how do you read difficult text

Tips for reading difficult texts.

• Simply not reading is not going to help. Start reading.
• Keep reading.
• Re-read.
• Take notes as you read. You could open a word file and take notes; write in the margin of a book; underline or highlight passages that stand out as ...
• Take a side-track by locating and reading an article cited in the text that you are reading. This sometimes helps to explain a point that the author ...
• Consult a dictionary when you come across new terms.
• Keep track of definitions of terms used by an author in a glossary. Don’t gloss over new words or terms used by an author: write down the definition ...

Full Answer

How do you deal with a difficult text?

Here are some tips to try when faced with reading a difficult text: Simply not reading is not going to help. Start reading. Take notes as you read. You could open a word file and take notes; write in the margin of a book; underline or highlight passages that stand out as you read; add sticky notes to sections that you want to come back to.

What is reading difficult texts?

Reading Difficult Texts: The challenge of reading Althusser or better known as "Yikes." The following discussion of “The Reading Process” comes from John Bean's Engaging Ideas. Bean identifies areas, which can cause both students and teachers problems. 1. Misunderstanding the reading process

How can I improve my reading comprehension skills?

Start a reading group. It is very helpful to talk about the readings with others – so ask some colleagues to join you in reading a new text. Talking about a difficult text will help you understand it.

Does your reading strategy adapt to the text you read?

Not all texts will take the same energy and mental processing as others do, and understanding that your strategy for reading must adapt to the text is necessary for making sure you do the reading you need to do.

How do you read hard texts fast?

Instead, here are some tips for how to read faster that don't require you to skimp on comprehension:Skim or scan the text first. ... Stop subvocalizing. ... Read phrases, not words. ... Quit Re-reading. ... Read more.

What is a difficult text?

When experts read difficult texts they read slowly and reread often. They hold confusing passages in "mental suspension," having faith that later parts will help clarify. They "nutshell" passages as they proceed, getting the gist by marking in the margins. They interact with the text by asking questions as they read.

What is the most difficult text to read?

The 10 Most Difficult Books You'll Ever ReadFinnegans Wake by James Joyce.Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace.The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner.Naked Lunch by William S. Burroughs.War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy.Sophie's Choice by William Styron.Moby Dick by Herman Melville.The Unconsoled by Kazuo Ishiguro.More items...•

What makes a text or reading material difficult to read?

Reading for new vocabulary Often, an academic text is challenging because new and specialised vocabulary, terms and jargon are used throughout. These can be very overwhelming, confusing and impede our understanding if we're unfamiliar with such vocabulary. So, we have to actively research such vocabulary.

What do you do when you don't understand a text?

The following are seven simple strategies you can use to work on your comprehension skills:Improve your vocabulary. ... Come up with questions about the text you are reading. ... Use context clues. ... Look for the main idea. ... Write a summary of what you read. ... Break up the reading into smaller sections. ... Pace yourself.

Published by qualpage

Kathy Roulston is a professor in the Qualitative Research program in the Department of Lifelong Education, Administration and Policy at the University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA. She teaches qualitative research methods, and has written on qualitative interviewing. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9429-2694 Kathryn J.

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Why is that?

You probably know yourself that when you need to read a book or magazine or whatever in very difficult English, it doesn’t motivate you to keep reading. It’s no fun if you have to read every sentence three times. It’s much better to read something that is fun and that keeps you reading. That way you’ll read more and learn more English.

Find out what the text is about in 20 seconds

Basically, what I recommend you to do is first to find out what the text is about. This you can do before you’ll start reading the text. As soon as you’ve gathered a bit of information about your text, your actual reading will be easier.

Look for these first

Titles tell you a lot, because they’re supposed to give you a summary of what the text is about. Also you may find the name of the main people who are involved in your text.

Summarize each paragraph

Another helpful activity is: try to decide what each paragraph is about. Write down a summary of the paragraph in your own words or highlight the main sentence in the paragraph. Every paragraph has a main sentence, and they often are the first sentence of that paragraph.

Scan

Before reading the material, it is necessary to learn some general information on the subject at hand. This can be done by looking for headings and subtitles or diagrams, graphs, or charts inside the passage.

Repeat

For shorter reading assignments, try reading the material once and then sleep on it. The second re-read will yield new discoveries that were skipped on the first pass.

Summarize

While reading, it is important to monitor your level of comprehension. Periodically stop and ask yourself, “what have I learned?” Pause after reading each paragraph and identify the main idea before moving on to the next. Highlight, underline, and make notes in the margins as you read.

Use Other Senses

Comprehension can be improved by using senses other than visual while reading. One way is to read aloud or listen to recordings of the text to engage your auditory senses.

Get Active

Work with a classmate and take turns summarizing chapters of text. Make it fun by teaching each other the more difficult concepts and relating the material to personal experiences.

Review

If reading from a textbook, answer the review questions at the end of each chapter. If questions are not available create your own by converting the chapter or section headings into questions.

Look Up

Write down all unfamiliar words and record their definitions. If reading from a textbook, consult the glossary for technical definitions. Use a dictionary to look up non-technical words. Bookmark the glossary pages for quick access in the future.

General Sense

When we talk about using the general sense of a passage to figure out the meaning of unknown words we are talking about using our knowledge of the text. A lot of the time when we are reading, we will be able to understand what we are reading even if we do not understand every single word used in the text.

Synonyms

Another option available for figuring out the meaning of unknown words is to use synonyms.

Antonyms

The same sort of thing can be applied to using antonyms to identify the meaning of unknown words.

Vocabulary Elements

When we talk about a vocabulary element, we’re talking about the pieces that make up each word in English.