REPORTED SPEECH

To repeat a message already passed by someone else, there are two

methods of doing It.

(a) Direct Speech Method

Characteristics

(i) The exact message must be reproduced without omission or addition.

(i) Inverted commas are used to mark the exact message.

(iii) | The original speaker's identity + said/asked/opined/ (choose whichever

is applicable) must be written, e.g.
He said
She asked
They opined that

A general example of the direct speech is shown here:

A: Original Speaker: I am in school now and I will come to school tomorrow.

B: What did A (the original speaker) say?

He said, "I am in school now and I will come to school tomorrow.”

(Reporting directly, what A, original speaker, said)

(2) Indirect Speech Method

(i) The original message must change some of its parts.
(ii) No inverted commas will be used because we are not reproducing the
original message.
(iii) The original speaker's identity + said/asked/opined/ must be written.

Now, in b(i), it is noted that the message must change. The following are the
things that will change:
AT THE SUBJECT LEVEL

* "I" will change to "He/she"

* "We" will change to "They"

* "Our" will change to "Their"

* "You/It" will not change

* "This" will change to "That"

* "These" will change to "Those"

AT THE PREDICATOR LEVEL

* "Will" will change to "Would"

* "May" will change to "Might"

* "Can" will change to "Could"

* "Must" will change to "Had to"

* "Ought to" will change to "Had to"

* "Need" will not change

* "Dare" will change to "Dared"

All action (lexical) verbs must change to past, e.g.

* "Go" will change to "Went"
* "Know" will change to "Knew"
* "Has" will change to "Had"
* "Is" will change to "Was"
Note: "Come" will change to "Go"

AT THE COMPLEMENT LEVEL

* "Me" will change to "Him/her"

* "Us" will change to "Them"
* "This" will change to "That"
* "These" will change to "Those"

AT THE ADJUNCT LEVEL

* "Now" will change to "Then"

* "Here" will change to "There"

* "Today" will change to "That day"

* "Tomorrow" will change to "The following day"
* "Yesterday" will change to "The previous day"

* "Last week/year" will change to "The previous week/year"

Let us report this message indirectly:

I am in school now and I will come here tomorrow.

Indirect speech = He said that he was in school then and he would go there
the following day.

Note those words that have changed.

The Sounds of English: An Introduction

Under this aspect, we will discuss the sounds that are produced in English,
each time we speak. The syllabus recognises two aspects:

(a) segmental features. (b) supra — segmental features.

The supra — segmental features have to do with such aspects as stress,

rhyme and intonation, whereas the segmental features are responsible for
moderating the quality of the utterances we make. Anyone who knows about
the segmental but not the supra-segmental features is not yet a successful
speaker of the English Language.

The Segmental Features

Every human language has its own letters which represent or form the
alphabet. The letters AEIOU are vowels while the others between A and Z
(excluding the vowels) are consonants.
These are just letters not sounds. Vowel SOUNDS are commonly divided into
diphthongs and monophthongs.

Five vowel letters represent twenty vowel SOUNDS in English speech.

MONOPHTHONGS
There are 12 monophthongs altogether, each represented with symbols as
follows:
Vowel 1 /i:/ as in — sleep, need, read
Vowel 2 /i/ (short form of vowel 1) as in — hit, fill, little.
Vowel 3 /e/ as in -- let, egg, net, thread.

Vowel 4 /ae/f as in — man, rag, batch.

Vowel 5 /a:/ as in — fart, cart, harm.

Vowel 6 /o/ (it sounds like ‘o’) as in -- ox, rod, box, odd.

Vowel 7 /9:/ (the long form of 6 above) as in — tore, raw, caught.

Vowel 8 /u/ (this is a short vowel) as in -- look, put

Vowel 9 /u:/ (the long form of 8 above) as in -- rude, groom.

Vowel 10 / A / (this is a short vowel which sounds like ‘a’) as in -- sun, cup,
but.

