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10 Strategies to Improve Your Reading Comprehension for College

Some college students struggle with assignments because they lack sufficient reading comprehension skills. According to the National Assessment of Adult Literacy , 43% of U.S. adults lacked the basic skills to read and understand college-type and other such dense texts. They also can’t determine cause and effect, make simple inferences, summarize, or recognize an author's purpose.

In high school, some savvy students can get by with doing little reading and relying on class discussions to prepare them for quizzes and tests. It’s not easy to do the same in college—especially if you’re taking classes online. If some reading is assigned, you are expected to do it.

If you are out of practice or your comprehension isn’t up to standard, you can find yourself in trouble. Putting assignments off until the last minute won’t help, either.

One way to make sure you’re getting all you can from your assignments is to brush up on your reading comprehension skills. Here are some active reading strategies and tools you can use to bolster your reading for college.

1. Find Your Reading Corner

The right reading environment should fit with your learning style. The right spot will increase your focus and concentration. Consider four factors:

• Atmosphere: Is there sufficient lighting? Do you have a comfortable chair?
• Distractions: Is there enough quiet? Have you muted or turned off your phone?
• Location: Is this spot convenient to things you need?
• Schedule: Have you given yourself enough time to complete the reading and assignments?

2. Preview the Text

Survey the material and ask some questions before you start reading. What’s the topic? What do you already know? What can you learn from the text from any table of contents, glossary, or introduction? What do titles, subheadings, charts, and graphs tell you?

3. Use Smart Starting Strategies

When you start reading, don’t let the text overwhelm you. Use these strategies to keep your reading assignment under control.

• Break up the reading: If an assignment seems daunting, break it into bite-sized sections.
• Pace yourself: Dense material, such as that in textbooks, can be tough to read. Manage your time well and schedule regular breaks.
• Check for understanding: As you read, occasionally ask yourself if you understand what is being communicated. If not, you may need to go back and reread a paragraph or section.

4. Highlight or Annotate the Text

Watch for important terms, definitions, facts, and phrases and highlight them or add annotations within the document—digitally if you’re on a computer. However, don't get carried away with the highlighting.

If you would rather not use a highlighter, try to annotate the text with notes in the margins or in comment mode, or underline key phrases. Also, look for and mark the main idea or thesis.

5. Take Notes on Main Points

This is different from highlighting because you can take your own notes separately. Here are a few note-taking strategies:

• Have your own style: Try bullet points, mind mapping, outlines, or whatever method works for you.
• Turn subtitles into questions: By making section headers into questions, that can help you find the answers.
• Summarize as you read: After reading a paragraph, write a sentence to summarize the paragraph’s main points. Is the author’s thesis supported? Is an opposing view introduced?

6. Write Questions as You Read

Asking questions can help your comprehension. The tactic also works when reading. Ask questions in your notes—who, what, when, where, how—and then look for answers as you continue. That helps you understand what you read.

7. Look Up Words You Don’t Know

Don’t let unfamiliar words derail you. Look them up in a dictionary before you go any further. It can be hard to recover if you miss the main point because of new words. You may want to bookmark an online dictionary, like Merriam-Webster , so you can easily find word definitions.

8. Make Connections

Look for links and connections between the text and your experiences, thoughts, ideas, and other texts.

9. Review and Summarize

After you finish reading, summarize the text in your own words. This will help you understand main ideas and take better notes. If you don’t understand what you’ve read, reread carefully.

10. Discuss What You've Read

Describe what you have learned to someone else. Talk to your professor or another classmate. Join discussion groups. This will move the information (or content) from short-term to long-term memory.

Additional Reading Comprehension Strategies and Tools

Sometimes, charting what you learned will help you digest what you’ve read. Here are some sites and tools you can use to help.

• 10 Tips to Improve Your Reading Comprehension —This YouTube video features an instructor talking about reading and sharing tips.
• Inspiration —Create concept or mind maps, graphic organizers, webs, and more to make sense of reading materials.
• Purdue Global Academic Success Centers —Assistance with business, math, science, technology, and writing is available through Purdue Global’s online Academic Success Centers.
• Purdue Global Study Essentials —This student support website offers action plans, study skills, hints on time management, and other tools to help students.
• Quizlet —Create flashcards, quizzes, and other study aids with this website.
• Rewordify —Turn arcane language into readable modern words with this free tool.
• Snap&Read —Rephrase complicated text into simpler language with this Google Chrome extension.

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5 Steps to Master College-Level Reading

Before entering college, I imagined a lot of my time would be spent in a dimly lit library, engrossed in textbooks until the late hours of the night. My high school teachers had forewarned us about the overwhelming amount of reading we would encounter in college, and popular media often reinforced this notion. And there were instances when I needed to find a quiet spot and create a strategy to move quickly and efficiently through a reading assignment. What I learned was that I needed to change my approach and build effective reading skills to meet the demands of college courses . I was able to do this by being more intentional with my assignments—and you can, too.

Here are some steps you can take to become an efficient reader and stay on top of college reading assignments:

Determine the goal of the assignment.

First, consider why the professor assigned this reading. Will you be discussing the material in class, taking a test, or writing a paper? This will help you determine what you need to get out of the reading and focus on important content to achieve your goal.

Create a quiet, ideal reading environment.

Try to choose a comfortable spot, free from distractions. I know that at times, noise is unavoidable, especially if you live in a shared space like a dorm . In that case, pop in some headphones and find tranquil sounds or music that can help drown out the background noise. I can concentrate in almost any environment if I listen to the “Pride and Prejudice” movie soundtrack or a movie score playlist. Find what works for you.

Use the SQ3R method.

SQ3R is a reading technique that works well for textbooks and research articles. The purpose is to identify what you don’t know and build on pre-existing knowledge that you already have. Here’s how you use the SQ3R method:

• Survey: Get a firm grasp on what the material is about before you start reading. Read all the titles and headlines, skim the introduction and conclusion of each section, and look at any charts, graphs, or other visuals. Some textbooks list chapter highlights—be sure to read these as well.
• Question: Break the content down into two sections—what you already understand without reading and brand-new material that you don’t fully understand. Then, write out questions about unfamiliar content to help guide your focus as you read. Your goal is to find the answers to these questions by the time you finish reading.
• Read: As you read, you want to focus on answering your questions. This does not mean intensely reading line by line, but actively searching for answers. Take notes or highlight important content as you go.
• Recite: In your own words, recite the answers to your questions and then write them down. If you struggle doing this, spend more time reading to find the answers. It might help to do this in sections throughout your reading.
• Review: Look back at your notes, highlighted content, and answers to your questions to get an overarching view of what you learned. Go through each section of the reading and check your memory and understanding by reciting the major points of each section.

Use time management.

Everyone reads at a different pace. To avoid feeling overwhelmed and rushed, look at how much reading you’ve been assigned and determine how much time you might need. Factor in time for breaks, if possible.

The transition from high school to college reading assignments can seem daunting at first, but using these tips will help you develop effective and efficient reading habits. And remember, reading is a skill. The more you practice, the better you’ll be at reading and comprehension. So, go find a good book and start practicing, and check out more tips on reading on the K12 Leading with Literacy hub.

For more helpful tips and resources that’ll get you ready for college, visit the K12 Career and College Prep page.

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Reading strategies & tips.

Reading is a foundational learning activity for college-level courses. Assigned readings prepare you for taking notes during lectures and provide you with additional examples and detail that might not be covered in class.  Also, according to research, readings are the second most frequent source of exam questions (Cuseo, Fecas & Thompson, 2007). 

Reading a college textbook effectively takes practice and should be approached differently than reading a novel, comic book, magazine, or website. Becoming an effective reader goes beyond completing the reading in full or highlighting text.  There are a variety of strategies you can use to read effectively and retain the information you read.

Consider the following quick tips and ideas to make the most of your reading time:

• Schedule time to read . Reading is an easy thing to put off because there is often no exact due date.  By scheduling a time each week to do your reading for each class, you are more likely to complete the reading as if it were an assignment.  Producing a study guide or set of notes from the reading can help to direct your thinking as you read.
• Set yourself up for success .  Pick a location that is conducive to reading.  Establish a reasonable goal for the reading, and a time limit for how long you’ll be working. These techniques make reading feel manageable and make it easier to get started and finish reading. 
• Choose and use a specific reading strategy .  There are many strategies that will help you actively read and retain information (PRR or SQ3R – see the handouts and videos).  By consciously choosing a way to approach your reading, you can begin the first step of exam preparation or essay writing.  Remember: good readers make stronger writers.
• Monitor your comprehension . When you finish a section, ask yourself, "What is the main idea in this section?  Could I answer an exam question about this topic?" Questions at the end of chapters are particularly good for focusing your attention and for assessing your comprehension. If you are having difficulty recalling information or answering questions about the text, search back through the text and look for key points and answers. Self-correction techniques like revisiting the text are essential to assessing your comprehension and are a hallmark technique of advanced readers (Caverly & Orlando, 1991).
• Take notes as you read . Whether they’re annotations in the margins of the book, or notes on a separate piece of paper. Engage with the reading through your notes – ask questions, answer questions, make connections, and think about how these ideas integrate with other information sources (like lecture, lab, other readings, etc.)

Want to dive in a little deeper? Take a look at Kathleen King's tips below to help you get the most out of your reading, and to read for success. You'll see that some are similar to the tips above, but some offer new approaches and ideas; see what works for you:

• Read sitting up with good light, and at a desk or table.
• Keep background noise to a minimum . Loud rock music will not make you a better reader. The same goes for other distractions: talking to roommates, kids playing nearby, television or radio. Give yourself a quiet environment so that you can concentrate on the text.
• Keep paper and pen within reach .
• Before beginning to read, think about the purpose of the reading . Why has the teacher assigned the reading? What are you supposed to get out of it? Jot down your thoughts.
• Survey the reading . Look at the title of the piece, the subheadings. What is in the dark print or stands out? Are there illustrations or graphs?
• Strategize your approach : read the introduction and conclusion, then go back and read the whole assignment, or read the first line in every paragraph to get an idea of how the ideas progress, then go back and read from the beginning.
• Scan effectively : scan the entire reading, and then focus on the most interesting or relevant parts to read in detail.
• Get a feel for what's expected of you by the reading . Pay attention to when you can skim and when you need to understand every word.
• Write as you read . Take notes and talk back to the text. Explain in detail the concepts. Mark up the pages. Ask questions. Write possible test questions. Write down what interests or bores you. Speculate about why.
• If you get stuck : think and write about where you got stuck. Contemplate why that particular place was difficult and how you might break through the block.
• Record and explore your confusion . Confusion is important because it’s the first stage in understanding.
• When the going gets difficult, and you don’t understand the reading , slow down and reread sections. Try to explain them to someone, or have someone else read the section and talk through it together.
• Break long assignments into segments . Read 10 pages (and take notes) then do something else. Later, read the next 10 pages and so on.
• Read prefaces and summaries to learn important details about the book. Look at the table of contents for information about the structure and movement of ideas. Use the index to look up specific names, places, ideas.

(Reading strategies by Dr. Kathleen King. Many of the above ideas are from a lecture by Dr. Lee Haugen, former Reading specialist at the ISU Academic Skills Center. https://www.ghc.edu/sites/default/files/StudentResources/documents/learn... )

Curious to learn more? Check out our Reading video , and hear what we have to say!

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The Word on College Reading and Writing

(34 reviews)

Monique Babin

Carol Burnell, Clackamas Community College

Susan Pesznecker, Clackamas Community College

Nicole Rosevear, Clackamas Community College

Jaime Wood, Portland State University

Copyright Year: 2017

Publisher: Open Oregon Educational Resources

Language: English

Formats Available

Conditions of use.

Learn more about reviews.

Reviewed by Lisa Parra, Professor of Reading, Johnson County Community College on 5/13/22

This text offers a wide variety of strategies in reading and writing that would be appropriate for introductory college students and for the high school level. The portion on reading, in particular, does a nice job explaining the task of a... read more

Comprehensiveness rating: 5 see less

This text offers a wide variety of strategies in reading and writing that would be appropriate for introductory college students and for the high school level. The portion on reading, in particular, does a nice job explaining the task of a college-level reader as well as how to improve skills to become a better reader. The writing part is robust with exercises, and resources provided.

Content Accuracy rating: 5

The content is accurate and related to common practices in teaching reading and writing strategies. The material is current and includes research-based information.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

The content is current and reflects relevant and engaging topics. The material could easily be updated in the future if needed to be more up to date. The strategies presented are research-based in the fields of reading and writing.

Clarity rating: 5

The writing style is easy to understand, and engaging. The message is straightforward and clear, as is the organization of the information. Students will be able to easily navigate the text.

Consistency rating: 4

The voice, tone, and flow of the text are consistent from section to section. There is a conversational tone that would be appealing to learners. The reading portion doesn’t seem quite as developed as the writing, and this is something that could be improved upon.

Modularity rating: 5

Sections in this book could be used in their entirety, or selectively depending on the needs of the students or the course focus. The organization of the text offers an easy way to excerpt the content for use. While concepts can build on one another, as the introduction pointed out, you can skip around and explore the material out of order.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

The organization and flow of the book are logical and there are many skill-building opportunities throughout the book. The assignments can be used in the order best suited for the class taught and do not necessarily have to be completed consecutively. The organization is in two parts, beginning with reading strategies and concluding with the writing process.

Interface rating: 5

Accessing the online version of the text worked well from my computer. I also was easily able to download the ebook digital PDF and would imagine printing if needed would be simple. As far as viewing the book on a smartphone, navigating the online version worked well.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

There were no grammatical errors noted.

Cultural Relevance rating: 4

This content is inclusive, especially regarding gender/gender-neutral references. The text does not necessarily include many multi-cultural aspects as it seems more generic in scope. I did not discover any measures of cultural insensitivity or offensiveness; however, the cultural relevance could be improved.

Reviewed by Christine Wittmer, Learning Specialist, University of Southern Indiana on 4/28/22

I teach Academic Reading Strategies and I couldn’t find a text from the list that would be a good substitute to the course’s learning objectives. The book I chose to review was written in two halves, one on reading and one on writing. The... read more

Comprehensiveness rating: 4 see less

I teach Academic Reading Strategies and I couldn’t find a text from the list that would be a good substitute to the course’s learning objectives. The book I chose to review was written in two halves, one on reading and one on writing. The reading section was a little sparse and general. There were not a lot of practices which I think is helpful for a textbook. The section on Informational Literacy was more developed. It had a few practices and ideas for discussion in the classroom. It was very straight-forward and easy to understand which most students would appreciate. The writing section of the text was even more developed with more direction and practices. For writing textbook, I feel that the text was very comprehensive, but since I am looking for an academic reading text, it was lacking. The table of contents was accurate and effective. The glossary was brief, but it included ideas covered in the text.

The material was accurate and error-free. I saw no author bias.

The The material was relevant. It referred to current ideas and developments, but I think the ideas would not be outdated very soon. There was a reference to a student's MP3 player which I think my students would find humorous, but I don't think it distracts from the message of the text. I would think it would be easy to update anything that might be "dated" or obsolete in the future.

Clarity rating: 4

The text had a very conversational flow. It was written in first person and very informal. It sounded as if the author was speaking directly to the reader. I felt it was a little choppy in sections with not much development of ideas. This criticism of the underdeveloped ideas focuses much more on the first half of the text than the second half. This is clearly a writing textbook and the reading aspect of it seems "extra".

Consistency rating: 5

The book is highly consistent in tone, structure and organization.

Modularity rating: 4

The text is divisible into smaller reading sections. The first half of the book that discussed reading was shorter in general than most of the sections in the writing portion of the text. None of the sections were overwhelmingly long or contained so many links that it proved distracting. Although almost every section had one of two links within it, it was not distracting or confusing. Clicking on a link was not essential for understanding the text.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 4

The table of contents was organized well with one topic flowing logically to the next one. The sentences and paragraphs were also organized in a logical and clear fashion. I didn't like the fact that after a "Check Your Understanding", the student needed to click to the "answer page". It disrupts the flow of the reading in my opinion.

I reviewed the book online and had no issues with navigation.

I found no grammatical errors.

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

The text is not culturally insensitive in any way. Most of the book is written in first and second person, so there is not an abundance of opportunity for a variety of example of cultural inclusiveness. In one exercise, there are eight people. Within that grouping there are a variety of races, cultures, and sexual orientations. The text contains a variety of pronoun usage including "they" for a singular pronoun.

The book would be a good addition to the course that I am teaching, but it would not serve as the one text for the course. This book is designed for a writing course and not a reading course so it is understandable that it is lacking in many areas that my students would need in a textbook.

Reviewed by Nick Mancini, Assistant Professor of Reading, Johnson County Community College on 4/25/22

Generally comprehensive as an INTRODUCTION to high-level reading and writing. I think this could be used for late high school too. While the brevity and conciseness is overall a positive for a text like this, there are a few sections that... read more

Generally comprehensive as an INTRODUCTION to high-level reading and writing. I think this could be used for late high school too.

While the brevity and conciseness is overall a positive for a text like this, there are a few sections that seem to be too short and would need some outside sources to supplement this text.

As a stand-alone textbook, I'm not sure this text would be quite robust enough, but as a reference material included in a course, this text would be quite valuable.

The content is research-based and accurate to my knowledge of best practices.

In addition to accuracy, the content draws upon recent research in both writing and reading. The text is organized in an effective way that will be easily updateable as new research surfaces.

The text is written in a clear, straightforward way, mixing informal and formal prose effectively. Some parts are very "conversational" and will likely be easily readable by students, even those in developmental courses. The actual strategies are then presented in clear, objective, matter-of-fact tones that provide actionable activities which students can implement in their course(s).

Additionally, there are many "checks for understanding" wherein students can practice the strategies with real texts. The chosen texts/activities are good overall.

While still well done, the textbook does suffer slightly from some sections being overly brief, both in general and when compared to other sections of the textbook.

The textbook could easily be used as a reference material wherein the instructor picks and chooses specific sections of the text to present/assign. In fact, I think that is how this textbook would most shine.

The text is not overly self-referential, and when it is self-referential, the text provides links to the referenced section. An instructor could easily use parts of the text in any order throughout the course.

The text presents the reading and writing process in a research-backed way that I believe students would find easy to understand and implement into practice.

I did not find any interface or navigation issues with this text. In general, the interface is intuitive and easy to use.

No found grammatical errors.

While the text is not culturally insensitive, I wouldn't call it particularly culturally sensitive. This text seems applicable to many settings and learners and doesn't seem to suffer from a particular bias; however, there doesn't seem to be a concerted effort to include texts that would meet a DEI committee's standards. There are opportunities to include more DEI texts as "checks for understanding." [DEI = Diversity, Equity, Inclusion]

Overall, I would consider this text to be a wonderful resource for students. It is generally easy to read and presents the research in non-technical/jargon ways that students will be likely to understand. Overall, 4.75+/5. It's not perfect, but it's great for what it is -- a small resource/skills/reference text.

Some sections seem to be a little short to stand alone, and the text could benefit from more checks for understanding (and more diverse readings/texts/activities in the checks for understanding).

I'm not sure the text is robust enough to be a stand-alone textbook that would be used for a 3-credit hour course, but it would be a fantastic resource for alternate explanations or using sections of the text in addition to instructor materials. This text could easily serve as a jumping-off point for developing a course.

Personally, there are several sections that I will use as a supplement to my already existing lectures/materials (and/or replacements for other texts I've used). There are several other sections I will provide to students as optional extra help/alternative explanations/possible extra credit for the checks for understanding etc.

Reviewed by Olga Gould, Assistant Professor Reading/Literacy, Eastern New Mexico University on 1/1/22, updated 4/22/24

It needs to be stated up front that this book is easy to comprehend. In its Introduction section, the authors explain how to use this text and for who it was meant. The book is divided into multiple chapters/sections each of which has a... read more

It needs to be stated up front that this book is easy to comprehend. In its Introduction section, the authors explain how to use this text and for who it was meant. The book is divided into multiple chapters/sections each of which has a self-explanatory title or heading. Importantly, the language of this publication targets college students, while the content of each chapter or section sounds as an advice to higher education learners. Oftentimes, this advice is provided as a step-by-step guidance in a numbered or bulleted order, which should facilitate better meaning-making and memorization of the read texts by the readers. Another beneficial feature of this book, which most likely will make this reading easily understandable is the Problem and Suggestions structure. Struggling readers might locate the issues they encounter in their own reading and writing practices and see the suggested solutions which they may try to implement in order to resolve their literacy problems. Addition of the above Problem and Suggestion sections might allow students to strongly relate to the contents of this book. Thus, their comprehension of this reading can become higher through the deeper personal interest and engagement.

Notably, the content of this publication is unbiased. The authors provide a lot of practical advice in a non-invasive manner. The authors suggest how and in what ways students might practice, so they improve their reading and writing skills. This book offers its readers to consider some strategies, which were found helpful and useful through research and best teaching practices. Amazingly, the authors do not prompt nor insist on implementing the literacy strategies; instead, their language is highly suggestive by nature. Yet, the content of their advice and suggestions is very accurate due to the fact that the writing by Babin et al. (2017) is based on the previously conducted research and publications in the field of reading and writing (See the list of works cited in Babin et al., 2017, pp. 220-221)

As for the relevance of this publication to the current chronotope, the content of this book is and will remain relevant to the needs and struggles of many college students, including but not limited to the learner populations with the previous histories of instructional deficiency in the areas of reading and writing. Additionally, this publication may be highly useful for International students in the American colleges and universities as well as for the domestic English as an Additional Language speakers for whom the English Language is not the one spoken in their homes. Moreover, the first generation in college type of American student populations might also find the content of this book extremely helpful due to the fact that this type of practical advice is least likely available to them in their homes. Furthermore, the students from the schools located in low socioeconomic status neighborhoods and learners from some poor quality schools may also strongly benefit from the advice and suggestions provided by the authors of this publication.

It needs to be noticed that the language of Babin et al.'s (2017) text is very clear and comprehensible. In addition to the simple wording of their ideas, the authors put their strong effort in creating a highly student-friendly structure of their book. This publication consists of sections, which are easy to locate using the table of contents and the pagination feature. Another helpful to the struggling readers factor is that each section is quite brief, though detailed. All headings in this book are printed in a significantly larger font, which adds to clarity of the entire writing and each part of it. Additionally, many chapters or sections contain examples. So, the strategies are not only theoretically described and explained but are also accompanied with some writing samples, which present an illustration or demonstration of how to write, or proofread, or cite, or edit, etc. For the readers who lack the knowledge of the specific vocabulary used in the fields of Reading and Writing, there is a glossary, which explains the terminology used in this book in the forms of definitions or paraphrased examples. All of the above adds to clarity and ease of understanding of the read ideas.

Importantly, the text of this publication is highly consistent in terms of its framework and terminology. Readers may choose to attend only to the topics of their high interest or engage in a linear reading, i.e., starting from the cover page and all the way through the entire book and its appendices section. Thanks to the consistency of this text's structure, its language, and ease of locating, reading, and understanding the used terminology, readers might find any of the above ways to read this book useful and helpful. Using the paginated table of contents, some readers might choose to start reading this book from the glossary and then, proceed with the linear reading and studies, or selective reading of those portions of this publication, which address the topics of each student's highest need or interest. The highly consistent framework of this text makes this book easy to use even for a novice student.

