In college, it is often expected of students to read on their own. Many college courses require out of class reading, which leads to a discussion on the reading during class. This structure requires the student to not only read the material, but understand it well enough for them to be able to discuss in front of peers. While this is not everyone’s favorite method, there are multiple ways for students to improve at this process and succeed. Particularly, slide 6 of Module 4 lists ways to positively interact with your online readings. Highlighting information deemed important is a major strategy here. Utilizing tools such as Notability or Microsoft OneNote allow students to copy readings into these apps and then highlight or take notes over them. These online tools also allow for another strategy- using margins to take notes or summarize key points of what you’ve read. This can be beneficial, especially in reviewing the information at a later date. It gives you a review of what you’ve read, and looking over the information later adds another refresher for your mind.
An article included in Module 4, “How Do You Read to Learn?,” gives several tips for reading effectively as well. Among the strategies that the article mentions is avoiding reading fatigue. Reading for too long can lead to lack of concentration, which may affect your ability to understand and remember the information read. Taking breaks every now and then is essential to the reading process. Also, mindfully scheduling one’s reading can be beneficial; setting aside blocks of time is positive, but making sure to also factor in time’s of the day when you are most alert is important as well. Lastly, reading more difficult texts or assignments when one is most fresh plays a large role in effectively scheduling reading time.