比较最近三年的高考阅读理解题，就呆看出，阅读理解的文章一件比一年长，一年比一年难。学生做阅读理解题不容易得高分。在教学过程中，发现学生不能提高阅读理解能力的原因主要有五点：
一、量不定，不能根据上下文确定生词的词义；知识掌握得不牢固，不知道根据词根推测派生词的词义。不注意词性的变化和一词多义，记单词的方法不当，有些后进的学生仍未体会到通过音节、通过传音来记单词这一方法。
二、对一些长句、复杂的句式无法辨明其结构，也就无法理解其含义。
三、阅读速度太慢，不能在规定的时间内完成阅读任务。
四、没有注意到阅读的技巧。
五、不具备与文章内容相关的背景知识，自以为读懂了文章，但却误解了作者的意思。
根据中学英语教学大纲的要术，"学生必须能读懂难度略低于课文，生词率不超过3%的材料；能根据语境中的提示和构词法知识推断的数生词的语义；阅读速度每分钟50-60个词；能读懂简单的应用文；能够把握所读材料的主要逻辑线索、时间和空间的顺序；能根据上下文理解作者的态度、观点和文段的寓意，能根据已知的事实推断出文段直接写出的意思。"
"英语科考试说明"中对阅读理解能力的考查要求如下：
"⑴掌握所读材料的主旨和大意，以及用以说明主旨和大意的事实和细节；⑵既理解具体的事实，也理解抽象概念；⑶既理解字面意思，也理解深层含意，包括作者的态度和意图等；⑷能理解某句、某段的意义，并能把握全篇的文脉，即句与句、段与段之间的关系，并能据此进行推理和判断；⑸能根据材料所提供的信息，结合中学生应有的常识，正确判断生词和短语的含义。"
根据英语教学大纲以及考试说明的要求，应该如何帮助学生提高阅读理解能力？
在教学的过程中，一定要坚持以学生为中心的原则，教师只是指导者、帮助者。
一、学生词汇量不足的问题，帮助学生巩固和扩大词汇量。指导学生利用多种方法记忆单词，"词不离句，句不离文"。尤其要注意一词多义。例1：The curtains haen't been drawn, though the lamps outside have already been lighted .
此句 curtains 一词若理解为"窗帘"，就会令人费解，"尽管灯已经亮了，窗帘还没有被拉开"。这个含义显然不合常理，若把 curtains 理解为"幕布"，那意思就非常明白。"尽管（舞台上的）聚光灯已经亮了，但是幕布还没有拉开（还未开幕）。
例2：Money talks we listen with interest .
直译："钱说话，我们有兴趣听。" （interest 表示"兴趣" ），如果这句话写在银行的门口，则会令人回味无穷。其意思是"财大气粗的存款者侃侃而谈，银行家带着利息洗耳恭听，平等互利。"（interest 表示"利息、利润、利益）。
理解单词、词组、句子的意思，一定要结合句子和上下文，领会其深层意义，体会语言的美妙。有一位语言学家曾说过 Each word in a new lontext is a new word （新的上下文中的每个词汇都是生词）高考英语测试的一项重要内容就是根据上下文准确确定词义，这是衡量一个人的语言能力的重要标准之一。语义在语境中体现，这体现了语言的交际性原则。提高阅读理解能力，词汇量是关键，一定让学生巩固已有的词汇，只有在此基础上才能熟练地结合上下文，结合一定的语境，准确确定词的语义，准确理解句子，乃至文章的意思。同时通过阅读来巩固扩大学生的词汇量。所以阅读教学不须注意词、短语、句型的教学。讲授词、短语、句型的用法不在于多，而在于精，关键是让学生能熟练运用短语和句型。方法多种多样，如造句、连词成句、连句成篇，或做一些单项选择题。
二、在阅读教学中要注意训练学生对一些长句、复杂句式的理解。
例如NMET 2000 阅读理解C篇的第一个句子：
Decision-thinking is not unlike poker it often matters not only what you think , but also what others think you think and what you think they think you think .