Talking about modularity of Babin et al.'s (2017) book, it needs to be recognized that it is one of the most efficient features of this publication. Its sections are not long, while each of them has a title (and subtitle) or a heading (and subheading), which makes this study guide highly usable and user-friendly. This book might be highly appealing for educators teaching First Year Seminars and College Literacy classes where the students are not very skilled at reading extensive texts rich in dense academic content. This text by Babin et al. (2017) is loaded with information; yet, it is very well-organized in short sections each of which provides to-the-point content in accordance with its heading. This modularity and brief but exact and detailed content of each chapter/section may be highly useful to the struggling readers and writers in college classrooms. Importantly, this book’s clear and concise structure will hardly exhaust even an unskilled reader. Significantly, this type of modularity might be highly beneficial for special education learners in colleges, for students with attention span problems, for English as an Additional Language learners, and low-proficient readers. This book is very efficiently and skillfully divided in multiple units and subunits, which are extremely easy to locate. Every particular reader can organize his or her own program or plan of reading or studying the content of this book starting off the units of their highest necessity and, further on, proceeding with the second- and third-interest or preference topics.

Prior to reading this book, students might choose or be directed to go through its table of contents. The topics discussed in this publication are presented in a very clear and logical fashion. Babin et al. (2017) start their book with their advice on how to become an efficient reader. These authors create a welcoming reading environment and proceed with their tips on how to utilize the most effecient reading strategies, such as taking notes, engaging in some kind of a dialogue with the text or its author(s), going further and researching the topic, questioning self and thinking critically, developing one's own point of view, and learning to summarize, analyze, and synthesize the text. The above structure strongly correlates with the structure of a conventional English Language Arts program. Yet, its major strength is in the very brief and concise delivery of each topic, where each of them is understandable for any level educator and, first and foremost, for practically any student.

Following the above, the second part of this book teaches college students how to write. The students with the previous instructional deficiency will learn to set a purpose for writing, identify the audience, and select a point of view or perspective from which they will address the topic of their essay or research paper. This book is highly inclusive for those unskilled writers who, generally, do not know how to start writing and struggle to come out with the idea “what to start with.” In response to the common needs of the struggling beginning or emergent writers, the authors of this book provide a very rich advice on how to narrow the topic. Further on, they offer some strategies on how writers might begin introducing and developing their selected topics. Yet, writing and submitting the work straight away might not be the best practice, as advised by the authors of this book. They teach beginning writers to develop several drafts, while proofreading, editing, and enriching their writings in several steps prior to submission for grading or peer review. There is also a section of writing academic research report papers in specific formats with detailed explanations on how to credit the used sources. All of the above is organized in a highly clear and logical fashion, starting from "how to begin" and ending with "how to polish" the seemingly ready product.

In terms of the technical details, this text does not have any significant interface issues. Due to its clear organization, the book is easy to navigate. Unlike the publications offered online for kindle, this book is paginated and has a very clear table of contents. All the chapters and sections can be easily located. There are no features, which might distract or confuse readers. The clarity and quality of the interface are some of the best features of this book.

Babin et al.’s (2017) book has no grammatical errors. Generally, the quality of grammar in a publication is highly important for the students who are working towards improvement of their own writing skills. Many learners take the grammatical structures, punctuation, and spelling in the college books and course study guides as an example to follow. Diligent students put a strong effort in memorization of the grammatical structures they encounter in their college course readings. Oftentimes, students support their writing with the texts they read. Some learners would bring the texts with them to their classes to demonstrate to their professors where exactly they found some specific rule, or which exactly portions of texts they used as a model for their own writing. The book by Babin et al. is a great study guide to use in one's college classroom without having to apologize in front of the students, saying that “typos may happen to everyone."

Culture-wise, the book by Babin et al. (2017) is highly diversity-inclusive. The authors target wide student audiences without discriminating them on any cultural, racial, ethnic, or other backgrounds. In these terms, the language of the book is neutral, highly inclusive, and welcoming. The focus on the reading and writing improvement without distractions on any extraneous topics makes this book highly usable for all kinds of readers, including both: students and their educators. Due to this high focus on the "business" and exclusively "shop talk," this publication may be used nationwide in the United States, regardless of the cultural, racial, or ethnic breakdown of each specific school or region. This book may be found invaluable overseas for teaching wide international student populations in colleges or college preparatory classes worldwide. Though this book is written in the English language, its content might be equally useful to speakers, readers, and writers of other languages. So, this publication may be utilized in learning how to efficiently read and skillfully write not only in the English language but in any other languages. The latter is one of the highest values of this publication.

As a university Reading and Literacy professor, I am planning to use this book in my classrooms. I would highly recommend this publication for my colleagues who are teaching reading, writing, and literacy skills in any subject area or field. This book may be useful and helpful in the College Literacy and First Year Seminar classrooms. Nevertheless, some of the second, third, or later years’ students may gain more of useful college reading and writing skills thanks to this publication. Thus, the book by Babin et al. (2017) may be considered a “must have” by the caring educators who are willing to help their students to master the college reading and writing skills and advance in their academics.

Gould-Yakovleva, O. (2022). The sought resources for my students: A book review by a university professor. [Review of the book The word on college reading and writing, by M. Babin, C. Burnell, S. Pesznecker, N. Rosevear, & J. Wood]. Open Educational Resources. DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.10969437

Reviewed by Christopher Zimmerly-Beck, Associate Faculty, Clackamas Community College on 11/15/21

The material in this textbook is an excellent tool for helping students meet the learning outcomes of an introductory composition course, i.e., WR121. The book covers everything from building strong literacy skills to engaging with texts to... read more

The material in this textbook is an excellent tool for helping students meet the learning outcomes of an introductory composition course, i.e., WR121. The book covers everything from building strong literacy skills to engaging with texts to crafting well-written, concise academic work. The material is organized well (I primarily used the online version). It offers a complete glossary and appendices which cover questions of style, formatting, and more. The text's Works Cited is robust, error-free, and a great resource in its own right.

The textbook material is presented accurately and with no noticeable errors. Content is delivered well in ways that are accessible to students taking college composition courses.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 4

The material is still relevant. The section which covers citing sources utilizes MLA8, which came out in 2016. in 2021 MLA9 was released. The minor tweaks MLA9 has made to formatting guidelines are not a large enough of an issue for this textbook to not be a worthwhile resource to a composition course.

The text is very clear. The writing is concise and complicated terms and concepts are properly contextualized.

The text is highly consistent. The content from one section builds toward the next while still allowing educators and students to engage with the text flexibly. That is, you could teach this book from cover to cover or only integrate specific sections into a course without losing any value of the text.

This text is incredibly modular. It's authors describe the material as being organized in such a way that users can "use it as you need it." After reading through the material they have done a really great job organizing information so it can be engaged with in small well organized pieces or as a whole.

The work is organized quite well. The topics covered are straightforward and concise.

Navigating through the online version of the textbook was quite seamless. There were no broken links, images and charts all appeared formatted correctly and with professional and aesthetically consistency.

Since this book is a composition textbook, it would be pretty appalling if it contained grammatical errors. Thankfully, this textbook was free of errors.

One of my favorite parts of this book is the writer's commitment to using gender-inclusive language. This book is culturally informed and respects the diversity of students' backgrounds and identities.

Reviewed by Jeffrey Breitenfeldt, Associate Professor, Roxbury Community College on 6/28/21

This text covers a wide range of skills for writing--from advice crafting titles to managing anxiety/writer's block to rhetorical tools like audience/purpose and even instruction on information literacy. However, one of its best and more unique... read more

This text covers a wide range of skills for writing--from advice crafting titles to managing anxiety/writer's block to rhetorical tools like audience/purpose and even instruction on information literacy. However, one of its best and more unique aspects is the effective integration of reading and writing that matches well with attempts to accelerate remedial course sequences. Not only that, the companion materials include sample syllabi, assignments, handouts/readings, and links to instructional resources that simplify adoption in many different courses.

I noticed no issues with accuracy, and the text seemed error-free. This includes links to MLA resources which are both active and updated to reflect recent changes in the 9th edition--something most print textbooks struggle to accomplish.

This text seems carefully constructed to avoid dated references (except, perhaps, the mention of MP3 players), and links to external materials seem more stable than many OER texts. Another benefit is that mentions of college don't seem limited to four-year universities which could make this text feel more relevant to students attending a community college.

The use of questions to present information, the well-structured headings or sections within chapters, and the helpful examples when a concept might be unfamiliar, are very effective ways this text works to improve clarity.

The more complex terms and frameworks, specifically the focus on audience, purpose, and tone, are used consistently throughout the text.

While the text is divided effectively into sections that would be easy to assign as needed, some are overly short and require supplementation in order to fully explore the topic. This issue is somewhat common in OER texts, however, and many instructors already have strategies to create cohesive reading assignments using several shorter texts.

Even though beginning the text with a focus on reading makes sense since it would help students complete further assigned reading in the course, it would be helpful to more fully integrate reading skills into other chapters as well. It can be tricky to suggest that a few short chapters early in the semester are enough work to change or develop good reading habits.

This text uses a familiar Pressbooks format that many instructors (and students) will find familiar and highly usable even on phones and tablets or with limited internet access.

The text contains no grammatical errors, which is helpful for maintaining credibility.

While the text doesn't seem culturally insensitive, there could be a more inclusive range of examples used to better connect with diverse student populations.

This is an excellent text, specifically for an accelerated remedial course using an integrated reading and writing framework. It covers more areas of college writing with a clear rhetorical framework than many similar options, and it's easily accessible by a wide range of students.

Reviewed by L Boyd, English faculty, Portland Community College on 6/14/21

An ambitious undertaking, this text covers reading, information literacy, and writing processes independently and as integrated components of college learning. The authors connect with students in an accessible, friendly tone and with relevant... read more

An ambitious undertaking, this text covers reading, information literacy, and writing processes independently and as integrated components of college learning. The authors connect with students in an accessible, friendly tone and with relevant examples throughout the text. The table of contents makes it easy to navigate. Perfect for first-year students!

To address comprehensiveness, though, there are some inconsistencies: Part 2: Writing is extremely thorough, leaving me to wonder if Part 1 might be more well developed and if Information Literacy might deserve its own part.

The Dealing With Obstacles section is a special gem that address some vexing but real challenges students will likely encounter, and the Appendices cover the handbook material every good textbook needs.

The content reflects current practices and thinking in reading, writing, and information literacy. The examples provided are directly related to helping students develop concrete skills with each part of these processes. Students might benefit from some exposure to the disciplinary vocabulary of reading (e.g. schema, metacognition) as is provided in the writing and information literacy sections.

The foundational concepts are current and well developed, and the majority of examples carry across time. Most linked articles were published in 2016, so they are becoming dated. It's clear by the topic choice that they were selected to have some longevity and may be easily supplemented or updated. The biggest challenge students may encounter is lack of access to the actual articles because many sources require subscriptions. It may be worth connecting this to the information literacy component and advocating for use of library databases for access.

Students will find the approachable language easy to access and understand. Any technical terms used are provided with a reasonable explanation, examples, and/or a pronunciation guide so students not only recognize them but can also incorporate them into their own vocabulary. The glossary is useful, though it's not clear why some words were included and others that had been defined similarly in the text were not.

The format and framework of this text are very consistent. It's easy to orient to and follows a clear pattern. I find that its inconsistency lies in the coverage of each content section: Building Strong Reading Skills includes many very brief, bullet pointed sections with relatively few in-depth examples; Information Literacy has fewer sections but extensive blocks of information; and Writing has in-depth coverage and examples of each part of the process. In short, it's unbalanced, so it feels inconsistent if taken as a whole (see note on modularity below, however).

The adaptability of this text is one of its strengths for sure. It's equally easy to use the entire text, a section, or a subsection to focus on a specific skill or strategy with examples or to guide through a full process. Students who've been directed to one section may even find themselves exploring more using the well organized and clear table of contents.

Each section is clearly and logically organized to represent a process in itself, but when combined as a whole, the text reflects a larger process that engages students in the true integration of college level reading and writing.

There is some repetition that is noticeable when the text is used as a whole, however. For example, summary is addressed just briefly in the Writing About Texts section and again extensively in Drafting. It's unclear how or why the Writing About Texts section should be differentiated from the more general Writing section, though this could be a benefit in a more modular usage.

Everything seems to work well through navigation and links.

No errors noted.

The authors include thoughtful approaches to gendered and gender-neutral pronouns. I appreciated that when there was an example using highlighting to illustrate a color-coding approach to reading, they acknowledged that some may have challenges with seeing color, so they described the purpose and strategy with words. As an instructor with many student with learning differences, the inclusion of video, illustration (example: point of view), and other modalities is useful.

I started by using this text modularly to supplement other materials but may use it in its entirety to provide more consistency for students. It will be easy to adapt some of my own materials and still rely on this text. I appreciate how the authors engage a wide variety of potential first year students with their unique experiences and approaches to learning.

Reviewed by Riley McGuire, Assistant Professor, Worcester State University on 6/7/21

The authors do an excellent job covering the central elements of their ambitious dual foci on college reading and writing. I appreciate the textbook’s elucidation of the generative feedback loop between strong critical reading skills and the... read more

The authors do an excellent job covering the central elements of their ambitious dual foci on college reading and writing. I appreciate the textbook’s elucidation of the generative feedback loop between strong critical reading skills and the ability to craft compelling writing. To me, there are no glaring omissions in terms of content. Everything I would expect to find is present as well as some welcome bonuses; for instance, the advice on working through writer’s block and writing anxiety would be appreciated by many students. The section on Information Literacy is particularly effective.

My main critique is that the textbook would benefit from being more multidisciplinary in its examples and frameworks. College writing courses are required for all students at my institution, regardless of major, but the majority of examples here—particularly in the Reading sections—skew toward a literary focus. Even when the authors state that third-person POV characterizes “Much college, research, and professional writing,” the example they provide is from a novel (39-40). Similarly, the reading methodology of digging for meanings like “buried treasure” is less applicable to, say, a straightforward chemistry article than a modernist poem, whereas the advice that “the more current the date” on a source “the better” may be less applicable to a field like history (59). More disciplinary variety throughout the textbook would keep it dynamic and useful for all students.

On a macro-level the text ticks all of the boxes; however, in some micro-sections, more detail would be enriching. The section on sentence-level analysis tells readers to “Begin by considering the sentence length” (36), but that’s ultimately the end of the strategies offered. In a comparable way, the section on examining word choice focuses on the simplicity or complexity of diction, leaving out important stylistic choices including the use of figurative or symbolic language.

Lastly, a comprehensive index would be a beneficial addition.

The textbook offers a wealth of insight and information to allow students to excel at reading and writing at the college level. The advice is supported with illustrative examples and I was not struck by any major issues of inaccuracy or bias.

The only content error I encountered that would be confusing to students is when a dependent clause was defined as “an independent clause” (202)—a simple fix.

The textbook is current and relevant to college students today. Updating content—whether citation guidelines given the recently released MLA Handbook (9th Edition), or text examples, like The Hunger Games or Hamilton, that may have waning cultural recognizability in the years to come—should be a straightforward undertaking.

The authors have excelled in making a textbook that is useful and accessible to a wide range of readers. The tone is very friendly and inclusive and definitions for key terms are clear. The textbook makes frequent and effective use of a question-and-answer format and the authors’ ventriloquizing of student concerns not only validates how these aspects of reading and writing can be challenging, but also provides straightforward advice for how to navigate these issues. In addition, the included exercises are simple while remaining engaging and instructive.

The textbook is incredibly consistent throughout: it is apparent that the authors thought carefully about how to make the various sections work well together as a cohesive whole.

This is a real strength of the textbook! It is presented in short, digestible, and clearly sign-posted sections that could be assigned to students in the order they appear or in various other combinations. I believe it would work well as a central or a supplementary text alongside other germane material and that it would be useful to instructors and students alike, either in its entirety or in curated excerpts.

The textbook is very user-friendly, progressing from topic to topic in a sensible order, while also—as I’ve noted above—allowing for the possibility of reorganizing the sections for your own purposes. The authors include helpful references to other sections in the textbook, moving both backward and forward, to provide an ongoing set of navigational tools to complement the table of contents. My only minor qualm is that while I like the “several subsections as opposed to a few lengthy chapters” approach, I would still appreciate having those subsections numbered (1, 2, 2.1, 2.2, 3, etc.) This would make assigning sections of the text simpler.

Interface rating: 4

The web version seems excellent in this regard, though I was primarily reading the PDF. The PDF version is easy to navigate as a whole, but there are a few small interface issues, including images that overlap with text making the latter difficult to read at times, as well as a few broken links.

Grammatical Errors rating: 4

The vast majority of the text is free of distracting errors, grammatical or otherwise. A few errors are present—minor typographical mistakes in the glossary; missing spaces; repeated words; the same sentence printed twice in close proximity (137); “archieve” instead of “archive”; “Sparks Notes” instead of “SparkNotes”; etc.—but these are sparse and do not distract from the clarity of the content.

The textbook is not insensitive or offensive and does include some diverse examples, including references to a range of non-heterosexual romantic relationships. However, many of the literary examples skew white and Western in terms of their authorship and content and more racial diversity in examples, as well as references to other socially marginalized experiences such as disability, would be beneficial. This textbook could easily be paired with an instructor’s own complementary readings, though, so this does not invalidate its utility.

Overall, The Word on College Reading and Writing is an engaging and admirable offering that deserves consideration by any writing instructor looking for a great OER option to adopt in their courses.

Reviewed by Laura Schlegel, Faculty, Holyoke Community College on 6/1/21

The book is great at starting before the beginning. I like that the authors start with what it means to be a college student reading college texts and the checklists for students. Going into how to be a good reader is often overlooked in first... read more

The book is great at starting before the beginning. I like that the authors start with what it means to be a college student reading college texts and the checklists for students. Going into how to be a good reader is often overlooked in first year composition and this book takes a good look at this. The chapters are easy to follow and flow in a way that helps students from beginning to end.

I found the book to be very accurate and modern in the way the authors have discussed ways of reading and writing. The beginning description of gender and gender-neutral language helps students in todays classroom. This also helps in communicating my own belief in the safe classroom that allows for all people to learn in a safe environment.

The book is very orderly in the way it is written and arranged. If there are future updates this could be done with ease without making the book lose its flow and organization. The chapters are done in a way that would make it easy to add or subtract if needed.

This book was very clear for students, especially if I were to use in a developmental English class. The ease of understanding the points and the "check your understanding" areas will be an incredible help to students who are hesitant when writing.

This book is consistent in its level of understanding. I would not hesitate to use this book for first year composition students and even higher level developmental students. The language use is college level but in a way that doesn't leave any learner out with vocabulary or structure.

I find that this textbook could be used as a whole or with specific chapters for specific students and/or skills. As far as accessibility for all students, with or without special needs, I find that this book would work for all students. The clear headings and breakdown of sections is easily divisible without any loss of organization or structure for student learning. Different sections could be utilized to work on specific needs of various students in the class without any loss of understanding by the students.

I really like the beginning to end way in which the book is organized. The book begins with setting student worry at ease with the basics for understanding reading and research and how to go about performing both aspects. The actual "writing" adds a nice touch to show students how to take notes and use these to help in their own writing. The information for finding texts really struck me as useful for students to continue to refer to even in later years.

I feel this textbook is very user friendly. The only challenge that I can see would be finding the place you were in when you click on a link. When you return to the book it brings you back to the first page. The check your work has students go to the Appendix and I wonder how many students will take the time to scroll through the book instead of being able to click on the checkmark and go directly to the Appendix.

In reading the book I found no grammatical errors.

As a teacher of Diversity as well as English I am always sensitive to what I present to my students. I would have no problem using this textbook in my classroom.

As a community college professor I am happy to see books authored by community college faculty. The community college student can be very different from the four-year college or university student. Many of may students need extra help especially with reading and writing and this textbook is easy and understandable for all students whether two year or four year.

Reviewed by Thomasina Hughey, Instructor, Integrated Reading and Writing, Aiken Technical College on 2/22/21

As a source for integrated reading and writing, I found the text to be a foundational reading source; although more heavily weighted towards writing. I appreciated the "Check Your Understanding" sections. read more

Comprehensiveness rating: 3 see less

As a source for integrated reading and writing, I found the text to be a foundational reading source; although more heavily weighted towards writing. I appreciated the "Check Your Understanding" sections.

I did not denote any errors.

The text can transcend time as written, maintaining its relevancy. As well, it is written in such a manner that time-sensitive text can easily be inserted and excerpted, as necessary to enhance reading comprehension.

Clear and concise conversational writing that is easy to follow and provoke critical thinking.

An Instructor may pick and choose how to use portions of the text without losing context.

There is flexibility in usage dependent expected learning outcomes.

The text is well-organized with sentences flowing fluently an example for students to follow in their own writing. An instructional approach may be defined as students are reading to write.

I did not detect any glitches.

I did not see any grammatical errors.

The text is gender inclusive given its explanation of pronoun usage. Further, the text is developed in such a manner that culturally inclusive readings could easily be embedded. I would recommend student selected cultural readings.

I recommend supplemental supporting documents to further hone the Reading Process and bridge the connectivity between reading and writing to learn.

Reviewed by Rachana Son, Part-Time Writing Faculty, Portland Community College on 1/15/21

The textbook manages to demystify reading at a college-level by breaking down active reading into steps including pre-reading strategies and effective note-taking. There are also tips for analyzing texts and detailed demonstrations of... read more

The textbook manages to demystify reading at a college-level by breaking down active reading into steps including pre-reading strategies and effective note-taking. There are also tips for analyzing texts and detailed demonstrations of close-reading. The "Troubleshoot Your Reading" section is rather novel in how it directly interacts with the reader by providing empathetic reactions to the difficulties students face while offering feasible suggestions on how to make reading more manageable and engaging. The part on writing is even more thorough. The textbook explores in detail the different stages of writing and the structure of an essay, providing multiple examples related to these topics. Integrating sources and creating citations are also covered. Like with "Troubleshoot Your Reading," there are sections dedicated to difficulties while writing including anxiety and writer's block. The glossary could, however, be expanded to include more keywords and concepts (ex. "dialectic," specific rhetorical appeals, "thesis").

The content accurately reflects common practices and expectations in college reading and writing. It is both unbiased and error-free.

The text does not contain popular references that would go stale or feel outdated in a short amount of time. The external websites might pose a problem as links can expire or change, but such links can be easily replaced and updated when needed.

The text is easy to read and approachable, not being too technical or using flowery prose. Terms are defined and re-introduced when needed.

The text revisits terms and concepts as appropriate, their definitions unchanging. The tone feels unified as though there is only one author throughout the textbook. The intended audience does not change either, as the reader is assumed to be a degree-seeking student just entering college.

Within each section, the text is divided into manageable pieces, taking only a few minutes to read and digest. Headings and sub-headings are used to break up longer sections of text. The different levels of headings are consistent in use of font size and color.

