Tips and resources
To help you learn effectively you will probably need to take a more active approach to reading than you might have done in the past. Here are some of the key features which may help you in your reading for higher level study:
- Setting yourself targets e.g., a certain number of pages per session.
- Underlining or highlighting key points or important ideas as you read.
- Asking questions to make yourself think about what you read.
- Stopping to look ahead or look back when you lose the thread.
- Reading critically e.g., do you agree with the author or not, and if not, why not?
- Monitoring your progress from time to time e.g., Asking yourself how much you have read, whether you are up to date with your reading and whether there are any parts of the course materials that you still don't understand.
- Changing tack when things are not going well e.g., if you are really struggling with a piece of text, try leaving it for a while and look at something else, then go back to it later.
- You will need to experiment with different ways of doing things, in order to develop a robust, flexible, all-round style that suits you, your circumstances and your way of learning.
What next?
If you have found this taster activity on reading useful why not have a go at the Open University OpenLearn free course English: Skills for Learning.
Future Learn free online course: Skills for Higher Learning: Introduction to Academic Reading and Writing