TEACHlNG READING IN EFL WITH PARTICULAR REFERENCE TO ENGLISH FORSCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

TEACHlNG READING IN EFL WITH PARTICULAR REFERENCE TO ENGLISH FORSCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Reading has always been the most important skill in EFL programs at the college level in Taiwan. Students in science and technology almost exclusively use textbooks in English published in the United States or in the United Kingdom. Their laboratory manuals and even experimental reports are also in English. English, as a result, has become their tool for studying and work at school, even though they encounter difficult problems in understanding their texts and carrying out their laboratory work. Without a utilitarian program in EFL in their freshman year to equip them with good reading ability in English, they cannot become efficient readers even if they double their efforts in their studying in a specialized field. However, in the light of illuminating findings in teaching reading in EFL and research in English for Special Purposes, especially in English for Science and Technology, much can be done to improve EFL programs at the college level in Taiwan. Therefore, the main purpose of this short paper is to evaluate techniques in teaching reading in EFL and principles for preparing reading materials for English for Science and Technology.