os r e s u l t a d o s r e v e l a r a m que o e n s i n o de i d e n t i f i c a ç ã o de i d é i a s p r i n c i p a i s a p e n a s i n f l u e n c i o u p a r c i a l m e n t e a e s c r i t a de r e s u m o s do g r u p o e x p e r i m e n t a l . E s t e r e s u l t a d o c o r r o b o r a c o m os a c h a d o s de p e s q u i s a s a n t e r i o r e s na á r e a de l e i t u r a que s u g e r e m que a i n t e g r a ç ã o do e n s i n o da l e i t u r a e e s c r i t a p o d e r á a j u d a r a a p e r f e i ç o a r a m b a s as c a p a c i d a d e s , e que a i n s t r u ç ã o de a p e n a s a l e i t u r a ou de a p e n a s a e s c r i t a n ã o é s u f i c i e n t e p a r a m e l h o r a r a q u a l i d a d e de a m b a s as h a b i l i d a d e s .
v i i T A B L E OF C O N T E N T S P A G E L I S T OF T A B L E S ... IX L I S T OF A P P E N D I C E S ... X C H A P T E R I - I N T R O D U C T I O N 1.1. Rat i o n a l e ... 01 1.2. S t a t e m e n t of the P ro b l e m , and H y p o t h e s e s of the S t u d y ... 08 1.3. L i m i t a t i o n s and S i g n i f i c a n c e of the S t u d y ... 10 C H A P T E R II - R E V I E W OF THE R E L E V A N T L I T E R A T U R E 2.1. The R e l a t i o n s h i p b e t w e e n R e a d i n g and W r i t i n g . . 11 2.1 1. The I n f l u e n c e of R e a d i n g upon W r i t i n g .. 16 2.2. R e a d i n g C o m p r e h e n s i o n and the I d e n t i f i c a t i o n of M ain I d e a s ... 17 2.3. M a i n Idea I d e n t i f i c a t i o n and S u m m a r y Wr it ing Sk i 1 1 ... ... 36 C H A P T E R III - M E T H O D O L O G Y 3.1. S u b j e c t s ... 45 3.2. M a t e r i a l s ... 48 3.2.1. I n s t r u c t i o n a l M a t e r i a l s ... 48 3.2.2. M e a s u r i n g I n s t r u m e n t s ... 4? 3 . 2 . 2 . 1 . E n g l i s h L a n g u a g e P r o f i c i e n c y Test ... 49 3 2 2 2. R e a d i n g C o m p r e h e n s i o n T e s t s ... 5 & 3 . 2 . 2 3 . Text S u m m a r i E a t i o n T e s t s ... 52 3.3. The P i lo t S t u d y ... 52 3.4. P r o c e d u r e s ... 53 3.4.1. T e s t i n g P r o c e d u r e s 53
v i i i 3 .4 P. In st r u c t i o n a 1 P r o c e d u r e s ... ... ...54 3 . 4 . 2 . 1 . E x p e r i m e n t a l G r o u p ... .. 55 3 . 4 . 2 . 2 . C o n t r o l G r o u p ...58 3.5. S c o r i n g ... .. 59 3 .5 . 1. E n g l i s h L a n g u a g e P r o f i c i e n c y Test ...60 3 .5 . 2. E n g l i s h and P o r t u g u e s e R e a d i n g C o m p r e h e n s i o n T e s t s 60 3 . 5 3. S u m m a r i z a t i o n T e s t s of the E n g l i s h and P o r t u g u e s e T e x t s ...61 C H A P T E R IK> - D I S C U S S I O N A N D A N A L Y S I S OF R E S U L T S 4.1. P r e l i m i n a r i e s ... .. 64 4.2. R e l i a b i l i t y Test ... .. 6 7 4.3. R e a d i n g C o m p r e h e n s i o n T e s t s ... ... 68 4 .3 . 1. R e s u l t s b e t w e e n G r o u p s ... .. 68 4 .3.2. R e s u l t s w i t h i n G r o u p s ... .. 7 0 4.4. S u m m a r i z a t i o n T e s t s 75 4 .4.1. R e s u l t s b e t w e e n g r o u p s ... .. 7 5 4 .4.2. R e s u l t s w i t h i n G r o u p s ... 78 4.5. D i s c u s s i o n 8 3 4. 5.1. H y p o t h e s i s 1 ... . . . 8 4 4 .5 . 2. H y p o t h e s i s 2 ... .. 8 6 C H A P T E R V - C O N C L U S I O N S 5.1. C o m m e n t s and T e a c h i n g I m p l i c a t i o n s ... .. 9 0 5.2. L i m i t a t i o n s of t h e S t u d y and R e c o m m e n d a t i o n s for F u r t h e r R e s e a r c h ... .. 92 B I B L I O G R A P H Y ... ... 9 5 A P P E N D I C E S ... ... 102
L I S T OF T A B L E S T A B L E P A G E 1 - B e t w e e n g r o u p means: E n g l i s h p r o f i c i e n c y test ... 46 2 - B e t w e e n g r o u p c o r r e l a t i o n : E n g l i s h and P o r t u g u e s e r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n p r e and post -t est s ... 67 3 - B e t w e e n g r o u p means: E n g l i s h and P o r t u g u e s e r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n p r e - t e s t s ... 69 4 - B e t w e e n g r o u p means: E n g l i s h and P o r t u g u e s e r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n p o s t - t e s t s ... 70 5 - W i t h i n g r o u p means: E n g l i s h r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n p re and p o s t - t e s t s ... 71 6 - W i t h i n g r o u p means. P o r t u g u e s e r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n pre and p o s t - t e s t s ... 72 7 - W i t h i n g r o u p m eans. E n g l i s h and P o r t u g u e s e r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n p r e - t e s t s ... 73 8 - W i t h i n g r o u p me an s : E n g l i s h and P o r t u g u e s e r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n p o s t - t e s t s ... 74 9 - B e t w e e n g r o u p m e an s: E n g l i s h and P o r t u g u e s e s u m m a r i z a t i o n p r e - t e s t s ... 75 10- B e t w e e n g r o u p m ea n s: E n g l i s h and P o r t u g u e s e s u m m a r i zat i on p o s t - t e s t s ... 77 11- W i t h i n g r o u p means: E n g l i s h s u m m a r i z a t i o n pre and p o s t - t e s t s ... 78 12- W i t h i n g r ou p means-. P o r t u g u e s e s u m m a r i z a t i o n pre and p o s t - t e s t s ... 79 13- W i t h i n g r o u p means: E n g l i s h and P o r t u g u e s e s u m m a r i z a t i o n p r e - t e s t s ... 81 14- W i t h i n g r o u p m e an s : E n g l i s h and P o r t u g u e s e s u m m a r i s a t i o n p o s t - t e s t s ... 82 xi
X L I S T OF A P P E N D I C E S A P P E N D I X P A G E A - I n s t r u c t i o n a l M a t e r i a l ... 1@2 B - S a m p l e L e s s o n E m p l o y i n g the D i rect I n s t r u c t i o n Model ... 131 C - E n g l i s h L a n g u a g e P r o f i c i e n c y Test ... 132
D - A n s w e r Key for the E n g l i s h L a n g u a g e P r o f i c i e n c y Test ... ... 138
E - E n g l i s h R e a d i n g C o m p r e h e n s i o n P r e - T e s t ... 139
F - S u g g e s t e d A n s w e r Key for the E n g l i s h R e a d i n g C o m p r e h e n s i o n P r e - T e s t ... 143
G - E n g l i s h R e a d i n g C o m p r e h e n s i o n P o s t - T e s t ... 144
H - S u g g e s t e d A n s w e r Key for the E n g l i s h R e a d i n g C o m p r e h e n s i o n P o s t - T e s t 148 I - P o r t u g u e s e R e a d i n g C o m p r e h e n s i o n P r e - T e s t ... 150
J - S u g g e s t e d A n s w e r Key for the P o r t u g u e s e R e a d i n g C o m p r e h e n s i o n P r e - T e s t ... 155
K - P o r t u g u e s e R e a d i n g C o m p r e h e n s i o n P o s t - T e s t ... 156
L - S u g g e s t e d A n s w e r Key for the P o r t u g u e s e R e a d i n g C o m p r e h e n s i o n P o s t - T e s t ... 161 M - E n g l i s h S u m m a r i z a t i o n P r e - T e s t ... 162 N - E n g l i s h S u m m a r i z a t i o n P o s t - T e s t ... 163 0 - P o r t u g u e s e S u m m a r i z a t i o n P r e - T e s t ... 164 P - P o r t u g u e s e S u m m a r i z a t i o n P o s t - T e s t ... 165 Q - S a m p l e of I n s t r u c t i o n G i v e n to the J u d g e s to C l a s s i f y t h e L e v e l of I m p o r t a n c e of the S e n t e n c e s in t he T e x t s Us e d for the P re and Post S u m m a r i z a t i o n T e s t s 166 R - R e s u l t s of S e n t e n c e C l a s s i f i c a t i o n of the T e x t s U s e d for th e P r e and Post S u m m a r i z a t i o n T e s t s ... 167
