Strategic Reading Strategy: Active Reading

If you’re in a time crunch, the most efficient way to comprehend an academic article is through active reading. Active reading is where you learn by asking questions about the academic article, instead of passively skimming it straight through without thinking. Some of UW undergraduate students’ best active reading tips include: highlighting or annotating text, taking notes as they read, and checking in to see if they can summarize what they’ve just read. 

Active Reading Steps

  1. SKIM these sections of an academic article: Abstract, Introduction, Results, Conclusion
  2. SKIP these sections of an academic article: Methods and References 
  3. Go back to each section you SKIMMED and do a quick check for your own understanding about each section. and review the questions below.

Abstract: What specific results are mentioned? Are they relevant?

Introduction: Do you understand the background information? Do you need to look up definitions for any vocabulary, people, theories, or get more info?

Results: What story does the “results” section tell you? For figures, do you understand what the axes mean? What units are used? Does the curve make sense? 

Discussion or Conclusion: Do you agree with the logic of the conclusions? Are these results useful to you?

Adapted from Purdue Library Links to an external site.