Orientation Lecture Series: Learning to Learn
So many books, so little time…
A guide to reading at university
© Learning Centre, University of Sydney, 2012
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2
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Orientation Lecture Series: Learning to Learn
So many books, so little time…
A guide to reading at university
Peter O’Carroll
Learning Centre
Lecture Outline
› 1. What should I expect at university?
› 2. How much will I have to read?
› 3. How can I read faster?
› 4. Should I make notes?
› 5. How can I be ‘critical’ when I’m reading?
› 6. How do I use the information I’ve read?
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What should I expect at university?
Learning
Approaches
reproductive -----> analytical --------> speculative
Learning
Strategies
Type
Activities
Aim
memorisation
& imitation
critical
thinking
search for new
possibilities
describing,
summarising,
identifying,
applying, etc
questioning,
judging,
recombining,
arguing, etc
speculating,
hypothesising,
etc
‘correctness’
simple
originality reshaping
material
creative
originality- totally
new approach/
knowledge
What should I expect at university?
High school vs university
guidance
autonomy
close contact with teacher
workload
䌝
+
䌝
+
As a university student, you are expected to:
o know how to find information & draw conclusions from
evidence
o think, read and write analytically and critically
o write the right academic genre for an assignment
o attend lectures and submit assignments on time
o make your own decisions about learning & seeking help
o manage a large and irregular workload
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What should I expect at university?
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What should I expect at university?
LNG
FR
BIO
ENG
Week 1
Week 2
Week 3
Summary
Week 4
Week 5
Quiz
Essay 1
Tutorial
presentation
Summary
Break
Week 6
Assignment 1
Week 7
Week 8
Essay 1
Quiz
Group
assignment
10
Time
Mon
7am
Gym
Tues
Wed
Thurs
Fri
Sat
Sun
8am
9am
Travel
10am
Lectures
&
Tutorials
11am
12pm
Work
1pm
2pm
3pm
4pm
5pm
Work
6pm
7pm
8pm
9pm
10pm
11pm
11
What should I expect at university?
LNG
FR
BIO
ENG
Read novel 3 hours
Week 1
Week 2
Read and summarise
journal articles – 5 hours
Summarise lecture notes
Read chapters 1-3 and
make notes – 3 hours
Write draft of summary 1 hr
Read novel 2 hrs
Find 3 articles 1 hr
Week 3
Plan essay – 2 hours
Study for quiz 2 hours
Write final summary – 2 hrs
Read articles and make
notes 3 hrs
Plan tutorial presentation 1
hr
Develop powerpoint 2 hrs
Week 4
Write draft – 3 hours
Revise draft – 2 hours
Week 5
Summary
Quiz
Write final essay – 2 hours
Format references – 2
hours
Print out – 1 hour
Read chapters 4-6 and
make notes – 3 hours
Write draft of summary 1 hr
Rehearse presentation 2
hrs
Tutorial
presentation
Write final summary – 2 hrs
Summary
Essay 1 due
Break
Summarise lecture notes
Week 6
Study for quiz 2 hours
Week 7
Quiz
Week 8
Group
assignment
Assignment 1
Essay 1
12
How much will I have to read?
›1. How much will I have to read?
-
depends on your discipline & year level
›2. How much do I read for an assignment? Consider:
- the number of marks allocated
- the type of assignment you’ve been given
- the amount of time available
- the number of words you have to write
- the progress already made in your assignment
›3. Make an outline of your assignment as you read.
-
monitor your coverage of the topic
-
look for gaps to guide your reading
-
reading shapes outline  outline shapes reading
›4. Can I read too much?
-
You won’t lose marks for a long reference list, but avoid the perfectionist trap
13
How can I read faster?
›1. How can I read faster?  How can I read more efficiently?
-
read key parts of the text before deciding how much to read in detail
›2. Text features:
- index
- table of contents
- keywords
- boxes, diagrams, figures & tables
›3. Predict the content & purpose:
- abstract/summary
- introduction & conclusion
- headings
- topic sentences
How can I read faster?
> Headings and topic sentences can give you an overview of an article:
AN EQUITABLE
CURRICULUM
A curriculum which addresses equity teaches adults to think critically.
Many popular subject areas in adult education may in fact reinforce disadvantage
rather than combat it.
A curriculum which addresses equity must address cultural differences – both
those of the learners involved and those in the community.
MODES OF
DELIVERY
We also need to examine modes of delivery in addressing issues of equity in
adult learning.
We should examine all the resources for learning in our organization and its
environment as well as the learner’s environment.
ARTICULATION AND
ACCREDITATION
Another issue to address in planning equitable outcomes is how we can reduce
the apparent marginalisation of adult and community education.
We now need to find a way to continue to offer learning in a supportive
environment yet ensure that the outcomes for participants will be rewarded as
highly as in more formal learning settings.