S - S u b j e c t s ' R a w S c o r e s on t he P re and Post T e s t s ... 171
C H A P T E R I I N T R O D U C T I O N T h e p u r p o s e of t h i s s t u d y is to i n v e s t i g a t e t he e f f e c t s of i n s t r u c t i o n on m a i n i d e a i d e n t i f i c a t i o n u p o n s e c o n d a r y E n g l i s h as a f o r e i g n l a n g u a g e (EFL) s t u d e n t s ' c o m p r e h e n s i o n of E n g l i s h t e n t s and s u m m a r y w r i t i n g . 1 . 1 . Rat i o n a l e T h e i de a of d e v e l o p i n g t h i s r e s e a r c h e m e r g e d d u r i n g the p e r i o d of 1 98 7 to 1 9 8 9 w h i l e t h i s r e s e a r c h e r w o r k e d at the L a b o r a t ó r i o C l í n i c o de L e i t u r a of U n i v e r s i d a d e F e d e r a l de S a n t a C a t a r i n a (UFSC). In t h i s l a b o r a t o r y , u n d e r g r a d u a t e s t u d e n t s f r o m s e v e r a l a r e a s r e c e i v e r e m e d i a l h el p and i n s t r u c t i o n to i m p r o v e t h e i r r e a d i n g s k i l l s . It h as be e n o b s e r v e d that the m a j o r c o m p l a i n t of most s t u d e n t s w h o seek h e l p at the l a b o r a t o r y is r e l a t e d to t h e i r i n a b i l i t y to c o m p r e h e n d t e n t s a nd to t h e i r d i f f i c u l t y to w r i t e e f f i c i e n t l y about the c o n t e n t o f t h e i r r e a d i n g s b o t h in P o r t u g u e s e and in t h e f o r e i g n 1 a n g u a g e . B r a z i l i a n c o l l e g e s t u d e n t s m a j o r i n g in f i e l d s su c h as M e c h a n i c a l E n g i n e e r i n g , C h e m i c a l E n g i n e e r i n g , D e n t i s t r y , M e d i c i n e , C o m p u t e r S c i e n c e , and m a n y o t h er s , at m o r e a d v a n c e d s t a g e s of t h e i r p r o g r a m s , are r e q u i r e d to re a d a g re a t deal of m a t e r i a l s about t h e i r s u b j e c t s of s t u d y w r i t t e n in f o r e i g n l a n g u a g e s . It is i m p o r t a n t for t h e s e f u t u r e p r o f e s s i o n a l s to
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h a v e a c c e s s to t h e most re c en t p u b l i c a t i o n s in t h e i r f i e l d s of s t u d y , and most of t h e p u b l i c a t i o n s p e r t a i n i n g to the v a r i o u s f i e l d s m e n t i o n e d a b o v e a re u s u a l l y f o u n d on l y in E n g l i s h b o o k s and p e r i o d i c a l s (Cohen, G l a s m a n , R o s e n b a u m - C o h e n , F e r r a r a , and Fine, 1988). Th e t y p e of r e a d i n g skill t h e s e s t u d e n t s n e e d in o r d e r to r e a d E n g l i s h t e n t s c o n s i s t s of e x t r a c t i n g the e s s e n t i a l i n f o r m a t i o n , i. e., the m a i n i d e a s from t h e t e x t s so that th e y may b r i e f l y s u m m a r i z e t h i s i n f o r m a t i o n in w r i t t e n f o r m in t h e i r n a t i v e l a n g u a g e - P o r t u g u e s e .
H o w e v e r , as d i s c u s s e d b e f o r e , t h e s e s t u d e n t s h a v e great d i f f i c u l t i e s w h e n f ac e d w i t h t e x t s in E n g l i s h and r e q u i r e d to p e r f o r m s u c h tasks. It s e e m s that a l t h o u g h most B r a z i l i a n c o l l e g e s o f f e r t w o or t h r e e s e m e s t e r s of E n g l i s h c l a s s e s to s t u d e n t s of t h o s e fields, t h e i r r e a d i n g p r o b l e m s c o n t i n u e , and, as a r e s u l t t h e y b e c o m e so f r u s t r a t e d that they do not r e a d the a s s i g n e d t e x t s at all or they te nd to look for m o r e s i m p l i f i e d b o o k s on t h e s a m e s u b j e c t s in P o r t u g u e s e w hich, s o m e t i m e s , r o u g h l y c o v e r t h e s a m e m a t e r i a l (C ohen et al, 1988). A s i m i l a r p r o b l e m o c c u r s w h en s t u d e n t s are r e q u i r e d to s u m m a r i z e an E n g l i s h text t h e y w e r e a s s i g n e d to read and to t a k e n o t e s for a p a p e r t h e y h a v e t o w r i t e later, or to p r e s e n t a w r i t e r ' s point of view, e t c . . T he y u s u a l l y h a v e d i f f i c u l t i e s to d e t e c t the m a i n i d e a s o f a text and to s u m m a r i s e it. T h i s may b e b e c a u s e u s u a l l y t h e y h a v e not r e c e i v e d a p p r o p r i a t e i n s t r u c t i o n to p e r f o r m t h e s e t a s k s (Lima, 1984).
It is also p o s s i b l e that the rant s of the reading and w r i t i n g d i f f i c u l t i e s t h e s e s t u d e n t s face in c o l l e g e can be
3 t r a c e d back to t h e i r h i g h s c h o o l t r a i n i n g , m o r e s p e c i f i c a l l y to t h e i r t r a i n i n g in t h e n a t i v e l a n g u a g e . M a n y B r a z i l i a n c o l l e g e t e a c h e r s h a v e f r e q u e n t l y e x p r e s s e d t h e i r c o n c e r n o v e r t he fact that s t u d e n t s w h o h a v e f i n i s h e d h i g h s c h o o l and e n t e r e d c o l l e g e do not k n o w h o w to r e a d and w r i t e in P o r t u g u e s e , a l t h o u g h d u r i n g t h e i r e l e m e n t a r y and s e c o n d a r y s c h o o l i n g they c e r t a i n l y w e r e r e q u i r e d to r e a d and w r i t e s u b s t a n t i a l l y ( C a v a l c a n t i , 1984). P e r h a p s o n e of the c a u s e s of s t u d e n t s ' p r o b l e m s wi t h t h e s e s k i l l s is the fact that the t e a c h i n g of P o r t u g u e s e at e l e m e n t a r y a nd s e c o n d a r y sc hool t e n d s to f o c u s i n s t r u c t i o n on g r a m m a r and m e m o r i z a t i o n r a t h e r than on the c o m p r e h e n s i o n of t ext s . A s r e g a r d s t h e i n s t r u c t i o n of E n g l i s h in h i g h s c h oo l , the s i t u a t i o n is not v e r y d i f f e r e n t . In g e n e r a l t h e f o c us of t e a c h i n g is on g r a m m a t i c a l s t r u c t u r e s , as may be v e r i f i e d in t h e E F L m a n u a l s u s e d in most h i g h s c h o o l s , at least in t h i s s t at e . As a r e s u l t , w h e n s t u d e n t s f i n i s h hi g h s c h o o l , they can n e i t h e r w r i t e n o r r e a d the s i m p l e s t text in E n g l i s h , a l t h o u g h t h e y h a v e had fi v e or si x y e a r s of E n g l i s h d u r i n g t h e i r s e c o n d a r y s c h o o l i n g . So, p e r h a p s it c o u l d be s a id that the r e a d i n g and w r i t i n g d i f f i c u l t i e s in first and s e c o n d l a n g u a g e s a r e r e l a t e d . R e s e a r c h ha s s u g g e s t e d that lack of g o o d r e a d i n g s k i l l s in t h e first l a n g u a g e may r e t a r d or at least m a k e the a c q u i s i t i o n of g o o d r e a d i n g s k i l l s in a s e c o n d l a n g u a g e m o r e d i f f i c u l t , and by the s a m e token, g o od r e a d i n g s k i l l s in o n e ' s n a t i v e l a n g u a g e may f a c i l i t a t e the a c q u i s i t i o n of g o o d r e a d i n g
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s k i l l s in a s e c o n d l a n g u a g e ( A l d e r s o n , 1984). H o w e v e r , r e s e a r c h f i n d i n g s on t h i s i s s u e are not v e r y c o n s i s t e n t yet.
