Payton Hayes 9/12/22 Payton Hayes 9/12/22

Active Reading Vs. Passive Reading - Using Pscyhology-Based Critical Reading Skills To Increase Information Absorption

Hi readers and writerly friends!

This week in Reader Life, we’re discussing the concept of active reading for comprehension and concept retention. This article is all about helping you ensure you’re actually absorbing what you’re reading and will able to put into application, the information you’ve read or listened to, rather than it simply going in one ear and out the other.

Passive Reading

Passive reading is when one reads quickly, skimming the material and not really taking it in effectively. This most often occurs when readers are cramming with little time to read, reading amidst distractions such as loud music, noises, or voices, or listening to books while doing some other activity that pulls their attention away from the information they’re trying to absorb.

To avoid passive listening, limit your multitasking and have a pen and paper close by so you can jot down any important notes as needed. If you must do something while listening to an audiobook or recording, combine that mental activity with a physical activity of low mental energy such as working out, going for a walk, bathing, or doing some other simple, automatic/repetitive task that won’t pull you away from the material. Where you can, try to have a copy of the physical book to read along with the audiobook for extra focusing power and immersion.

Active Reading

Active reading is the method of reading material by which you are fully engaged and able criticize concepts as they are presented to you, comparing what you are learning with that which you already know. By active reading, you are absorbing the information you are presented with and thus able to apply it moving forward.

How to read actively:

When reading chapters in text books or curriculum material, read any questions BEFORE reading the passage so you can know what key information you’re supposed to be looking for.
Where you can, read the passage three times and review the questions between each pass through. This will help you to cement the information in your brain and will ensure you’re becoming extra familiar with the material, introducing any key concepts you might have missed in the first pass through.
Underline and search any unknown words, subjects, concepts, or ideas referenced, that you might not be familiar with. This will avoid any confusion during the reading process. Write these terms and their definitions down so that you can reinforce your understanding of them.
Pay attention to headers and sub-headers as they typically provide clues to the main idea of that section. As you move through paragraphs, jot down a few words in the margins or in your note, to describe the main idea of each paragraph. This is especially helpful when writing a summarization or response paper for passages.
As you read, highlight or underline any concepts that may be relevant to the reading questions you reviewed before and between reading sessions. When it comes time to answer the questions, go back to the highlighted sections for easy and accurate answering.
As you read, take any notes on concepts, terms, or subjects you will be quizzed on later or save any ideas you will want to come back to. There are all kinds of ways to take notes, but opt for simplicity and efficiency. Notes do not have to be gorgeous or frilly to be effective. Legible handwriting, underlining, capitalization, and a few different color pens will go a long way. If you prefer, handwrite your notes and then type them up on your computer for extra studying power and better legibility.

The benefits of active reading

Active reading ensures you absorb the material you’re reading, you retain more of what you read, and you remember the information for years to come. It’s a skill that takes time and practice to build but after a few sessions, you’ll have this useful skill in your toolkit forever. This skill is especially useful for students and educators but anyone who considers themselves an academic or lifelong learner would benefit from practicing this skill.

Active reading using the SQ3R Method

According to the American Psychological Association, the SQ3R method is “a study method developed on the basis of research in cognitive psychology which promotes enhanced learning of reading material (APA, 2020). The acronym SQ3R stands for the five steps in the reading process: Survey, Question, Read, Remember, and Review. This process is effective for reviewing previously visited material as well as reading passages for the first time. According to the Marbella International University Centre, the SQ3R method was proposed in the book Effective Study (1946) by Francis P. Robinson, a prominent American educational psychologist (Marbella IUC 2020).

Survey: Skim through the text quickly to get an overall idea of the subject matter. Pay close attention to section headers and sub-headers.
Question: If you are reading the passage for a particular purpose (for example, to answer an assignment), ask yourself how it helps. Ask these additional questions of the text: Who? What? Where? When? How?
Read: the text in a focused, and fairly speedy way. Take breaks between long passages to allow your brain to refocus and absorb more material.
Remember: Test your memory - but don't worry if you can't remember much. Flashcards are a great way to test your memory. Work with a friend or colleague or use Quizlet to create your own virtual flashcards to quiz yourself.
Review: Read the text in more detail, taking notes. Summarize and paraphrase important concepts. Being able to accurately rephrase content in an easily-digestible format demonstrates your understanding of the material.

Take your reading a step further with the SQ4R Method

According to Weber State University, there are some other terms you could insert for a SQ4R method instead. Below are the optional R’s that can be used as a fourth step in this method and will take your reading, memorization, and application to another level.

Relate and Reflect: Making a meaningful, personal connection between yourself and the material will help cement concepts in your mind. As you read each chapter or section, try to create ties between the new concepts and the information you already know. How can this material apply to your life

Rewrite: Reduce the information to easily-digestible notes by rewriting and paraphrasing. Take notes that are both concise and complete, and double check your own version against the text. For your reference, include page numbers in your notes, so you can quickly trace the information back to the source text if needed.

Record: Retain essential information and key concepts either by literally recording yourself read aloud, saving bookmarks or timestamps in an audiobook, or adding sticky tabs to the pages of your physical text. Create a list of terms and concepts that you know will be on the test and write the page numbers from the source material as well as your notes so you can quickly and easily find the information you need while studying.

Repeat and Read Aloud: As with the Record option, you could read aloud your material. Studies have shown that reading aloud improves comprehension as well as memory. As per the Neurobehavioral Associates, a 2017 study from the University of Waterloo confirmed the production effect, or the “distinction experienced when words are read aloud, versus reading words silently. The speaking of the words is more active than silent reading, and therefore aides in the production of our long-term memories” (Neurobehavioral Associates 2018).

The ninety-five participants in the study “were asked to read silently, listen to someone else read aloud, read aloud themselves, and listen to a recording of themselves reading. While hearing a recording of themselves did show a small benefit, the greatest benefit to memory was, overwhelming, found when the participants read aloud” (Neurobehavioral Associates 2018). Try reading aloud to help retain important information and read along with your own recordings for even stronger concept retention.

Respond: As you read, write the answers to the questions you read before diving into 3R/4R part of the method. As necessary, ask yourself additional questions and write them with the answers in the margins or in your notes. When you go back to answer the actual test questions, double check that your answer is correct and include the page number with your answers if you have the space.

Active reading starts with the reader. It is the act of engaging deliberately with the material and absorbing it effectively. Readers can practice reading more actively with a few simple steps and by doing so will increase their information absorption and reading comprehension.

That’s it for my article on how to practice active reading! Have you ever heard of this practice before? In what was has active reading helped you study smarter? Let me know in the comments below and thanks for reading!