Overview
Review the "Tools for College Success" section of Chapter 7 in the textbook Information Literacy. Apply one of the reading strategies towards one of the peer-reviewed articles you chose in the Topic 1 Brainstorming Worksheet. After reading your article, select a sentence that supports your essay topic. Format this sentence into a direct quote and include an in-text citation. Then, paraphrase the quote and include an in-text citation. In addition, include a reference citation at the end of your response.
Here is an example of what your response to this DQ should look like:
Topic: Exercise and its effects on obesity
Direct Quote: "Guidelines suggest that there are no added health benefits of high-intensity exercise other than the shorter time frame needed to expend the appropriate amount of energy” (Ross et al., 2015, p. 325).
Paraphrase: Exercise is beneficial for one’s health regardless of intensity levels (Ross et al., 2015).
References
Ross, R., Hudson, R., Stotz, P. J., & Miu, L. (2015). Effects of exercise amount and intensity on abdominal obesity and glucose tolerance in obese adults. Annals of Internal Medicine, 162(5), 325-334. https://doi.org/10.7326/M14-1189
ReferencesTools for College SuccessReading StrategiesHave you ever read a chapter and then thought, “What did I just read? I don’t understand or remember anything!” This is a common occurrence, especially for dense, expository texts in college courses. Textbooks are not primarily designed to be read for pleasure, but instead for information. If we do not pay attention to our comprehension as we read, we will often not remember what we read. College reading requires meta-cognition, the ability to think about your own thinking and to monitor your mental activity. Every college student needs to understand that there are four variables that interact and affect the quality of reading:The reader: What are your reading skills, prior knowledge about the topic, interests, attention span, or other physical factors like hunger?The text: How difficult is the text? What genre is the text (e.g., a novel, a science text, a magazine)? Is there graphical support or summary information?The strategies: How do you approach the reading task? What do you do as you read?The goal: Why are you reading the text? What do you want to accomplish by reading the text?The reader interacts with the words in the text by applying strategies that help him or her comprehend the message printed on the page. The act of reading can be broken into three key periods: before, during, and after. By following the suggestions below, you can increase your reading effectiveness.Before You ReadTry to read earlier in the day when you are most alert.Make sure you choose an area that is quiet and has good lighting. Do not lie in your bed or have distractions near you (such as the TV, computer, phone, music, etc.). You must choose a location that allows you to concentrate and have peace. If possible, always use this study area for reading only.Set a goal for reading. Ask yourself what you want to learn. Why are you reading the text?Survey and preview the chapter by looking through it and paying attention to the titles, headings, bold print, figures, tables, charts, and pictures. If there is a summary of the chapter, read it first. By surveying the text, you will be able to get the big ideas of the chapter before you actually read about the details.While surveying and pre- viewing the chapter, ask questions based on the headings, subheadings, and bold printed words that you find in the text. For example, if a heading in a science text is “Mammals,” you could ask a question like, “What are mammals?” Then, when you read the chapter, look for the answers to your own questions.While You ReadWrite as you read. Keep notes and answer the questions you created when surveying the text. Be sure to also record the points where you have difficulty understanding so that you can ask your instructor later in class or during office hours.It is also helpful for students to keep a T-Chart Journal as they read. To make a T-Chart, draw a line across the top of your page (from left to right) and then a line down the middle of your page (from top to bottom) so that there is a big capital letter T on your page. As you read, copy important information on the left side of your T-Chart and then add your personal thoughts on the right side of your T-Chart. This will help you more deeply process and therefore remember the information you are reading.Another way to make your text more meaningful is to use a coding system like the one below:“+” means that it is new information“?” means that it is information you have a question about or do not understand“√” means you already know the informationAs you read the chapter, use these codes and write a +, ?, or √ in the text to show your reaction to the text. Afterward, you can return to the “?” marks to reread or ask questions of your instructor later.Divide the reading into smaller pieces like sections or page amounts instead of trying to do a whole chapter at once.Take breaks as you read, usually about every 45 minutes. During the breaks, reflect or review what you just read. Get up and walk around so that oxygen flows to your brain. This will help you remain alert.Use