T he p r e s e n t s t u d y is an a t t e m p t at m i n i m i z i n g the p r o b l e m s that B r a z i l i a n c o l l e g e s t u d e n t s m a j o r i n g in C h e m i c a l E n g i n e e r i n g , M e c h a n i c a l E n g i n e e r i n g , D e n t i s t r y , etc. face w he n t h e y a r e r e q u i r e d to r e a d e x p o s i t o r y t e x t s in E n g l i s h in o r d e r to e x t r a c t the m a i n i d e a s f r o m t h e s e t e x t s and to s u m m a r i z e t h e m in P o r t u g u e s e . It s e e m s p l a u s i b l e that t h e s e p r o b l e m s c o u l d be m i n i m i z e d if E n g l i s h i n s t r u c t i o n d u r i n g the last two y e a r s in h i g h s c h o o l f o c u s e d m o r e on c o m p r e h e n s i o n and p r o d u c t i o n of text than on g r a m m a r . It was t h o u g h t that t e c h n i q u e s to a c c o m p l i s h t h i s s h o u l d be i n c o r p o r a t e d in the t e a c h i n g of E n g l i s h in h i g h school. S i n c e the b e g i n n i n g of the 1980's, s o m e r e s e a r c h e r s h a v e a r g u e d that r e a d i n g and w r i t i n g s h a r e c o m m o n c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s w h i c h i n v o l v e m e a n i n g m a k i n g . It h a s b e e n s u g g e s t e d that b o t h s k i l l s a r e a c t s of c o m p o s i n g w h i c h d e m a n d go o d r e a d e r s a n d / o r w r i t e r s to plan, d r af t , al ign, r e v i e w and m o n i t o r t h e i r work ( P e t r o s k y , 1982; T i e r n e y and P e a r s o n , 1983). Thus, t h e id e a of c o n n e c t i n g r e a d i n g and w r i t i n g i n s t r u c t i o n in the c l a s s r o o m in o r d e r to e n h a n c e t h e s t u d e n t s ' p e r f o r m a n c e in b o t h s k i l l s h a s b e e n s t r o n g l y a d v o c a t e d . S o m e r e s e a r c h e r s in t h e a r e a h a v e d e v e l o p e d c l a s s r o o m a c t i v i t i e s in w h i c h r e a d i n g and w r i t i n g s k i l l s a r e c o m b i n e d . O b e r l i n and S h u g a r m a n (1988), for i n s t a n c e , p r o p o s e d a p r e w r i t i n g activ i t y in whi ch s t u d e n t s can r e late r e a ding to w r i t i n g . S a nt a , D a i l e y and N e l s o n (1985) s u g g e s t e d the
5 f o l l o w i n g f o u r - s t e p i n s t r u c t i o n a l p r o c e s s : (1) f r e e - r e s p o n s e , (S) o p i n i o n - p r o o f , (3) w r i t i n g , and (4) p e e r e d i t i n g , in w h i c h b o t h r e a d i n g and w r i t i n g s k i l l s are c o o r d i n a t e d . In a n o t h e r a c t i v i t y , S a n a c o r e (1985) c o m b i n e d the u s e of p r i o r k n o w l e d g e and text s t r u c t u r e p r o c e d u r e s to en ha n c e s t u d e n t s ' a w a r e n e s s of text s t r u c t u r e and c o n t e n t k n o w l e d g e . F i n a l l y , M i c c i n a t i (1988) p r o p o s e d a n o t e t a k i n g p r o c e d u r e , n a m e l y m a p p i n g in w h i c h s t u d e n t s a r e r e q u i r e d to s e l e c t t he most i m p o r t a n t p o i n t s in a text by t h i n k i n g h o w th e i n f o r m a t i o n is r e l a t e d and, then, to i l l u s t r a t e t h i s m a t e r i a l g r a p h i c a l l y . A l t h o u g h t h e s e a c t i v i t i e s h a v e d i f f e r e n t p r o c e d u r e s , all of t h e m h a v e b e e n s u g g e s t e d as e f f e c t i v e d e v i c e s for the d e v e l o p m e n t of s t u d e n t s ' r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n , p r o d u c t i o n of texts, and a c q u i s i t i o n of c o n t e n t b e c a u s e t h e y may d e v e l o p : (1) s t u d e n t s ' p r i o r k n o w l e d g e , (2) s t u d e n t s ' own m o n i t o r i n g on the task, and (3) s t u d e n t s ' a w a r e n e s s of t h e o r g a n i E a t i o n of the text.
M o r e o v e r , r e s e a r c h on the i n t e g r a t i o n of r e a d i n g and w r i t i n g a c t i v i t i e s c o n d u c t e d wi t h n a t i v e s p e a k e r s of E n g l i s h h a s s u g g e s t e d that o ne skill can i m p r o v e the o t he r. T i e r n e y , S ot e r, O ' F l a h a v a n and M c G i n l e y (1989), for i n s t a n c e , i n v e s t i g a t e d t h e e f f e c t s of c o m b i n i n g r e a d i n g and w r i t i n g up o n u n d e r g r a d u a t e s t u d e n t s ' c r i t i c a l t h i n k i n g . T h ey f o u n d out that t h i s c o m b i n a t i o n of s k i l l s p r o d u c e d b e t t e r r e s u l t s t h an wh e n s t u d e n t s u s e d r e a d i n g and w r i t i n g s e p a r a t e l y . In o t h e r s t u d i e s w h i c h i n c l u d e d b o t h r e a d i n g and w r i t i n g s k i l l s , r e s e a r c h e r s i n v e s t i g a t e d t h e e f f e c t s of s u m m a r i s a t i o n t r a i n i n g up o n s t u d e n t s ' r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n and p r o d u c t i o n of t e x t s and
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■Found s i g n i f i c a n t d i f f e r e n c e s in s t u d e n t s ' test s c o r e s a f t e r t h e t r a i n i n g ( T a y l o r and Beach, 1984; R i n e h a r t , Stahl and E r i c k s o n , 1 9 86 ) .
But, a l t h o u g h r e a d i n g and w r i t i n g h a v e s o m e c o m m o n c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s , t h e n a t u r e of the p r o c e s s e s i n v o l v e d in t h e s e s k i l l s is d i s t i n c t and t h i s s h o u l d not be d i s r e g a r d e d . A c c o r d i n g to S h a n a h a n (1988), b e c a u s e of t h e i r d i f f e r e n c e s one skil l c a n n o t r e p l a c e the other, but t he y may be i n t e g r a t e d in c l a s s r o o m i n s t r u c t i o n . H o w e v e r , t h e a u t h o r a d v e r t s that b e f o r e i n t e r r e l a t i n g r e a d i n g and w r i t i n g in c l a s s r o o m i n s t r u c t i o n , t e a c h e r s s h o u l d c o n s i d e r t h e i r s t u d e n t s ' level and the i n f l u e n c e that o n e s i n g l e c o m p o n e n t of r e a d i n g (main idea i d e n t i f i c a t i o n , for e x a m p l e ) mi ght h a v e on o n e s i n g l e c o m p o n e n t of w r i t i n g (such as s u m m a r i z i n g ) . A c c o r d i n g to S h a n a h a n (1984), t h i s is an a d e q u a t e p r o c e d u r e s i n c e the n a t u r e of t h e r e a d i n g and w r i t i n g c o n n e c t i o n mi ght c h a n g e w i t h l e a r n i n g , or d e v e l o p m e n t . In o t h e r w or d s, what s t u d e n t s lear n in r e a d i n g and w r i t i n g in o n e s t a g e of t h e i r s c h o o l i n g can be q u a l i t a t i v e l y d i f f e r e n t f r o m what th ey h a v e l e a r n e d b e f o r e or f r om what t he y will l e a rn in the next stage.
B a s e d on S h a n a h a n ' s (1984) view, s o m e s t u d i e s w e r e d e v e l o p e d to i n v e s t i g a t e t he i n f l u e n c e that o n e sk i l l might h a v e on t h e o ther. S t o t s k y (1983), for e x a m p l e , r e v i e w e d a g r o u p of s t u d i e s e s p e c i a l l y d e s i g n e d to m e a s u r e the i n f l u e n c e of w r i t i n g u p o n r e a d i n g . Th e f i n d i n g s of t h e s e s t u d i e s h a v e s u g g e s t e d that ins t r u c t i o n an writi ng i m p r o v e s s t u d e n t s ' r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n and l e a r n i n g of c o n t e n t . Yet, she found
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that v e r y few s t u d i e s had b e e n d e v e l o p e d in o r d e r to e x a m i n e t h e i n f l u e n c e of r e a d i n g up o n w r i t i n g .
