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READING YOUR TEXTBOOKS
Do you have difficulty keeping up with all the required reading in your classes? Most college students find that they have significantly more reading to do than they had in high school. It may be that you adhere to some myths about reading, or that you have some poor reading habits. This page section will help you understand your personal reading characteristics.
Some myths about reading:
- You must read every word; start at the beginning and read
straight through to the end! - You can read it once and remember most of it.
- You shouldn't skip over any of the reading.
- Faster reading leads to poorer comprehension.
- A person should read all types of materials the same way.
Active Reading
Yes, you do have to read the textbooks! Not only must you read, you must also understand and remember what you've read. Good reading skills are CRUCIAL to your success as a R-MC student. Most good readers employ ACTIVE READING strategies when they read.
To find out if you are an ACTIVE READER, answer the questions below: Check the statements that apply to YOU:
| ____1. |
I usually read straight through a text book chapter from beginning to end without stopping. |
| ____2. |
I stop frequently to re-read difficult parts or to check my comprehension by asking myself questions about what I have read. |
| ____3. |
If I don't understand something I have read, I wait to hear the professor's explanation in class. |
| ____4. |
When I hit a rough spot, I make a note to remind myself to ask about it in class. |
| ____5. |
I usually have trouble deciding what is important in a chapter; often I'm not sure what the main idea is. |
| ____6. |
I can usually find the author's main idea, and I rarely have trouble determining what's really important. |
| ____7. |
I often have a hard time relating textbook information to my life or to the course as a whole. |
| ____8. |
I can often see a connection between something I read in a chapter and my life or the course. |
| ____9. |
I rarely underline, mark, underline, highlight, or write notes in my textbooks. |
| ____10. |
I usually mark, underline, highlight, or write notes in my textbooks. |
| ____11. |
I have difficulty deciding what to highlight or underline. |
| ____12. |
I can usually tell what to highlight or underline. |
| ____13. |
I have to be interested in what I am reading to get anything out of it. |
| ____14. |
Even if a subject covered in a textbook doesn't interest me, I can still determine what I should learn and remember from it. |
| ____15. |
I think I am able to read something once and remember the information covered in it. |
| ____16. |
I know that I may have to read something several times before the information sinks in. |
| ____17. |
When I read documents on the Internet, I can't tell which ones are reliable sources and which ones are not. |
| ____18. |
I am able to evaluate the reliability of Internet documents and sources. |
If you checked mostly even numbered statements, you are probably already an active reader. If you checked mostly odd-numbered statements, you may be a passive reader who would benefit from developing active reading strategies. The following pages will give you some tips on reading actively.