Effective reading
One of the first things that you will notice is the significant reading and researching demands involved in tertiary study. It is important that you be fully aware of these demands and develop the skills necessary to enable you to confidently manage the variety of reading tasks.
You as a reader
Whether you are continuing with, or returning to further study, you already have significant skills as a reader. Many of these skills will be relevant and transferable to the academic setting. It is useful to evaluate yourself as a reader so that you can determine the areas that need further development.
Nature of the demands
You need to be aware of the different reading skills required. The speed, quality and breadth of information available can sometime lead to information overload. Always be selective about what you read by questioning the usefulness and relevance of the material to the task at hand.
Common purposes of reading
Being conscious of the purpose/s before you begin will help to focus your efforts.
Most of the reading tasks will involve one, or a combination, of the following purposes:
- to gain an overall impression
- to locate (or relocate) specific information
- to familiarise yourself with the central theme
- to develop a detailed and critical understanding
Developing strategies
Once you have an understanding of the reading demands associated with your subjects/course, determine the areas where your skills need further development. For example, it may be necessary to seek out workshops associated with using the Internet for research and you may need to experiment with and practise new skills.
SOME USEFUL TIPS
- Read Chapter 4 of the Study Skills Guide (Reed and Keamy, 1999).
- Remember that the reading process is not merely about decoding the message on the page - it is about making sense of the message. You need to comprehend the text.
- When reading material that has been paragraphed, look for the key or topic sentence in each paragraph and highlight it in some way.
- Good readers attend to written text in an active, dynamic way - they predict, skip, guess, review, etc. in order to gain maximum meaning from the text.
- Consider what experience and knowledge you bring to the text. Does the text you are reading assume some prior knowledge? Do you have the necessary background knowledge to gain full meaning from the text?
- Decide before you begin what specific outcomes you wish to achieve with each reading task. A pre-determined and clear intention will help to focus your attention on the task at hand. For example, to gain an overview you can skim read key points or headings.
- Set yourself realistic, manageable reading goals. Consider such things as time available, concentration span, level of alertness, physical environment, potential for distraction and then decide what can be achieved.
- There is no point continuing with a reading task if your concentration span has come to its end. It is best to stop, rest, then review your intention and attention.
- Develop an effective “pre-reading” strategy. Gain an overview of the material and look for any signposts that may help you - for example, abstracts, introductions, summaries and glossaries.
- Experiment with and develop other practical strategies to suit the different tasks. For example, the SQ3R technique (as outlined in the Study Skills Guide p 13 & 14) is a useful strategy to use when seeking to understand and remember key points.
- Make an extra effort to fully comprehend assessment tasks before you begin any research so that you avoid wasting time on irrelevant material. For example, make sure you understand exactly what the essay topic is asking you to do.
Reading for tertiary study is usually linked to other activities such as researching, note-making and memorising. It is important to consider the relationship between the skills involved in these activities so you can maximise your learning.