Active reading

Active reading simply means reading something with a determination to understand and evaluate it
for its relevance to your needs. Simply reading and re-reading the material isn't an effective way to
understand and learn. Actively and critically engaging with the content can save you time.

Here are few tips to help you read actively:

Look away from the passage after each paragraph

This is a strategy to get your brain used to taking snapshots of the paragraph. If you’re focused on
the screen, it’s easy to become distracted by the words dancing in front of your face. By looking
away, you can more easily come up with a quick summary, or snapshot. Saying that in your head
takes a mere few seconds — and you can work on making your snapshots even more condensed.
Then, when the next paragraph deals with, say, an analysis of that theory, you’ll have a much easier
time following along.

Take notes

Sometimes it’s hard to organize the clutter of thoughts pin-balling through your head as you read a
passage. Take shorthand notes after each paragraph. The ultimate goal, though, is to wean yourself
off written summaries so that you’ll only need to take mental snapshots. Taking notes is an essential
part of the reading process. It helps you internalise difficult ideas by putting them into your own
words. You are more likely to remember material you have thought about and made notes on than
material you have read passively. Taking notes is a skill that you develop with practice. There is no
right or wrong way, just find a method that suits you (for example, bullet points, mind maps and
diagrams, highlighting, annotating or underlining significant words). In general, your notes should be
brief and to the point. Don't attempt to write everything down, just reflect the main themes. Aim to
get the gist of the topic or the main points.

Write on the passage. Underline information that you think may be important. Take special note of
transitional or signal words such as however, therefore, since, nevertheless and above all. Make brief
notes in the margins about the author’s purpose, point or attitude. Writing on the passage serves
three important purposes. It helps you make more sense of what you’re reading; it helps you to
remember what you’ve read; and (here’s the clincher) it helps you to stay tuned in while you’re
reading! Underline or highlight key words and phrases as you read. When you return to it later on,
you can easily see which points you identified as important. Be selective - too much highlighting
won't help. Make annotations in the margin to summarise points, raise questions, challenge what
you've read, jot down examples and so on. You can do this in printed books or e-texts. This takes
more thought than highlighting, so you'll probably remember the content better. (Use sticky notes if
you don't want to mark the text.)

Carry on an internal dialogue. Seriously. Keep a conversation going in your head with the author of
the passage while you are reading. Ask him (or her) questions like “What point are you trying to
make?” or “Why did you describe the situation that way?” Make accusations like “Wow, you
obviously don’t like this character very much”. Get inside his head by saying “You’re trying to be
sarcastic, aren’t you?” or “Oh, I see where you’re going with this example.” These conversations may
feel awkward at first, but good readers have them all the time. They help you to think like the
author, and they help you to (once again) stay tuned in to the reading!
Strategies that Work. The first involves making connections. When we read, we make text-to-self
connections linking the content with our personal experiences. As soon as we do this, the material in
the text stops being inert and takes on a new meaning. We also make linkages between the text and
the larger world. For example, if a student is reading about earthquakes, she may recall hearing
about another earthquake in the news a few months ago. The third type of connection we forge is
between texts, where we connect what we read to other material we have read earlier.

Scanning - handy when you're looking for a particular word or phrase within a text or when you
want to get an idea of the layout of the text (how many sections, where certain topics are covered).

Skimming - a useful first step before reading more deeply. Here you are reading the words quickly to
get a feel for how something is discussed. If you think that the text will be useful to you, you can
slow down and read in a more focused way.

Read quickly to get an overview prior to in-depth reading. Although you may still need to read the
entire text, by scanning first you can decide where you want to concentrate your time. Skim the text
quickly to

 get an indication of the scope and content of the text

Test yourself by reading for half an hour, putting the text away and jotting down the key points from
memory. Go back to the text to fill in gaps.

Explain what you've read to someone else. Record yourself reading the module material or your
notes and listen to the recording while you're travelling or doing household chores.

SQ3R- technique for actively engaging with and extracting meaning from content:

SKIM through the text quickly to get an overall impression.

QUESTION. If you are reading it for a particular purpose (for example, to answer an assignment), ask
yourself how it helps. Also ask questions of the text: Who? What? Where? When? How?

READ. Read the text in a focused, and fairly speedy way.

REMEMBER. Test your memory - but don't worry if you can't remember much.

REVIEW. Read the text in more detail, taking notes. Use your own words.