Reading Effectively

The introduction to Immanuel Kant's Critique of Pure Reason, one of the hardest books to read.

How does one read effectively? 

This question, I feel, is not asked enough. A goal of mine is to be an effective communicator. One of my objective to achieve this goal is growing my vocabulary. Whenever I came across a word, I can not pronounce or define I would write it down then look it up and write it down. The exact amount of words written in my personal journal is unknown, but a lot. A moderate volume of reading is not enough to become an effective communicator. Surely reading more will build vocabulary, which brings me to the question at hand: how does one read effectively?

This question is not new -- I have asked this to myself throughout my time in grade school and undergraduate. And still, the lesson from answering this question have not prevailed. It seems I have lost techniques learned while attending undergraduate for I am not reading copious amounts of text like I use to.

This post will break down the techniques of an experienced reader starting with the myths of reading, what you should do before reading, note taking while reading, and the reading.

There are a lot of myths about reading. Contrary to popular belief, reading faster does not mean lower comprehension. One can read quickly by dividing the page into thirds and grouping words for the eye to fixate. Not every word has to be read. Only focus on those groups and keywords deemed necessary to answer your rereading question, which we will cover in just a second.

Another myth is reading a book, chapter or article once. Some believe rereading is self-punishment for one should have retained information the first go around. Or that if one does not understand what was read the first time, then it should be reread another time. Instead, ask yourself what was read and summarize the passage. Useful reading is selecting the best reading material such as a favorite novel or one of the classics.

One does not need to read every single passage. I fell foley to this and have wasted much time reading. Not everything an author writes has to do with the topic. Sometimes fluff is inserted, or the subject is not interesting enough to be read. Skipping is okay as long as you take away from what is read. Don't feel obligated to read every single word, let alone word. Not doing so would result in a bottleneck of book and articles waiting to be read causing much anxiety and discouragement.

Before reading a chapter or book have a set of questions ready to answer. Reading is a fountain of information. Without possessing questions before reading will be like drinking from a hose instead of a fountain. Pre-reading questions allow one to target keywords while reading for effective speed reading while cutting out passages like fat from a steak.

One way to develop pre-reading questions is turning the chapter title into a question. Another idea is asking you what this article or chapter is about, what do you already know about this and what do you hope to learn. While reading you should ask yourself what the author is saying, what is implied by the passage, what is the author assuming, and how valid is the argument?

A question I regularly received while attending undergraduate was what is the big picture. Contextualize what you are reading to your pre-reading questions and your goals in general to figure a big picture idea.

Say goodbye to the highlighter because Princeton University suggests writing answers to your pre-reading questions in the margins.

After writing a brief summary will help you retain information better. With an outline or a diagram, one will not have to reread the material because the information will be transferred from short term memory to long term memory, according to Dartmouth University.

Though remembering all prereading points is daunting, the action of reading effectively and fun.

When reading, ask yourself how much time are you budgeting. If time is short then only reading the heading, introduction, and conclusion sentences. If time is able, then read every word. Establishing goals is a great way to make reading more enjoyable and fun such as reading for 30-minutes then taking a ten-minute break or not moving onto another task until a chapter is complete. Anticipating what material will be read mentally prepares yourself to absorb the information and is helpful when deciding on what goals to complete.

Pro tip: if an author repeats a word or phrase then it is important.

Reading will never stop. My new year resolution is to read two books, regardless of length, each month for 2017. Though I have read a lot in college, old habits can escape. Thankfully old habits come back with the help of curiosity and self-improvement.



-Tyler

Sources:

http://www.salisbury.edu/counseling/new/7_critical_reading_strategies.html

http://www.vpul.upenn.edu/lrc/lr/PDF/primary%20sources%20%28W%29.pdf

http://lsc.cornell.edu/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Three-Ps-for-Effective-Reading-.pdf

http://www.dartmouth.edu/~acskills/success/reading.html

https://student.unsw.edu.au/reading-strategies

https://mcgraw.princeton.edu/active-reading-strategies

http://www.dartmouth.edu/~acskills/videos/video_ri.html

http://bsc.harvard.edu/files/interrogating_texts_six_reading_habits_to_develop_in_your_first_year_at_harvard.pdf