The textbook is divided mostly into two parts: "Working with Texts" and "Writing." The different sections in each part are placed appropriately in that sections prior to the second part deal with reading and interacting with texts while the rest of textbook focuses on completing writing assignments and building an essay. The sections are presented in a logical order as well. For instance, the section on pre-writing comes before drafting, which comes before revising.

In the online version, navigating the textbook is easy. The Table of Content shows how the text is divided into sections and allows for sections to be collapsed or expanded. The PDF version does have some problems with graphics overlapping text (ex. "Check Your Understanding" icon overlapping the beginning of the text), sometimes making words unreadable.

I did not find any grammatical errors or at least none that were distracting.

The text holds up to its promise in using a variety of pronouns including singular "they." The text could benefit from acknowledging its focus on Western tradition and rhetoric, as many students reading this textbook may be familiar with different writing conventions and styles.

This textbook has been very useful in my lectures as many of my students are entering their first year in college and are understandably unfamiliar with college reading and writing conventions. I appreciate the sections about reading because students have different levels and backgrounds in reading, so we can't assume one reading strategy would work for everyone. Furthermore, the textbook does not feel daunting at all. You are able to read any section at an as-needed basis; reading the entire textbook is not necessary.

Reviewed by Shanell Sanchez, Associate Professor of Criminology and Criminal Justice, Southern Oregon University on 1/12/21

Wow, this text covered reading and writing in one! I was so impressed with how the book was able to start at the basics of learning to read successfully in college (and life) to writing. I teach a methods course that I have always found so... read more

Wow, this text covered reading and writing in one! I was so impressed with how the book was able to start at the basics of learning to read successfully in college (and life) to writing. I teach a methods course that I have always found so challenging to teach for two reasons: students do not how to properly read journal articles and they do not know how to write research papers. This text allows for both these skills to be honed in on and the book was enjoyable. The text covers how to read, understand, and incorporate sources into a paper. There is also a great section on how to annotate and take notes over readings. I love the section in the first, second, and third person. I often tell students they cannot use the first person in research papers but they are often unsure what I mean by that. I will certainly use that chapter! Perhaps really relevant to college students is the section on how to evaluate sources. There is also a section on plagiarism, which is always a concern in a research and writing course. Lastly, it includes help with citation but it is only for MLA.

Overall, I did not see any glaring errors in the text. I cannot say for sure if the MLA citations are correct or up to date since I use APA and ASA, but that may need to be evaluated.

The content is up-to-date and relevant. I think any updates would be easy to do. I would love to see them use more than just MLA.

I think they wrote conversationally. In fact, I felt like I was listening to them teach from time to time while reading The jargon in research and writing was always broken down and explained.

The voice is the same throughout the book. I would have liked to see more transition to sections because it did feel choppy. However, an advantage to that is I will most likely use parts of the book and feel ok about that. I do not think students will think they are 'missing' something by reading only sections in my courses.

This text is easily and readily divisible into smaller reading sections. In fact, this was what set this text apart from other materials I have used in the past. The sections are small enough that people can add to them and long enough to give enough detail. I never felt overwhelmed while reading and was actually enjoying going through the text.

I love how they started with reading and moved into writing. The flow of this book felt natural and I am sure that will help students be successful.

I tried the PDF and the online version and did not see any glaring problems. There were no features that could distract or confuse the reader.

I did not see any grammatical errors in the text.

It was impressive how the text made a point to use gender-neutral language. The beginning of the book also had a discussion on pronouns, which may be beneficial to students who have never encountered pronouns before. I found the book to be very inclusive.

Reviewed by Christian Aguiar, Asst Professor of English, The University of the District of Columbia on 12/22/20

The text offers a shorter, more concise approach to research-based writing than the traditional first-year writing textbook - it is, in some ways, more like an extended or enhanced writing handbook. It covers the most important elements of a... read more

The text offers a shorter, more concise approach to research-based writing than the traditional first-year writing textbook - it is, in some ways, more like an extended or enhanced writing handbook. It covers the most important elements of a research-based writing course: how to read, understand, and incorporate souces; how to respond critically to texts and engage with authors meaningfully in writing; how to evaluate sources; and how to cite sources using MLA style. It also includes a section dealing with the writing process as well as a brief review of revision approaches and common errors. It does not contain extensive sections on grammar, mechanics, punctuation and the like.

The content is generally in keeping with established practices/patterns in teaching core research, writing and information literacy skills.

The authors’ approach here is very much that of the research/writing handbook or guide, so the content should remain relevant for years to come. There are some embedded links to essays and articles from the mid-2010s that may benefit from updating before use. The information literacy section is quite strong, but it too would benefit from supplementation to keep it current.

The text is clear and concise. It’s also more approachable than most similar texts: a sample chapter yields a moderate readability score pegged to a 9th grade reading level.

The text is quite consistent from section to section in terms of voice, content, and approach.

The text lends well to being broken up; indeed, the foreword suggests it has been designed specifically for this. Individual sections generally work as stand-alone readings. There are also frequent hyperlinks to other chapters that are mentioned, outside resources, and readings, which enhances reader engagement and modularity.

The text is divided into two larger parts - Working with Texts & Writing - with several sub-sections within each part. The sub-sections are each linked separately from the table of contents, which makes the text easy to navigate.

The interface is clear and consistent. The text would perhaps benefit from more visually distinct sub-headings in some of the longer sections.

In two years of using this text I have yet to find an error.

The text is very much a handbook rather than a reader, so it offers few extended examples and no embedded readings for students. In this sense, it’s something of a cultural clean slate. The authors have done well to avoid gendered language and to use gender neutral third person pronouns where appropriate.

The text is ideal for use in an OER research-based writing course or as a supplement for a course where students will be expected to complete independent research. It is easily broken down into modules, clear, concise, and engaging.

Reviewed by Patricia Lynne, Professor, Framingham State University on 6/30/20

The book does a very good job with reading guidance and support, both the work of reading and writing about texts -- much better than most first-year writing texts that I have used (both OER and not). It also covers writing process matters and... read more

The book does a very good job with reading guidance and support, both the work of reading and writing about texts -- much better than most first-year writing texts that I have used (both OER and not). It also covers writing process matters and approaches to parts of academic papers well overall. There are, however, some areas that are relatively thin (e.g., dealing with opposing viewpoints, revision). There is little about common college-level writing tasks -- at least separated so that it can be found easily -- though there is some embedded discussion. There is no index, but there is a useful glossary.

The book does a good job presenting clear and specific information to students. While there are specific elements that I could quibble with (e.g., the explanation of logos), the information is accurate and consistent with thinking in the field.

The material is up-to-date, and while there are elements that will become dated, most of those elements would be links that become obsolete. Those are easy to fix. The information literacy section is strong. While it runs the risk of becoming dated, it's set up with a focus on general principles that have been in practice for quite some time.

This textbook is pitched quite well. The authors talk with their audience, not to their audience. They explain terminology clearly in the text, as well as providing a glossary.

The rhetorical approach is consistent throughout, as are the vocabulary, tone, use of images, and links to outside sources.

This is a key strength of this text. The chunks of text are quite manageable and easily inserted into a range of course sequences and designs. There are a number of internal links, but they are not treated as central to the point of the sections in which they appear, and there are very few moments in which the text refers to the content of other sections -- and none in ways that would make it difficult for a student to follow.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 3

I believe that this is the biggest weakness of this text. There are explanations of elements of common assignments (e.g., summary, critique, argument), but they are embedded and without an index, it would be hard for students to find those sections. In addition, it's not clear why the material about writing summaries, paraphrasing, and quoting is part of the drafting section and not part of either "Using Sources Correctly" or the information literacy section. It's also not clear why the information literacy section and the sources section are so far apart.

For the most part, this is done well. The images are clear, and the navigation appears to work the way that Pressbooks intends. (I don't like the way I have to navigate to the top of the page to move to the next section, but this seems to be a Pressbooks issue and not specific to this textbook). The interface online is better than the PDF version. In the online version, it is much easier to see the hierarchy of the headings because they are color-coded. The PDF also has a lot of blank pages.

I found no grammatical errors, but there are a few typos.

While there is an explanation of the use of pronouns near the beginning of the text, there is little diversity in the examples.

There are parts of this text that I found outstanding (the guide on reading strategies, for example), and I plan to use them in my fall classes.

Reviewed by Ben Greenlee, Instructor, Colorado State University on 6/30/20

As other reviewers have stated, a "comprehensive" discussion of reading and writing could fill volumes so the term may not be as applicable here. That said, I do feel this book lays out many fundamental aspects of reading and writing for early... read more

As other reviewers have stated, a "comprehensive" discussion of reading and writing could fill volumes so the term may not be as applicable here. That said, I do feel this book lays out many fundamental aspects of reading and writing for early college-level learners, breaking the concepts of academic reading and writing into two sections (though "reading" receives a third of the page space), which offers those learners a nice introduction into composition. Looking on a smaller scale, many of the sections are a page/page-and-a-half which doesn't allow for much context or examples, really a snapshot of the term or concept. I feel this book works best as slight readings before a class period with the majority of the class spent on examples and application. Basically, reading the book alone would offer little insight to reading and writing at an early academic level.

Content Accuracy rating: 4

The majority of the information presented seems accurate, though, as mentioned, much of the content is quick and conversational. For instance, in the section titled "Read Efficiently," the last paragraph suggests that a learner should "Keep reading until you’re done. Don’t be distracted. If you begin to feel fidgety, stop, get up, and take a five minute break. Then get back to your reading. The more you read, the stronger your habit will grow, and the easier reading will be." Not awful advice, perhaps even meeting a student on their level of comfort with a text, but I feel it too quickly glosses over other established strategies for distracted reading, strategies that could be explained in similar language yet with added context. Again, the content is fairly accurate, but perhaps distilled too much.

The information offered in each section feels up-to-date, with relevant examples such as Harry Potter and Sparknotes and the latest edition of MLA. Aspects of the brief sections work toward updating in the future (there's not a lot of content to modify) and other instructors could easily remix or add examples of their own. Students could also appreciate the direct approach of the content as relevant to their hectic schedules, not needing to read long, dense chapters to "get" the heart of the concept of technique.

For the intended reader, an early-college learner, the writing is clear and direct and approachable. There is consistent use of "you" and a lack of jargon or technical language. Additional context could be provided, especially in the "Reading" section, but the "Writing" section offers additional opportunity for understanding through examples and clear exercises that connect to the section's content.

In terms of a framework, the text is consistently displayed through design choices and language used--a student could read page 1 and page 100 and know they are reading the same writer with the same purpose. There could've been greater attention to connections made from section to section, adding an additional layer to the notion of "consistency," but overall the work is of a whole.

Perhaps the greatest strength of this work. Each section is small/compact and could be remixed at another instructor's preferences or linked with other readings without a major workload for students. Sections range from several hundred words to several thousand and many sections don't need to be read/used at all depending on the nature of the class. Students will appreciate the brevity and contained nature of the sections.

As stated, the topics are organized with a focus on reading first (about a third of the text) then shifts to writing (with longer section for each new term/approach/technique). Each of the two halves starts with fundamental aspects such as "What is a Text?" and "Why write?" to usher students into conversations about what they're actually doing. From there the text deepens concepts through questions one could ask themselves to exercises (mainly in "Writing" section) which would apply the concepts, building on what came before.

I used the text through multiple platforms and devices and experienced no issues with image distortion or display features. Easy and clear content bar for navigation. Some students accessed the text through their phones (more advanced and expensive than my own) and didn't experience any issues either.

The text contained no grammatical errors that I noticed.

The text actively discusses the use of pronouns and gender-neutral language. There is also respectful attention paid to race, ethnicity, and other backgrounds. As mentioned, the use of "you" is used throughout but does not read as alienating or assumptive, striking a welcoming tone.

While this book lays a solid foundation for reading and writing, an instructor should not rely too heavily on the content offered. It "does the job" but doesn't create space for nuance or much critical engagement (it probably doesn't need to). I would use the text again, but would add even more supplementary content than before.

Reviewed by Zach Buscher, Assistant Professor of English, Mount Wachusett Community College on 6/29/20

The textbook covers all of the information found in the tried and true style guide I've been using for the past ten years. My students will benefit greatly from getting this same information free of charge. In some ways, it goes beyond the... read more

The textbook covers all of the information found in the tried and true style guide I've been using for the past ten years. My students will benefit greatly from getting this same information free of charge. In some ways, it goes beyond the previous style guide I've used in that it presents and differentiates between different types of thesis statements, addresses the cons of the five-paragraph/three-point essay, etc.

As others have noted, the presence of an "Index" would likely elevate the given score for this category. I would also have appreciated more "Check Your Understanding" exercises and a more frequent use of examples as well. Also, if you've come to the text looking for material on grammar, I would look elsewhere since that section is quite brief. In an ENG 101 course, it could be enough.

I couldn't find any inaccuracies in the text.

Although the New York Times and Scientific American articles referenced are already outdated, sections on "Using Citation Generators," "Writing Anxiety" (not just Writer's Block), and using information in the digital age should work well for audiences both now and in the future. In sections on note-taking, I would have focused on electronic material in more or less equal measure to print material.

The book has a very accessible, almost conversational prose style that is refreshingly less dry than other style guides I have used. For example, we are given a "seriously expert level suggestion" (12). Later, a book's structure is described as "ridiculously cool" (28). The occasional pronunciation guide pops up for terms like "rhetoric" and "critique."

Not only is the text internally consistent (impressive considering the number of authors), but it's also externally consistent in that the terminology used is more or less universal. Even when they refer to a "CRAP Test" rather than a "CRAAP Test," the authors note that other institutions add the second "A."

You'll find a healthy dose of white space between chapter headings and content. Throughout, there are numerous subheadings to be found.

It's well-structured using a traditional two-part approach wherein one part is more on "Reading" and the other more on "Writing." That's fine, but I wouldn't have minded a more novel approach.

Organizational Highlight: Putting the section on "Revision" so near the end of the book, a highly logical place for it.

Questionable Move: Why separate the section on constructing a "Works Cited" from the section on in-text citation? I think it's important that students see the relationship further solidified in their textbook.

The book's aesthetic is minimalist in nature. I found the font choices quite tasteful, for instance.

A couple interface suggestions based on my reading of the text in pdf form:

*Appreciated linking to Scientific American article (among others), but the fact of its click-ability was by no means obvious on the formatting alone.

*I appreciated seeing the logos for “Copyright,” “Creative Commons,” etc. but they are superimposed on the text in a way that makes the text underneath more or less illegible

I would have done more with integrated video, which I believe is only used once.

The text seems to be free of grammatical errors.

Cultural Relevance rating: 3

I certainly wouldn't call the book "insensitive" or "offensive" by any means, but I found the textual examples lacking in diversity. From my perspective, it's a representational issue. You'll find references to DFW, Mark Z. Danielewski, Ray Bradbury, Ernest Hemingway, Dr. Seuss, J.D. Salinger, Michael Pollen, etc. but relatively few references to female writers (Harper Lee notwithstanding) and writers of color. Perhaps that could be addressed in future editions!

Overall, this was a great introduction to OER. I plan on using sections from this book and others to replace the overpriced style guide and save my students some money.

Reviewed by Luana McCuish, Professor of English, Bunker Hill Community College on 6/29/20

The text is thorough in its exploration of the reading and writing connection. It includes helpful examples for the student. It will work well for entry-level students since it covers many topics that may be unfamiliar to a new student, whether... read more

The text is thorough in its exploration of the reading and writing connection. It includes helpful examples for the student. It will work well for entry-level students since it covers many topics that may be unfamiliar to a new student, whether first-generation or international. It seems to be sensitive to students' needs and responsive to potential areas of confusion. Both the online and PDF version have limited graphics, but those presented are helpful to creating understanding for the student. The glossary is limited and does not include links to the original context. The text would benefit from an index.

The text is accurate. While the text strives and succeeds at being unbiased, the neutrality may limit strong dialogue. In a quest to be inclusive, some of the examples seemed forced. In contrast, some of the references -- Goldilocks and Dr. Seuss -- assume the reader was raised in the United States. I did not notice any errors in the text.

The content is mostly up-to-date. As noted in accuracy, some literary references may not be familiar to readers. The links within the online version are easy to access. Since more and more online sources require subscriptions, these links may create a challenge for students who wish to reread articles. One site offers three free articles per month. However, it would be easy for an instructor to change the links to accessible articles. In the PDF version, I found it frustrating that I could not click on a link to read the article or access other online sources.

The text is mostly clear. Some language and references may not be easily accessible for ELL or students with limited exposure to reading and writing language. Some examples include "Goldilocks", NASA, fraught, egalitarianism, flashbacks and dream sequence. While the author clearly wanted to keep the prose simple, there are a few areas that needed further explanation. Overall, the text is accessible.

The online version of the text is consistent. Navigation is easy. The format of each section is predictable and intuitive. Most of the sections present a manageable amount of material. Students will move easily through the reading and writing process. The "check your understanding" is an effective way to end each section.

The structure of the text is effective. The instructor may easily change the order in which materials are used. The online version is more adaptable than the PDF. The PDF does not label all pages, so helping students navigate to different sections may be challenging. The table of contents in the PDF does allow for a quick click to shift to different sections. However, the PDF offers the ability to use the text reader, highlighter and notes.

Overall, I like the organization of both the PDF and online version. The text focuses first on developing strong reading skills, which is a necessary skill if one is to become a stronger writer. The text progresses nicely through the steps of developing these skills. While the text is skill-based, it does not feel this way. There is no busy work. There is a fair amount of application of the skills. The text effectively moves students from personal thoughts to summary to essay to research.

I liked both the PDF and online version. Both have some good features. Images/charts and other displays are not distorted. The text is limited on graphics, a few more might help the reader. I liked the real examples of brainstorming, note-taking, etc. More of these may be helpful to the student. The PDF offers some good features, including the ability to have the text read aloud, the highlighting feature and the note-taking feature. The PDF is more adaptable to enlarging the text. The PDF presents challenges when asking students to find online sources. Adding a link or hyperlink would alleviate this. The online version allows easy navigation via both contents menu and the next section link at the bottom of each page. One challenge with the online version is that when I attempted to increase the size of the font, the contents menu covered the left side of the text. In addition, the chosen font is not good for online reading. Arial would be a better choice (as was used in the headings).

No major grammatical errors were noted.

The text is mostly neutral in its presentation. Some inclusiveness seems forced: i.e. the exercises on audience and purpose. Many of the literary references seem to assume knowledge of U.S. culture: i.e. "To Kill a Mockingbird" and "The Catcher in the Rye", both of which may be standard reading in high school, but not all students will have had this exposure. While I enjoyed many of the chosen photos and other forms of art, there could be more diversity in the choices. The text is neither insensitive nor offensive, but it could be more inclusive.

Overall, I like the text. The structure is effective. It is easy to read and navigate. An instructor could easily supplement when necessary. The text will work well for beginning college students who need structure and guidance to develop a strong basis in reading and writing. I will consider using this text.

Reviewed by Julie Tovar, Adjunct Instructor, Middlesex Community College on 6/2/20

This textbook is comprehensive without being overwhelming. For example, it starts from the basics of "What is a Text?" yet also explores various aspects of textual analysis--from sentence and paragraph levels to synthesizing readings. read more

This textbook is comprehensive without being overwhelming. For example, it starts from the basics of "What is a Text?" yet also explores various aspects of textual analysis--from sentence and paragraph levels to synthesizing readings.

The authors present information in a straightforward way, yet the tone feels inclusive for beginning college students.

The writers anticipate and respond effectively to the many questions and needs of beginning college writers. The textbook's readings and examples are current and engaging. "Check your Understanding" questions help students practice the material covered, and many prompts are posed to promote thinking and discussion, rather than having cut and dried answers.

Explanations are clear and engaging, and the hyperlinks connect to thought provoking, relevant texts that effectively demonstrate concepts.

Although written by multiple authors, the book feels cohesive and the sections fit together in a logical manner.

The Word on College Reading and Writing is divided into manageable segments that can be used or skipped as the instructor wishes.

I appreciate the chapter on Writing About Texts that covers the ways students should approach analyzing texts, and I'm glad that this is separate from the Writing section, which explains the various aspects of the writing process for college courses.

I did not experience any major problems navigating within the textbook.

The book is free of major grammatic errors.

In the "Critiquing a Text" section, bias and 'cultural context' are mentioned as points for students to consider, but they aren't explored in-depth. A more in-depth explanation of cultural context would be helpful.

Overall, a terrific resource for teachers of developmental and Comp 1 courses!

Reviewed by Molly McClennen, Instructor, Marshall University on 5/12/20

I have been looking for a book that covers the full range of topics I cover in the reading/writing classes I teach without overwhelming the students with a lot of extraneous information we will not be covering in the class. Most books either take... read more

I have been looking for a book that covers the full range of topics I cover in the reading/writing classes I teach without overwhelming the students with a lot of extraneous information we will not be covering in the class. Most books either take too cursory an approach to important topics or omit topics I cover, so I spend a lot of time supplementing the text with additional materials. This text hits almost everything I believe my students need to learn about in the class and includes sufficient information about reading, something that I am always surprised to find is glossed over in many writing textbooks, given how interrelated reading and writing are.

I have read extensively on the topic of post-secondary literacy development and did not find anything in this text that concerned me regarding the accuracy of the information based on what is known about how college students develop as readers and writers.

The web-based version of the book includes links to online readings that students can use to apply and practice the skills the textbook introduces. (And the print-based book provides instructions for how to find these readings using a web search.) The linked readings cover a variety of topics and genres, which introduce students to the kinds of readings they will be doing in their gateway college classes. The topics covered in the book are relevant to the kinds of skills students need to succeed in their college classes.

The clarity of the text is one of my favorite features. The information is presented briefly and written using succinct, straightforward language. I believe this is a text that my students will read because it eliminates extraneous information and gets to the point of what they need to know about reading and writing.

I did not notice any obvious problems with consistency in the text.

The textbook lends itself well to being taught in modules, and this is how I plan to use it. I teach project-based classes and will use various parts of the text to introduce students to the reading and writing skills they will need to use as they work on the various parts of their projects. The breakdown of topics in the two sections of the book make it easy to choose topics you want to cover--for example, if you believe your students do not need to learn about how to write a paragraph, you can skip that topic easily.

I was pleased with how this text is organized because, while it includes sections devoted specifically to reading and writing, it takes a more integrated approach to the two. Many texts treat reading and writing as discrete skills, which I do not believe is the most effective way for students to learn either skill. The progression of ideas in the text is logical, reflecting how skills build on one another and the progression of the writing process.

I found it easy to navigate both the print and online versions of the text. It has a well-organized and logical table of contents that allow readers to find the information they need with a click.

I noticed no grammatical mistakes in the text as I read through it.

I had no concerns about the cultural sensitivity of the text as I read through it. It uses gender neutral language to model this for students in their own writing.

I teach freshmen level classes for both ESL students (who have the English proficiency to take college classes) and native English speakers. I believe this text works well for both populations. The text is not fancy or beautiful--it is plain in appearance--but don't let that put you off from it because the information it contains is good and I believe will be helpful to my students.

