Planning to write! Reading and Note-taking.

My university here, the prestigious University of Melbourne has a lot of resources for research students. They really do provide a lot of courses online or small group seminars to disseminate information.

This section below is particularly useful to me so I'm going to put it on the cloud( cyberspace)

Step 3: Reading and Note-taking

You might find it difficult to know where to begin. Start with the set readings for the subject, and any specific readings listed for the essay topic.

You may have to find additional references outside the set reading. Library orientation is essential. The SubjectResources@Library provides specific resources for each discipline.

It is important that you don't get overwhelmed with the amount of material you are faced with.

The results of your brainstorming can help you identify your purpose in reading the material that you have found. Your purpose determines how you read. The following table gives you an idea of how to read for your specific purpose.

Your purpose	Reading style
To evaluate the relevance of the material	Scanning. Look at titles, contents pages, headings, indices for a general idea of the usefulness of the material for your task.
To get an overview of the argument	Skim reading. Read introductions, and the first sentence of each paragraph. This can help you to develop your understanding and incorporate the source into your own writing.
To locate specific information	Fast until you locate the section you want, and then slowly in the section itself.
To develop a deep understanding of a text, the author's perspective, argument and evidence	Use a comprehensive method such as SQ3R (Survey, Question, Read, Recite, Review) making notes and a summary reflecting your particular purpose for examining the material.

Notes and summaries

There are two main reasons for making notes, and it is important that you are clear about which is more relevant for you at the time. Notes can be either a tool for helping you understand and stay focused on the text, or the first part of a specific writing task. Be clear about the purpose of your notes, and try to make them as useful as possible.

If your purpose is to generate ideas, arguments or find evidence and support for a specific writing task, you need to have an organised approach to your notes. List ideas as you read. Keep track of each reference as shown below. Then arrange and organise the ideas - this could become the basis of your plan.

Reference	Page	Main ideas	Use
Brown, A. (1998). A guide to effective teaching. Melbourne: Nelson.	76	Talks about the importance of humour and interest in the subject for becoming an effective teacher.	Include this in the section on teaching practices.

Reading strategies and more information on this stage of the essay writing process are available from the ASU reading and research links page.

Continue to the next lesson.