A m o n g t h e s e few s t u d i e s , s o m e h a v e c o n c e n t r a t e d on the e f f e c t s that i n s t r u c t i o n of ma i n idea i d e n t i f i c a t i o n may h a v e on s t u d e n t s ' r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n and w r i t i n g sk i ll . B a u m a n n (1984), for e x a m p l e , e x a m i n e d t h e e f f e c t i v e n e s s of a d i re c t i n s t r u c t i o n m od e l for t e a c h i n g the skil l of i d e n t i f y i n g m a i n i d e a s to s t u d e n t s w h o a r e n a t i v e s p e a k e r s of E n g l i s h . R e s u l t s of th e s t u d y s u g g e s t e d that d i r e c t i n s t r u c t i o n i n c r e a s e d s t u d e n t s ' c o m p r e h e n s i o n of m a i n i d e a s and i m p r o v e d t h e i r abil i t y of writing outli nes . In a n o ther s tudy, Sjostrorn and H a r e (1984) i n v e s t i g a t e d the i n f l u e n c e of i n s t r u c t i o n in m a i n i d e a i d e n t i f i c a t i o n on n a t i v e E n g l i s h s p e a k e r s ' re a di n g, c o m p r e h e n s i o n and s u m m a r y w r i t i n g . R e s u l t s i n d i c a t e d i m p r o v e m e n t in s t u d e n t s ' s u m m a r y w r i t i n g q u a l i t y but not in t h e i r r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n . G u r i - R o s e n b 1 it (1989) e x a m i n e d the e f f e c t s of a g r a p h i c d e v i c e w h i c h c o n t a i n s the m a i n id e a of a text - t h e t r e e - d i a g r a m - on s t u d e n t s ' c o m p r e h e n s i o n of an e x p o s i t o r y text w i t h m u l t i p l e t h e m e s . R e s u l t s of the s t u d y s h o w e d that t h e t r e e - d i a g r a m had p o s i t i v e e f f e c t s on s t u d e n t s ' r e c a l l and r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n . It h a s a l s o b ee n s t a t e d that t he i n s t r u c t i o n in m a i n idea i d e n t i f i c a t i o n may be an e x c e l l e n t tool to h e l p s t u d e n t s s o l v e t h e i r p r o b l e m s c o n c e r n i n g g e n e r a l r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n of t e x t s ( W i l l i a m s , 1984; Hare, R a b i n o w i t s and S c h i e b l e , 1989; J a c o b o w i t s , 1990). A c c o r d i n g t© t h e s e a u t h o r s , t he a b i l i t y to i d e n t i f y the m a i n i d e a s in a text is a f u n d a m e n t a l s k il l s i n c e
it u n d e r l i e s t h e c o m p r e h e n s i o n of most e x p o s i t o r y texts. M o r e o v e r , o t h e r r e s e a r c h e r s h a v e c l a i m e d that the i d e n t i f i c a t i o n of m a i n i d e a s is i n t i m a t e l y l i n k e d to s u m m a r y w r i t i n g s i n c e b o t h s k i l l s i n v o l v e t h e p r o c e s s of s e l e c t i n g i m p o r t a n t i n f o r m a t i o n in the t e x t s ( K i n t s c h and van Dijk, 1978; B r o w n and Day, 1983; S h e r r a r d , 1989). Thus, it s e e m s that m a k i n g s t u d e n t s a w a r e of t h e i m p o r t a n c e and t h e m e a n s of g e t t i n g the gist out of a text may e n a b l e t h e m to d e v e l o p t h e i r o wn s t r a t e g i e s and to u se t h e m i n d i v i d u a l l y w h i l e r e a d i n g and s u m m a r i z i n g a text.
As can be seen, the b o dy of r e s e a r c h on t e c h n i q u e s of c o m b i n i n g r e a d i n g and w r i t i n g in the c l a s s r o o m in o r d e r to e n h a n c e b o t h t h e s e s k i l l s is still small, and the f i n d i n g s are not v e r y c o n s i s t e n t yet. In a d d i t i o n , all s t u d i e s d i s c u s s e d a b o v e w e r e c o n d u c t e d w i t h n a t i v e s p e a k e r s of E n g l i s h . No r e s e a r c h h a s b e e n f ound in t h i s a r e a w i t h s t u d e n t s of E S L or E F L in th e l i t e r a t u r e a c c e s s i b l e to t h i s r e s e a r c h e r . Yet it s e e m s that E F L s t u d e n t s h a v e v e r y s i m i l a r r e a d i n g and w r i t i n g p r o b l e m s as n a t i v e s p e a k e r s of E n g l i s h , p a r t i c u l a r l y w i th the s k i l l s of e x t r a c t i n g m a i n i d e a s f ro m t e x t s and of s u m m a r i z i n g t h e s e i d e a s in w r i t t e n f or m (Cohen, 1988). Thus, o n e c o u l d s u p p o s e that d i r e c t i n s t r u c t i o n in f i n d i n g m a i n i d e a s in a text m ay a l s o i m p r o v e EFL s t u d e n t s ' u n d e r s t a n d i n g and s u m m a r i z i n g of wr i11 en t ext s . I.E. S t a t e m e n t of t h e p r o b l e m , and h y p o t h e s e s of t h e s t u d y
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C o n s i d e r i n g t h e p o s i t i v e e f f e c t s of t e a c h i n g ma in idea i d e n t i f i c a t i o n in t e x t s on t he r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n and s u m m a r y w r i t i n g of s t u d e n t s w h o a r e n a t i v e s p e a k e r s of E n g l i s h , as r e p o r t e d in t h e l i t e r a t u r e , and c o n s i d e r i n g t h e fact that E F L s t u d e n t s meet s i m i l a r p r o b l e m s as n a t i v e s p e a k e r s of E n g l i s h w h e n t h e y a r e f a ce d w i t h r e a d i n g and w r i t i n g , it was h y p o t h e s i z e d that t h i s t e c h n i q u e mig ht a l s o h e l p i m p r o v e the r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n of t e x t s and s u m m a r y w r i t i n g of B r a z i l i a n h i g h s c h o o l s t u d e n t s of EFL. F o r t h i s r e a s o n , and b e c a u s e of t h e d e a r t h of r e s e a r c h in t h i s a r e a w i t h s t u d e n t s of EFL, the p r e s e n t s t u d y w a s d e s i g n e d to i n v e s t i g a t e t h e e f f e c t s of t e a c h i n g m a i n i d ea i d e n t i f i c a t i o n on the c o m p r e h e n s i o n and s u m m a r i z a t i o n of e x p o s i t o r y t e x t s of B r a z i l i a n h i g h sc h o o l s t u d e n t s of EFL. R e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n w as m e a s u r e d t h r o u g h m u l t i p l e c h o i c e and o p e n - e n d e d items, and s u m m a r y w r i t i n g w a s t e s t e d by h a v i n g s u b j e c t s s u m m a r i z e t e x t s they had read. The s u m m a r i e s w e r e s c o r e d for n u m b e r of o c c u r r e n c e s of m a i n ideas, s e c o n d a r y ideas, and d e t a i l s r e l a t e d to the c o n t e n t of the t e x t s read. B a s e d on the r e s u l t s of p r e v i o u s s t u d i e s w it h n a t i v e s p e a k e r s of E n g l i s h , it w a s e x p e c t e d that s u b j e c t s w h o r e c e i v e d m a i n i d e a i d e n t i f i c a t i o n i n s t r u c t i o n w o u l d h a v e h i g h e r s c o r e s on t h e r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n t e s t s t h a n t h o s e w h o r e c e i v e d i n s t r u c t i o n on v o c a b u l a r y m e a n i n g and g r a m m a r . B a s e d on t h e r a t i o n a l e d i s c u s s e d above, the f o l l o w i n g h y p o t h e s e s w e r e f o r m u l a t e d for t h i s study-.