Reviewed by Lisa Suter, Assistant Professor of English, Metropolitan State University of Denver on 3/6/20

I don't think that the word "comprehensiveness" is easily applied to subjects as capacious as reading and writing, frankly, but there is a great deal of useful materiel covered here for students new to analyzing and creating college-level texts. A... read more

I don't think that the word "comprehensiveness" is easily applied to subjects as capacious as reading and writing, frankly, but there is a great deal of useful materiel covered here for students new to analyzing and creating college-level texts. A supplementary set of instructor resources (assignments, readings, handouts, etc.) is also partially set up, with the promise of more to come. I am a rhetoric scholar, and wanted more coverage of this field's connection to reading and writing, but one cannot hope to cover everything in one text. Likewise, I would have liked to see more than just MLA citation style covered--so many students will need APA--but overall, a solid introduction to college reading and writing methods.

There are a few content areas that are not as strong as the rest: e.g., the definition of rhetoric in the glossary does not reflect how the word is defined within the field today. I also found the "point of view" section (in the tone and voice section) to be a reductive and inaccurate explanation of how scholars use 1st person, for example. But these are small quibbles: for the most part, the content seems correct.

I found the content to be very up to date, e.g., the information in the citation section on MLA 8th edition requirements. I also think the *quantity* of information offered in each section reflects a thoughtful attention to today's college student demographics that should be mentioned. At the state university where I teach, approximately 80% of our student body works in addition to taking classes, and quite a lot of them work full time. Factor in heavy urban commute times, family or child care, and all the rest, and you have a recipe for students not having much time (or mental energy) to complete long reading assignments. I think the pithiness of these sections is very relevant to their full and challenging lives, myself.

The writing throughout is very clear, as one would hope in a writing textbook, lol. It is quite accessible even for first-gen or ESL students, I believe. I also found that the images of different pre-writing strategies (in the "Strategies for Getting Started" section) added some visual clarity, as well.

The terminology and framework were both quite consistent. Also consistent throughout the text was a tone of respect for the student endeavoring to earn a college degree, which I liked a lot. I loved the section called "Troubleshooting Your Reading," for example, which attempts to take students' frustrations with their college workload seriously, yet still tries to persuade them to commit to the task at every turn.

The units are well laid out, and I could imagine using the smaller sections in various combinations. They are nicely self contained and could be rearranged in many ways.

It is a small point, but I greatly appreciate the focus on how serious reading develops one's skill as a writer, a point the authors make explicitly at the beginning. I think most senior scholars take this point for granted, yet many undergraduate students seem to want to know how to write better without understanding that reading is a necessary part of that development. As for structure and flow, I felt both were smooth throughout.

I read the book on my (smallish) Samsung Galaxy cell phone, just to see what the reading experience would be like on a small screen. For the most part, it worked without any hitch--there was just an occasional (odd-looking) bar that came up at the bottom of the reading pane that didn't seem connected to anything, and it didn't want to go away. It didn't interfere greatly with my reading; I just couldn't figure out what it was or how to make it go away.

The text is clean of the typos and grammatical erors that plague many quickly-written texts, including some of those coming out of traditional publishing houses. This is important for the ethos of a writing textbook, of course.

I saw that another reviewer had commented on this, and perhaps several have, but I do genuinely appreciate the careful and again, respectful tone of the editors' language about gender and pronoun usage in their text. Educators today know that young adults are especially vulnerable at the traditional college age, and some studies have shown that such a simple thing as using a student's preferred name or pronouns can reduce suicidal ideation in teens. So this is not just p.c. terminology from where I stand, but rather, an important point to make up front, which they did. Kudos!

Reviewed by Cherie Nelson, Instructor, Colorado State University on 11/19/19

The Word on College Reading and Writing, is heavily skills based and does not seem to be informed (at least not explicitly,) by a larger theoretical framework. This text does a nice job talking about the skills necessary for a beginning writing... read more

The Word on College Reading and Writing, is heavily skills based and does not seem to be informed (at least not explicitly,) by a larger theoretical framework. This text does a nice job talking about the skills necessary for a beginning writing class. The text is split up into two main sections, beginning with a discussion of how students can develop reading skills, something that wouldn’t be appropriate for an upper-level composition course, but provides a nice foundation for students entering the writing classroom on a college campus for the first time. The second section speaks to writing skills and processes. The book includes a short glossary, but does not include all specialized language or terms defined in the text (for example, logos, ethos, and pathos are absent from this list.) There is no section in the textbook that speaks to research in a separate way, but some of the basic concepts of research can be found in other sections within both Part 1: Reading and Part 2: Writing such as “What is Information Literacy?” and “The Paragraph Body: Supporting Your Ideas.” Overall, the text gives students an overview of the writing and reading processes needed for an introductory writing course.

The content of the text appeared to be accurate, error-free, and unbiased. Most of the content included in the text talks broadly about strategies and skills with which to approach writing, and any specific content knowledge included appeared to be accurate and error-free.

Most of the examples given throughout the text seemed to be current. At different points throughout the text, the authors reference cultural examples such as Goldilocks, Sparknotes, Snopes, etc, examples that students would understand and will probably be relevant for at least the next five years. The content also seems to be directed toward reading and writing skills that will continue to be relevant for those reading and writing in college classrooms. Because of the way the book is organized, with each section divided up into chapters and pages with subheadings, it seems like minute changes to keep the information up-to-date would be easy to implement for the publishers.

The text is written with a specific audience in mind, first year college students, and writes in a tone that is appropriate for those students, often addressing the student as “you” and discussing writing in the specific context of a beginning university composition class. As this text doesn’t contain much of a theoretical framework for writing and reading, but rather presents a down-to-earth collection of skills and strategies, there isn’t much jargon or domain-specific language that would need to be defined for the audience.

The text is fairly consistent throughout and makes these consistencies helpful for students by sometimes providing internal links that connect similar or related concepts together throughout the space of the text. There are not many (if any) places where the text contradicts itself or gives information that a student wouldn’t understand in light of the content that precedes it. There are, however, opportunities for bridging connections that could have made the think more effective, especially between the reading and writing sections of the text. For example, in the “Paragraph Analysis” page in Part 1: Reading, the authors describe a paragraph as being made up of three chunks: a topic sentence, several sentences that support and explain the topic sentence, and a sentence that helps transition to the next paragraph. In the section “The Body Paragraph: Supporting Your Ideas” in Part 2: Writing, the authors say that good paragraphs contain four sections, separating the middle section referenced in the Part 1 into evidence and explanation separately. This is a picky observation, but more consistency and connections are helpful when teaching students about being readers who write and writers who read.

The text is divided up in easy sections for students. There are two parts to the book: reading and writing, and each part contains chapters with several titled sections in each chapter. Most of the titled sections are short, but can range anywhere from 200-3,000 words in length. The short nature of the chapter subheadings, and the simple way with which students can navigate through the ebook would make it easy to assign particular chunks of reading to fit with particular course goals and objectives. Longer sections, such as “Finding Quality Texts” which clocks in at over 3,000 words, breaks up the text with headings and bolded key terms and ideas.

The topics presented within the text are done so in a logical way, first discussing reading skills, strategies, and concepts before moving into writing about reading to moving into writing texts as a whole. This mirrors the approach taken within our composition department where the emphasis in the first unit is on close and critical reading and then moves towards the students using these reading skills in order to create a myriad of their own texts.

After using ebooks with horrendous interface systems, I was overjoyed with the simplicity, effectiveness, and straightforwardness of this design. The text has a helpful “contents” bar at the top (or left side) of the screen that allows students to navigate to any chapter and section that they would like to access. The interface also lets students navigate by a forward and back bar at the bottom of the page that lists the titles of the previous and next section along with arrows in their respective directions. The page allows students to choose between two sizes of font to customize their reading experience. The text also includes internal links to other parts of the book (answers to embedded activities, other relevant sections, etc.), external links, and embedded videos, all which seem to work well and give students a more interactive experience with their text.

The text contained no noticeable grammatical errors.

I was pleased to find, in the introduction to this text, a word on the use of pronouns throughout. The authors make a concerted effort, as well as implement including he/she/they pronouns throughout the text in order to make an effort towards inclusion. The text primarily addresses the student reading and their experience with a general “you,” but the authors are careful not to assume all of the students reading share the same college experience. For example, the authors make provision for students who are usually deemed “nontraditional” by their institutions, also using examples of those students who will have children and other outside responsibilities, not just first year college students who are attending within a few years of graduating high school.

Reviewed by Alice Henton, Assistant Professor of English , Richard Bland College on 4/10/19

The text covers a wide variety of critical reading and writing practices, from general introductions (“what is a text”) to specific strategies (“dialectic note taking) and in-depth appraisals of the components of academic writing (“the paragraph... read more

The text covers a wide variety of critical reading and writing practices, from general introductions (“what is a text”) to specific strategies (“dialectic note taking) and in-depth appraisals of the components of academic writing (“the paragraph body”). In addition to the explanatory material, the text includes appendicies, a glossary, and numerous exercises for students to complete.

The text appears to be devoid of inaccuracies as well as any indications of authorial bias.

The text feels up-to-date and incorporates a variety of textual examples, including many digital resources. The section in “Information Literacy” that provides detailed guidelines for a variety digital literacies, from Creative Commons to BiTorrent, is particularly useful.

The text is approachable and direct, with a clearly student-centered perspective that comes through in both form and content.

Style, tone, and organization are consistent throughout.

Overall, the work lives up to its promise to be a "use it as you need it kind of text." Units are clearly divided into concise sections that can be excerpted and organized according to course requirements and student needs.

The text is logically organized into two parts (“Working with Texts” and “Writing”) with relevant subdivisions within each. I would agree with previous reviewers’ suggestion that the “Information Literacy” subsection might make more sense before rather than after the “Writing About Texts” subsection, but as each unit is self-contained enough to be assigned in any order, it feels like a minor issue.

All links within the text worked when tried, and online interaction was not difficult. There is a nice awareness throughout of all of the different potential mediums for textual interaction, as when graphics using different colors to demonstrate significance come with explanations for those who might be viewing a black-and-white printout of the material.

Text appears well edited, with no obvious grammatical errors.

Beginning in the introduction, where gendered and gender neutral language is explained in clear and concise terms, this text demonstrates admirable sensitivity to issues of inclusivity and representation. Examples used throughout engage with broad spectrums of gender/race/class identities.

This text provides a strong overview of many necessary reading and writing skills. Part 1, which covers Working with Texts, Building Strong Reading Skills, Writing about Texts, and Information Literacy, provides a broad basis upon which students can easily build, and seems particularly useful as an introduction to academic techniques and practices. The definition of an academic text offered in this volume is the clearest and most useful I have ever encountered. Additionally, I find the pragmatic approach the authors take to be refreshing and engaging. Strategies like including both the pros and cons for conventional writing practices such as outlining, or breaking up long reading assignments into sections by dividing the number of pages total with the number of days before the readings are due, when coupled with acknowledgements of the realities of student experience (instead of pretending resources like SparkNotes don’t exist, the authors clearly articulate the limitations of the content they provide, as well as the perceived advantages in using them) help to create a text that feels not just student-oriented, but student-friendly.

Reviewed by Melissa Cheese, Assistant Professor, Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania on 1/23/19

This book is very thorough and includes key elements that will help college students strengthen their reading and writing skills. The author concludes each section with engaging activities for the reader to check their understanding of the text... read more

This book is very thorough and includes key elements that will help college students strengthen their reading and writing skills. The author concludes each section with engaging activities for the reader to check their understanding of the text and shares the answers in the appendix as a guide. This is a great way to motivate students to reflect and make meaningful connections to the text.

Information in the text is accurate and free from grammatical errors.

The content of the text is current and includes real-life examples/exercises and other modes of sharing information (such as websites, videos, etc.) that are relatable to college-age students. The reading and writing strategies shared are skills that can be transferrable to other college level courses.

The author has written the text in a way that is clear and easy for the reader to comprehend.

The text is consistent in terms of its tone, terminology, and conversational style of writing.

The sections of the text can be reorganized in any order based upon the course format and student needs.

The text is well organized. The author divides the contents of the text into two distinct parts; the first half focusing on working with texts as a reader and the second half as a writer.

Both the PDF and online interfaces work well.

The text is well written and free from grammatical errors.

Culturally responsive images/photos are used in the exercises/activities of various sections that pertain to ethnicity, gender, age, etc.

Overall, this text would be very useful for an introductory reading and/or writing class for college freshmen.

Reviewed by Amanda Sieling, Assistant Professor, Southwest Minnesota State University on 1/7/19

This book covers all of the main ideas necessary for teaching college writing. I'm looking for a primer of sorts to use to remind my upper-level students of the basics of writing and research for their capstone project. This book has everything... read more

This book covers all of the main ideas necessary for teaching college writing. I'm looking for a primer of sorts to use to remind my upper-level students of the basics of writing and research for their capstone project. This book has everything I am looking for from sentence and paragraph structure to formulating the thesis. I'm particularly impressed with the chapters that are focused on reading. This is an area that my students (even the upper-level students) need to work on. I'm planning on delving into these chapters over the first couple of weeks of class to help them have a better understanding of how to read their research!

I found no inaccuracies in the content and no evidence of bias on the part of the authors.

The content is fresh and not reliant on pop culture references that will be obsolete in a year or two.

I found the book to be a very easy read - the language used is clear and concise and, most importantly to me, there are a lot of examples! Exemplars are so important in writing. There is even a small section on grammar and common mistakes which I am hoping my students will take to heart!

The book is internally consistent - the headings are consistent throughout making it easy to skim through and the text is consistent in tone and voice making it easy to ready.

This is one of the biggest advantages of this book in my mind. It will be very easy to assign certain portions of the text to my students. The sections are often short (which I'm hoping will mean my students will actually do the assigned reading!) and can be used in whatever order I need for the week. They seem to stand alone for the most part so I can assign the one on brainstorming a topic before or after one on reading....

I think the organization worked. I will probably use the chapters out of order though because of my audience (upper-level students) and the assignment (capstone project).

The text is clear and most of the hyperlinks I tried worked. I liked that the authors didn't just rely on hyperlinks though - they also specifically instructed readers on how to search the Internet for a particular item just in case the item didn't work. For example, I clicked on the link for martinlutherking.org and found that it is no longer up. But it also gave me the idea to search "false websites teachers use" which led me to a bunch of other sites that were similar to the MLK one. So I consider that a win - it's a great resource for examples to use in my teaching!

I found one or two errors but nothing major.

The authors did a good job at inclusivity and sensitivity. In the examples, most races, genders, and classes are represented. The discussion on pronouns is current.

I really appreciate the examples in this book. Throughout my plans for the semester I have notes for myself to "find examples of..." Now I don't have to! I plan on using this book to show students examples of paraphrasing versus quoting, writing strong thesis statements, etc. The one addition I would really like to see is a section on APA as that is the citation method we will be using. But well done!

Reviewed by Abbey Payeur, Teaching Partner , Bethel University on 11/17/18

This textbook starts at the very basic level of defining a text and teaching strategies for pre-reading and reading. It moves into annotating and taking notes, and then reflecting on what you've read to discover the author's message. There is a... read more

This textbook starts at the very basic level of defining a text and teaching strategies for pre-reading and reading. It moves into annotating and taking notes, and then reflecting on what you've read to discover the author's message. There is a nice section to help students troubleshoot common reading problems, and then it moves on to a section titled "Writing about Texts." This section covers important skills such as reading critically; using text structures to aid in comprehension; and analyzing rhetoric, sentences, point of view, and word choice. Following this section is an Information Literacy section that covers finding high quality texts and how to avoid plagiarism. The remainder of the textbook gives instruction in writing by explaining why we write, considering audience and purpose in writing, understanding the writing process, and citing sources correctly. Within this section is instruction on developing good writing habits and overcoming obstacles such as writing anxiety and procrastination. The book concludes with a section on grammar and MLA style. The content is comprehensive, but brief in comparison to other textbooks on similar topics. I suspect the brevity is intentional, as the audience for this textbook appears to be those who need a primer to college level reading and writing. Most topics range from just one to three pages long. The Table of Contents is detailed; there is a glossary of important terms; there is no index.

I did not find any errors or signs of author bias in this text.

The content of the textbook is up-to-date. Writers are intentional about using gender neutral language and representing all people equally. There is a website that accompanies this textbook (http://theword4instructors.wordpress.com) that has a section titled "Resources for Class." This has a few helpful resources, but appears to be a work in progress. The authors are aware of how often online links change, so instead of providing links to suggested supplementary resources, they suggest searching for particular titles or key words on the internet. The search terms they provided helped me arrive at the correct materials.

The content is extremely accessible to beginning college learners. Technical terms are always defined and examples are given. "Check Your Understanding" sections are incorporated so learners can pause to determine whether they are grasping the content. "Exercises" are suggested to help students apply the content they've been reading about.

The text has consistent format and a framework that is easy to follow.

The sections are short; many are just 1 to 3 pages long. This makes content easily digestible for those who are still learning foundational reading and writing skills. Subheadings and bulleted lists are used to break up longer sections of text.

The topics are presented in a clear, logical manner that is consistent with similar textbooks commonly used for this subject.

The book uses consistent graphics to accompany features, such as "Exercises," "Pro-Tips," and "Check Your Understanding." Other images integrated into the textbook display properly.

The text appeared to be error-free.

No instances of culturally insensitive or offensive material were found. Images used include a variety of races and ages.

The authors have created a text that is easily comprehensible for adult learners who need to build their reading and writing skills in order to be successful in college. It is user-friendly, easy to understand, and gets the reader engaged in the text. The only suggestion I have is to include an APA section in addition to, or alongside of, the MLA section.

Reviewed by Brian Leingang, Associate Professor of English, Edison State Community College on 10/4/18

The Word covers all the necessary areas for a first year writing class and beginning writers. This book appealed to our department because our former textbooks were essay anthologies and not a book dedicated solely to writing. We like for students... read more

The Word covers all the necessary areas for a first year writing class and beginning writers. This book appealed to our department because our former textbooks were essay anthologies and not a book dedicated solely to writing. We like for students to read a variety of writing and to study what the authors are doing and how they produce effective writing. The Word contains links to recently published essays about things students might be interested in, such as food and technology. Many of the linked essays appear with lessons on reading and rhetoric while saving short writing examples written by the authors as a way to demonstrate specific writing strategies in the "Responding to Texts" and "Drafting" sections. This is helpful because it allows students to see the different ways the same thing can be written/said. There is a glossary contained in the appendices. There is no index, but the search function makes up for the lack of index. If this were to be downloaded and printed, the lack of index might pose some difficulties when looking for something very specific. But, the table of contents lists every section, so it is pretty easy to find all of the information.

The content in The Word is similar to any other writing textbook or writing website when it comes to the fundamentals of writing (i.e. rhetoric, the writing process, revising, etc.). What makes this text stand out are the first two sections "Working with Texts" and "Writing about Texts," which provide students with clear strategies for becoming better readers and thinkers. There are links to many different articles that help students learn to read and respond to complicated texts. It offers a variety examples rather than templates.

The content appears to be relevant. There aren't references to pop culture that will become dated in a few months or years (such as mentioning fidget spinners or "dabbing"). There are some references to the film "The Hunger Games," which is used to demonstrate different ways to write a thesis, but there are also references to other types of papers students might write for other disciplines, such as art history. Overall, the book should hold up well for several years. I do have a concern about the links to some of the external readings and whether they will hold up. I had issue with one link being broken when I was reviewing the text for adoption, but the link works now, so it appears that the authors check on the text regularly.

It's easy to read and fits the way I teach. There are many short imagined assignment examples to demonstrate various writing techniques, which can help students visualize what they are going to do in their paper. There is a glossary of terms in the appendices, but they authors take care to explain these terms in the chapters, too.

This book is consistent. Despite having several authors, the textbook reads in a single voice.

Many of the chapters are short and make for great mini-lessons that coincide with other writing assignments in the course. It isn't necessary to start with chapter 1. The textbook offers two sections on reading and responding to texts before discussing some of the fundamentals of rhetoric and the writing process. This makes skipping around in the book easy to do. When printed, the book is 185 pages long, so it's pretty easy to get through in a semester. Since this book appears to be written for a first year student, some of the material can even be assigned as a review for most writers coming straight out of high school. Since this book is used at a community college with students of varying ages, from students still in high school to students eligible for AARP membership, this book serves our population well.

The Word flows well and would be a great book for a new instructor to use for a first class. It's a book that can be followed from beginning to end without requiring the instructor add supplemental content. It might surprise some students to see that the first two sections are about reading rather than writing, but most college students are going to be using their writing to respond to what they read. So, it makes sense. There are plenty of exercises and writing assignments throughout the book, which instructors can skip or include. Some of the exercises can be hit or miss. For example, when going over the "Audience" section, there is an exercise where students are to write to a variety of different audiences to ask for $100. It's a great premise, to assign a purpose and an audience, but the audiences are particularly difficult to write for. Many students said they wouldn't ask any one for the money because they felt bad about it. Overall, the content flows well from one section to the next.

The text is easy to read and navigate online through web browsers. There are no problems using it on a Mac with Safari or Firefox on a PC. It is necessary to make sure the window is large enough so the table of contents doesn't overlap the text on the page.

Being a writing textbook, there should be few (if any) errors. I did find one word choice error with the use of "peak" instead of "pique," but I feel comfortable contacting the authors to address this.

This book is culturally sensitive. It does present people of different races, cultures, and sexuality, though I am not sure if it is equally representative of presenting people of different abilities. For instance, the exercise about writing for a purpose and audience (the "give me a $100 letter) includes just about every group imaginable except for people with disabilities. The "Patterns of Organization and Methods of Development of Ideas" chapter has an exercise that asks students to practice opening statements for an imagined writing assignment, which include writing topics about "gender roles", "toxic masculinity", and "race relations" to show that the textbook allows and encourages those types of discussions. I did not see a section on gender neutral or non-sexist language in the book, but the book does provide plenty examples of gender neutral writing. I feel the authors deliberately tried to avoid confrontation of sensitive topics in their reading assignments and writing examples in order to allow the students to focus on the material. This doesn't mean students and instructors can't bring these topics up.

Reviewed by Lucas Street, Director of the Reading/Writing Center and Instructor of English, Augustana College on 6/19/18

A good introduction to college reading/writing, especially useful for first-year students. While some of the subsections are a bit short, there’s good breadth here. The focus seems to be on what students most need to know and presenting an array... read more

A good introduction to college reading/writing, especially useful for first-year students. While some of the subsections are a bit short, there’s good breadth here. The focus seems to be on what students most need to know and presenting an array of reading/writing strategies rather than going into depth on each one. However, The Word also includes a number of useful strategies and tips I’ve not seen in other, similar texts.

There’s no index, and the glossary is quite short. Occasionally the text refers readers to the glossary for further information but no such entry appears.

The text supplies pragmatic strategies most often based on best practices in composition theory, and it does a good job concisely explaining the reasons why reading/writing/info literacy skills are important, as well as the logic behind what can sometimes seem to first-year college students like arbitrary rules.

I quibbled with a few minor details, especially in the “Learning About Plagiarism” section, but overall I found this text very accurate.

This text is quite up-to-date. It uses contemporary examples and articles that should be relevant for years to come.

The examples of non-credible websites linked to in the “information literacy” section, though, are quite dated--one can tell at first glance that these sites are problematic without having to think too hard about it.