Vowel 11 /3:/ (this is a long but weak vowel), as in — girl, earth etc.
Vowel 12 /e/ (a short and weak vowel) as in — around, about, matter.

DIPHTHONGS

While monophthongs consist of one sound each, a diphthong has two sounds
that have been joined together as they are pronounced. You will notice that
the first of the two sounds will gain more loudness than the second:

Vowal13 /el/ as in day, ray, rald.

Vowel14 /eu/ as in—know, go.

Vowel15 /ai/ as in mice, thigh, tle, eye.

Vowel16 /au/ as in—cow, now, how.

Vowel17 /oi/ as in—boy, oil, foll.

Vowel18 /ie/ as in — rear, idea, here.

Vowel19 /ee/ as in—hair, their, tear.

Vowel20 /ue/ as in—sure, tour, poor.

CONSONANT SOUNDS
There are twenty four consonant sounds. They are exemplified here:

/b/ as in boy
/d/ as in dog
/f/ as in fan
/g/ as in god
/h/ as in hall
/dz/ as in jug
/k/ as in kite
/l/ as in lamp
/m/ as in man
/n/ as in nose
/p/ as in priest
/r/ as in risk
/s/ as in sink
/t/ as in tear
/v/ as in van
/w/ as in wife
/j/ as in yellow
/z/ as in zebra
/tj/ as in cheap
/j/ as in sheep
/dz/ as in beige
/8/as in thing
/d/ as in them
/N/ as in thing

Please note that whenever you find two slanting lines it represents the
pronunciation for a word. it may sometimes be ( ).

STRESS IN ENGLISH

In many African languages, some methods are used to mark the words for
pronunciation purposes. This marking on top or below the word will show
which part should be pronounced louder than other parts.
Stress cannot be described without first discussing the syllable.

Ail words in the English language have at least one syllable. One part of a
word may be pronounced differently from the other part(s). A syllable may
therefore be defined as part of a word that can be produced at one heart-
beat.

In every syllable, there must be a vowel sound. For example,

‘interdenominationalism” (the longest word in the dictionary) can be
syllabified as follows: in-ter-de-no-mi-na-tio-na-li-sm = ten syllables.

A word may have one syllable, known as MONOSYLLABLE; two syllables -

BISYLLABLE, more than two — POLYSYLLABLE, e.g.

Monosyllable - man, boy, girl, good

Bisyllable - Mon/day, Eng/lish, fa/ther, e/ffort.
Polysyllable - Beau/ti/ful, per/so/nal, re/co/ver.

Now, back to stress. When there is more than one syllable in a word, one
syllable will be pronounced louder than the other. For example, in the
following words, the louder of the two syllables has been written in bold
capital letters:

LAW-yer, SPEAK-er, en-DURE, re-VENGE. The syllable that is pronounced

louder than the other(s) is called STRESSED or ACCENTED SYLLABLE. The
part that is not pronounced loudly is called UNSTRESSED or UNACCENTED
SYLLABLE.

HOW TO DETERMINE WHERE TO PUT STRESS When a word carries a stress,

the stress is often shown by the (’)

Symbol, e.g. ‘tailor.

First, determine how many syllables are in the word. Here, there are two,
tai/lor.

Now that ‘tai has a stress, it means tai is the only syllable that carries that
stress. The other syllable will not be pronounced loudly,

in Yoruba language, there are tone marks to show the pronunciation of

words. The syllables in a Yoruba word can carry a low (do), mid (re) or high
(mi) tone.

So, to pronounce awure, it must sound; (do-mi-re) (a-wu-re) =awure.

Olodumare =re-mi-do-re-do (re-mi-do-re-do) (O-lo-du-ma-re) = Olodumare.

lpata =do-mi-mi (do-mi-mi) (i-pa-ta) = ipata.

The problem most Africans have in pronouncing English words with the right
stress is that of “linguistic interference”. This means that, a Yoruba man may
likely pronounce bread (an English word) with the syllable structure of
Yoruba, thus: mi-mi-do = bu-re-di Whereas, it is a one-syllable word in
English: bread /bred/

So, you need to carefully learn the English stress patterns,

STRESSING SENTENCES

All along, we have been discussing stressing of individual words. If you have
been given a sentence or even a passage to read, how do you recognise the
words to stress?