10 1. Th e i n s t r u c t i o n on d e t e c t i n g m a i n i d e a s in e x p o s i t o r y t e x t s i m p r o v e s s t u d e n t s ' r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n . 2. T h e i n s t r u c t i o n on d e t e c t i n g m a i n i d e a s in e x p o s i t o r y t e x t s i m p r o v e s s t u d e n t s ' a b i l i t y to s u m m a r i s e . 1.3. L i m i t a t i o n s and S i g n i f i c a n c e of the S t u d y S i n c e t h i s s t u d y w a s c o n d u c t e d w i th a p a r t i c u l a r g r o u p of s e c o n d a r y s t u d e n t s and n o n - s t a n d a r d t e s t s w e r e used, the r e s u l t s o b t a i n e d in t h i s r e s e a r c h c a n n o t be g e n e r a l i z e d to o t h e r s t u d e n t s of EFL. H o w e v e r , t h i s s t u d y ha s its s i g n i f i c a n c e : first, it is one of t he first s t u d i e s to e x a m i n e t h e i n f l u e n c e of r e a d i n g up o n w r i t i n g w i t h EFL s t u d e n t s . S e c o n d , it a l l o w s us a s te p f u r t h e r in d e t e r m i n i n g h o w far one s i n g l e c o m p o n e n t of r e a d i n g m ai n idea i d e n t i f i c a t i o n in t h i s c ase , m i g h t i n f l u e n c e o n e s i n g l e c o m p o n e n t of w r i t i n g n a m e l y , s u m m a r i z i n g . Th i r d , it s u p p l i e s t e a c h e r s of E n g l i s h w h o are i n t e r e s t e d in d e v e l o p i n g t h e i r E F L s t u d e n t s ' ma in idea c o m p r e h e n s i o n w i t h s o m e p r a c t i c a l m a t e r i a l desi gn .
C H A P T E R II
R E V I E W OF THE R E L E V A N T L I T E R A T U R E
In t h i s c h a p t e r s o m e of the l i t e r a t u r e c o n c e r n e d with: (1) t h e i m p o r t a n c e of r e l a t i n g r e a d i n g and w r i t i n g in c l a s s r o o m i n s t r u c t i o n ; (2) r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n and t h e i d e n t i f i c a t i o n of m a i n ideas; and (3) m a i n idea i d e n t i f i c a t i o n and s u m m a r y w r i t i n g s k i l l s h a s b e e n r e v i e w e d .
2.1 T H E R E L A T I O N S H I P B E T W E E N R E A D I N G A N D W R I T I N G
F o r a long time, r e a d i n g and w r i t i n g w e r e s e e n as two p r o c e s s e s e n d o w e d w i t h c o n t r a s t i v e c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s . W h i l e r e a d i n g w a s v i e w e d as a p a s s i v e , n o n - c r e a t i v e p r o c e s s in w h i c h m e a n i n g w a s d e r i v e d f r o m pri nt to t he r e a d e r ' s mind, w r i t i n g w a s d e f i n e d as an a c t i v e , c r e a t i v e p r o c e s s w h i c h i n v o l v e d the t r a n s m i s s i o n of m e a n i n g fr o m t he w r i t e r ' s m i n d to p r in t ( Rubin and H a n s e n , 1984; S h a n a h a n , 1984). As s t u d i e s p r o c e e d e d , h o w e v e r , a n e w a p p r o a c h to r e a d i n g e v o l v e d out of G o o d m a n ' s (1970) and S m i t h ' s (1971) p s y c h o l i n g u i s t i c t h e o r i e s of r e a d i n g as well as of R u m e l h a r t ' s (1980) i n t e r a c t i v e v i e w of r e a d i n g . R e a d i n g is no l o n g e r c o n s i d e r e d a p a s s i v e p r o c e s s ; i n st e ad , it is d e s c r i b e d as an
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a c t i v e p r o c e s s w h i c h i n v o l v e s i n t e r a c t i o n b e t w e e n t he r e a d e r a nd t h e text in o r d e r to b u i l d m e a n i n g . That is, r e a d e r s on l y c r e a t e m e a n i n g f r o m a text by r e l a t i n g t h e i r a c t i v a t e d b a c k g r o u n d k n o w l e d g e to the a u t h o r ' s m e s s a g e . As M a r c u s c h i (1984) s t a t e s , t he text s e r v e s as an i n t e r m e d i a t e s t i m u l u s b e t w e e n t h e a u t h o r and th e r e a d e r w h i c h d e p e n d s on i n t e r n a l and e x t e r n a l s t a b i l i z e r s to t ur n out a m e a n i n g f u l unit . A c c o r d i n g to M a r c u s c h i , the i n t e r n a l s t a b i l i z e r s are the c o h e s i v e and c o h e r e n t l e v e l s of t h e text, w h i l e t he e x t e r n a l s t a b i l i z e r s are t h e i n f e r e n c e s p r o d u c e d by t he r e a de r , h i s / h e r w o r l d k n o w l e d g e , b e l i e f s and th e c i r c u m s t a n c e s in w h i c h the text is read.
F r o m t h i s r e a d i n g p e r s p e c t i v e , r e s e a r c h e r s h a v e r e c o g n i z e d t h e i m p o r t a n t r e l a t i o n s h i p b e t w e e n r e a d i n g and' w r i t i n g . S o m e m a i n t a i n that b o t h s k i l l s ar e a c t s of c o m p o s i n g w h i c h i n v o l v e m e a n i n g m a k i n g . P e t r o s k y (1982), for e x a m p l e , a r g u e s that: W h e n we read, we c o m p r e h e n d by p u t t i n g t o g e t h e r i m p r e s s i o n s of t h e text w i t h our p e r s o n a l , c u l t u r a l , and c o n t e x t u a l m o d e l s of r e a l i t y . W h e n we w r i t e , we c o m p o s e by m a k i n g m e a n i n g fr o m a v a i l a b l e i n f o r m a t i o n , o u r p e r s o n a l k n o w l e d g e , and t he c u l t u r a l and c o n t e x t u a l f r a m e s we h a p p e n to find o u r s e l v e s in. Our t h e o r e t i c a l u n d e r s t a n d i n g s of t h e s e p r o c e s s e s are c o n v e r g i n g C ...I] a r o u n d the c e n t r a l r o l e of h u m a n u n d e r s t a n d i n g - be it of t e x t s or the w o r l d - as a p r o c e s s of c o m p o s i n g (p. 26). V a c c a and V a c c a (1986) a l s o f a v o r t h i s m e a n i n g c o n s t r u c t i o n a c t i v i t y d u r i n g t he r e a d i n g and w r i t i n g p r o c e s s e s . T h e y s t a t e that " w h i l e t he w r i t e r w o r k s to m a k e the text s e n s i b l e , the r e a d e r w o r k s to m a k e s e n s e out of t e x t " (p. 210).
A c c o r d i n g to Ti erney and Pea rso n (1983), as we c o m p o s e a text e i t h e r by r e a d i n g or w r i t i n g it, we all face " i n t e r n a l
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s t r u g g l e s " and m a k e use of s o m e c o m p o s i n g c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s . They s u g g e s t in t h e i r p a p e r that t h e f o l l o w i n g five c o m p o s i n g c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s can be i d e n t i f i e d in b o t h r e a d i n g and w r i t i n g p r o c e s s e s : (1) p l a n n i n g - b o t h r e a d e r s and w r i t e r s p l a n by s e t t i n g g o a l s w h i c h e m e r g e , a r e d i s c o v e r e d and, s o m e t i m e s , c h a n g e d w h i l e r e a d i n g or w r i t i n g , and by m o b i l i z i n g t h e i r k n o w l e d g e w h i c h will i n f l u e n c e in what they r ea d or p r o d u c e ;
(2) d r a f t i n g - a c c o r d i n g to the a u t h o r s , w r i t e r s and r e a d e r s dr aft to m a k e t h i n g s l o g i c a l l y c o n n e c t e d . T h e y s t a t e that w r i t e r s d e c i d e what to i n c l u d e and what to w i t h h o l d in t h e i r p r o d u c t i o n w h i l e r e a d e r s fill in g a p s and m a k e c o n n e c t i o n s of th e i n f o r m a t i o n in the text; (3) a l i g n i n g - r e a d e r s and w r i t e r s may a d o p t d i f f e r e n t s t a n c e s wi t h t h e i r a u t h o r or a u d i e n c e ; for e x a m p l e , a w r i t e r may adopt a n e u t r a l tone, w h e r e a s a r e a d e r may be c r i t i c a l ; (4) r e v i s i n g - t h i s is a c h a r a c t e r i s t i c w h i c h d e m a n d s h a r d e r work and w hich, s o m e t i m e s , r e a d e r s do not m a k e u s e of; h o w e v e r , as w r i t e r s r e e x a m i n e and r e r e a d t h e i r p r o d u c t i o n , go od r e a d e r s a l s o do the s a m e to a c h i e v e b e t t e r c o m p r e h e n s i o n ; and f in a l l y , (5) m o n i t o r i n g - t h i s f u n c t i o n s as an e v a l u a t i v e p r o c e s s of what r e a d e r s and w r i t e r s h a v e d e v e l o p e d . By c o n s c i o u s l y m o n i t o r i n g t h e i r work, g o o d r e a d e r s and w r i t e r s c an d e c i d e w h e t h e r t he y h a v e p l a n n e d , d r a f t e d , a l i g n e d and r e v i s e d p r o p e r l y .