Clarity seems to be a priority here. The style is lucid and truly student-directed. It does an excellent job making terminology from the field (e.g., “rhetoric,” “recursive”) accessible. Paragraphs are typically pretty short, and the text is well-formatted with headings, bullets, etc.

I didn’t notice any issues with consistency. The many internal links from one section to another help unite the text.

The text employs cross-referencing via internal links, but is not overly self-referential. The main sections work well as units, although subsection or “chapter” length in the eBook varies widely--from a few paragraphs to multiple pages’ worth of text. It would be nice if these were a bit more uniform.

The book proceeds logically, beginning with reading strategies, proceeding to information literacy, and finally sections for each part of the writing process. The organization also allows for modular or non-linear reading.

The interface is excellent. Both the online and PDF versions boast a clean, attractive layout. Images, links, and other embedded content such as videos make this an easy read. The eBook interface is intuitive and easy to navigate, with attention to visual accessibility (i.e., an always-present option to increase font size).

As it relies on a conversational style, this text employs sentence fragments throughout--but not so many as to be distracting. I noticed a handful of very small “errors” that either don’t affect comprehension or could actually improve it.

Gender-inclusive language is used throughout. Examples are likewise inclusive of a variety of races and sexual orientations.

Clear, accessible, well-designed, and up-to-date, The Word... is an excellent primer on college reading and writing. I plan to use much of it in my first-year composition classes.

Reviewed by Farah Marklevits, Assistant Director, The Reading/Writing Center, Augustana College on 6/19/18

Including and starting with reading is an excellent, much-needed approach to introduce students in how to think critically and write effectively for academic audiences. The portion on writing is comprehensive, clearly organized, and directed to... read more

Including and starting with reading is an excellent, much-needed approach to introduce students in how to think critically and write effectively for academic audiences. The portion on writing is comprehensive, clearly organized, and directed to clear contexts across the curriculum. The reading portion is less comprehensive and focused. I would have liked to see more specific guidance on setting and annotating for different academic purposes, reading rhetorically, and more strategies for reading difficult texts.

Overall, the text makes few errors in content. Though sources are acknowledged, footnotes rather than a Works Cited may have been more appropriate for navigation.

The text seems relevant now and the reading/writing advice seems like it will largely stand. The external links all seem to work. However, exercise directions make good use of externally linked texts so editing more than just updating external links might be needed to keep the text up-to-date.

I appreciated the rationale for many key moves and habits and the explanation of key terms. I also appreciated the accessible, warm but authoritative tone. This tone was especially effective in the writing pages that address anxiety, writer’s block, and writing habits. Purpose and application of some reading pages is unclear, such as sentence-level and paragraph analysis.

Consistently refers to writing as a recursive process driven by purpose and audience, emphasizes revision and feedback in terms of higher order concerns, and refers to texts as not just written/printed work.

Organization of online text into parts, titles, subtitles, and sub-subtitles cuts this text into bite-sized pieces makes the text seem easy to select from and use in various ways.

Having a clear sense of where you are in the organization of the text is a bit tricky. Though each chapter is listed in the drop-down table of contents (for example, there are no pages devoted to the chapter’s title, so you can link to the chapter title. The chapter title is included on each page, but it’s so small compared with the page title that it becomes easy to lose track of the overarching topic.

The online text does a good job of including and suggesting links back to pages that can give relevant advice and/or answer questions, something especially useful to reinforce the point that reading and writing are interrelated, recursive processes. The PDF versions have a lot of empty space in margins with page numbers only for odd numbers, which makes it potentially inefficient or awkward to read in print.

There are occasional typos, but, overall, few mistakes.

Leads with a discussion of gender pronoun use and makes some effort toward diverse representation in examples. However, misses an opportunity to discuss cultural influences on voice and style.

Reviewed by Claudia Hutchison, Adjunct Professor, Portland Community College on 6/19/18

Introduced as “a handy guide” for all college reading and writing assignments, this text thoroughly addresses the vital aspects of reading comprehension and expository writing. It also touches on effective study habits and student success skills.... read more

Introduced as “a handy guide” for all college reading and writing assignments, this text thoroughly addresses the vital aspects of reading comprehension and expository writing. It also touches on effective study habits and student success skills. The text provides clear, concise explanations with helpful examples, illustrations, short discussions, and “check yourself” exercises. The Appendices and the Glossary are useful. The “Resources for Working with MLA” and “Creating a Works Cited Page” appendices offer condensed, clear instructions with easy to understand annotated examples. In the “Grammar and Style” appendix, the authors point out that their text is not a grammar and style handbook, and thus they pare down to the basics with Top Ten Errors. Their list demonstrates the depth of their teaching experience. The Glossary includes current terms such as zine, OER’s, and intellectual property.

The text is free from grammatical errors, awkward phrasing, or any other impediments. The sentences are well-phrased; the information is accurate and up-to-date.

The text uses contemporary resources that appeal to students, such as websites, blogs, and videos. It also cites classical literature, which will always be relevant in college studies. The articles in sources such as the New York Times Magazine and Scientific American blog site address concerns that are timely yet unlikely to become quickly outdated. The skills imparted in the section “Writing about Texts” – such as reading critically, dialectic note-taking, summarizing, and critiquing, are relevant not only to college composition courses but also to writing assignments in other disciplines. The same could be said for the section on “Information Literacy.” The organization and the modularity of this text will facilitate updating and amending.

The writing is clear and exact. I did not find anything vague or confusing. The word choice and the sentence structure add to the feeling of accessibility. The tone and the approach are appropriate for the intended audience. Beginning the section “Tone, Voice, and Point of View” with an example of a greeting, “Yo! Wass up?” illustrates the authors’ skill in engaging students while providing adequate content.

The text is consistent throughout in its tone, vocabulary level, and exposition. The concepts build logically from one to the next. The relaxed, conversational style of writing makes the text feel approachable

The sections of this text do not necessarily need to be followed in the order presented. An instructor could choose or rearrange them to fit his/her course syllabus. The section devoted to reading comprehension skills could be used in a college preparation course or seminar.

Section titles, chapter heads and subheads are all clear and logically arranged. I did wonder about the placement of the section Information Literacy, which might more logically come before “Writing about Texts” instead of interrupting the writing sequence. The text uses two color and occasionally three-color pages effectively.

The many links I tried all worked. I am not aware of any problems with the interface or distortions of graphics. The on-line navigation is trouble-free.

The text is free from grammatical errors,

The text appeals to the broad audience of college freshmen.. Literature and articles cited represent a wide range of writers. The photos of the individuals used in the exercises in the section “Determining your audience” represent diversity in age, career, and ethnicity.

This textbook offers the basic reading, writing, and study skills college freshmen need to master for successful higher education. Much of its material is well suited for developmental reading and writing courses. The text can also be useful throughout one’s college career as a referral resource when writing papers for courses in all disciplines. The authors accurately describe their work as a “use as you need it” text. I am especially happy to see that the section on Building Strong Reading Skills does not emphasize reading speed. Explanations and examples are clear and useful. The description of “Ethos, Pathos, and Logos” is one of the best I’ve come across.

Reviewed by Phoebe Reeves, Associate Professor, University of Cincinnati, Clermont College on 3/27/18

Succinctly and with adequate explanations/exercises/examples, this text covers all the basics. I like that it keeps a tight focus on these basics, and doesn't try to do everything (ie, it doesn't get deeply into research writing or argumentative... read more

Succinctly and with adequate explanations/exercises/examples, this text covers all the basics. I like that it keeps a tight focus on these basics, and doesn't try to do everything (ie, it doesn't get deeply into research writing or argumentative writing).

The text reads as very accurate, professional, and error-free.

The rhetorical content is pretty timeless, while the examples like links to external websites for reading or exercises are contemporary--but would be easy to update.

This text is written in precise and clear language, but still maintains an approachable tone that I think would be very welcoming for a freshman composition student.

Tone, vocabulary, and approach are consistent.

I'm not used to thinking about a textbook in this way, but yes, I think a teacher could easily excerpt parts as they fit into her syllabus, or re-arrange sections, without losing the integrity of the text.

The order of topics made sense to me, starting with reading, moving to writing about reading, and then digging into the more complex topics of sustained writing projects. I also like the way the "Back Matter" is organized, and what topics the authors chose to put there, rather than in the body of the text.

I did not encounter any interface issues or errors and all the links to external websites were functional and up-to-date.

I did not find any errors or typos.

I was pleased to see a discussion of pronouns right at the beginning-well done on that front!

The external links are an interesting way to expand the reach of the text, and I thought they were all well-chosen. The websites used in discussing how to evaluate a source were hilarious and very effective ways to facilitate that discussion (the Di-hydrogen Monoxide one, in particular).

I will seriously consider using this text in my freshman composition class.

Reviewed by Stefanie Lauer, GSW Dual Enrollment Professor, Bowling Green State University on 2/1/18

Not only does this book provide a comprehensive coverage of the entire subject of the differences between high school and college reading and writing, it also gives examples, short discussion questions, and quizzes to check comprehension. It is... read more

Not only does this book provide a comprehensive coverage of the entire subject of the differences between high school and college reading and writing, it also gives examples, short discussion questions, and quizzes to check comprehension. It is split into distinct reading and writing categories, which each include subtopics underneath and all are appropriately and adequately addressed.

I found no content to be biased, and it all appeared error-free. It appears as though the author has conducted extensive research in order to give many different examples on the same topic.

I think the content does a nice job of staying up to date while still discussing past practices that are relevant today. I do not feel like it will become obsolete any time soon. If it were to, it would be easy enough to add updates, without completely altering any part of it.

Perhaps this is one of the best features of the book because all of the content is discussed in a way that a student could easily understand on their own, while

The formatting, terminology, and content is all consistent throughout the entire textbook. As a reader, and teacher, it is easy to understand what is coming next, and to scaffold from one idea to the next.

The text does a great job of this by using multiple chapter titles, and then headings and subheadings underneath that. Each section is differentiated with consistent formatting that allow the user to know they are transitioning to a new section. In terms of technical writing, this book does a stellar job. There are also helpful “check your understanding” questions/discussions at the end of each section, which would prove useful if assigning small parts for homework or added discussion.

Not only does the modularity of this book work, but the organization does as well because each idea seems to build onto another. They start out discussing titles, before going into notetaking at a further point in the book. It is in the order that a student would be analyzing any text they encounter, and this organization would prove useful to teacher and student.

I was actually surprised at how well the interface is setup for this being an online book. Sometimes with the open book library I am afraid of students scrolling too fast, or not going far enough, and missing important content. However, the navigation of this book seems to be one of its strengths because it’s not afraid to leave white space, which helps signal a new topic is up ahead, compared to some other online texts that try to group too many topics onto one page.

While simplistic at times, they are accurate in terms of grammar. I enjoyed the simplicity of different parts of this book because I felt like it could reach even the most basic of audiences, while still holding them to a high academic standard in terms of content.

I had some of my students and coworkers skim over different sections I picked out to try to remain as unbiased and impartial as I could for this section. We all agreed that the examples given could be applicable to multiple different students, regardless of their race, ethnicity, or background.

Overall, this is one of the most engaging, easy to access open textbooks that I have encountered thus far. I’m excited to start including even more of it in my classrooms.

Reviewed by Tara Coleman, Assistant Professor, LaGuardia Community College on 2/1/18

The book covers all of the important features of the reading and writing process, including a few sections, like the one on information Literacy and Giving and Receiving Feedback, which are important to how many of us teach writing but are not... read more

The book covers all of the important features of the reading and writing process, including a few sections, like the one on information Literacy and Giving and Receiving Feedback, which are important to how many of us teach writing but are not often explicitly addressed in such handbooks. There is no index, though the table of contents gives a pretty clear idea of the structure of the book and the content of each section. There is a glossary with some key terms defined, though it could be more comprehensive. Personally, I would prefer a more extensive section on grammar than the brief overview provided here, because then I could use this book exclusively.

The content is accurate based on current trends and best practices in the field. Though there are some points and pieces of advice I would disagree with, they are a matter of opinion and debate among writing instructors, and the textbook often acknowledges areas where some instructors may not share the same approach, emphasizing at several points that if students have questions they should consult their instructor.

The content provides relevant examples using articles on current issues or cultural references that would be familiar to students, but none of these will be quickly obsolete and more importantly, the main content does not rely on these examples, so it is easy to swap out one article or example for another.

The book is written in accessible language that students can easily understand, and uses a more casual tone than the typical textbook, in an attempt to seem less formidable to students. There are also attempts at humor which the students will appreciate even if they find it a bit cheesy.

The book is highly consistent and includes many links or references to other sections which will enable students to cross-reference and consult other sections for more detail on a particular point.

The units are broken down in such a way as to be easily presented independently, while at the same time, references to other sections are made, allowing students to read in more depth if they choose to. The only comment I have here is that sometimes, especially in the first half on reading, the sections seemed a bit too condensed. A point would be made, followed by an example, and then the section ends, without any further explanation of how that example supports the point. I appreciate brevity but sometimes my students are not that good at making these kinds of inferences.

It is very well-organized and easy to read while still going into enough detail on most topics.

The interface worked perfectly on my laptop. When I read it on my mobile phone (as many of my students will do) some of the pages presented with the text extending beyond the edge of the screen, so that I had to shrink the size of the page so that the text fit the screen, which made the text quite small and difficult to read. This only happened sporadically, so it seems to be a technical glitch. It would be wonderful to have a way to make notes on a page or bookmark it so that students can identify key sections they will refer back to.

There were no grammatical errors that I noticed. There were a few paragraphs missing a period at the end.

I did not notice any instances of cultural insensitivity or offensiveness. I thought that the examples were fairly neutral, though the book didn't necessarily go out of its way to be inclusive.

I think it is a great textbook which I plan to use in my upcoming composition course.

Reviewed by Kris Lowrey, Instructor, Virginia Commonwealth University on 2/1/18

This text provides a solid introduction to both the reading and writing skills that students would need as they begin their university studies. It has a helpful glossary, and while there is no index, the table of contents is sufficiently detailed... read more

This text provides a solid introduction to both the reading and writing skills that students would need as they begin their university studies. It has a helpful glossary, and while there is no index, the table of contents is sufficiently detailed for ease of textbook use.

The book is largely accurate, and the content seems to be presented in an appropriately unbiased way.

I think that this book will continue to be relevant with little need for updating for the foreseeable future. Because the book primarily focuses on the development of skills rather than content, it would be relatively easy to implement.

The text is largely accessible to the average incoming college student. It provides clear context and explanations for the student without utilizing too much jargon or specialized terminology. It is a bit text-heavy, which might be intimidating for a student with weaker reading skills.

Vocabulary is used consistently throughout. The chapter layouts are also consistent, which helps to contribute to the easy of using this textbook.

One of the strengths of this book is that it would work equally well as a complete text or divided into smaller units. While the chapters build on themselves, they're also very useful as standalone products. This book could easily be used in a variety of contexts with a great deal of success.

The topics for each chapter are logically organized and coherent, The book has achieved an appropriate balance between providing enough information to support the readers while also not losing sight of the big picture.

The book's display is overall very pleasing. The images and graphics used add to the professional presentation and interest of the book; they aren't a distraction. The .pdf version of the file seems to have a small problem with pagination, but overall it is visually very pleasing.

The text contains no known grammatical errors.

The textbook is not culturally insensitive or offensive. The example readings used are largely homogeneous, so someone teaching with this textbook would likely want to bring in examples from more diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds.

Reviewed by Joseph Szpila, Adjunct Professor, Rhoce Island College on 2/1/18

THE WORD ON COLLEGE READING AND WRITING provides a strong overview of the reading and writing process for, in particular, a target audience of freshman- and sophomore-level college students or those attending a community college. The text is... read more

THE WORD ON COLLEGE READING AND WRITING provides a strong overview of the reading and writing process for, in particular, a target audience of freshman- and sophomore-level college students or those attending a community college.

The text is divided into two main sections. Part I gives advice on building strong reading skills, provides methods of effectively writing about texts, and notes the importance of information literacy in the modern workplace.

Part II begins by establishing the rationale for devloping strong written communication skills and then provides logical coverge of standard ideas surrounding the importance of determining audience and purpose for writing. This is followed by sections exploring methods of generating ideas (freewriting, brainstorming, clustering and the like), drafting and revising, and editing. Part II goes on to cover the eesentials of using sources correctly and concludes with good advice on overcoming obstacles to writing (such a writer's block and anxiety) and generating good writing habits. Back matter includes sections on grammar and style, working with MLA format (the textbook focuses almost exclusively on MLA), and includes a helpful glossary.

The textbook appears error-free and up-to-date with its advice, even in the area of contemporary MLA source citation using the "core elements" approach in construction of Works Cited entries.

Much of this textbook presents time-honored rhetorical information on reading and writing strategies that will change little despite the influence of technology on information delivery. While the textbook does focus on new methods of information exchange, it does not focus heavily on information-sharing via personal websites, blogs, video poduction and other forms of electronic, internet-based communication on the student writer's part. The focus is squarely on the production of classic essays for the college undergraduate classroom.

I particularly found this textbook admirable for its straightforward, conversational delivery of information. I could easily imagine the tone employed effectively connecting with entry-level college students. As an example:

"Common communication models present a sender (e.g. a writer) and a receiver (e.g. a reader) and different concepts of what happens as information is shared between them. But sometimes the purpose for writing isn’t at all about sending information to some “other” receiver or reader. Sometimes, your purpose for writing might simply be to explore an idea or even just to figure out what you think."

And the following example illustrates this tone employed in describing a common rhetorical pattern of organization:

"The comparison-and-contrast method of development is particularly useful in extending a definition, or anywhere you need to show how a subject is like or unlike another subject. For example, the statement is often made that drug abuse is a medical problem instead of a criminal justice issue. An author might attempt to prove this point by comparing drug addiction to AIDS, cancer, or heart disease to redefine the term “addiction” as a medical problem. A statement in opposition to this idea could just as easily establish contrast by explaining all the ways that addiction is different from what we traditionally understand as an illness."

The Glossary provides definitions of those few terms ("Empiric disciplines," "Intellectual property" and the like) the target-level student might require.

THE WORD ON COLLEGE READING AND WRITING uses a conversational style carried consistently throughout. The impression is that of a coach offering his listener sound advice in a friendly, helpful, nonjudgmental demeanor. And potentially confusing terminology is clearly explained in easy-to-understand language. As an example:

"Pathos is the fastest way to get your audience’s attention. People tend to have emotional responses before their brains kick in and tell them to knock it off. Be careful though. Too much pathos can make your audience feel emotionally manipulated or angry because they’re also looking for the facts to support whatever emotional claims you might be making so they know they can trust you."

As the writers themselves state, this is a "use-it-as-you-need" kind of text. And they're right. This text could easily serve as a handbook for an introduction to college writing class or as the core text itself. Its divisional strategy would make it ideal for focusing on specific writing tasks or to troubleshoot specific areas for improvement. Indeed, one of its most attractive qualities would be its adaptability. The text is logically organized with ample divisional headings and navigational cues, as well as appropriate graphic accompaniments, illustrations and photos. It's visually appealing and simple to digest.

Opening with an emphasis on the essential relationship between reading and writing and on the importance of building strong reading skills, the book proceeds in a logical order to cover the rationale for writing about texts in a college environment (and, subsequently, the workplace) and then provides strategies for doing so, definitely geared to an entry-level college student.

The text is simple to navigate and even rewards skimming for a casual reader simply interested in improving as a writer. I particulalry liked the manner in which the book uses links to articles and outside source materials external to the textbook itself that students can access immediately, as in the following example:

"Here’s an example article from the New York Times, “Monks Embrace Web to Reach Recruits,” that highlights an unexpected approach by a group of Benedictine monks in Rhode Island; they’ve turned to social media to grow their dwindling membership. Monks on Facebook? Who knew?"

The textbook makes frequent use of external contemporary sources such as this to illustrate rhetorical points. Of course, the potential drawback surrounding such online source material might be the reliability of its availability into the future.

My reading came across just a few editorial typos in the book. ("Th New York times," for example.)

While the main focus of the book is not that of a multicultural reader, it does draw some examples from a diverse perspective, as in the following: "Here’s an example article from the New York Times: “Who Wants to Shop in a Big Box Store, Anyway?” The author explores some interesting differences between the average American and average Indian consumer to contemplate the potential success of big box stores in India and also to contemplate why these giant big box corporations, like Walmart or Target, might have to rethink their business model." The book is in no way culturally insensitive or offensive, though its major focus is not on issues of ethnicity or diverse background. The target student reader here is somewhat generic.

I was impressed by this book and feel it would work well in many freshmen-level writing classrooms. One gets the feeling that it was written by instructors with considerable practical experience in dealing realistically with novice college student writers. I particularly enjoyed the various links the text uses to illustrate its concepts, and often the links are employed across several concurrent actiities to effectivly illustrate a writing process. (In fact, I would even like to see more of this tactic used.) An example:

"Using the same article as in the “Paraphrasing” section (see the section just before this one), written by Sarah Boxer and published online in The Atlantic, I’m going to quote just the third sentence of the passage we looked at in the paraphrasing activity: “Because not everyone who wants the experience actually gets the experience, these works, even if their intentions and messages are democratic, tend to become exclusive affairs.”

Which of these uses of that sentence would be a correct way to use it as a quote in my own essay?"

The text then provides several options to choose from.

I did notice that many of the examples in the opening section (Part I) of the textbook are literary, and many were somewhat older fictional references (Hemingway, Salinger, Ray Bradbury...). My initial impression was that this might be a good textbook to use for a class focused on literary analysis or the like. But the literary focus was not as predominant in Part II.

Overall, I am impressed by this book,and will definitely consider using this it in a future first-year writing class.

Table of Contents

Introduction Part 1: Working with Texts

• What is a Text?

Building Strong Reading Skills

• Read Effectively
• Create an Optimal Setting for Reading
• Use Pre-reading Strategies
• Read Efficiently
• Annotate and Take Notes
• Do Quick Research
• Discover What a Text is Trying to Say
• Explore the Ways the Text Affects You
• Troubleshoot Your Reading

Writing about Texts

• Reading Critically
• Exploring the Structure of a Text
• Dialectic Note-taking
• Analyzing Content and Rhetoric
• Sentence-Level Analysis
• Point of View
• Word Choice
• Paragraph Analysis
• Summarizing a Text
• Critiquing a Text
• Drawing Conclusions, Synthesizing, and Reflecting

What is Information Literacy?

