Reading Strategy: Scanning

Summary

This video explains the scanning reading strategy, which is useful for quickly finding specific information in texts. It emphasizes the importance of identifying key terms or phrases before scanning, running your eyes over the text, and reading around the information to determine if it is relevant to your purpose. The video also includes practical examples, guiding viewers through questions to demonstrate how scanning helps locate key information without the need to read the entire text. It concludes by suggesting that scanning is ideal for quick information retrieval but not for in-depth reading.

Takeaways

• 😀 Scanning is a strategy to quickly find specific information in a text without reading every word.
• 😀 Scanning is most useful when you're looking for answers to specific questions, such as how many participants were involved in a study.
• 😀 Scanning helps determine the relevance of a paper based on the frequency of key terms or phrases related to your topic.
• 😀 It's not suitable for gaining in-depth knowledge of a text; it's meant for quick identification of relevant details.
• 😀 The first step in scanning is identifying your purpose and the specific information you're looking for.
• 😀 When scanning, quickly run your eyes over the text, focusing only on the key terms or phrases that are relevant to your task.
• 😀 After finding the relevant information, read the sentences around it to understand the context before making a judgment about the text's relevance.
• 😀 If the information you need is frequently mentioned, the paper might be more relevant, and reading the entire text might be more efficient.
• 😀 If the paper doesn't answer your questions or isn't specific enough, discard it and move on to the next one.
• 😀 Use paragraph structure and signposts (like 'however' or 'for example') to decide when to stop reading once you've found the relevant information.
• 😀 Scanning is just one strategy; if you need to read the whole text, consider using other strategies like skimming or critical reading.

Q & A

What is the main purpose of using the scanning strategy while reading?

The main purpose of scanning is to quickly find specific information, such as answers to particular questions or key terms, without reading the entire text.

When is scanning an appropriate reading strategy to use?

Scanning is useful when you need to find specific information quickly, such as when looking for answers to focused questions or determining the relevance of a paper.

What should you do before starting to scan a text?

Before scanning, identify the purpose of your reading and decide what specific information you are looking for, such as key terms, phrases, or specific sections.

How should you approach scanning a text?

When scanning, run your eyes quickly over the text, focusing only on the information you need. Ignore everything else and don't read every word. Read the sentences around the information once you find it.

How can you decide if a paper is relevant for your purpose after scanning it?

After scanning, decide if the paper answers your questions and is specific enough for your task. If it is relevant, read it in more detail; if not, discard it and move on.

What role do keywords play in the scanning strategy?

Keywords are crucial in scanning. They help you quickly identify the relevant sections of the text. The more frequently your keywords appear, the more relevant the paper is likely to be.

What should you do if you find the information you're looking for while scanning?

Once you find the information, read the sentences around it to ensure you have the full context. Then, evaluate whether the text is relevant for your purpose.

What is an example of how to apply scanning in an academic context?

For example, when looking for how many participants were involved in a study, you would scan the methods section of the paper, focusing on the numbers and participant-related information.

What should you do if you don't find the information you're looking for while scanning?

If you don’t find the information, discard the text and move on to other sources that might be more relevant.

How can paragraph structure help in deciding when to stop reading during scanning?

Knowing paragraph structure can guide when to stop reading. Typically, the main point of a paragraph comes first, followed by reasons or examples. If you’re only looking for an answer, you can stop reading once you find it.