T i e r n e y and P e a r s o n (1983) poi n t out that a l t h o u g h t h e s e c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s g i v e th e i m p r e s s i o n of s e q u e n t i a l s t a g e s , they
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p r o b a b l y o c c u r s i m u l t a n e o u s l y . That is, w h i l e we are r e a d i n g or w r i t i n g we u s e s i m u l t a n e o u s l y all f i ve c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s d e p e n d i n g u p o n o ur n e c e s s i t i e s d u r i n g the r e a d i n g or w r i t i n g act .
S i n c e r e a d i n g a nd w r i t i n g h a v e s h o w n to be c l o s e l y related, some r e s e a r c h e r s h a v e stro n g l y s u g g e s t e d that t h e i r c u r r i c u l a r c o m b i n a t i o n c o u l d b r i n g p o s i t i v e o u t c o m e s in bo t h s k i l l s and in c o n t e n t a r e a l e a r n i n g . S h a n a h a n (1988), for e x a m p l e , p r o p o s e s s e v e n i n s t r u c t i o n a l p r i n c i p l e s b a s e d up o n r e s e a r c h on the r e l a t i o n s h i p of r e a d i n g and w r i t i n g .
T h e first p r i n c i p l e is that t e a c h e r s s h o u l d t e a c h d a i l y both rea d i n g and writing. A l t h o u g h the se sk ills share common c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s t he y do not o v e r l a p the f u n c t i o n of e a c h other, but t h e y a r e d e v e l o p e d wh e n p r a c t i c e d r e g u l a r l y and in c o m b i n a t i o n . T h e a u t h o r a l s o s u g g e s t s , as t he s e c o n d , t h i r d and f o u r t h p r i n c i p l e s , that bo t h s k i l l s s h o u l d be ta ug h t d i f f e r e n t l y a c c o r d i n g to the s t u d e n t s ' d e v e l o p m e n t a l l e v e l s and that t h e r e a d i n g - w r i t i n g c o n n e c t i o n s h o u l d be m a d e e x p l i c i t to t h e s t u d e n t s so that t h e y can p e r c e i v e the s i m i l a r i t i e s b e t w e e n b o t h s k i l l s . T e a c h e r s s h o u l d a l s o e q u a l l y e m p h a s i z e i n s t r u c t i o n on p r o d u c t k n o w l e d g e ( p h o n e m i c a w a r e n e s s , w o r d m e a n i n g s , c o h e s i o n , p a s s a g e o r g a n i z a t i o n , etc .) and on p r o c e s s k n o w l e d g e ( s t r a t e g i e s for s o l v i n g p r o b l e m s or c a r r y i n g out c o m p l e x a c t i v i t i e s , et c . ) . F i n a l l y , as the s i x t h and s e v e n t h p r i n c i p l e s say, r e a d i n g and w r i t i n g s h o u l d be t au g ht as c o m m u n i c a t i v e - s k i l l s w h i c h a r e u s e d to h a v e an ef f e c t on o t h e r p e o p l e and in m e a n i n g f u l c o n t e x t s so that s t u d e n t s mi g h t u s e t h e m for v a r i o u s
15 p u r p o s e s in d i f f e r e n t c o n t e n t s . T h e a u t h o r b e l i e v e s that by f o l l o w i n g t h e s e p r i n c i p l e s t e a c h e r s c o u l d h e l p c h i l d r e n to d e v e l o p t h e i r l i t e r a c y l e a r n i n g . B a s e d on t h i s i de a of c o n n e c t i n g r e a d i n g and w r i t i n g , s o m e r e s e a r c h e r s h a v e d e v e l o p e d s p e c i f i c c l a s s r o o m a c t i v i t i e s i n v o l v i n g b o t h r e a d i n g and w r i t i n g s k i l l s . O b e r l i n and Shugaruian (1988) and S a n a c o r e (1983), for i n s t a n c e , s u g g e s t e d that r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n as well as a c q u i s i t i o n of c o n t e n t c o u l d be i m p r o v e d by i m p r o v i n g w r i t i n g s k i l l s . O b e r l i n and S h u g a r m a n (1988) p r o p o s e d a p r e w r i t i n g a c t i v i t y w h i c h w o u l d m a k e s t u d e n t s c o n s c i o u s of t he r e l a t i o n b e t w e e n the p r e w r i t i n g and p r e r e a d i n g s t a g e s . S a n a c o r e (1983) r e v i e w e d s o m e s t r a t e g i e s d e v e l o p e d by o t h e r r e s e a r c h e r s w h i c h a p p a r e n t l y h e l p e d s t u d e n t s to i m p r o v e c o n t e n t a r e a l e a r n i n g and r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n . By m a k i n g u s e of t h e s e s t r a t e g i e s , s t u d e n t s had to a c t i v a t e t h e i r b a c k g r o u n d k n o w l e d g e p r o p e r l y and to u s e s o m e w r i t i n g t a s k s in o r d e r to p e r c e i v e the s t r u c t u r e of tents. S a n t a , D a i l e y and N e l s o n (1985) d e v e l o p e d an i n s t r u c t i o n a l s e q u e n c e w h i c h c o m b i n e d r e a d i n g and w r i t i n g a c t i v i t i e s . The i n s t r u c t i o n a l s e q u e n c e w a s d i v i d e d i nt o four st e ps . First, s t u d e n t s w e r e t a u g h t h o w to u se t h e i r b a c k g r o u n d k n o w l e d g e in o r d e r to a c h i e v e b e t t e r c o m p r e h e n s i o n . Then, they w e r e taught h o w to m o n i t o r t h e i r own c o m p r e h e n s i o n w i t h o u t the g u i d a n c e of t h e t e a c h e r ’s q u e s t i o n i n g . The t h i r d step w as to m a k e s t u d e n t s w r i t e a b o u t what th e y had just r ea d as a m e a n s of h e l p i n g t h e m t o l e ar n t h e c o n t e n t ; and f i n a l l y , s t u d e n t s w e r e t o l d to edit
t h e i r own and t h e i r c o l l e a g u e s ' w o rk s . T h i s last step was e x p e c t e d to d e v e l o p s t u d e n t s ' c r i t i c a l t h i n k i n g . S o m e o f t h e c l a s s r o o m t e c h n i q u e s c o m b i n i n g r e a d i n g and w r i t i n g s u g g e s t e d to e n h a n c e w r i t i n g t h r o u g h r e a d i n g h a v e a l r e a d y b e e n i n v e s t i g a t e d t h r o u g h r e s e a r c h . In the f o l l o w i n g s u b s e c t i o n of t h i s r e v i e w s o m e of t h e s e s t u d i e s will be p r e s e n t e d . 2 .1 . 1. T h e i n f l u e n c e of r e a d i n g u p o n w r i t i n g
T h e r e h a v e b e e n few s t u d i e s that a t t e m p t e d to e x a m i n e the i n f l u e n c e of r e a d i n g u p o n w r i t i n g . K r a s h e n (1986), in h i s book a b o u t w r i t i n g , s t a t e d that " v o l u n t a r y r e a d i n g ha s g e n e r a l l y b e e n f o u nd to be m o r e e f f e c t i v e in p r o d u c i n g g a i n s in w r i t i n g t ha n i n c r e a s i n g w r i t i n g f r e q u e n c y ..." ( p . 5/6). S i m i l a r l y , a g r o u p of s t u d i e s r e p o r t e d in S t o t s k y (1983), s h o w e d that a d d i t i o n a l r e a d i n g may be as g oo d as, or b e t t e r than, g r a m m a r s t u d y or a d d i t i o n a l w r i t i n g p r a c t i c e in i m p r o v i n g w r i t i n g . S t o t s k y (1983) a l s o r e v i e w e d s t u d i e s w h i c h a t t e m p t e d to i m p r o v e w r i t i n g t h r o u g h r e a d i n g i n s t r u c t i o n . S h e found that a l t h o u g h most of t he e x p e r i m e n t a l g r o u p s of t h e s e s t u d i e s a c h i e v e d h i g h e r s c o r e s in t h e i r r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n te s ts , no s i g n i f i c a n t i m p r o v e m e n t w a s f o und in t h e i r w r i t i n g a b i l i t y .