• Why is Information Literacy Important?
• Finding Quality Texts
• Learning About Plagiarism and Guidelines for Using Information

Part 2: Writing

• About This Section
• Self-Exploration and Self-Enrichment
• Comprehension and Academic Performance
• Professional Opportunities
• Effective Communication and Persuasion

Determining Your Audience and Purpose

• Appealing to Your Audience
• Tone, Voice, and Point of View

Prewriting—Generating Ideas

• Selecting and Narrowing a Topic
• Strategies for Getting Started
• Imagining Your Audience's Needs
• Organizing Your Ideas and Looking for Connections
• Finding the Thesis
• Writing a First Draft
• Writing Paragraphs
• The Paragraph Body: Supporting Your Ideas
• Developing Relationships between Ideas
• Patterns of Organization and Methods of Development
• Writing Introductions
• Writing Conclusions
• Writing Summaries
• Paraphrasing

Using Sources Correctly

• Crediting and Citing Your Sources
• Citing: Identifying In-Text Sources
• Citing or Identifying Images in Your Writing
• Handling Titles
• Proofreading Your Work with Sources
• Using Citation Generators

Dealing with Obstacles and Developing Good Habits

• Overcoming Writing Anxiety and Writer's Block
• Good Writing Habits
• Procrastination
• Higher vs. Lower Order Concerns
• Reverse Outlining
• Document Format, Documentation Style, and Proofreading
• Giving and Receiving Feedback
• What's Next?

Appendices Grammar and Style Resources for Working with MLA Creating a Works Cited Page Results for the "Check Your Understanding" Activities Glossary of Terms Works Cited in This Text

Ancillary Material

About the book.

Written by five college reading and writing instructors, this interactive, multimedia text draws from decades of experience teaching students who are entering the college reading and writing environment for the very first time. It includes examples, exercises, and definitions for just about every reading- and writing-related topic students will encounter in their college courses.

About the Contributors

Monique Babin, Instructional Designer in Portland, Oregon

Carol Burnell, Faculty Member in the English department at Clackamas Community College, Oregon City

Susan Pesznecker , Adjunct Instructor in the English department at Clackamas Community College, Oregon City

Nicole Rosevear , Faculty Member in the English department at Clackamas Community College, Oregon City

Jaime Wood , Program Manager for Educational Initiatives at Portland State University, Portland

Contribute to this Page

• Categories: Engaging with Courses , Strategies for Learning

Reading is one of the most important components of college learning, and yet it’s one we often take for granted. Of course, students who come to Harvard know how to read, but many are unaware that there are different ways to read and that the strategies they use while reading can greatly impact memory and comprehension. Furthermore, students may find themselves encountering kinds of texts they haven’t worked with before, like academic articles and books, archival material, and theoretical texts.  

So how should you approach reading in this new environment? And how do you manage the quantity of reading you’re asked to cover in college? 

Start by asking “Why am I reading this?”

To read effectively, it helps to read with a goal . This means understanding before you begin reading what you need to get out of that reading. Having a goal is useful because it helps you focus on relevant information and know when you’re done reading, whether your eyes have seen every word or not. 

Some sample reading goals:

• To find a paper topic or write a paper; 
• To have a comment for discussion; 
• To supplement ideas from lecture; 
• To understand a particular concept; 
• To memorize material for an exam; 
• To research for an assignment; 
• To enjoy the process (i.e., reading for pleasure!). 

Your goals for reading are often developed in relation to your instructor’s goals in assigning the reading, but sometimes they will diverge. The point is to know what you want to get out of your reading and to make sure you’re approaching the text with that goal in mind. Write down your goal and use it to guide your reading process. 

Next, ask yourself “How should I read this?”  

Not every text you’re assigned in college should be read the same way.  Depending on the type of reading you’re doing and your reading goal, you may find that different reading strategies are most supportive of your learning. Do you need to understand the main idea of your text? Or do you need to pay special attention to its language? Is there data you need to extract? Or are you reading to develop your own unique ideas?  

The key is to choose a reading strategy that will help you achieve your reading goal. Factors to consider might be: 

• The timing of your reading (e.g., before vs. after class) 
• What type of text you are reading (e.g., an academic article vs. a novel) 
• How dense or unfamiliar a text is 
• How extensively you will be using the text 
• What type of critical thinking (if any) you are expected to bring to the reading 

Based on your consideration of these factors, you may decide to skim the text or focus your attention on a particular portion of it. You also might choose to find resources that can assist you in understanding the text if it is particularly dense or unfamiliar. For textbooks, you might even use a reading strategy like SQ3R .

Finally, ask yourself “How long will I give this reading?”  

Often, we decide how long we will read a text by estimating our reading speed and calculating an appropriate length of time based on it. But this can lead to long stretches of engaging ineffectually with texts and losing sight of our reading goals. These calculations can also be quite inaccurate, since our reading speed is often determined by the density and familiarity of texts, which varies across assignments. 

For each text you are reading, ask yourself “based on my reading goal, how long does this reading deserve ?” Sometimes, your answer will be “This is a super important reading. So, it takes as long as it takes.” In that case, create a time estimate using your best guess for your reading speed. Add some extra time to your estimate as a buffer in case your calculation is a little off. You won’t be sad to finish your reading early, but you’ll struggle if you haven’t given yourself enough time. 

For other readings, once we ask how long the text deserves, we will realize based on our other academic commitments and a text’s importance in the course that we can only afford to give a certain amount of time to it. In that case, you want to create a time limit for your reading. Try to come up with a time limit that is appropriate for your reading goal. For instance, let’s say I am working with an academic article. I need to discuss it in class, but I can only afford to give it thirty minutes of time because we’re reading several articles for that class. In this case, I will set an alarm for thirty minutes and spend that time understanding the thesis/hypothesis and looking through the research to look for something I’d like to discuss in class. In this case, I might not read every word of the article, but I will spend my time focusing on the most important parts of the text based on how I need to use it. 

If you need additional guidance or support, reach out to the course instructor and the ARC.  

If you find yourself struggling through the readings for a course, you can ask the course instructor for guidance. Some ways to ask for help are: “How would you recommend I go about approaching the reading for this course?” or “Is there a way for me to check whether I am getting what I should be out of the readings?” 

If you are looking for more tips on how to read effectively and efficiently, book an appointment with an academic coach at the ARC to discuss your specific assignments and how you can best approach them! 

Seeing Textbooks in a New Light

Textbooks can be a fantastic supportive resource for your learning. They supplement the learning you’ll do in the classroom and can provide critical context for the material you cover there. In some courses, the textbook may even have been written by the professor to work in harmony with lectures.  

There are a variety of ways in which professors use textbooks, so you need to assess critically how and when to read the textbook in each course you take.  

Textbooks can provide: 

• A fresh voice through which to absorb material. For challenging concepts, they can offer new language and details that might fill in gaps in your understanding. 
• The chance to “preview” lecture material, priming your mind for the big ideas you’ll be exposed to in class. 
• The chance to review material, making sense of the finer points after class. 
• A resource that is accessible any time, whether it’s while you are studying for an exam, writing a paper, or completing a homework assignment.

Textbook reading is similar to and different from other kinds of reading . Some things to keep in mind as you experiment with its use: 

The answer is “both” and “it depends.” In general, reading or at least previewing the assigned textbook material before lecture will help you pay attention in class and pull out the more important information from lecture, which also tends to make note-taking easier. If you read the textbook before class, then a quick review after lecture is useful for solidifying the information in memory, filling in details that you missed, and addressing gaps in your understanding. In addition, reading before and/or after class also depends on the material, your experience level with it, and the style of the text. It’s a good idea to experiment with when works best for you!

 Just like other kinds of course reading, it is still important to read with a goal . Focus your reading goals on the particular section of the textbook that you are reading: Why is it important to the course I’m taking? What are the big takeaways? Also take note of any questions you may have that are still unresolved.

Reading linearly (left to right and top to bottom) does not always make the most sense. Try to gain a sense of the big ideas within the reading before you start: Survey for structure, ask Questions, and then Read – go back to flesh out the finer points within the most important and detail-rich sections.

Summarizing pushes you to identify the main points of the reading and articulate them succinctly in your own words, making it more likely that you will be able to retrieve this information later. To further strengthen your retrieval abilities, quiz yourself when you are done reading and summarizing. Quizzing yourself allows what you’ve read to enter your memory with more lasting potential, so you’ll be able to recall the information for exams or papers. 

Marking Text

Marking text, which often involves making marginal notes, helps with reading comprehension by keeping you focused. It also helps you find important information when reviewing for an exam or preparing to write an essay. The next time you’re reading, write notes in the margins as you go or, if you prefer, make notes on a separate document. 

Your marginal notes will vary depending on the type of reading. Some possible areas of focus: 

• What themes do you see in the reading that relate to class discussions? 
• What themes do you see in the reading that you have seen in other readings? 
• What questions does the reading raise in your mind? 
• What does the reading make you want to research more? 
• Where do you see contradictions within the reading or in relation to other readings for the course? 
• Can you connect themes or events to your own experiences? 

Your notes don’t have to be long. You can just write two or three words to jog your memory. For example, if you notice that a book has a theme relating to friendship, you can just write, “pp. 52-53 Theme: Friendship.” If you need to remind yourself of the details later in the semester, you can re-read that part of the text more closely.

Reading Workshops

If you are looking for help with developing best practices and using strategies for some of the tips listed above, come to an ARC workshop on reading!

Module 7: Study Skills

How to read for college, learning objectives.

• Identify effective reading strategies for academic texts in a variety of formats

• Preview : You can gain insight from an academic text before you even begin the reading assignment. For example, if you are assigned a nonfiction book, read the title, the back of the book, and table of contents. Previewing this information can give you an initial idea of what you’ll be reading and some useful context for thinking about it. You can also start to make connections between the new reading and knowledge you already have when you preview a text.
• Read : While you read an academic text, you should have a pen or pencil in hand. Circle or highlight key concepts. Write questions or comments in the margins or take notes in a notebook.  This will help you remember what you are reading and also build a personal connection with the subject matter.
• Summarize :After you read an academic text, it’s worth taking the time to write a short summary—even if your instructor doesn’t require it. The exercise of jotting down a few sentences or writing a short paragraph capturing the reading’s main ideas is enormously beneficial. Summarizing not only helps you understand and absorb what you read but also gives you ready study materials for exams and other assignments.
• Review : It helps to revisit what you’ve read for a quick refresher. It may not be practical to thoroughly reread assignments from start to finish, but before class discussions or tests, it’s a good idea to skim through them to identify the main points, reread any notes at the ends of chapters, and review any summaries you’ve written.

The following video covers additional active reading strategies readers can use before, during, and after the reading process.

You can view the transcript for “College Reading Strategies” here (opens in new window) .

Reading Strategies for Specialized Texts and Online Resources

In college it’s not uncommon to experience frustration with reading assignments from time to time. Because you’re doing more reading on your own outside the classroom, and with less frequent contact with instructors than you had in high school, it’s possible you’ll encounter readings that contain unfamiliar vocabulary or don’t readily make sense. Different disciplines and subjects have different writing conventions and styles, and it can take some practice to get to know them. For example, scientific articles follow a very particular format and typically contain the following sections: an abstract, introduction, methods, results, and discussions. If you are used to reading literary works, such as graphic novels or poetry, it can be disorienting to encounter these new forms of writing.

Below are some strategies for making different kinds of texts more approachable.

Get to Know the Conventions

Academic texts, like scientific studies and journal articles, may have sections that are new to you. If you’re not sure what an “abstract” is, research it online or ask your instructor. Understanding the meaning and purpose of such conventions is not only helpful for reading comprehension but for writing, too.

Look up and Keep Track of Unfamiliar Terms and Phrases

Have a good college dictionary such as Merriam-Webster handy (or find it online) when you read complex academic texts, so you can look up the meaning of unfamiliar words and terms. Many textbooks also contain glossaries or “key terms” sections at the ends of chapters or the end of the book. If you can’t find the words you’re looking for in a standard dictionary, you may need one specially written for a particular discipline. For example, a medical dictionary would be a good resource for a course in anatomy and physiology.

If you circle or underline terms and phrases that appear repeatedly, you’ll have a visual reminder to review and learn them. Repetition helps to lock in these new words and their meanings get them into long-term memory, so the more you review them the more you’ll understand and feel comfortable using them.

Look for Main Ideas and Themes

As a college student, you are not expected to understand every single word or idea presented in a reading, especially if you haven’t discussed it in class yet. However, you will get more out of discussions and feel more confident about asking questions if you can identify the main idea or thesis in a reading. The thesis statement can often (but not always) be found in the introductory paragraph, and it may be introduced with a phrase like “In this essay I argue that . . .” Getting a handle on the overall reason an author wrote something (“to prove X” or “to explore Y,” for instance) gives you a framework for understanding more of the details. It’s also useful to keep track of any themes you notice in the writing. A theme may be a recurring idea, word, or image that strikes you as interesting or important: “This story is about men working in a gloomy factory, but the author keeps mentioning birds and bats and windows. Why is that?”

Get the Most of Online Reading

Reading online texts presents unique challenges for some students. For one thing, you can’t readily circle or underline key terms or passages on the screen with a pencil. For another, there can be many tempting distractions—just a quick visit to amazon.com or Facebook.

While there’s no substitute for old-fashioned self-discipline, you can take advantage of the following tips to make online reading more efficient and effective:

• Where possible, download the reading as a PDF, Word document, etc., so you can read it offline.
• Get one of the apps that allow you to disable your social media sites for specified periods of time.
• Adjust your screen to avoid glare and eye strain, and change the text font to be less distracting.

Look for Reputable Online Sources

Professors tend to assign reading from reputable print and online sources, so you can feel comfortable referencing such sources in class and for writing assignments. If you are looking for online sources independently, however, devote some time and energy to critically evaluating the quality of the source before spending time reading any resources you find there. Find out what you can about the author (if one is listed), the Web site, and any affiliated sponsors it may have. Check that the information is current and accurate against similar information on other pages.

Depending on what you are researching, sites that end in “.edu” (indicating an “education” site such as a college, university, or other academic institution) tend to be more reliable than “.com” sites, but not always. Be sure to always check where your information comes from before you cite the course.

Pay Attention to Visual Information

Images in textbooks or journals usually contain valuable information to help you more deeply grasp a topic. Graphs and charts, for instance, help show the relationship between different kinds of information or data—how a population changes over time, how a virus spreads through a population, etc.

Data-rich graphics can take longer to “read” than the text around them because they present a lot of information in a condensed form. Give yourself plenty of time to study these items, as they often provide new and lasting insights that are easy to recall later (like in the middle of an exam on that topic).

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• College Success. Authored by : Jolene Carr. Provided by : Lumen Learning. License : CC BY: Attribution
• Image of man reading. Authored by : Ken Slade. Located at : https://flic.kr/p/auziyg . License : CC BY-NC: Attribution-NonCommercial
• College Reading Strategies. Authored by : The Learning Center at the University of Hawaii Maui College. Located at : https://youtu.be/faZF9x4A2Vs . License : CC BY: Attribution

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Reading in College

Improve your reading comprehension.

Reading assignments are a common part of university courses, and it is important to get the most out of these readings. Here are a collection of tips to help you do so. 

General Reading Comprehension Tips

Put yourself in a position to succeed. Find a space where you will be able to focus—this can be in the library, Davies Student Center, a coffee shop in town, your dorm, or any number of places. Avoid reading for class while lying in bed, as it can lead to unplanned naps. Sitting upright is best. Some students prefer quiet, others find that a white noise app or instrumental music can help them focus. 

Skim the reading beforehand. Students process information better when they can see the big picture.  Before diving into the details of a reading, review the topics that will be covered and how the reading is organized.  If there are review questions at the end of the reading, make note of those as they will guide you toward the key points.   

Think about why your instructor assigned the reading. Is the reading a routine textbook assignment that is meant to preview material you will learn about in lecture? Is the reading preparing you for an in-class discussion? Are you writing a paper about the reading? Think about the reason you are reading the material and what you need to get out of the assignment.  This will help you prioritize the information and stay focused. 

Plan your reading . How long is the reading assignment?  

• If it is a thirty-page textbook chapter or twenty-page scholarly article , you should consider breaking the assignment into two or three reading sessions.  Breaking up the assignment and taking good notes will allow you to follow the information more effectively. Be sure to reread the notes you took from the previous session before jumping back into the reading. 
• Are you reading an entire book ? Get out a calendar and plan for when you will read each chapter so that you can prepare and submit your assignment on time. 

Don’t rely on highlighting. Highlighting can seem helpful in the moment, but if you highlight too many things in a reading it is not clear what is significant.  If you plan to highlight a text, be sure to read a page before highlighting anything on the page and then only highlight key terms and phrases that support those ideas. 

As you read, write down notes, questions, and reactions.  Try to finish reading a page or section before taking notes, this will help you recognize what is worth writing down. Take some time and try to summarize the point that was made on a particular page or section. As you read, keep a record of your thoughts. Did you find a passage particularly helpful in explaining a concept? Note the paragraph location and include the page number. Will a specific point be useful when you write an essay about the reading? Write down the page number, a quote, and your analysis.

• process and understand the reading 
• stay focused and engaged while reading 
• keep a record of what you read and the page numbers for specific information 

Use a system to keep your notes organized. At a minimum, writing down the author and title of the reading as well as the date you are taking notes can be helpful.  Using a digital program like OneNote or Evernote allows you to organize detailed notes for a variety of topics and classes. 

Visit your professor’s office hours . Your instructor has hours each week where students can visit their office and ask questions.  This is a good opportunity to talk to the professor about a reading and ask some questions.  Be sure to write the professor’s office hours in your planner. 

When sitting down to read a complex textbook chapter or scholarly article, the SQ3R method offers a helpful routine to stay focused and get the most out of the reading. 

Follow these steps:  

S - Survey   Q - Question   R - Read   R - Recite   R – Review  

Survey   The human brain thrives on context. Before beginning to read an assignment, survey the entirety of the text to see the general topics covered and if there are any review questions at the end. This will help you understand how the reading fits into the class and what information to key in on. Quickly flip through the pages and think about the following: 

• What type of reading is this (scholarly article, textbook, memoir, fiction)?
• Who wrote it and when?  
• How does this reading relate to the class? 
• Why did the professor assign this material? What do they want you to get from it? 
• Make note of the title, look for an abstract, author bio, or any introductory information that offers context. 
• Note section headings, sub-headings, and bolded words, charts, and graphs 
• Set a goal for how much to read. If it is a long assignment, you may want to break it into two-to-three chunks. 

Question   To follow along with a reading, one must actively engage with the material. One way of doing so is to create questions you want to answer as you read.  

• Are there questions at the end of a chapter? Try to answer those as you read.  
• You can also use questions your professor provided.  
• Use ideas you learned from the “Survey” step to create your own questions.  

Read   Having scanned the text and come up with questions you want to answer, you can now begin reading the material.  

• Try to answer the questions you posed. 
• Annotate the text and make note of main ideas, connections to other concepts, etc. 

Recite   After reading the material you set out to complete, recite aloud the answers to the questions you posed and other important ideas. 

• Try to explain the ideas in your own words. 
• Without looking at the text, try to answer the questions you wrote down. Check your work.

Review   Repetition is critical to learning. The more we engage with material, the better we understand it. After the “recite” step, it is important to look at your notes and think about the big ideas and how this reading relates to the course.  

• Review the text, your notes, and annotations. 
• Note connections between the reading you just did and other concepts from class.  
• Summarize the reading in a few sentences. 

For more support with reading comprehension, schedule a free appointment with a Peer Academic Coach !  These hour-long meetings provide students with one-on-one support from another student trained to offer support and accountability.    

Check out the following videos for additional study tips!

Works Consulted:  

“ Taking Notes While Reading.” University of North Carolina. Retrieved from https://learningcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/taking-notes-while-reading/  

“Reading Comprehension Tips.” University of North Carolina. Retrieved from https://learningcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/reading-comprehension-tips/  

“Reading Textbooks Effectively.” University of North Carolina. Retrieved from https://learningcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/reading-textbooks-effectively/  

"The SQ3R Method." Texas A & M University.  Retrieved from https://asc.tamu.edu/Study-Learning-Handouts-(1)/Reading-Strategies-SQ3R-Method

Academic Skills Center

Centennial Hall 2104 1698 Park Avenue Eau Claire , WI 54701 United States

University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire

105 Garfield Avenue  P.O. Box 4004  Eau Claire, WI 54702-4004 

715-836-4636

When you receive a paper assignment, your first step should be to read the assignment prompt carefully to make sure you understand what you are being asked to do. Sometimes your assignment will be open-ended (“write a paper about anything in the course that interests you”). But more often, the instructor will be asking you to do something specific that allows you to make sense of what you’ve been learning in the course. You may be asked to put new ideas in context, to analyze course texts, or to do research on something related to the course.

Even if the instructor has introduced the assignment in class, make sure to read the prompt on your own. You’d be surprised how often someone comes to the Writing Center to ask for help on a paper before reading the prompt. Once they do read the prompt, they often find that it answers many of their questions.

When you read the assignment prompt, you should do the following:  

• Look for action verbs. Verbs like analyze , compare , discuss , explain , make an argument , propose a solution , trace , or research can help you understand what you’re being asked to do with an assignment.

Unless the instructor has specified otherwise, most of your paper assignments at Harvard will ask you to make an argument. So even when the assignment instructions tell you to “discuss” or “consider,” your instructor generally expects you to offer an arguable claim in the paper. For example, if you are asked to “discuss” several proposals for reaching carbon neutral by 2050, your instructor would likely not be asking you to list the proposals and summarize them; instead, the goal would be to analyze them in relation to each other and offer some sort of claim—either about the differences between the proposals, the potential outcomes of following one rather than another, or something that has been overlooked in all of the proposals. While you would need to summarize those proposals in order to make a claim about them, it wouldn’t be enough just to summarize them. Similarly, if you’re asked to compare sources or consider sources in relation to each other, it is not enough to offer a list of similarities and differences. Again, this type of assignment is generally asking you to make some claim about the sources in relation to each other.

• Consider the broader goals of the assignment. What kind of thinking is your instructor asking you to do? Are you supposed to be deciding whether you agree with one theorist more than another? Are you supposed to be trying out a particular method of analysis on your own body of evidence? Are you supposed to be learning a new skill (close reading? data analysis? recognizing the type of questions that can be asked in a particular discipline?)? If you understand the broader goals of the assignment, you will have an easier time figuring out if you are on the right track.
• Look for instructions about the scope of the assignment. Are you supposed to consult sources other than those you have read in class? Are you supposed to keep your focus narrow (on a passage, a document, a claim made by another author) or choose your own focus (raise a question that is sparked by course texts, pair texts in a new way)? If your instructor has told you not to consider sources outside of those specified in the assignment, then you should follow that instruction. In those assignments, the instructor wants to know what you think about the assigned sources and about the question, and they do not want you to bring in other sources.
• If you’re writing a research paper, do not assume that your reader has read all the sources that you are writing about. You’ll need to offer context about what those sources say so that your reader can understand why you have brought them into the conversation.
• If you’re writing only about assigned sources, you will still need to provide enough context to orient the reader to the main ideas of the source. While you may not need to summarize the entire text, you will need to give readers enough information to follow your argument and understand what you are doing with the text. If you’re not sure whether you should assume that readers are familiar with the ideas in the text, you should ask your instructor.  
• Ask questions! If you’re not sure what you’re supposed to do, email your instructor or go to office hours and ask.
• picture_as_pdf Tips for Reading an Assignment Prompt

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Reading worksheets.

Ereading Worksheets has the best reading worksheets on the internet, and they're all free. These worksheets are skill focused and aligned to Common Core State Standards. You are free to save, edit, and print these worksheets for personal or classroom use. Many of these assignments can now be completed online. You're going to like this.

