预测阅读内容

第三节　预测阅读内容

一、预测的必要性

阅读不是一个简单的消极地、被动地接受信息的过程，因为阅读时文字本身并不会产生意义，只有当读者与文本(阅读材料)进行积极的交流时，才会产生意义。

主动积极的阅读过程是一个不断的预测( prediction) —证实修正( verification revision) —理解的过程。所谓预测是指在理解已知信息的基础上，对随之可能出现的信息(即下文) ，作出大致的推测。若预测得到证实是正确或基本正确的，通常可以快速读过下文(可以是词、词组、句子、句组甚至是段落) ;若预测不正确，则需要调整、修正自己的思路，要对下文特别地注意(需要细读) 。

例如，在读到“Progress on the subway has almost stopped”时，应该能预测到下文大致是“the completion of the project will be delayed” 。但如果读到的下文的内容是“the completion of the project will not be delayed”或“the project will be completed ahead of time”时，就应该引起注意，因为这句话后面的内容可能是很特别的或出乎意料的。

阅读时人们往往都自觉或不自觉地进行或多或少的预测。当然，在实际阅读过程中，预测过程是不会这么明显的，而且预测所花的时间也是非常短暂的。实际上，熟练掌握了这一技巧的人或有经验的读者，阅读时预测阶段往往是融于理解阶段，几乎是同步进行的。

二、预测的依据

通常，我们可以借助于语法结构、句型进行预测;可以通过标题和主题句来进行预测;可以通过信号词( signal words)和连接上下文的承接手段( transitional devices)进行预测;可以结合背景知识和逻辑推理进行预测;也可以段落模式和语篇知识进行预测。

三、预测的种类和应用

(一)根据已有知识，预测后续词汇。

词汇预测对于根据上下文猜测词义是非常重要的。例如:

A computer is a machine designed to perform work mathematically and to store and select__________that has been fed into it．

“to store and select”之后可能出现的词汇，我们可以根据句子主语computer以及to store and select这个短语的语法和语义特点，来进行预测— in formation，data，program，instruction (原文是information)等。

(二)利用我们的语篇知识，根据主题句来预测段落的大致内容。例如:

For most students the transition from high school to college- level classes is a shock．这一句话的关键词是shock ，因此这一段可能会围绕shock一词展开，但是具体内容目前是难以准确预测到的——是仅仅describe the shock，还是讨论why it is shock，或论述how to defeat the shock?

这一段的第二句是:

It takes some freshmen many months to adapt to the lecture and note- taking system．这一句告诉我们why it is a shock——因为他们要adapt to the system。那么，下一句会如何发展呢?很可能是how to adapt，或者是what is the lecture and note- taking system。接下来这一段是两个长句，第一个长句的开头是:

Preparation for this change...

文章读到这里，就应该预测到下面的句子是围绕着how to adapt来展开的，这也是本段的中心，即how to defeat the shock ( by preparation) 。

下面请完整地读这一段:

For most students the transition from high school to college- level classes is a shock． It takes some freshmen many months to adapt to the lecture and note- taking system． Preparation for this change gives the student confidence and competence from the beginning and makes him an effective and attentive listener． Listening skills can be developed and note- taking technique learned; together they bring order to the confusion frequently experienced by new freshmen．

(三)可以利用信号词，或根据前文内容，结合语篇知识，来预测下文的大致内容(句子或句组) 。例如下面的三句话是从一段中抽出来的:

Robert Hooke's work in science was varied and important through the 1700s in England． In the first place he served as the head of the Royal Society，...He was also a well- known architect...Of all Hooke's gifts to human being，however，the most important was his own research in science．...

读完第一句，就能比较肯定地预测到本段主要讲Hooke's contribution to science。而读到第二句话的开头，就可以预测到两方面内容:其一是，这一段至少要讲两方面的内容(从In the first place来判断) ;其二是，第二句之后的几句将围绕Hooke作为head的作用展开(细节部分) 。而读到中间，信号词also表明本句传达的是另一个同等重要的信息，而however标志文章内容有所转变。实际上，这一段文章中，这四句是关键句，其余句子都可略读，全文如下:

Robert Hooke's work in science was varied and important through the 1700s in England． In the first place he served as the head of the Royal Society，a group of the day's leading men of science，there he urged new tests and experiments to advance knowledge． He helped provide a means by which people could discuss their ideas with others who shared their concerns． Hooke was also a well- known architect whose advice about the design of buildings was welcome． He designed a large beautiful house in London where the British Museum now stands． Unfortunately Hooke's building was burned down; the six long years of work he did on it was wiped out by a careless servant． Of all Hooke's gifts to human being，however，the most important was his own research in science． He studied the movement of plan ets and improved tools for looking at the heavens． And，of course，it was Hooke who first described the cell as a basic part of the plant tissue．

4．我们还可以根据已知信息，来推断上文可能出现的内容。例如，在上一段中，我们可以根据“Of all Hooke's gifts to human being，however，the most important was his own research in science． ”来推断前面的内容是some of Hooke's gifts to human being。

在实际阅读过程中，有些文章由于其结构上、文体上的特点，比较难以预测，这时应该做到边阅读边思考，尽力把握好句与句之间、句组与句组之间的关系以及文章的层次，这样就会对文章有一个清晰的了解和深刻的印象。

记住:阅读是一个积极、主动的思考、理解过程。

练习

Ⅰ． In the following paragraph，some words are omitted． Make predictions and try to complete the sentences logically．

Gold，a precious metal，is prized for two important characteristics．　　1　　，gold has a lustrous (有光泽的) beauty that is resistant to corrosion (腐蚀) ．Therefore，　2　　　3　　　4　for jewelry，coins，and ornamental (装饰的)5． Gold never needs to be polished and will remain beautiful forever．　　6　　　7　　，a Macedonian coin　8　as beautiful today as the day it was made twenty-three centuries ago．　9　　10　　　11　　of gold is its usefulness to industry and science．12　many years，it has been used in hundreds of industrial applications． The　13　recent use of gold is in astronauts' suits．　　14　　wear gold plated heat shields for protection outside　　15　　spaceship． Thus，gold is treasured 　　16　　　17　　　18　　　19　　　20　　，but also for its utility．

Ⅱ． Choose the item which may best describes what comes before the given sentence．

1．...Binta's many responsibilities are typical for a girl of her age in Kano， Nigeria．

A) Something about Binta's responsibilities．

B) Something about Binta being typical for a girl of her age in Kano．

C) Something about Nigeria．

D) Something about life in Kano．

2．...Thus did Shakespeare begin and end his days in Stratford．

A) An account of Shakespeare's works．

B) An account of Shakespeare's death，with reference to his birth．

C) An account of Shakespeare's daily routine．

D) An account of why Stratford is famous．

3．...Such centralization had long vanished as a result of urban growth．

A) A description of centralization at some time in the past．

B) A description of modern growth．

C) A description of present day centralization．

D) A listing of the causes of urban growth．

Ⅲ． Read the following short passage and underline the words，phrases or sentences that can help you make predictions．

While there are many differences between high school and college，I'd have to say that the most important ones all involve freedom． Everyone has to attend high school，at least until tenth grade，so very often you find classes where the students aren't serious about learning． College is exactly the opposite． People are there voluntarily(自愿地) because they want to learn and improve themselves． As a result college students are much more serious and interested． Another major difference is that in high school classes are assigned and the sa me classes are held every day．However，in college，most classes only meet two or three days a week，and students have many choices about which classes to take．

Answers:

Ⅰ． First，it is used，things，For example，remains，The greatest importance，In，mostly，They，from，for its resistance to corrosion

Ⅱ． B　B　A