On the o t h e r hand, S j o s t r o m and H a r e ' s (1984) s t u d y on t he i n f l u e n c e of r e a d i n g i n s t r u c t i o n u p o n w r i t i n g r e p o r t e d s i g n i f i c a n t ga i ns . T h e y c o n d u c t e d a s t u d y w i th n i n t h and t e n t h g r a d e r s w i t h t he o b j e c t i v e of d e t e r m i n i n g w h e t h e r di r e c t
i n s t r u c t i o n in m a i n idea i d e n t i f i c a t i o n w o u l d i n f l u e n c e s t u d e n t s ' g e n e r a l r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n and s u m m a r y w r i t i n g q u a l i t y . T h e f i n d i n g s s h o w e d p o s i t i v e o u t c o m e s in s u m m a r y w r i t i n g but not in g e n e r a l r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n (see s e c t i o n S.S. of t h i s c h a p t e r for a d e t a i l e d d e s c r i p t i o n of t h i s s t u dy ) . V a r i o u s c l a s s r o o m t e c h n i q u e s to c o m b i n e r e a d i n g and w r i t i n g in t h e c l a s s r o o m to e n h a n c e b o t h s k i l l s h a v e be e n s u g g e s t e d , s uc h as j o u r n a l w r i t i n g b a s e d on r e a d i n g s , m a p p i n g r e a d i n g t e x t s as a p r e p a r a t i o n for e s s a y w r i t i n g , and o t h e r s. In t h i s s t u d y m a i n i de a i d e n t i f i c a t i o n in t e n t s and s u m m a r y w r i t i n g will be c o m b i n e d . E.S. R E A D I N G C O M P R E H E N S I O N A N D T H E I D E N T I F I C A T I O N OF M A I N I D E A S S e v e r a l s t u d i e s h a v e a t t e m p t e d to i n v e s t i g a t e h o w r e a d e r s c o m p r e h e n d t h e i r r e a d i n g ( K i n t s c h and van Dijk, 1978; T a y l o r and B each, 1984; R i n e h a r t , Stahl and E r i c k s o n , 1986). T h e s e s t u d i e s h a v e a n a l y s e d r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n u n d e r s e v e r a l c o n d i t i o n s such as, the n a t u r e of the m a t e r i a l ( e x p o s i t o r y or n a r r a t i v e texts, e t c. ) and the s u b j e c t s ' b a c k g r o u n d (age, level of i n s t r u c t i o n , e tc.). M o r e o v e r , the r e a d i n g p r o c e s s h a s a l s o
b e e n f r e q u e n t l y s e p a r a t e d i n t o d i f f e r e n t s u b s k i l l s rv, an a t t e m p t of b e t t e r a n a l y s i n g t h e e n t i r e p r o c e s s . P e a r s o n and J o h n s o n (1978) s t a t e d that . .any a t t e m p t to s e p a r a t e the r e a d i n g p r o c e s s i n t o l i t t l e c o m p a r t m e n t s is, at best, an a r b i t r a r y c o n v e n i e n c e a l l o w i n g us to talk ab out on e t h i n g at a t i m e " (p. 03). It w o u l d be p r a c t i c a l l y i m p o s s i b l e to e x a m i n e r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n if s o m e v a r i a b l e s and s k i l l s w e r e not cont r o l 1 ed . O n e of t h e c o m p o n e n t s k i l l s of r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n is the i d e n t i f i c a t i o n of m a i n ideas. T h i s skill has b e e n a c k n o w l e d g e d by m a n y as e s s e n t i a l to b o t h r e a d i n g and oral c o m p r e h e n s i o n ( P e a r s o n and J o h n s o n , 1978; B r o w n and S m i l e y , 1978; W i l l i a m s , 1984; S j o s t r o m and Hare, 1984; Hare, R a b i n o w i t s and S c h i e b l e , 1989) .
B a u m a n n (1984), for e x a m p l e , a r g u e d that:
S i n c e r e a d e r s ar e fac ed w i th l a r g e a m o u n t s of text, all of w h i c h ca n n o t be r e c a l l e d , it is d e s i r a b l e for r e a d e r s to be a b l e to d i s c r i m i n a t e i m p o r t a n t f r o m less i m p o r t a n t i d e a s so that m e m o r y can be u s e d e f f i c i e n t l y to r e t a i n t he e s s e n t i a l i n f o r m a t i o n in a text. ( p . 94)
Ind ee d , it h a s b e e n r e c o g n i z e d that t h e r e is a limit to the a m o u n t of i n f o r m a t i o n on e can r e c e i v e , p r o c e s s , and r e m e m b e r at a t i m e ( M iller, 1956; S i mo n , 1974; E s ke y , 1986). K i n t s c h and v an Dijk (1978) h a v e a t t e m p t e d to s h o w h o w r e a d e r s c o n d e n s e the i n d i v i d u a l p r o p o s i t i o n s of a text, that is, t he a s s e r t i o n s a b o u t th e w o r l d that t y p i c a l l y t a k e the fo rm of a c l a u s e or a s e n t e n c e ( T h o r n d i k e , 1977), i n t o its gist. K i n t s c h and van Dijk
(1978) d e v e l o p e d a m o d e l of text c o m p r e h e n s i o n and p r o d u c t i o n 18
19
of r e c a l l and s u m m a r i z a t i o n p r o t o c o l s . A c c o r d i n g to t h i s m odel, a text e n t a i l s m i c r o s t r u c t u r e s and m a c r o s t r u c t u r e s . The m i c r o s t r u e t u r e s are t he s e q u e n c e of p r o p o s i t i o n s w h i c h c o n t a i n m e a n i n g at local l e v e l s w h i l e t h e m a c r o s t r u c t u r e s c o n t a i n m e a n i n g at g l o b a l leve l s. The a u t h o r s p o s t u l a t e d that, at the t i m e a p e r s o n is r e a d i n g a text, h e / s h e r e d u c e s and o r g a n i z e s its m i c r o s t r u c t u r e s i n to m a c r o s t r u c t u r e s , t h r o u g h the a p p l i c a t i o n of a s e r i e s of m a c r o - r u l e s , so that th ey can r e m e m b e r and c o m p r e h e n d text c o n t e n t . S h e r r a r d (1989) g a v e a c l e a r d e s c r i p t i o n of t h i s t r a n s f o r m a t i o n : T h e M a c r o s t r u c t u r e is s a i d to be b uilt up d u r i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n by first a b s t r a c t i n g t he e x p l i c i t p r o p o s i t i o n s from the text, then inf erring p r o p o s i t i o n e w h i c h a r e n e c e s s a r y to p e r c e i v e c o h e s i o n in t h e text. S o m e p r o p o s i t i o n s a re next s e l e c t e d for s t o r a g e in a l i m i t e d - c a p a c i t y m e m o r y b u f f e r o v e r a s e r i e s of c y c l e s . At e a c h c y c l e , o n l y t h o s e p r o p o s i t i o n s a r e r e t a i n e d in t h e b u f f e r w h i c h can be r e l a t e d t h r o u g h s h a r e d i n f e r e n c e , w i t h o t h e r p r o p o s i t i o n s . In t h i s way, p r o p o s i t i o n s b e c o m e l i n k e d t o g e t h e r , and in t u rn b e c o m e l i n k e d to s u p e r o r d i n a t e p r o p o s i t i o n s ( M a c r o p r o p o s i t i o n s ) w h i c h can be u s e d to r e p l a c e t h e m if the text is to be s t o r e d in l o n g - t e r m m e m o r y or to be s u m m a r i z e d , (p. 2)
W i t h i n t h e i r M a c r o s t r u c t u r e t h e o r y , K i n t s c h and van Dijk (1978) d i s t i n g u i s h e d fo u r m a c r o - r u l e s for p r o d u c i n g m a c r o p r o p o s i t i o n s : 1. D e l e t i o n , in w h i c h e v e r y p r o p o s i t i o n that is not an i n t e r p r e t a t i o n c o n d i t i o n of a n o t h e r p r o p o s i t i o n m ay be d e l e t e d . F o r e x a m p l e , "T h e boy d e s t r o y e d t he ball. T h e ball w a s w h i t e . " b e c o m e s "The boy d e s t r o y e d t he ba ll " . 2. S e l e c t i o n , in w h i c h we may d e l e t e e v e r y p r o p o s i t i o n that d e n o t e s a n o r m a l c o n d i t i o n , c o m p o n e n t or c o n s e q u e n c e of a m a c r o p r o p o s i t i o n . Thus, " T h e man went to L o n d o n . So, he went to
t h e a i r p o r t , b o u g h t a t i c k et , took the p l a n e ..." b e c o m e s "The man went to L o n d o n by p l a n e " . 3. G e n e r a l i z a t i o n , in w h i c h a s e q u e n c e of p r o p o s i t i o n s may be s u b s t i t u t e d by a g e n e r a l p r o p o s i t i o n w h i c h d e f i n e s its i m m e d i a t e s u p e r c o n c e p t . For i n s t a n c e , " T h e c h i l d l i k e s a p p l es . Th e c h i l d l i k e s g r a p e s . The c h i l d l i k e s o r a n g e s . " b e c o m e s " Th e c h i l d l i k e s fruits " . F i n a l l y , 4. C o n s t r u c t i o n , in w h i c h we may r e p l a c e a s e q u e n c e of p r o p o s i t i o n s by a g l o b a l p r o p o s i t i o n wh e n the first can be i n f e r r e d t h r o u g h k n o w l e d g e of no r m a l s i t u a t i o n s and c o n d i t i o n s , c o m p o n e n t s and c o n s e q u e n c e of the latter. Thus, " th e man went to t h e a i r p o r t , b o u g h t a ti c k e t . . . ” are r e p l a c e d by "The man t r a v e l l e d by p l a n e " .