McMaster,M. and Randell, S. ‘Equity and opportunity in adult learning’ in Harris, R. and Willis, P. (Eds) 1992 Striking a Balance. South
Australia: Centre for Human Resource Studies, U of South Australia and the South Australian Branch of the Australian Association of Adult
and Community Education. pp 84--91.
How can I read faster?
> Some keywords in the topic sentences reveal the writer’s concerns:
AN EQUITABLE
CURRICULUM
A curriculum which addresses equity teaches adults to think critically.
Many popular subject areas in adult education may in fact reinforce disadvantage
rather than combat it.
A curriculum which addresses equity must address cultural differences – both
those of the learners involved and those in the community.
MODES OF
DELIVERY
We also need to examine modes of delivery in addressing issues of equity in
adult learning.
We should examine all the resources for learning in our organization and its
environment as well as the learner’s environment.
ARTICULATION AND
ACCREDITATION
Another issue to address in planning equitable outcomes is how we can reduce
the apparent marginalisation of adult and community education.
We now need to find a way to continue to offer learning in a supportive
environment yet ensure that the outcomes for participants will be rewarded as
highly as in more formal learning settings.
McMaster,M. and Randell, S. ‘Equity and opportunity in adult learning’ in Harris, R. and Willis, P. (Eds) 1992 Striking a Balance. South
Australia: Centre for Human Resource Studies, U of South Australia and the South Australian Branch of the Australian Association of Adult
and Community Education. pp 84--91.
How can I read faster?
> Some keywords indicate the writer’s purpose:
AN EQUITABLE
CURRICULUM
A curriculum which addresses equity teaches adults to think critically.
Many popular subject areas in adult education may in fact reinforce disadvantage
rather than combat it.
A curriculum which addresses equity must address cultural differences – both
those of the learners involved and those in the community.
MODES OF
DELIVERY
We also need to examine modes of delivery in addressing issues of equity in
adult learning.
We should examine all the resources for learning in our organization and its
environment as well as the learner’s environment.
ARTICULATION AND
ACCREDITATION
Another issue to address in planning equitable outcomes is how we can reduce
the apparent marginalisation of adult and community education.
We now need to find a way to continue to offer learning in a supportive
environment yet ensure that the outcomes for participants will be rewarded as
highly as in more formal learning settings.
McMaster,M. and Randell, S. ‘Equity and opportunity in adult learning’ in Harris, R. and Willis, P. (Eds) 1992 Striking a Balance. South
Australia: Centre for Human Resource Studies, U of South Australia and the South Australian Branch of the Australian Association of Adult
and Community Education. pp 84--91.
Should I make notes?
›1. Preliminary background reading
Not essential
›2. Reading for an assignment
Very useful
›3. Revising for exams
Essential
SQ3R Method:
Survey
Question
Read
Recite (remember)
Review
Should I make notes?
›1. Concept maps
Big picture relationships
›2. Highlighting
For further study
›3. Margin notes
For further study
›4. Structured notes
Highly desirable for assignments
›5. Tables, matrices, diagrams
To reinforce learning
Should I make notes?
Concept map e.g.
Should I make notes?
Outline notes e.g.
Should I make notes?
Matrix notes e.g.
Overt Activity
Covert Mental
Operations
Eliciting Questions
Enumeration, listing
Differentiation
(identifying separate
items)
What did you see?
Hear? Note?
Grouping
Identifying common
properties, abstracting
What belongs
together? On what
criterion?
Labelling, categorising
Determining the
hierarchical order of
items, super- and
subordination
How would you call
these groups? What
belongs to what?
Joyce, B. and Weil, M. with Showers, B.1992 Models of Teaching, 4th Edn. Boston: Allyn & Bacon. P 118.
How can I be ‘critical’ when I’m reading?
› 1. I’m a first year undergraduate – how can I criticise an expert?
› 2. Use the views of other experts to gain a critical view of your readings.
 Compare and contrast texts:
o relative positions
o strengths & weaknesses
› 3. Practise some simple techniques to develop your own critical skills.
 Ask questions about:
o text, author & publication
o evidence, argument & position
o assumptions, conclusions & generalisations
How do I use the information I’ve read?
› 1. Know your purpose in reading
› 2. Look for the main ideas
› 3. Identify any underlying structure the writer is using to
organise the information or argument
› 4. Look out for important linking words
› 5. Synthesise your information
How do I use the information I’ve read?
Synthesising evidence from various sources e.g.
Source
(by author)
Dates
Aim of study
Study
subject(s)
Outcomes
Ugnat et al
1990
national
survey children
under 17
no association
between residential
ETS and parentreported asthma
Knight &
Breslin
1985
6 adult
asthmatics
all developed chest
tightness and
asthma symptoms
Volkmar et al
1995
to investigate
connection
between residential
ETS and parentreported asthma
attacks
study the effect of
experimental ETS
on
adult asthmatics
investigate link
between parental
smoking and
respiratory
complaints in
children
14124
children
parental smoking
associated with
bronchitis and
wheeze but not
asthma