Mastering Reading Skills 1

Mastering Academic Reading is meant to challenge advanced academically oriented students of English. The units and the readings within them are long. The comprehension and expansion exercises after them are demanding. The hoped-for outcome is that students trained using this textbook will be able to better hold their own in university classes where the reading volume across disciplines and vocabulary demands are high. Almost every reading is taken, in minimally adapted form, from a book or academic / professional journal. Two introductory passages have been composed expressly for this book in order to provide narrowly focused background material. Beyond these pieces, readers are in the hands of “real-world” authors and their difficult, lexically diffuse, and allusion-filled creations. Journal articles and book excerpts predominate, but Mastering Academic Reading also offers a book review and a government pamphlet as well. Since one aspect of reading practice builds on others, the units are laid out in tiers, not in sections. Each unit has been organized into three tiers. In general, there is one reading per tier, although the first tier in Unit 3 contains two passages (both necessary to provide conceptual background for the other two tiers). Each reading is 3,500-5,000 words. The book focuses on the three primary goals of academic reading: reading to learn; reading to integrate, write, and critique texts; and reading for basic comprehension.

Active Reading Skills, based on the premise students learn best by doing, teaches essential reading and thinking skills using concise instruction, guided practice, extensive application, and feedback. Each of the twelve chapters focuses on a specific reading skill and includes instruction, practice exercises, quizzes, and mastery tests. Because the skill instruction is brief, students spend more time applying the skills through extensive practice. The actual instruction and exercise format were designed to accommodate a variety of learning styles to reach students.

This series takes a fresh approach to the mastery of grade-specific skills. Each book uses a wide range of activities to spark students interest in learning. As students complete the activities, they develop the skills they need to meet academic standards in reading, writing, math, social studies, and science. Because the ability levels of students in any one grade level vary, each book spans a broad range of skills. Both teachers and parents can use the books to introduce new concepts, to assess learning and skill development, and to reinforce familiar knowledge. The versatile activities can be used for individual practice, test preparation, or homework assignments. Complete answer keys are provided.