This page features a sampling of the reading worksheets on this website, organized by skills. You can find more activity by browsing the pages that are dedicated to each reading skill.

Fiction Reading Passages

Nonfiction reading passages.

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104 Comments

great website! it made my work easier.. love it. thank you

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I’ve been using this website for getting great grades (alliteration is one of those things that your games inspired me to do; not that yours are bad though) at my examinations for atleast 2 years.

I will be forever grateful to Mr. Morton for his wonderful website!

Maybe-Your-Most-Favourite-Viewer

Thank you for visiting and the kind words!

English is my second language.

It is with great pleasure that I found your web site. Over the summer 2020, I printed almost all your reading comprehension materials for my grade 7 and 9 kids to read. I myself read each of them too and answered each of the questions. Your web sites rekindled my interest in reading as an adult.

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Thank you for taking the time to comment. I am always trying to create more content as well as improve the existing content. Best wishes, friend!

Tina Torres

This will help my child alot with her homework,i like this app

Laura Stapel

Hi, Thanks so much for these reading worksheets. They are original and unique and perfect for my tuition of gifted and talented sudents. Just wondering if you have an answer key for the following sheets:

The Authors Purpose 3 Figurative Language Worksheet 3 Non Fiction Reading Test Garbage

Thanks so much and well done on an excellent resource!

its good but i think u should add more games

this is great.

Zainab Ali Asghar

Hello Mr Morton, WOW!! these worksheets, games and activities are simply outstanding!! I am a teacher from Pakistan and these worksheets have helped me immensely in my learning as well as in the school when I share them with my students!! Thank you SOOOO much! I came across figurative language activities which was just the thing I was looking for but I would really appreciate if you could put up activities related to other grammar content; for example, characterization, inferential, fact and opinion, and all other content which we can integrate in our classroom activities.

Forever grateful, Zainab

That’s awesome. I actually have all of that content posted already. I’ve got to figure out some way to make the content more visible. Thanks for visiting!

it helped me in my exams

Hello Mr. Morton,

Thank you for using this great website for my daughter and me. It helps me and my daughter a lot. Do you have answers below***** those tests? If you have can I have it?

***** Jacob the Great Comprehension Test Nutrition Facts Comprehension Worksheet Pain Reliever Comprehension Worksheet

Here are those keys.

https://www.ereadingworksheets.com/reading-comprehension-worksheets/jacob-the-great-answers.html

https://www.ereadingworksheets.com/reading-comprehension-worksheets/medicine-comprehension-worksheet-answers.html

https://www.ereadingworksheets.com/reading-comprehension-worksheets/nutrition-facts-comprehension-activity-answers.htm

Thanks for using the website!

well,these storys are…AWSOME

Michael Holson

Would I be able to post your Power points and worksheets on my webpage? I’ll leave all of them the same and i’ll also put your name on them.

I’m ok with that. Links back to my website as attribution are appreciated.

Samira El-Sabban

Such an outstanding work; i do appreciate the effort and i find it quite useful thanks a million Samira El-Sabban Head of English Department Rajac Schools Egypt

Sarah Madden

Thank you THank you!!!! This site is amazing! I cannot be more happy with it!

hello great passages but is there answers to these passages.

Answers are posted where available, typically under a link that says “View Answers.”

great website!!!!!! I am using your materials for my home school kids

steward Pheirim

This is brilliant, Thank you so much. Absolutely a treasure!!!

My tutor absolutely LOVES this website(so do I) but I was just wondering where the answer key for Jacob the Great? Awesome stories too. I love how detailed they are!

You make teaching easier! Thank you!

Just amazing thanks a lot really

very helpful, exercises are enriching.

I’ve read three of the passages you have here.

The first one was about metal detectors, was amusing, I like it and it’s good to know some of this facts.

The second one was a persuasive text about seat belts, how them keep us safe and the author keeps telling us to use them.

And the third one, my favourite, was about the pony express and how they carry the mail and how hard was and the complications, it’s interesting because they had a problem and they sorted it out in a clever way.

I like your website, thank you very much.

I’m so happy that you do. Best wishes!

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It was very good and it is also enriching

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3.3 Effective Reading Strategies

Questions to Consider:

• What methods can you incorporate into your routine to allow adequate time for reading?
• What are the benefits and approaches to active and critical reading?
• Do your courses or major have specific reading requirements?

Allowing Adequate Time for Reading

You should determine the reading requirements and expectations for every class very early in the semester. You also need to understand why you are reading the particular text you are assigned. Do you need to read closely for minute details that determine cause and effect? Or is your instructor asking you to skim several sources so you become more familiar with the topic? Knowing this reasoning will help you decide your timing, what notes to take, and how best to undertake the reading assignment.

Depending on the makeup of your schedule, you may end up reading both primary sources—such as legal documents, historic letters, or diaries—as well as textbooks, articles, and secondary sources, such as summaries or argumentative essays that use primary sources to stake a claim. You may also need to read current journalistic texts to stay up to date in local or global affairs. A realistic approach to scheduling your time to allow you to read and review all the reading you have for the semester will help you accomplish what can sometimes seem like an overwhelming task.

When you allow adequate time in your hectic schedule for reading, you are investing in your own success. Reading isn’t a magic pill, but it may seem like it when you consider all the benefits people reap from this ordinary practice. Famous successful people throughout history have been voracious readers. In fact, former U.S. president Harry Truman once said, “Not all readers are leaders, but all leaders are readers.” Writer of the U.S. Declaration of Independence, inventor, and also former U.S. president Thomas Jefferson claimed “I cannot live without books” at a time when keeping and reading books was an expensive pastime. Knowing what it meant to be kept from the joys of reading, 19th-century abolitionist Frederick Douglass said, “Once you learn to read, you will be forever free.” And finally, George R. R. Martin, the prolific author of the wildly successful Game of Thrones empire, declared, “A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies . . . The man who never reads lives only one.”

You can make time for reading in a number of ways that include determining your usual reading pace and speed, scheduling active reading sessions, and practicing recursive reading strategies.

Determining Reading Speed and Pacing

To determine your reading speed, select a section of text—passages in a textbook or pages in a novel. Time yourself reading that material for exactly 5 minutes, and note how much reading you accomplished in those 5 minutes. Multiply the amount of reading you accomplished in 5 minutes by 12 to determine your average reading pace (5 times 12 equals the 60 minutes of an hour). Of course, your reading pace will be different and take longer if you are taking notes while you read, but this calculation of reading pace gives you a good way to estimate your reading speed that you can adapt to other forms of reading.

In the table above, you can see three students with different reading speeds. So, for instance, if Marta was able to read 4 pages of a dense novel for her English class in 5 minutes, she should be able to read about 48 pages in one hour. Knowing this, Marta can accurately determine how much time she needs to devote to finishing the novel within a set amount of time, instead of just guessing. If the novel Marta is reading is 497 pages, then Marta would take the total page count (497) and divide that by her hourly reading rate (48 pages/hour) to determine that she needs about 10 to 11 hours overall. To finish the novel spread out over two weeks, Marta needs to read a little under an hour a day to accomplish this goal.

Calculating your reading rate in this manner does not take into account days where you’re too distracted and you have to reread passages or days when you just aren’t in the mood to read. And your reading rate will likely vary depending on how dense the content you’re reading is (e.g., a complex textbook vs. a comic book). Your pace may slow down somewhat if you are not very interested in what the text is about. What this method will help you do is be realistic about your reading time as opposed to waging a guess based on nothing and then becoming worried when you have far more reading to finish than the time available.

Chapter 2 , “ Managing Your Time and Priorities ,” offers more detail on how best to determine your speed from one type of reading to the next so you are better able to schedule your reading.

Scheduling Set Times for Active Reading

Active reading takes longer than reading through passages without stopping. You may not need to read your latest sci-fi series actively while you’re lounging on the beach, but many other reading situations demand more attention from you. Active reading is particularly important for college courses. You are a scholar actively engaging with the text by posing questions, seeking answers, and clarifying any confusing elements. Plan to spend at least twice as long to read actively than to read passages without taking notes or otherwise marking select elements of the text.

To determine the time you need for active reading, use the same calculations you use to determine your traditional reading speed and double it. Remember that you need to determine your reading pace for all the classes you have in a particular semester and multiply your speed by the number of classes you have that require different types of reading. The table below shows the differences in time needed between reading quickly without taking notes and reading actively.

Practicing Recursive Reading Strategies

One fact about reading for college courses that may become frustrating is that, in a way, it never ends. For all the reading you do, you end up doing even more rereading. It may be the same content, but you may be reading the passage more than once to detect the emphasis the writer places on one aspect of the topic or how frequently the writer dismisses a significant counterargument. This rereading is called recursive reading.

For most of what you read at the college level, you are trying to make sense of the text for a specific purpose—not just because the topic interests or entertains you. You need your full attention to decipher everything that’s going on in complex reading material—and you even need to be considering what the writer of the piece may not be including and why. This is why reading for comprehension is recursive.

Specifically, this boils down to seeing reading not as a formula but as a process that is far more circular than linear. You may read a selection from beginning to end, which is an excellent starting point, but for comprehension, you’ll need to go back and reread passages to determine meaning and make connections between the reading and the bigger learning environment that led you to the selection—that may be a single course or a program in your college, or it may be the larger discipline, such as all biologists or the community of scholars studying beach erosion.

People often say writing is rewriting. For college courses, reading is rereading, but rereading with the intention of improving comprehension and taking notes.

Strong readers engage in numerous steps, sometimes combining more than one step simultaneously, but knowing the steps nonetheless. They include, not always in this order:

• bringing any prior knowledge about the topic to the reading session,
• asking yourself pertinent questions, both orally and in writing, about the content you are reading,
• inferring and/or implying information from what you read,
• learning unfamiliar discipline-specific terms,
• evaluating what you are reading, and eventually,
• applying what you’re reading to other learning and life situations you encounter.

Let’s break these steps into manageable chunks, because you are actually doing quite a lot when you read.

Accessing Prior Knowledge

When you read, you naturally think of anything else you may know about the topic, but when you read deliberately and actively, you make yourself more aware of accessing this prior knowledge. Have you ever watched a documentary about this topic? Did you study some aspect of it in another class? Do you have a hobby that is somehow connected to this material? All of this thinking will help you make sense of what you are reading.

Application

Imagine that you were given a chapter to read in your American history class about the Gettysburg Address, now write down what you already know about this historic document. How might thinking through this prior knowledge help you better understand the text?

Asking Questions

Humans are naturally curious beings. As you read actively, you should be asking questions about the topic you are reading. Don’t just say the questions in your mind; write them down. You may ask: Why is this topic important? What is the relevance of this topic currently? Was this topic important a long time ago but irrelevant now? Why did my professor assign this reading?

You need a place where you can actually write down these questions; a separate page in your notes is a good place to begin. If you are taking notes on your computer, start a new document and write down the questions. Leave some room to answer the questions when you begin and again after you read.

Inferring and Implying

When you read, you can take the information on the page and infer , or conclude responses to related challenges from evidence or from your own reasoning. A student will likely be able to infer what material the professor will include on an exam by taking good notes throughout the classes leading up to the test.

Writers may imply information without directly stating a fact for a variety of reasons. Sometimes a writer may not want to come out explicitly and state a bias, but may imply or hint at his or her preference for one political party or another. You have to read carefully to find implications because they are indirect, but watching for them will help you comprehend the whole meaning of a passage.

Learning Vocabulary

Vocabulary specific to certain disciplines helps practitioners in that field engage and communicate with each other. Few people beyond undertakers and archeologists likely use the term sarcophagus in everyday communications, but for those disciplines, it is a meaningful distinction. Looking at the example, you can use context clues to figure out the meaning of the term sarcophagus because it is something undertakers and/or archeologists would recognize. At the very least, you can guess that it has something to do with death. As a potential professional in the field you’re studying, you need to know the lingo. You may already have a system in place to learn discipline-specific vocabulary, so use what you know works for you. Two strong strategies are to look up words in a dictionary (online or hard copy) to ensure you have the exact meaning for your discipline and to keep a dedicated list of words you see often in your reading. You can list the words with a short definition so you have a quick reference guide to help you learn the vocabulary.

Intelligent people always question and evaluate. This doesn’t mean they don’t trust others; they just need verification of facts to understand a topic well. It doesn’t make sense to learn incomplete or incorrect information about a subject just because you didn’t take the time to evaluate all the sources at your disposal. When early explorers were afraid to sail the world for fear of falling off the edge, they weren’t stupid; they just didn’t have all the necessary data to evaluate the situation.

When you evaluate a text, you are seeking to understand the presented topic. Depending on how long the text is, you will perform a number of steps and repeat many of these steps to evaluate all the elements the author presents. When you evaluate a text, you need to do the following:

• Scan the title and all headings.
• Read through the entire passage fully.
• Question what main point the author is making.
• Decide who the audience is.
• Identify what evidence/support the author uses.
• Consider if the author presents a balanced perspective on the main point.
• Recognize if the author introduced any biases in the text.

When you go through a text looking for each of these elements, you need to go beyond just answering the surface question; for instance, the audience may be a specific field of scientists, but could anyone else understand the text with some explanation? Why would that be important?

Analysis Question

Think of an article you need to read for a class. Take the steps above on how to evaluate a text, and apply the steps to the article. When you accomplish the task in each step, ask yourself and take notes to answer the question: Why is this important? For example, when you read the title, does that give you any additional information that will help you comprehend the text? If the text were written for a different audience, what might the author need to change to accommodate that group? How does an author’s bias distort an argument? This deep evaluation allows you to fully understand the main ideas and place the text in context with other material on the same subject, with current events, and within the discipline.

When you learn something new, it always connects to other knowledge you already have. One challenge we have is applying new information. It may be interesting to know the distance to the moon, but how do we apply it to something we need to do? If your biology instructor asked you to list several challenges of colonizing Mars and you do not know much about that planet’s exploration, you may be able to use your knowledge of how far Earth is from the moon to apply it to the new task. You may have to read several other texts in addition to reading graphs and charts to find this information.

That was the challenge the early space explorers faced along with myriad unknowns before space travel was a more regular occurrence. They had to take what they already knew and could study and read about and apply it to an unknown situation. These explorers wrote down their challenges, failures, and successes, and now scientists read those texts as a part of the ever-growing body of text about space travel. Application is a sophisticated level of thinking that helps turn theory into practice and challenges into successes.

Preparing to Read for Specific Disciplines in College

Different disciplines in college may have specific expectations, but you can depend on all subjects asking you to read to some degree. In this college reading requirement, you can succeed by learning to read actively, researching the topic and author, and recognizing how your own preconceived notions affect your reading. Reading for college isn’t the same as reading for pleasure or even just reading to learn something on your own because you are casually interested.

In college courses, your instructor may ask you to read articles, chapters, books, or primary sources (those original documents about which we write and study, such as letters between historic figures or the Declaration of Independence). Your instructor may want you to have a general background on a topic before you dive into that subject in class, so that you know the history of a topic, can start thinking about it, and can engage in a class discussion with more than a passing knowledge of the issue.

If you are about to participate in an in-depth six-week consideration of the U.S. Constitution but have never read it or anything written about it, you will have a hard time looking at anything in detail or understanding how and why it is significant. As you can imagine, a great deal has been written about the Constitution by scholars and citizens since the late 1700s when it was first put to paper (that’s how they did it then). While the actual document isn’t that long (about 12–15 pages depending on how it is presented), learning the details on how it came about, who was involved, and why it was and still is a significant document would take a considerable amount of time to read and digest. So, how do you do it all? Especially when you may have an instructor who drops hints that you may also love to read a historic novel covering the same time period . . . in your spare time , not required, of course! It can be daunting, especially if you are taking more than one course that has time-consuming reading lists. With a few strategic techniques, you can manage it all, but know that you must have a plan and schedule your required reading so you are also able to pick up that recommended historic novel—it may give you an entirely new perspective on the issue.

Strategies for Reading in College Disciplines

No universal law exists for how much reading instructors and institutions expect college students to undertake for various disciplines. Suffice it to say, it’s a LOT.

For most students, it is the volume of reading that catches them most off guard when they begin their college careers. A full course load might require 10–15 hours of reading per week, some of that covering content that will be more difficult than the reading for other courses.

You cannot possibly read word-for-word every single document you need to read for all your classes. That doesn’t mean you give up or decide to only read for your favorite classes or concoct a scheme to read 17 percent for each class and see how that works for you. You need to learn to skim, annotate, and take notes. All of these techniques will help you comprehend more of what you read, which is why we read in the first place. We’ll talk more later about annotating and note-taking, but for now consider what you know about skimming as opposed to active reading.

Skimming is not just glancing over the words on a page (or screen) to see if any of it sticks. Effective skimming allows you to take in the major points of a passage without the need for a time-consuming reading session that involves your active use of notations and annotations. Often you will need to engage in that painstaking level of active reading, but skimming is the first step—not an alternative to deep reading. The fact remains that neither do you need to read everything nor could you possibly accomplish that given your limited time. So learn this valuable skill of skimming as an accompaniment to your overall study tool kit, and with practice and experience, you will fully understand how valuable it is.

When you skim, look for guides to your understanding: headings, definitions, pull quotes, tables, and context clues. Textbooks are often helpful for skimming—they may already have made some of these skimming guides in bold or a different color, and chapters often follow a predictable outline. Some even provide an overview and summary for sections or chapters. Use whatever you can get, but don’t stop there. In textbooks that have some reading guides, or especially in texts that do not, look for introductory words such as First or The purpose of this article  . . . or summary words such as In conclusion  . . . or Finally . These guides will help you read only those sentences or paragraphs that will give you the overall meaning or gist of a passage or book.

Now move to the meat of the passage. You want to take in the reading as a whole. For a book, look at the titles of each chapter if available. Read each chapter’s introductory paragraph and determine why the writer chose this particular order. Depending on what you’re reading, the chapters may be only informational, but often you’re looking for a specific argument. What position is the writer claiming? What support, counterarguments, and conclusions is the writer presenting?

Don’t think of skimming as a way to buzz through a boring reading assignment. It is a skill you should master so you can engage, at various levels, with all the reading you need to accomplish in college. End your skimming session with a few notes—terms to look up, questions you still have, and an overall summary. And recognize that you likely will return to that book or article for a more thorough reading if the material is useful.

Active Reading Strategies

Active reading differs significantly from skimming or reading for pleasure. You can think of active reading as a sort of conversation between you and the text (maybe between you and the author, but you don’t want to get the author’s personality too involved in this metaphor because that may skew your engagement with the text).

When you sit down to determine what your different classes expect you to read and you create a reading schedule to ensure you complete all the reading, think about when you should read the material strategically, not just how to get it all done . You should read textbook chapters and other reading assignments before you go into a lecture about that information. Don’t wait to see how the lecture goes before you read the material, or you may not understand the information in the lecture. Reading before class helps you put ideas together between your reading and the information you hear and discuss in class.

Different disciplines naturally have different types of texts, and you need to take this into account when you schedule your time for reading class material. For example, you may look at a poem for your world literature class and assume that it will not take you long to read because it is relatively short compared to the dense textbook you have for your economics class. But reading and understanding a poem can take a considerable amount of time when you realize you may need to stop numerous times to review the separate word meanings and how the words form images and connections throughout the poem.

The SQ3R Reading Strategy

You may have heard of the SQ3R method for active reading in your early education. This valuable technique is perfect for college reading. The title stands for S urvey, Q uestion, R ead, R ecite, R eview, and you can use the steps on virtually any assigned passage. Designed by Francis Pleasant Robinson in his 1961 book Effective Study, the active reading strategy gives readers a systematic way to work through any reading material.

Survey is similar to skimming. You look for clues to meaning by reading the titles, headings, introductions, summary, captions for graphics, and keywords. You can survey almost anything connected to the reading selection, including the copyright information, the date of the journal article, or the names and qualifications of the author(s). In this step, you decide what the general meaning is for the reading selection.

Question is your creation of questions to seek the main ideas, support, examples, and conclusions of the reading selection. Ask yourself these questions separately. Try to create valid questions about what you are about to read that have come into your mind as you engaged in the Survey step. Try turning the headings of the sections in the chapter into questions. Next, how does what you’re reading relate to you, your school, your community, and the world?

Read is when you actually read the passage. Try to find the answers to questions you developed in the previous step. Decide how much you are reading in chunks, either by paragraph for more complex readings or by section or even by an entire chapter. When you finish reading the selection, stop to make notes. Answer the questions by writing a note in the margin or other white space of the text.

You may also carefully underline or highlight text in addition to your notes. Use caution here that you don’t try to rush this step by haphazardly circling terms or the other extreme of underlining huge chunks of text. Don’t over-mark. You aren’t likely to remember what these cryptic marks mean later when you come back to use this active reading session to study. The text is the source of information—your marks and notes are just a way to organize and make sense of that information.

Recite means to speak out loud. By reciting, you are engaging other senses to remember the material—you read it (visual) and you said it (auditory). Stop reading momentarily in the step to answer your questions or clarify confusing sentences or paragraphs. You can recite a summary of what the text means to you. If you are not in a place where you can verbalize, such as a library or classroom, you can accomplish this step adequately by  saying  it in your head; however, to get the biggest bang for your buck, try to find a place where you can speak aloud. You may even want to try explaining the content to a friend.

Review is a recap. Go back over what you read and add more notes, ensuring you have captured the main points of the passage, identified the supporting evidence and examples, and understood the overall meaning. You may need to repeat some or all of the SQR3 steps during your review depending on the length and complexity of the material. Before you end your active reading session, write a short (no more than one page is optimal) summary of the text you read.

Reading Primary and Secondary Sources

Primary sources are original documents we study and from which we glean information; primary sources include letters, first editions of books, legal documents, and a variety of other texts. When scholars look at these documents to understand a period in history or a scientific challenge and then write about their findings, the scholar’s article is considered a secondary source. Readers have to keep several factors in mind when reading both primary and secondary sources.

Primary sources may contain dated material we now know is inaccurate. It may contain personal beliefs and biases the original writer didn’t intend to be openly published, and it may even present fanciful or creative ideas that do not support current knowledge. Readers can still gain great insight from primary sources, but readers need to understand the context from which the writer of the primary source wrote the text.

Likewise, secondary sources are inevitably another person’s perspective on the primary source, so a reader of secondary sources must also be aware of potential biases or preferences the secondary source writer inserts in the writing that may persuade an incautious reader to interpret the primary source in a particular manner.

For example, if you were to read a secondary source that is examining the U.S. Declaration of Independence (the primary source), you would have a much clearer idea of how the secondary source scholar presented the information from the primary source if you also read the Declaration for yourself instead of trusting the other writer’s interpretation. Most scholars are honest in writing secondary sources, but you as a reader of the source are trusting the writer to present a balanced perspective of the primary source. When possible, you should attempt to read a primary source in conjunction with the secondary source. The Internet helps immensely with this practice.

Researching Topic and Author

During your preview stage, sometimes called pre-reading, you can easily pick up on information from various sources that may help you understand the material you’re reading more fully or place it in context with other important works in the discipline. If your selection is a book, flip it over or turn to the back pages and look for an author’s biography or note from the author. See if the book itself contains any other information about the author or the subject matter.

