The Value of Effective Reading Skills at University (Essay Sample)

THE VALUE OF EFFECTIVE READING SKILLS AT UNIVERSITY
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The Value of Effective Reading Skills at University
The world is very competitive today. This issue has made many policymakers to face challenges while trying to implement policies that would make their countries remain competitive in the global market. Many people believe that quality education has a significant impact on the growth of a nation hence its competitiveness (Pretorius, 2000). As a result, it is critical to ensure that students are given quality education so that they can become productive policymakers. The reading proficiency of a person is one of the essential factors that influence the quality of education that a person has. Effective reading techniques are therefore fundamental in enabling a person to become self-confident and motivated (Kelly & Kneipp, 2009).
Many policymakers and teachers are concerned that many students in colleges and universities lack adequate reading skills. It has also been observed that reading skills today are not as efficient as they were in the early 90s. For example, is has been found that only 51 percent of students who take ACT college entrance exams are ready for college-level reading. It has also been found that the average reading score among college students was worse in 2005 than it was in 1992. It is also true that more than 6 million high school and college students are not capable of reading at satisfactory levels (Levy, Dickerson, & Teague, 2011). Many teachers, parents, and policymakers therefore advocate for effective teaching techniques to improve the reading proficiency of the students.
Useful reading skills are very beneficial to people and the society. A person who has adequate reading skills is capable of transforming the community that he is living into a better one. A person who adopts useful reading skills develops different ways of thinking and understanding. As a result, such a person becomes open-minded and more flexible. It has been observed that the people who have practical reading skills can read and write better. Such people are therefore able to process information faster than those people who do not have active reading skills (Qui-mei, 2007).
Also, it has also been shown that poor readers have short memory functions. It is, therefore, true that people who are avid readers can analyze facts much faster than people who do not have adequate reading skills. People who are trained on useful reading skills are capable of analyzing, comprehending, and learning from the issues that happen around them. Such people are therefore able to find connections between unrelated ideas thereby enabling them to become better leaders (Engstrom, 2005). The issue serves as the reason as to why many teachers, parents, administrators, and policymakers advocate for institutions to offer practical learning skills that can enable students to become responsible leaders.
Moreover, research has shown that people who engage in intense reading can gain knowledge on other things that they did not know initially. For example, a person who is a musician and loves to read books that are related to music will always find thoughts of music popping into his head (White, 2004). As a result, he can come up with better strategies for making his music better.
For students to adopt active reading strategies, certain factors need serious consideration. For example, a library is an essential resource for college students. However, many college students do not use the library extensively. It is therefore crucial for an institution to ensure that the library is adequately equipped with all the learning materials that the students would need. Also, the educators in the institutions should ensure that they engage the students with a lot of research work that would require the students to use the library extensively (Engstrom, 2005). The institutions should ensure that the students are well equipped with the library usage skills so that they can learn to be independent and self-motivated readers. They should also ensure that they invest heavily in the library by providing all the research materials that the students would require (Qui-mei, 2007). Once the students acquire such skills, they would be confident enough once they start working in the real world. The initiative would enable them to make effective policy decisions that would transform the society that they live.
Critical reading and critical thinking skills are crucial to students. They are instrumental i...