| I have difficulty handling large quantities of text (A11, B6, C5-C7, C10-11).
You are preparing to write a paper or part of a thesis and you have been lucky enough to find a lot of material on your subject. Then the problem arises: how to get the most important information from the pile of paper in front of you?
1. Specify the aim of your search
• Link the aim of you reading with the most appropriate manner for digesting it
• Prepare the structure of your argument You can only get the right things out of the material if you know what to look for. The structure (table of contents) of your paper is the ‘net’ with which you are going to fish for the relevant points from your reading. Of course, the first draft will be provisional (A5). Prepare the basic structure by using key words (E*). If you want to read effectively, you must always begin by writing!
2. Decide upon the style of your search:
• Start with the pieces that seem most promising You want to improve your knowledge of the topic in the shortest time possible. Start, therefore, with those texts that provide you with the richest 'harvest'. Do not read everything (including more marginal texts) immediately.
• Do not lose time by reading texts from beginning to end If you know what you are looking for, you can go through the texts relatively quickly and select the items that are relevant. First, skim through the text and identify the most interesting sections and arguments (C7). Read and mark them carefully (C9). Finally, return to those parts you want to ‘conserve’ by taking notes.
Back to Reading literature |