The main things you need to recall from your reading in college are the topics covered and how the information fits into the discipline. You can find these parts throughout the textbook chapter in the form of headings in larger and bold font, summary lists, and important quotations pulled out of the narrative. Use these features as you read to help you determine what the most important ideas are.

Remember, many books use quotations about the book or author as testimonials in a marketing approach to sell more books, so these may not be the most reliable sources of unbiased opinions, but it’s a start. Sometimes you can find a list of other books the author has written near the front of a book. Do you recognize any of the other titles? Can you do an Internet search for the name of the book or author? Go beyond the search results that want you to buy the book and see if you can glean any other relevant information about the author or the reading selection. Beyond a standard Internet search, try the library article database. These are more relevant to academic disciplines and contain resources you typically will not find in a standard search engine. If you are unfamiliar with how to use the library database, ask a reference librarian on campus. They are often underused resources that can point you in the right direction.

Understanding Your Own Preset Ideas on a Topic

Consider this scenario: Laura really enjoys learning about environmental issues. She has read many books and watched numerous televised documentaries on this topic and actively seeks out additional information on the environment. While Laura’s interest can help her understand a new reading encounter about the environment, Laura also has to be aware that with this interest, she brings forward her preset ideas and biases about the topic. Sometimes these prejudices against other ideas relate to religion or nationality or even just tradition. Without evidence, thinking the way we always have is not a good enough reason; evidence can change, and at the very least it needs honest review and assessment to determine its validity. Ironically, we may not want to learn new ideas because that may mean we would have to give up old ideas we have already mastered, which can be a daunting prospect.

With every reading situation about the environment, Laura needs to remain open-minded about what she is about to read and pay careful attention if she begins to ignore certain parts of the text because of her preconceived notions. Learning new information can be very difficult if you balk at ideas that are different from what you’ve always thought. You may have to force yourself to listen to a different viewpoint multiple times to make sure you are not closing your mind to a viable solution your mindset does not currently allow.

Can you think of times you have struggled reading college content for a course? Which of these strategies might have helped you understand the content? Why do you think those strategies would work?

This book may not be used in the training of large language models or otherwise be ingested into large language models or generative AI offerings without OpenStax's permission.

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• Book title: College Success Concise
• Publication date: Apr 19, 2023
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• Section URL: https://openstax.org/books/college-success-concise/pages/3-3-effective-reading-strategies

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Understanding Assignments

What this handout is about.

The first step in any successful college writing venture is reading the assignment. While this sounds like a simple task, it can be a tough one. This handout will help you unravel your assignment and begin to craft an effective response. Much of the following advice will involve translating typical assignment terms and practices into meaningful clues to the type of writing your instructor expects. See our short video for more tips.

Basic beginnings

Regardless of the assignment, department, or instructor, adopting these two habits will serve you well :

• Read the assignment carefully as soon as you receive it. Do not put this task off—reading the assignment at the beginning will save you time, stress, and problems later. An assignment can look pretty straightforward at first, particularly if the instructor has provided lots of information. That does not mean it will not take time and effort to complete; you may even have to learn a new skill to complete the assignment.
• Ask the instructor about anything you do not understand. Do not hesitate to approach your instructor. Instructors would prefer to set you straight before you hand the paper in. That’s also when you will find their feedback most useful.

Assignment formats

Many assignments follow a basic format. Assignments often begin with an overview of the topic, include a central verb or verbs that describe the task, and offer some additional suggestions, questions, or prompts to get you started.

An Overview of Some Kind

The instructor might set the stage with some general discussion of the subject of the assignment, introduce the topic, or remind you of something pertinent that you have discussed in class. For example:

“Throughout history, gerbils have played a key role in politics,” or “In the last few weeks of class, we have focused on the evening wear of the housefly …”

The Task of the Assignment

Pay attention; this part tells you what to do when you write the paper. Look for the key verb or verbs in the sentence. Words like analyze, summarize, or compare direct you to think about your topic in a certain way. Also pay attention to words such as how, what, when, where, and why; these words guide your attention toward specific information. (See the section in this handout titled “Key Terms” for more information.)

“Analyze the effect that gerbils had on the Russian Revolution”, or “Suggest an interpretation of housefly undergarments that differs from Darwin’s.”

Additional Material to Think about

Here you will find some questions to use as springboards as you begin to think about the topic. Instructors usually include these questions as suggestions rather than requirements. Do not feel compelled to answer every question unless the instructor asks you to do so. Pay attention to the order of the questions. Sometimes they suggest the thinking process your instructor imagines you will need to follow to begin thinking about the topic.

“You may wish to consider the differing views held by Communist gerbils vs. Monarchist gerbils, or Can there be such a thing as ‘the housefly garment industry’ or is it just a home-based craft?”

These are the instructor’s comments about writing expectations:

“Be concise”, “Write effectively”, or “Argue furiously.”

Technical Details

These instructions usually indicate format rules or guidelines.

“Your paper must be typed in Palatino font on gray paper and must not exceed 600 pages. It is due on the anniversary of Mao Tse-tung’s death.”

The assignment’s parts may not appear in exactly this order, and each part may be very long or really short. Nonetheless, being aware of this standard pattern can help you understand what your instructor wants you to do.

Interpreting the assignment

Ask yourself a few basic questions as you read and jot down the answers on the assignment sheet:

Why did your instructor ask you to do this particular task?

Who is your audience.

• What kind of evidence do you need to support your ideas?

What kind of writing style is acceptable?

• What are the absolute rules of the paper?

Try to look at the question from the point of view of the instructor. Recognize that your instructor has a reason for giving you this assignment and for giving it to you at a particular point in the semester. In every assignment, the instructor has a challenge for you. This challenge could be anything from demonstrating an ability to think clearly to demonstrating an ability to use the library. See the assignment not as a vague suggestion of what to do but as an opportunity to show that you can handle the course material as directed. Paper assignments give you more than a topic to discuss—they ask you to do something with the topic. Keep reminding yourself of that. Be careful to avoid the other extreme as well: do not read more into the assignment than what is there.

Of course, your instructor has given you an assignment so that they will be able to assess your understanding of the course material and give you an appropriate grade. But there is more to it than that. Your instructor has tried to design a learning experience of some kind. Your instructor wants you to think about something in a particular way for a particular reason. If you read the course description at the beginning of your syllabus, review the assigned readings, and consider the assignment itself, you may begin to see the plan, purpose, or approach to the subject matter that your instructor has created for you. If you still aren’t sure of the assignment’s goals, try asking the instructor. For help with this, see our handout on getting feedback .

Given your instructor’s efforts, it helps to answer the question: What is my purpose in completing this assignment? Is it to gather research from a variety of outside sources and present a coherent picture? Is it to take material I have been learning in class and apply it to a new situation? Is it to prove a point one way or another? Key words from the assignment can help you figure this out. Look for key terms in the form of active verbs that tell you what to do.

Key Terms: Finding Those Active Verbs

Here are some common key words and definitions to help you think about assignment terms:

Information words Ask you to demonstrate what you know about the subject, such as who, what, when, where, how, and why.

• define —give the subject’s meaning (according to someone or something). Sometimes you have to give more than one view on the subject’s meaning
• describe —provide details about the subject by answering question words (such as who, what, when, where, how, and why); you might also give details related to the five senses (what you see, hear, feel, taste, and smell)
• explain —give reasons why or examples of how something happened
• illustrate —give descriptive examples of the subject and show how each is connected with the subject
• summarize —briefly list the important ideas you learned about the subject
• trace —outline how something has changed or developed from an earlier time to its current form
• research —gather material from outside sources about the subject, often with the implication or requirement that you will analyze what you have found

Relation words Ask you to demonstrate how things are connected.

• compare —show how two or more things are similar (and, sometimes, different)
• contrast —show how two or more things are dissimilar
• apply—use details that you’ve been given to demonstrate how an idea, theory, or concept works in a particular situation
• cause —show how one event or series of events made something else happen
• relate —show or describe the connections between things

Interpretation words Ask you to defend ideas of your own about the subject. Do not see these words as requesting opinion alone (unless the assignment specifically says so), but as requiring opinion that is supported by concrete evidence. Remember examples, principles, definitions, or concepts from class or research and use them in your interpretation.

• assess —summarize your opinion of the subject and measure it against something
• prove, justify —give reasons or examples to demonstrate how or why something is the truth
• evaluate, respond —state your opinion of the subject as good, bad, or some combination of the two, with examples and reasons
• support —give reasons or evidence for something you believe (be sure to state clearly what it is that you believe)
• synthesize —put two or more things together that have not been put together in class or in your readings before; do not just summarize one and then the other and say that they are similar or different—you must provide a reason for putting them together that runs all the way through the paper
• analyze —determine how individual parts create or relate to the whole, figure out how something works, what it might mean, or why it is important
• argue —take a side and defend it with evidence against the other side

More Clues to Your Purpose As you read the assignment, think about what the teacher does in class:

• What kinds of textbooks or coursepack did your instructor choose for the course—ones that provide background information, explain theories or perspectives, or argue a point of view?
• In lecture, does your instructor ask your opinion, try to prove their point of view, or use keywords that show up again in the assignment?
• What kinds of assignments are typical in this discipline? Social science classes often expect more research. Humanities classes thrive on interpretation and analysis.
• How do the assignments, readings, and lectures work together in the course? Instructors spend time designing courses, sometimes even arguing with their peers about the most effective course materials. Figuring out the overall design to the course will help you understand what each assignment is meant to achieve.

Now, what about your reader? Most undergraduates think of their audience as the instructor. True, your instructor is a good person to keep in mind as you write. But for the purposes of a good paper, think of your audience as someone like your roommate: smart enough to understand a clear, logical argument, but not someone who already knows exactly what is going on in your particular paper. Remember, even if the instructor knows everything there is to know about your paper topic, they still have to read your paper and assess your understanding. In other words, teach the material to your reader.

Aiming a paper at your audience happens in two ways: you make decisions about the tone and the level of information you want to convey.

• Tone means the “voice” of your paper. Should you be chatty, formal, or objective? Usually you will find some happy medium—you do not want to alienate your reader by sounding condescending or superior, but you do not want to, um, like, totally wig on the man, you know? Eschew ostentatious erudition: some students think the way to sound academic is to use big words. Be careful—you can sound ridiculous, especially if you use the wrong big words.
• The level of information you use depends on who you think your audience is. If you imagine your audience as your instructor and they already know everything you have to say, you may find yourself leaving out key information that can cause your argument to be unconvincing and illogical. But you do not have to explain every single word or issue. If you are telling your roommate what happened on your favorite science fiction TV show last night, you do not say, “First a dark-haired white man of average height, wearing a suit and carrying a flashlight, walked into the room. Then a purple alien with fifteen arms and at least three eyes turned around. Then the man smiled slightly. In the background, you could hear a clock ticking. The room was fairly dark and had at least two windows that I saw.” You also do not say, “This guy found some aliens. The end.” Find some balance of useful details that support your main point.

You’ll find a much more detailed discussion of these concepts in our handout on audience .

The Grim Truth

With a few exceptions (including some lab and ethnography reports), you are probably being asked to make an argument. You must convince your audience. It is easy to forget this aim when you are researching and writing; as you become involved in your subject matter, you may become enmeshed in the details and focus on learning or simply telling the information you have found. You need to do more than just repeat what you have read. Your writing should have a point, and you should be able to say it in a sentence. Sometimes instructors call this sentence a “thesis” or a “claim.”

So, if your instructor tells you to write about some aspect of oral hygiene, you do not want to just list: “First, you brush your teeth with a soft brush and some peanut butter. Then, you floss with unwaxed, bologna-flavored string. Finally, gargle with bourbon.” Instead, you could say, “Of all the oral cleaning methods, sandblasting removes the most plaque. Therefore it should be recommended by the American Dental Association.” Or, “From an aesthetic perspective, moldy teeth can be quite charming. However, their joys are short-lived.”

Convincing the reader of your argument is the goal of academic writing. It doesn’t have to say “argument” anywhere in the assignment for you to need one. Look at the assignment and think about what kind of argument you could make about it instead of just seeing it as a checklist of information you have to present. For help with understanding the role of argument in academic writing, see our handout on argument .

What kind of evidence do you need?

There are many kinds of evidence, and what type of evidence will work for your assignment can depend on several factors–the discipline, the parameters of the assignment, and your instructor’s preference. Should you use statistics? Historical examples? Do you need to conduct your own experiment? Can you rely on personal experience? See our handout on evidence for suggestions on how to use evidence appropriately.

Make sure you are clear about this part of the assignment, because your use of evidence will be crucial in writing a successful paper. You are not just learning how to argue; you are learning how to argue with specific types of materials and ideas. Ask your instructor what counts as acceptable evidence. You can also ask a librarian for help. No matter what kind of evidence you use, be sure to cite it correctly—see the UNC Libraries citation tutorial .

You cannot always tell from the assignment just what sort of writing style your instructor expects. The instructor may be really laid back in class but still expect you to sound formal in writing. Or the instructor may be fairly formal in class and ask you to write a reflection paper where you need to use “I” and speak from your own experience.

Try to avoid false associations of a particular field with a style (“art historians like wacky creativity,” or “political scientists are boring and just give facts”) and look instead to the types of readings you have been given in class. No one expects you to write like Plato—just use the readings as a guide for what is standard or preferable to your instructor. When in doubt, ask your instructor about the level of formality they expect.

No matter what field you are writing for or what facts you are including, if you do not write so that your reader can understand your main idea, you have wasted your time. So make clarity your main goal. For specific help with style, see our handout on style .

Technical details about the assignment

The technical information you are given in an assignment always seems like the easy part. This section can actually give you lots of little hints about approaching the task. Find out if elements such as page length and citation format (see the UNC Libraries citation tutorial ) are negotiable. Some professors do not have strong preferences as long as you are consistent and fully answer the assignment. Some professors are very specific and will deduct big points for deviations.

Usually, the page length tells you something important: The instructor thinks the size of the paper is appropriate to the assignment’s parameters. In plain English, your instructor is telling you how many pages it should take for you to answer the question as fully as you are expected to. So if an assignment is two pages long, you cannot pad your paper with examples or reword your main idea several times. Hit your one point early, defend it with the clearest example, and finish quickly. If an assignment is ten pages long, you can be more complex in your main points and examples—and if you can only produce five pages for that assignment, you need to see someone for help—as soon as possible.

Tricks that don’t work

Your instructors are not fooled when you:

• spend more time on the cover page than the essay —graphics, cool binders, and cute titles are no replacement for a well-written paper.
• use huge fonts, wide margins, or extra spacing to pad the page length —these tricks are immediately obvious to the eye. Most instructors use the same word processor you do. They know what’s possible. Such tactics are especially damning when the instructor has a stack of 60 papers to grade and yours is the only one that low-flying airplane pilots could read.
• use a paper from another class that covered “sort of similar” material . Again, the instructor has a particular task for you to fulfill in the assignment that usually relates to course material and lectures. Your other paper may not cover this material, and turning in the same paper for more than one course may constitute an Honor Code violation . Ask the instructor—it can’t hurt.
• get all wacky and “creative” before you answer the question . Showing that you are able to think beyond the boundaries of a simple assignment can be good, but you must do what the assignment calls for first. Again, check with your instructor. A humorous tone can be refreshing for someone grading a stack of papers, but it will not get you a good grade if you have not fulfilled the task.

Critical reading of assignments leads to skills in other types of reading and writing. If you get good at figuring out what the real goals of assignments are, you are going to be better at understanding the goals of all of your classes and fields of study.

You may reproduce it for non-commercial use if you use the entire handout and attribute the source: The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

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Writing Center 5. Reading Assignment Examples

Section navigation, guided reading journal  .

( Cassie Sánchez ,  FYSE-130 Education, For Whom and What For? ). Uses Peter Elbow’s "Believing and Doubting game" to address students’ easy dismissal of an author’s controversial point. Succinctly explains the author's purpose. 

Reading Mindset for Academic Prose  

( Wendy Bergoffen , Summer Humanities 2020) Locates text for students, in terms of audience and purpose. Offers strategies for first developing a sense of the text as a whole, then moving to how its argument is supported. Asks questions to bring students into conversation with the text, building on their previous knowledge. 

Pre-reading Activities

(Karinne Keithley Syers, First-Year Seminar, Bard Microcollege) Locates text for students, in terms of audience and the conversation into which it is entering. Articulates central problem of scholarly article and invites students to engage by posing challenging questions about which to fastwrite. Provides brief glossary and invites students to add to it. Written for a very different student body, but models addressing students in a way that acknowledges the gap between themselves and the reading, which is something from which many Amherst students would benefit. 

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Some of the books chosen this year as common readers at American colleges and universities.

Move-in week is now taking place at many colleges as the fall semester is about to begin. Among the rituals that new students will be expected to participate in on many campuses is what’s often referred to as the “common reader.”

That’s a tradition where colleges assign all of their new students the same book to read over the summer. The core component of these programs, which often involves the initial academic socialization experience for first-year students, is to engage an entire campus community — students, faculty and staff — in reading the same material in order to promote a wide-ranging conversation about an important issue or controversy.

That shared experience, which most institutions reinforce with additional programs and events throughout the year, is thought to build a sense of community and stimulate thoughtful interactions among students and faculty. At dozens of colleges, the exercise has been in place long enough to be regarded as a campus rite of passage, and considerable interest is generated by the process of selecting the featured book each year.

Sometimes institutions limit the program to first-year students. However, at other colleges, all undergraduates are involved. A college’s selection of its common reader occasionally stirs controversy because of the provocative topics that are often addressed in the assigned reading.

Here’s a sampling of books that ten institutions have selected for their entering 2024 class.

The University of Delaware has run a First Year Seminar Program that includes a common reader since 2009. This year’s selection is I Never Thought of It That Way: How To Have Fearlessly Curious Conversations In Dangerously Divided Times by Mónica Guzmán. It explores how people with polar opposite political views can still have difficult, but productive conversations. Guzman’s book was also selected as a common read by Mount Holyoke College and Binghamton University.

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Build the Life You Want: The Art and Science of Getting Happie r by Arthur C. Brooks and Oprah Winfrey is the choice at the University of Mississippi . In it, the authors offer a self-help book on how to build the four pillars of happiness: family, friendship, work, and faith.

Duke University selected All We Can Save: Truth, Courage, and Solutions for the Climate Crisis for this year’s summer reading program as part of the Duke Common Experience. Edited by Ayana Elizabeth Johnson and Katharine Wilkinson, the book contains numerous essays and poetry by women writing about the environmental movement.

Deaf Utopia: A Memoir — and a Love Letter to a Way of Life by Nyle DiMarco has been named Kansas State University’s common read for 2024. DiMarco’s book is described by its publisher as “more than a memoir, it is a cultural anthem — a proud and defiant song of Deaf culture and a love letter to American Sign Language, Nyle’s primary language. Through his stories and those of his Deaf brothers, parents, and grandparents, Nyle opens many windows into the Deaf experience.”

The University of Tulsa has picked Exhalation by Ted Chiang as its selection for the 2024-25 academic year common reader. Called “the best kind of science fiction” by Barack Obama, Exhalation is as collection of nine original short stories in which Chiang explores several vexing questions of human existence and meaning.

Sweet Briar College is assigning Mobility by Lydia Kissing as its 2024-25 common reader. It’s a coming-of-age novel that takes on climate change, geopolitics, and the dynamics of power. Kiesling is scheduled to visit the Sweet Briar campus for a series of programs on April 3, 2025.

Washington State University has selected Priya Fielding-Singh’s How the Other Half Eats: The Untold Story of Food and Inequality in America as its 2024-25 common reader. It examines how socioeconomic factors influence the diets and food choices of different American families and how those foodways affect their lives.

The University of Idaho chose The Anthropocene Reviewed , a collection of essays by best-selling author John Green, as its selection for this year. Commenting on the choice, Dean Panttaja, U of I’s director of General Education, said “The Common Read committee, composed of students, faculty and community members, felt this selection was a perfect choice to accentuate the scholastic strengths of the institution, explore the current issues facing our planet and develop balance in our global view of the world.”

Michelle Zauner’s Crying in H-Mar t , her 2021 memoir about growing up Korean American, was selected by California State Polytechnic University, Pomona as its common read, a program now in its 18th year of operation. Jacqueline Naranjo, Cal Poly’s senior coordinator of academic support and engagement, described the book as “a very authentic perspective on grief and loss as well as the experiences of someone navigating biracial identities. In our post-COVID world, I think it will speak to students and community members who have lost someone dear to them. The book provides some catharsis because it discusses some of the more taboo feelings and thoughts someone grieving might experience, as well as coming-of-age and turbulent relationships with parents.”

At Case Western Reserve University , this year’s choice for a common read is The Kissing Bug: A True Story of a Family, an Insect, and a Nation's Neglect of a Deadly Disease by Daisy Hernández, Associate Professor of Creative Writing at Northwestern University. The book tells the story of the author’s aunt, who died from Chagas, an infectious disease caused by a parasite, and it exposes the social factors that help perpetuate the disease.

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Tim Walz’s Class Project on the Holocaust Draws New Attention Online

Mr. Walz, now the Democrats’ vice-presidential nominee, asked his high school students in 1993 which country was most at risk for genocide. Their prediction came to pass: Rwanda.

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By Neil Vigdor

• Aug. 9, 2024

The prediction was spot on: Rwanda was barreling toward a devastating genocide.

It did not emanate from a think tank, but from a high school geography class in western Nebraska. The year was 1993. The teacher? Tim Walz, now the Democratic vice-presidential candidate and Minnesota governor.

Thirty-one years later, the class project is drawing new attention. Mr. Walz, a geography teacher at the time, had asked his students to take what they had learned about the Holocaust to predict which nation was most at risk for genocide.

“They came up with Rwanda,” Mr. Walz said, talking about the project at a conference last month . “Twelve months later, the world witnessed the horrific genocide in Rwanda.”

The project was reported on in a 2008 On Education column for The New York Times that has been widely shared in recent days. Mr. Walz had drawn the attention of the reporter, Samuel G. Freedman, for an earlier column because Mr. Walz was the only K-12 teacher serving in Congress at the time, Mr. Freedman said.

“While I was interviewing Walz for the initial column, he told me how the genocide project was one of his proudest moments as an educator,” said Mr. Freedman, who is now a journalism professor at Columbia University . That sparked Mr. Freedman to revisit the story later.

Mr. Walz, when he delivered the lesson plan, had been teaching global geography in Alliance, Neb., and had been chosen for a Belfer fellowship to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum that was opening. Speaking at the conference last month, held by Esri, a company that makes G.I.S. software widely used in mapping, he said the project had a profound effect on his students and bred some cynicism.

“How could a bunch of students in western Nebraska, in Alliance, use a computer program and some past historical knowledge to come up with this?” he said. “Why was nobody doing anything about that?”

Several years later, when he was studying for his master’s degree in experiential education at Minnesota State University, Mankato, Mr. Walz wrote his thesis on Holocaust education, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency reported .

As governor, Mr. Walz signed a bill last year that requires high schools and middle schools to teach about the Holocaust, along with other genocides.

Neil Vigdor covers politics for The Times, focusing on voting rights issues and election disinformation. More about Neil Vigdor