T h e s e m a c r o - r u l e s a r e not a p p l i e d r a n d o m l y but in a c c o r d a n c e to t he r e a d e r ' s g oals. A c c o r d i n g to van Dijk (1979), t h e r e a d e r ' s g o a l s d e t e r m i n e w h i c h e l e m e n t s in t he text can be j u d g e d i m p o r t a n t or u n i m p o r t a n t on t h e b a s i s of t w o criteria-. 1. r e a d e r - b a s e d c r i t e r i a , in w h i c h i m p o r t a n t i n f o r m a t i o n is d e f i n e d by the r e a d e r ' s i n t e r e s t and b a c k g r o u n d k n o w l e d g e ; and 2. t e x t - b a s e d c r i t e r i a , in w h i c h i m p o r t a n t i n f o r m a t i o n is d e r i v e d f r om th e s c h e m a t i c s t r u c t u r e t h r o u g h t h e us e of ve r b a l c u e s in t h e t ext .
A c t u a l l y , t h e task of d e t e r m i n i n g what is i m p o r t a n t in a text, or what s h o u l d be c o n s i d e r e d a m a i n id ea in a text is q u i t e c o m p l e x . For t h e p u r p o s e of t h i s s tudy, A u l l ' s (1978) d e f i n i t i o n of m a i n id e a w a s used:
T h e m a i n i d ea of a p a r a g r a p h s i g n a l s to t h e r e a d e r the most i m p o r t a n t s t a t e m e n t th e w r i t e r ha s p r e s e n t e d to
21
e x p l a i n t h e t o p i c [ t o p i c p r e v i o u s l y b e i n g d e f i n e d as that w h i c h s i g n a l s to t he r e a d e r the s u b j e c t of the d i s c o u r s e ] . T h i s s t a t e m e n t c h a r a c t e r i z e s the m a j o r i de a to w h i c h t h e m a j o r i t y of s e n t e n c e s r e fe r , (p. 92)
But, s i n c e t h e i d e n t i f i c a t i o n of m a i n i d e a s is part of the r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n p r o c e s s , th e f a c t o r s w h i c h i n f l u e n c e r e a d e r s ' g e n e r a l r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n will a l s o i n f l u e n c e t h e i r s e n s i t i v i t y to i m p o r t a n c e . T h e s e f a c t o r s are: the a f f e c t i v e c o m p o n e n t s , t h e l i n g u i s t i c k n o w l e d g e , s c h e m a t a , and t h e text i t s e l f ( P e a r s o n and J o h n s o n , 1978; H u d s o n , 1982). T h e a f f e c t i v e c o m p o n e n t s w h i c h i n f l u e n c e t h e r e a d i n g p r o c e s s a r e t h e s t u d e n t s ' i n t e r e s t and m o t i v a t i o n t o w a r d s the text as well as t h e i r r e a d i n g e n v i r o n m e n t at h o m e and in s c h o o l . R e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n is a l s o d e p e n d e n t on t he r e a d e r s ' l i n g u i s t i c k n o w l e d g e . That is, the r e a d e r s ' p h o n o l o g i c a l , s y n t a c t i c and s e m a n t i c k n o w l e d g e about the l a n g u a g e .
O n l y o n e s t u d y that e x a m i n e d the i n f l u e n c e of s t u d e n t s ' l i n g u i s t i c k n o w l e d g e on t h e i r a b i l i t y to i d e n t i f y m a i n i d e as w a s f o u nd in t h e l i t e r a t u r e . K o e r i c h (1986) i n v e s t i g a t e d the a b i l i t y of B r a z i l i a n u n d e r g r a d u a t e s t u d e n t s of E F L to d i s t i n g u i s h m a i n i d e a s f ro m d e t a i l s in P o r t u g u e s e and E n g l i s h e x p o s i t o r y t e xt s . S h e w a n t e d to find out w h e t h e r t h e r e w as a c o r r e l a t i o n b e t w e e n the a mo u nt of s t u d e n t s ' k n o w l e d g e of t he l a n g u a g e and t h e i r d i f f i c u l t y in d i s t i n g u i s h i n g m a i n p o i n t s f r o m d e t a i l s . S t u d e n t s w e r e a d m i n i s t e r e d an E n g l i s h p r o f i c i e n c y test. Then, th e y w e r e a s k e d to re a d t w o e x p o s i t o r y t e x t s - o ne in P o r t u g u e s e and t he o t h e r in E n g l i s h -, and, f i n a l l y , to s u m m a r i z e t h e texts. M o r e o v e r , a q u e s t i o n n a i r e was a p p l i e d to
s t u d e n t s in o r d e r to i n v e s t i g a t e t h e i r us e of r e a d i n g s t r a t e g i e s w h i l e s u m m a r i z i n g . Th e r e s u l t s of t h i s s t u d y i n d i c a t e d that th e am o u n t of k n o w l e d g e of the f o r e i g n l a n g u a g e d id not a f f e c t the a b i l i t y to i d e n t i f y t he m a i n i d e a s in the t e x t s , s i n c e s t u d e n t s had d i f f i c u l t y to s e l e c t th e m a i n idea b o t h in P o r t u g u e s e and E n g l i s h . S c h e m a t a a r e a l s o of c r u c i a l i m p o r t a n c e in r e a d i n g c o m p r e h e n s i o n . S c h e m a t a (the p l u r a l of s c h e m a ) a r e d e f i n e d by r e s e a r c h e r s in t h e a r e a as t he k n o w l e d g e a b ou t all c o n c e p t s ( o b j e c t s , s i t u a t i o n s , e v e n t s , a c t i o n s , et c.) on e h a s in h i s / h e r m i n d ( R u m e l h a r t and O r t o n y , 1977; C a r r e l l and E i s t e r h o l d , 1988). O t h e r r e s e a r c h e r s h a v e not u s e d th e t e r m " s c h e m a t a " but t h e y w e r e r e f e r r i n g to a c o n c e p t of the s a m e k i n d w h e n they s t a t e d that for c o m p r e h e n s i o n to o c c u r it is n e c e s s a r y that r e a d e r s u n i t e th e k n o w l e d g e they a l r e a d y h a v e in t h e i r m i n d s to t h e n e w i n f o r m a t i o n in t h e tent ( B a r t l e t t , 1932; A u s u b e l , I960; P e a r s o n and J o h n s o n , 1978; F r e ir e , 1982). In t e r m s of m a i n i d e a c o m p r e h e n s i o n , A f f l e r b a c h (1990), e x a m i n e d t h e i n f l u e n c e of c o n t e n t s c h e m a t a , i. e., the k n o w l e d g e t he r e a d e r ha s a b o u t the s u b j e c t a r e a of a text, on h i s / h e r s t r a t e g i e s u s ed to c o n s t r u c t m a i n ideas. In t h i s study, d o c t o r a l s t u d e n t s fr o m a n t h r o p o l o g y and c h e m i s t r y , w h o w e r e n a t i v e s p e a k e r s of E n g l i s h and w e r e a s s u m e d to be e xp e rt r e a d e r s , w e r e a s k e d to r ea d a l o u d t wo t e x t s f r om bo th a f a m i l i a r and an u n f a m i l i a r k n o w l e d g e d o m a i n . W h i l e r e a d i n g , they wer e asked to report verbally their re adin g s t r a t e g i e s w h i c h w e r e r e c o r d e d and a n a l y s e d later.