The rule is that you will stress the open class items, including nouns, verbs,
adverbs and adjectives.

You should avoid stressing closed system items which include: - pronouns,
prepositions, conjunctions and articles (the, a).
Let us try to stress this clause: The man in the class is my uncle:
The MAN in the CLASS is my UNCLE.

The beautiful girl knows me:

The BEAUTIFUL GIRL KNOWS me.

However, if emphasis is to be shown, closed system items can be stressed.

Did you say that man is on the bed? No, he is UNDER the table.

“under’ is stressed here to emphasise where the man is.

RULES FOR STRESSING WORDS AND SENTENCES

DO NOT put a stress on any of the following:
(a) PRONOUNS and POSSESSIVES, including:
he, she, it, we, you, they, him, her, me, us, them, this, these, those, that, his,
her, its, my, your, our, their.
(b) AUXILIARY VERBS, including: can-could, may-might, shall-should, will-
would, must need, dare, is, was, are, were, am, has, have, had.
(c) ARTICLES, including: a, an, the.
(d) PREPOSITIONS — Monosyllable prepositions, e.g. in, on, at, for, by, with,
cannot be stressed. However, occasionally, prepositions with more than one
syllable may be stressed e.g. beFORE, UNder, aGAINST, aROUND, afTER.
(e) CONJUNCTIONS and CORRELATIVES, including: and, but, either, neither.

General note: These items can be stressed, however, to show emphasis or

contrast.

When in a clause/sentence, if "the" is pronounced, it will be /ie/ when it

comes before a consonant letter-word e.g. The (60) man/boy/cow.
But if "the" comes before a vowel letter-word, it is pronounced (i), 6g.

The (41) elephant, orange, umbrella, idiot.

INTONATION
Mood is the feeling you experience at a particular time. At one time, you may
be angry, and at another you may be happy or even wish to ask a question.
It is therefore clear that the PITCH — the level of your voice — will not be the
same when you ask a yes-no question and when you say what you know (as
in a declarative statement). This variation of the level of pitch is termed
INTONATION.

Intonation is basically of two-types — RISING and FALLING.

RISING INTONATION

The rising intonation is that tone that rises from a low pitch slowly until it
gets to the highest level. It is used for the following:

(a) For making requests i. Can l see you, please? ii. May we sit down?

(b) For asking a question whose answer is “Yes” or “No” i. Do you know him?
ii. Are they friends?

(c) For making controversial statements or statements of surprise i. That boy

is likely to win. ii. We didn’t know he could slap the teacher.

(d) To ask the first of two questions i. Will you see me or go to the market
first?

FALLING INTONATION

This represents the pitch that falls. Its functions include:

(a) For making imperative statements (commands) i. Walk out of here! li.
Report the case immediately!

(b.) For asking questions starting with interrogative adverbs and pronouns
(WH questions) i. Why are you here? ii. Who saw you? iii. How many are
they? iv. Where did they go?

(c.) For making declarative statements i. She is beautiful. ii. The boy speaks
English well.

(b) Scanning

Scanning is a technique for finding specific information quickly. It does noy

involves real reading. It is the skill used to locate a book on insects, to look
up an address in the directory, a word in the dictionary or encyclopaedia, she
answer to a question. It is important to be sure of what you are looking for,
know where to find it and be able to seize the information when found, you
run your eyes over the page or place until you find the desired information.
Then you stop scanning and begin to apply other appropriate reading
techniques.

The two reading techniques - skimming and scanning share some common
characteristics: they require low or superficial comprehension, rapid reading
speed, and usually preview the content of the material to be subsequently
more carefully read. They differ in one aspect: skimming and other reading
skills start where scanning stops.