1. Decision-thinking is not unlike poker .
此句 not unlike = like （双重否定是肯定）
（可译为"决策思维就象玩扑克牌一样" ）
2．It aften matters not only … but also…
此句 It often matters, 意思是"与…有关"。此处应把 matters 理解为及物动词，意思是"关系重大，要紧"，要理解It matters 的含义，可利用对比法。
否定句：It doesn't matter .（意思是"没关系"，这是大多数考生熟悉的句型）
肯定句：It matters . （意思是"有关系，与…有关，关系重大，要紧"，这是大多数考生不熟悉的句型）
3．Not only … but also 连接对称结构。
What you think 意思是"你在想什么"，即"你的想法"。
What others think you think 意思是"别人以为你在想什么"，即"别人对你的想法的看法。"
What you think they think you think 意思是"你以为他们对你的想法有什么看法？"
整个句子可理解为："决策思维就像是玩扑克牌--它不仅与你的想法有关，而且与别人对你的想法的看法有关，而且关系到你在考虑别人对你的想法的看法时的想法。"
三、针对阅读速度太慢这一缺点，注意改进阅读的训练方法。阅读教学训练方式应该是大容量，快节奏，限时阅读，快速阅读，学生在有限的时间内提高学习质量。英国现代教育心理学家斯托克威尔提出："要想快还有效地学心任何东西，你必须看它、听它和感觉它。"事实征明，学生只有在充满张力的思维和实践中，也就是说要有一点紧张感，紧迫感，才能领略学习的愉悦，才能形成实实在在的能力，由此可见，限时间阅读，快速阅读可令学生有一种紧迫感，这是提高阅读理解能力必不可少的训练方式。阅读训练的材料应该是由浅到深，由易到难，进行让学生体验到阅读的乐趣。兴趣是第一老师，只要学生有阅读的兴趣，就会养成阅读的习惯。阅读应包括精读和泛读。课堂上让学生读一些有代表性的典型的文章，课外浏览英文报刊杂志。
四、阅读教学还应注意阅读技巧的点拨。如对号入座的方法，排除法等。根据不同的文体采用不同的阅读方法。例如，广告，做此类阅读理解题，最快捷的方法是先阅读后面的题目，然后找出题干在文章中出现的位置，采用对号入座的方法往可以从A、B、C、D四个选项中选出正确答案。如果是议论文，则先迅速找出论点、论据、结论。英语议论文的中心内容往往可以从第一段和最后一段找到答案。对于一些推论题，多数学生往往感到棘手。例如：What can you infer from the passage ? 很多学生往往由于考虑问题不全面而作出错误的选择，此类题应紧扣文章的论点即中心内容来推断。下面两篇范文即说明以上的阅读方法。
（A）
During the fourth China Beijing High-tech. Industries week , exhi bitions , feature presentatims, technological cxchanges and trade talks , and other events are organized .
（略，参考有关材料）
Exhibitions
· China International Exhibition Centre
* Section for China's key science and technology achievements of the Ninth Five-Year Plan (1996- 2000 )
* Environmental protection and energy section
* Section for exhibitors from other provinces and municipalitied（自治市）and regions of China
· China World Trade Centre
* Exchange and Trade Fair for Science and Technology Books and Sports Information Media
* The Trade Fair for Modem Intelligent Houses and Beijing Urban Real Estate
· China Millenium Monument
* Forum（论坛）and Exhibition of Foreign Sci-teeh Universities
· China Agricultural Culture Centre
* High-tech Construction Products Exhibiton
Feature Presentation
·Science and Education
* Scientists Forum on the New Century
·High-tech Industry
* Fourm on Environmental Protection
* 2001 Forum on Bio-technology on Traditional Chinese Medicine and Natural Medicine
Technical Exchanges and Trade Talks
· Trade talks on financial capital transformation
· Sino-Italian Forum and Trade Fair for the Development of IT and Communications Technology
64. If you want to know more about the high-tech achievements of different parts of China , you should go to .
A. China World Trade Centre
B. China Millenium Monument
C. China International Exhibition Centre
D. China Agericultural Cultural Centre
65. These sessions mark the achievements of mankind in the fields of .
A. electronic communications , energy and education
B. sports technology , film-industry and environmental protection
C. network technology , high-tech industries and traffic
D. medicine , weather broadcast and finance
66. The advertisement is mainly about .
A. the major activities of the high-tech week
B. the time-table of high-tech week
C. the names of the meeting places
D. the topic of trade talks

（B）
Nature has supplied every animal except man with some covering for his body such as fur , feathers , hair , and shells as a thick hide . But man has nothing but a thin skin .
