Searching your information

Once you have located your resources from the Internet, magazines, books or CD ROMs it is necessary to read efficiently to extract information.

Hints on reading for information

Efficient readers use different styles of reading for different purposes when trying to locate relevant information. Two useful reading styles are scanning and skimming.
 

Scanning is one of the skills needed when working with Web-pages and other print material. When scanning, the eye travels down the screen/page quickly, looking for important key words or exploring the pages. It is used to find a specific item like a name in a telephone directory or a key word in web searches. Skimming is reading to get a general idea of what the material is about.

Skimming is used:

1. To find out what the site, page, passage, or article is about.

2. To find out whether it will be of any use.

3. To determine whether the information will give the details that are needed, whether it will answer specific questions, or whether it contains the facts related to a specific topic.

4. To save time. The location of information that is needed can be found without having to read the whole section. It is simple to determine which pieces to read in detail and take notes from.

Skimming is useful when using:

• World Wide Web articles.

• a directory

• guides

• newspaper

• sports pages

• tables of contents

How to skim:

1. Think about the main ideas you are searching for as you allow your eyes to float over the page. Explore the section rather than reading it in detail.

2. Read the Title. Look for key words and phrases. Read the headings and first sentences of major paragraphs. These are often the topic sentences and frequently contain summaries of material that is to come or has just been given.

3. Look quickly at illustrations and captions. Look at summaries at the ends of articles. Summaries are often contained in final chapters.

Questions you should ask yourself before skimming:

1. Do I know what I am looking for?

2. Is this article or book related to the topic I am studying?

3. Which sections of the article should I concentrate on?

Which sections can I safely ignore?
 
 
 
 

 

 

 

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