Page 38 - SREENARAYANAGURU OPEN UNIVERSITY

Reading can be silent or loud based on the Language is a storehouse of knowledge
purpose. If you are reading for yourself, it can with different kinds of production and recep-
be silent reading, and if you are reading loud tion. In the language use, writing is the act of
it is oral reading. News readers practise oral combining symbols into meaningful words
reading. It is also informational reading, as and sentences. Symbols are arranged in cer-
they read to provide informations. tain conventions to form words. These words
represent thoughts and expressions into mean-
f Sometimes you read a page or ingful forms.
data to get a particular informa-
tion, which is called scanning. Good writing skills by converting them
f Skimming involves a quick run- allow you to communicate with clarity and
ning over the text to get the es- ease. Through it, the message would be con-
sence out of it. veyed clearly. Continuous learning and prac-
The following are some factors to overcome tice makes you a proficient writer. Writing
your reading problems. skills are not static but dynamic. It includes a
mechanical process. The words can be written
f Practise reading. by hand or typed. In both, the spelling should
f Recognise unfamiliar words and be correct and proper punctuation should be
understand the literal and contex- used.
tual meaning.
f Understand the unfamiliar words If the handwritten copy is not readable, the
with the help of a teacher or a dic- message cannot be decoded. Similarly, if the
tionary. spellings are misplaced or wrong, the meaning
f Develop linguistic competence. may change. The tone of the text is also very
1�3�4 Writing important. The punctuation should be correctly
“Reading maketh a full man; conference a placed; otherwise the meaning can be misread.
ready man; and writing an exact man,” says Writing should be legible and logical. The
Francis-Bacon, the 16 century essayist. A written communication or addresses a larger
th
speech may be forgotten later, if it’s not group of audience than face to face or tele-
recorded, but writing and documenting is a phonic conversations. The prior knowledge
record forever. The literary works of the past and expertise in vocabulary will help you
were recorded so that we read them in the pres- imminently in the writing process.
ent age. Writing provides physical evidence of
the content or record. The writing process includes five steps.
Let’s discuss them in detail.

PREWRITING DRAFTING REVISING EDITING PUBLISHING

Fig 1.3.7 Steps involved in writing process

32 SGOU - FYUGP - SLM - English for Communication