If someone were to ask you , " Why did human beings start to cover their bodies with clothes ?" most would answer , " To keep themselves warm , of course ."
It is only when we begin to think about it a little that we realize that clothes are worn for a great many reasons that have nothing to do with our need for warmth at all .
For example , we weat clothes to some degree in order to decorate ourselves - to make ouselve , if possible , look more dignified（尊严）or nicer .
Clothes of a special kind are often worn to show that the wearer has authority or power . The individual wearing them is treated with respect because he occupies a certain office . The judge on the Bench , for example, might look a very ordinary and unimpressive figure without his wig and gown . Clothes are an important part of ceremony , whether it is connected with belief , the law , parliament , and royalty , the fighting forces or the state . How very different the Queen's Coronation ceremony（加冕仪式）would have looked without the robes , coronets and the cloth of gold .
Sometimes , even in some modern countries people wear some article of clothing , or some jewel , because they believe that it will bring them luck or protect them from evil or illness , or because it is connected with their beliefs .
None of these reasons for wearing clothes - to decorate ourselves to show our position it the world for ceremonial purposes for "luck", to give ourselves dignity and authority - have anything to do with our need for warmth .
67. From the passage we know that wearing clothes is man's basic necessity to /
A. protect skin B. show beauty
C. keep warm D. bring luck
68. The judge wearing special clothes on the Bench /
A. looks nicer B. look different
C. shows wealth D. shows power
69. Even in modern countries , sometimes people wear certain clothes because
.
A. they believe that they will get protected from bad luck and illness
B. it has something to do with their wealth
C. they want to show their power
D. they enjoy wearing such kind of clothes
70. The author's purpose in writing this article is to tell us that clothes are worn .
A. for ceremonial occasions
B. for many other reasons besides warmth
C. to keep people impressive and nicer
D. to show people's authority or power

64、66、67、68、69、70题均采用对号入座的方式或通过找出题干在文章中的位置，推敲其前后句子的含义得出正确答案。65小题则采用排除法。第二篇阅读理解的中心在文章第三段和最后一段出现，细心观察，第三段和最后一段所要表达的意思是完全一致的。第三段可看作是文章的论点，Clothes are worn for a great many reasons that have nothing to do with our need for warmth at all. 文章最后一段是结论，None of these reasons for wearing clothes have anything to do with our need for warmth .

五、学生缺乏英美背景知识，这必须抓课外阅读着手。也可以把课外阅读作课堂阅读的一种延伸，每天布置两篇阅读理解题，检测学生是否完成阅读理解题的方法多种多样，如核对答案，让学生说出所选答案的依据；或是让学生用英语复述读过的材料。总之，这课外阅读在开始的时候一定要作好检查、督促，目的是使学生养成课外阅读英文的好习惯。课外阅读的材料分为精读材料和泛读材料。所谓精读材料就是老师指定的材料，这些材料往往是有关英国、美国等讲英语的国家的一些历史、地理、风俗习惯等方面的知识，既然学英语，就应了解英美的一些概况，这就是相关的英语背景知识。所谓的课外泛读材料也就是指根据学生的兴趣爱好来阅读的材料。有些学生对体育感兴趣，那就可以通过体育报道来扩大相关英语知识；对音乐感兴趣的，通过欣赏英文歌，读英文歌词，可以涉猎到许多课堂上未曾学到的知识。
结论：综上所述，要想提高学生的阅读理解能力，必须具体问题具体分析，根据学生的实际情况找出解决办法。要巩固并扩大学生的词汇量，尤其具体的要注意一词多义，训练学生对一些长句、复杂句式的正确理解。由单句理解扩展到对篇章的理解，阅读训练方式以快速阅读为主，让学生体会到阅读的乐趣，养成课外阅读英文的好习惯。阅读教学还应注意阅读技巧的点拨，如对号入座法、排除法等等。通过课外阅读扩大学生的知识面，让学生了解英美概况，背景知识。