The definition of the term genre varies somewhat between different writers, but most follow Swales (1990) and Bhatia (1993) in relating the concept of genre to communicative events or acts. In such approaches, genres are defined not in terms of language, but by features which could be described as external to the text itself. These include areas such as text purpose, writer/reader relationships and the medium of communication (e.g. stories, newspapers articles, letters, etc.). These external characteristics naturally have internal implications such as the type of syntax, lexical choice, organization, layout, and many other linguistic features.Genre however, need not be literary. It has been seen that genres can be found in all texts. It has been stated that expository texts are less familiar, less predictable and less "considerate" than a narrative text (Gordon, 1992), although there is a strong debate on the issue (Alexander, 1997; Gordon, 1992). Alexander (1997) suggests that expository text, when well written can provide emotional and cognitive interest, while many others, most notably like Rosenblatt (1994), disagree. Alexander (1997) likens this comparison of expository to narrative text as "finding oneself through the content" in expository text, versus Rosenblatt's notion of "losing oneself" in narrative text (p. 86). No doubt, reader variables such as age, interest, motivation and culture influence reading comprehension in all genres.Genre provides an important frame of reference which helps readers to identify, select and interpret texts. Beginning reading instruction has been focused on the use of narrative text on the assumption that stories are easier to comprehend because of their predictable structure. This assumption is so deeply ingrained that almost all of the available programs for beginning reading instruction are based on story text because students will find it easier, to process stories than exposition. Any text requires what is sometimes called 'cultural capital' on the part of its audience to make sense of it. Generic knowledge is one of the competencies required (Allen, 1989). Like most of our everyday knowledge, genre knowledge is typically tacit and would be difficult for most readers to articulate as any kind of detailed and coherent framework. Clearly one needs to encounter sufficient examples of a genre in order to recognize shared features as being characteristic of it. As for reading within genres, some argue that knowledge of genre conventions leads to passive consumption of generic texts; others argue that making sense of texts within genres is an active process of constructing meaning (Knight,48 Ashraf Haji Maibodi1994). Studies conducted by Buckingham (1993) show that readers of a particular genre appeared to have a broader repertoire of terms and that the genre was being used as an unspoken rationale for moving from one topic to the next. A genre-focused course, at least at the intermediate level necessitates that the students are taught to be more aware of the concept of genre and the way it affects and increase their ability to differentiate their language and text structure through the use of a greater linguistic range.In a series of small-scale studies, Kamil and his collaborators (1994) have shown that students checked out a significantly greater number of story books, compared to information books, from the school library. Approximately 80% of the teachers used predominantly narrative materials because they felt that expository materials would be "too hard" for the students.