2. Study-Type Reading Techniques

There are a number of established study-type reading techniques which, with

practice and regular use, ensure comprehension. Each of these techniques is
presented in form of a formula - the SQ3R, OK4R, 3S3R and PRRU

(a) The SQ3R Method

SQ3R is the shortened form of SQRRR. This technique developed by Francis
Robinson, is a way of combining studying with reading. It involves five steps,
each symbol standing for a step: S - survey, Q - Question, R1 - Read, R2 -
Recall or Recite and R3 - Review or Revise.

Survey or carry out the overview of the book before you start the actual
reading. First, read the title page carefully so as to discover the general area
the book covers next study the table of contents to find out the Organisation
and over - all plan of the book. Then read the Foreward/ Preface and the
Introduction to enable you discover the reason(s) for Writing the book and
the intended audience. This initial survey will help you have a fairly good
idea about the content and scope of the book and the chapters that are
worth more careful reading than others, Having identified the chapter or
article, read the headings, subheadings, first and last Paragraphs to obtain a
general idea of the passage.

This survey should help you raise question mentally or in writing in

anticipation of finding the answers from the passage. Questioning is

necessary for effective study or intensive reading for a law of learning says,
you remember best what you question most. Three basic questions which
may lead to others are "What do I already know about this topic/subject?
What is the author likely to say about it? and “What do I need to find out?”
The answers to these general questions will help you decide the best way to
read the material. They will also stimulate the formulation of the first group
of specific questions that can be answered from the passage. The habit of
asking questions during reading aids recalls and encourages active reading.

After raising questions, read the passage carefully, critically and creatively, if
necessary more than once to find answers to the questions from the
information in the passage and obtain a high level of comprehension. Next,
you recite or recall mentally the information obtained from the reading
material. Finally, you revise or review - a last step - the whole passage with
the aim of re-identifying the main points and important details as well as re-
reading notes and underlined sections.

This SQ3R technique brings together the many reading skills needed to
enhance study reading. Study reading is a combination of fast, normal and
slow reading rate and requires a high level of concentration.
(b) OK4R Method

OK4R method is an extension of the SQ3R technique. O stands for overview,

the equivalent of survey in the SQ3R method; K for key points - the
identification of the key or main points of the passage after the overview; Ri
for Read and R2 Recite (same as RI and R2 in the SQ3R study technique) R3
stands for Reflect - to reflect on all the points and questions raised while
reading the passage, the last R, R4 (as in R3 in SQ3R technique) represents
review.

(c) 3S3R (or SSSRRR) Technique

3S3R stands for survey (S1), study-read (S2), speed-read (S3), Recite (R1).
Review (R2) and Reflect (R3). The steps - Survey, Recite, Review and Reflect -
involve the same procedure as in the SQ3R and OK4R reading techniques,
Study-read is similar to the Ri of SQ3R method. Speed-read. as the name
implies involves reading through the passage at a faster speed than that
employed in study-read,

(d) PRRU

PRRU is another reading technique which can help you study effectively on
your own, Each letter of the technique stands for the following.

P - Preview, same as survey or overview. To preview, you look quickly

through date of publication, table of contents, length of material and writing
style (simple or difficult)

R - Read

R - Recite and Record

U - Use the ideas gained in oral and written communication to prevent you
from forgetting them.
Among these study techniques, the one that seems to be well-known is the
SQ3R method. Most reading done in higher institutions, is of the study —
type. Through consistent practice and the application of the appropriate
reading/study techniques, you can improve your efficiency in reading and
comprehension.

Vocabulary Building

Building up your vocabulary is essential for good comprehension. Since

words constitute the building blocks of oral and written communication, your
knowledge of words must be adequate to be able to understand mest of
what you read. You can improve your vocabulary development by making
good use of the dictionary, reading more for pleasure, listening more to
people who use words efféctively, learning the most common roots and
affixes of words and working out the meanings of words from their usage and
from context clues.

1. Use of the Dictionary - The dictionary is the first authority on word

meaning. It is the reference book to rely on for information on (i) the
meaning(s) of a word. (ii) its usage (iii) pronunciation (iv) spelling and (v)
grammatical properties.

