Academic reading: Introduction

The further you get in school, the more difficult texts you have to read. Good reading requires a lot of attention and can play an important part in your school success. A successful student has developed a number of reading strategies that help them understand information and also know in which contexts these strategies should be used. A successful student can also rely on these strategies if they lose track of the meaning of what they are reading. For example, by rereading or asking questions, the student can get back on the right track. Understanding texts is a complex process: you have to predict what the text is about, draw conclusions from what you have read and be able to recognize the writer's point of view. Without these skills and the motivation to read, progress in your school career can be limited.

By the end of this module, you will...

• know what reading strategies are; 
• know why reading strategies are important; 
• be able to use a range of reading strategies; 
• be aware of which reading strategies you already use in Dutch texts and how you can apply them in an English text; 
• have learnt which reading strategies there are; 
• have learnt to deal with unfamiliar words and jargon in a text; 
• have learnt how to use a dictionary effectively.

Watch the video below for an introduction on various reading strategies.