The Role of Background Knowledge in Reading Essay -- Education

1. IntroductionWith the passage of time and the spread of technology wider than ever, there is a spacious amount of knowledge and information which require from individuals faster response to these developments near the globe. One of the most effective ways for individuals to be up-to-date with the world around is to read. Reading is a skill which any learner needs along with other skills. Reading, as defined by Macmillan Dictionary, is the process of recognizing written or printed lyric and understanding their meaning. For reading to be most effective, readers need to read in their area of interest and have prior knowledge of what is going to be read. For to a greater extent clarification, prior knowledge is background knowledge near certain topics. In other words, what a reader already knows about the topic he is about to read. This prior knowledge has great impact on the reading and the reader.2. Description2. A. Terms Used for Background KnowledgeMoreover, backgro und knowledge is fundamental in reading comprehension. It is defined by The Free Online Dictionary as Information that is essential to understanding a situation or a problem. The terms background knowledge and prior knowledge are generally used interchangeably (Strangman and Hall, 2010). Background knowledge and prior knowledge are parent terms for many another(prenominal) more terms such as conceptual knowledge, metacognitive knowledge, subject matter knowledge, strategy knowledge, personal knowledge, and self-knowledge (Strangman et al., 2010). Though scholars definitions and names of prior knowledge are different, they typically describe the same concept.2. B. Factors Shape Background KnowledgeFurthermore, there are many factors that background knowledge could b... ...NHUAvgCy4-HuRIoUF7y2b07jddLKA&cad=rjaSpires, H.A. & Donley, J. (1998). Prior knowledge activation bring forth engagement with informational texts. Journal of Educational Psychology, 90(2), 249-260.Strangman, N. & Hall, T. (2010). Background Knowledge. Curriculum Enhancement Report. U.S. Special Office of Education Program. National Center on Accessing the General Curriculum. Retrieved October 28, 2011 from http//www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=the%20role%20of%20background%20knowledge%20in%20reading&source=web&cd=7&sqi=2&ved=0CEYQFjAG&url=http%3A%2F%2Fsoar.wichita.edu%2Fdspace%2Fbitstream%2Fhandle%2F10057%2F256%2Ft06002.pdf&ei=O0WmTsvILdK2hAeU-pSeDg&usg=AFQjCNHearmwQCdk6JpPpDZEtGg7jiCG8QThe Free Online Dictionary. (2011). The entery background knowledge. Retrieved October 26, 2011 from http//www.thefreedictionary.com/background+knowledge