The dictionary is one of the important study resources which you cannot
afford to ignore. You need to acquire the habit of keeping a dictionary

constantly by your side to consult when the need arises in your reading or
writing. It provides a means of increasing your vocabulary. Dictionaries are
available in varieties to cater for different interests and purposes. They
include:

The Oxford English Dictionary

The Concise Oxford Dictionary

Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary of Current English

Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English

Chambers Twentieth Century Dictionary

With the help of your dictionary, you will be able to understand differences in
meaning and increase your stock of vocabulary. The dictionary is, therefore,
a great aid to vocabulary development.

2. Context Clues

The context is the setting or place where a word is found. Context clues are
derived from the context - the surrounding words - of the sentence or
passage that helps in working out the meaning of one or more unfamiliar
words without recourse to the dictionary. The writer may express the same
idea in different words, restate a sentence in another way or provide
examples to aid understanding. An illustrative example is:

Several observers of the Jewish scene have suggested that aspirations have
changed from second to third generations. The father had the ambition to
build mansions, the sons only have the ambition to inherit them.

Instead of ‘aspirations' in the first sentence, the writer has substituted the
word ‘ambition’. It should not be difficult to guess at the meaning of
‘aspirations’ from the context of the sentence as 'ambition'.

Context clues can also take the form of experience clues in which your
familiarity with the situation being described helps you determine the
meaning of the word e.g.

The secretary spent 50 minutes to record the important and minute details of
the meeting in the minute book.

You do not need a dictionary to arrive at the meanings of the different

usages of ‘minutes’ and ‘minute’. The clue to the pronunciation of ‘minute’ -
is also derived from the context of the sentence.
3. Word Roots and Affixes

A knowledge of word parts i.e their roots and affixes can help you find the
meaning of words. The root of a word indicates the origin of the word and
may be placed in front, middle or end of the word. For example ‘aquarium’
has the root ‘aqua’ which is a Latin word for ‘water’; tonsillitis and
appendicitis have the root ‘itis’ the Greek word for ‘inflammation of.' Affixes
are sounds, syllables or morphemes added to words before or after. The two
common types of affixes are prefixes (in front of the word) and suffixes (at
the end of the word). Examples are 'dom' (state) a suffix in ‘serfdom’ and
‘post’ a prefix in postpone, post mortem. Other examples include the
following:

Hindrances to Faster Reading and Comprehension

Some habits that are hindrances to effective reading and comprehension are
listed below:

Eating things like biscuit, bread, groundnuts, sweet when reading. This habit
reduces reading concentration and comprehension.
Smoking cigarettes and chewing gum while reading. These bad habits
disturb other people. Moreover, tobacco smoking is dangerous to health.
Consuming alcohol before reading does not enhance effective reading.
Biting pencil or pen ends affects comprehension.
Pointing to words with finger, ruler, pencil or pen slows down reading.
Movement of head sideways to follow the eyes across the page is time
wasting and unnecessary. Only the eye muscles are necessary for reading.
Poor visual perception: This can lead to difficulty in recognising the letter
marks properly e.g. reading 'e’ as ‘a’ in ‘faint’ and feint. Eye defects must be
corrected.
Regression: Frequent going over a word, phrase or whole sentence that has
been read a few second before leads to lack of concentration. Reading word
by word rather than phrase by phrase is a mark of a backward reader. An
efficient reader reads phrase by phrase and places great emphasis on the
comprehension of ideas and thoughts rather than mere word recognition.
Vocalisation: the process of moving the lips as you read, slows down reading
speed and prevents concentration.
Sub-Vocalisation: the practice of sounding words internally, also hinders
faster reading and concentration.
Lack of motivation or interest
Poor retention
Low word power and inadequate vocabulary
Inability to scan for specific items
Inability to skim to identify main ideas
Inability to relate ideas to details
Inability to distinguish between facts and opinions
Inability to read critically and creatively.