the Reading Response Journal (see example at end of this chapter) to help you more actively process the information in the text you are reading.After You ReadWhen you finish reading the chapter (or even after reading each section before a break), write a quick two-minute summary of what you read. For two minutes, write everything you can remember.Return to each of the questions that you made in the beginning and try to answer them without looking at your answers. If any question is difficult to answer, return to that section and reread it.Other Reading StrategiesThis section provides a brief list of some powerful strategies that you can use to help you better understand what you read in college.SQ3RSQ3R is a popular strategy for increasing your comprehension when you read (Harvey & Goudvis, 2000). It stands for Survey, Question, and 3 R’s (Read, Recite, Review).Survey: Look over the text before you read and pay attention to the titles, headings, pictures, diagrams, graphs, tables, bold words, etc.Question: Create your own questions about the topic before you read.Read: Read the text or sections and try to answer your own questions.Recite: After reading each section, close the book and recall everything you can remember about what you just read before going on to the next section.Review: Be sure to return to the text on a regular basis in order to review the material you read so that it stays fresh in your memory.Predict-Read-ProveDivide the text into segments or sections and follow this three-step process (Roe, Smith, & Burns, 2005):Based on the heading or title (or what you have read so far), make predictions about what the next section or paragraph will discuss. For example, if the next section in your history text talks about the Pilgrims, you might make several predictions like, “I think the section will talk about why they left Europe, their journey to America, and what happened when they got here.”Next, read the section and search for answers to your predictions.Finally, based on what you read, look for evidence that shows whether or not your predictions were correct.K-W-LAnother great tool for improving your learning and helping you as you read is the KWL model (Alexander, 2006). Each letter represents a word or phrase: K= Know, W= Want to Learn, and L= Learned. To use this strategy, follow these steps:K (Know): For this step, you write everything you already know about something. Before you read about a topic, write down everything you know about it. Just brainstorm short sentences related to the topic. If you are going to read about the Pilgrims, you might write, “They came to America on the Mayflower. They landed on Plymouth Rock. They were some of the first Europeans to settle in the New World.”W (Want to Learn): For this step, you write down things that you want to learn about the topic. For example, you might write, “Why were the Pilgrims persecuted for their religion? How many days did it take to travel on a ship across the Atlantic? What problems did they experience on the journey? What hardships did they experience once they arrived here?”L (Learned): Finally, read the text and look for answers to the things you wanted to learn. You might not find the answers to all your questions. That’s okay. You can read other sources to find the answers, if you choose. Once you are finished reading, write down everything that you learned about the topic from the readings. This is not only a good way to practice remembering, but also helps you create notes about anything new that you learned.Graphic OrganizersGraphic organizers are visual tools that help you gather and organize information as you read (Slavin, 2003). It basically takes the printed information and turns it into a pictorial diagram that summarizes the important concepts (see Figure 7.1). By using the right graphic organizer, you can increase your understanding of the information you read and create a study tool that summarizes what you read at the same time.Figure 7.1Reading Response JournalList five key points from the readingProvide a summary of the most essential information to know from the reading1.2.3.4.5. Create a graphic representation of the information from the readingWhat questions do you still have or want to know more about from the reading? ?????Word Maps for Learning VocabularyWord maps are a handy strategy to use for learning new vocabulary words. Using a word map, you can expand your understanding of words, increase your recollection of them, and make a good review sheet for future studying. Another useful tool for learning vocabulary is the Frayer Model.The above section provided a synopsis of key strategies that will help you become a more effective reader. You do not need a huge assortment of tools in your college toolbox. You just need a collection of the right ones for the job at hand. The strategies described here are some of the best and most well researched. Give them a try and you will quickly see the benefits of these simple reading strategies. Now, we will examine ways to improve your performance on tests.Time to ReflectWhich of the above reading strategies did you like best? How will you use one of the strategies to increase your reading comprehension? Try the new strategy while reading the next section.