Clarify why you are reading

Why you are reading something determines, to a large extent, how you need to read it. It’s therefore helpful to start by thinking about your purpose for reading, and then apply one of the following:

• If you are reading to learn the content, you should read and summarise key points so that you can understand and remember the information

• If you are reading to prepare for an assignment, you need to be looking for specific information that relates to the assignment, so it’s worth having a rough plan or list of what you think you’ll be covering in the assignment first

• If you are reading to revise, you need to ensure that you have memorised specific facts and so will need a means of testing this

Break it down

A long, detailed reading list can be overwhelming, so it can help to think in smaller steps rather than focusing on the whole task.

Break your reading list down into achievable chunks that make sense to you - 10 pages at a time or one chapter perhaps. Start small so that you don’t set yourself up to fail.

Be strategic in what you are reading. If you have been given a list of items to read, chances are the most useful are at the top of the list. If not, take a few minutes to try and work out what seems the most relevant.

Focus on one chunk at a time, but if you get into the flow and want to complete two or three chunks before taking a break, go with it. Every time you complete a chunk, have a means of ticking it off so you can see the progress you are making - that will help keep you motivated.

Think how you read best

Which of these sounds most like you?

• I take in information better when I listen to it

• I find it easier to read printed text

• I need to have large text with spaced out lines

• I read better when text is on a coloured background

Try and use strategies that work best for you. This could mean printing your reading material, using your computer or phone to read text to you, or changing the formatting of a document. All of this is achievable without needing specialist software.

Get active

Active reading is an effective way of engaging with your learning materials.

One way to implement active reading is to use highlighters. Choose different colours for different themes and highlight key information as you are reading. Be actively thinking about what is relevant, but don’t be critical of yourself and don’t worry if you are highlighting too much information initially.

By transferring your highlights into a new document, you will quickly be able to see which areas you are missing and which points may not be relevant.

Alternatively, you may prefer to underline or make notes in the margin rather than highlighting - the key is to engage in the task rather than trying to just absorb information as you read.

Lots of people find that physically highlighting or annotating works better for them than doing it on a computer, so do what works best for you - the key is to engage with the materials.