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SQ3R is a 5 stage active reading technique.
The stages are:
How
to Use this Tool: SQ3R is a useful technique for fully absorbing
written information. It helps you to create a good mental framework of
a subject, into which you can fit facts correctly. It helps you to set
study goals. It also prompts you to use the review techniques that will
help to fix information in your mind.
By
using SQ3R to actively read a document, you can get the maximum benefit
from your reading time. The acronym SQ3R stands for the five sequential
techniques you should use to read a book:
Survey:
Survey the document: scan the contents, introduction, chapter introductions
chapter summaries, and graphic aids to pick up a shallow overview of the
text.
Question:
Make a note of any questions on the subject that come to mind, or are
of particular interest to you following your survey. Perhaps scan the
document again to see if any stand out. These questions can be considered
almost as study goals - understanding the answers can help you to structure
the information in your own mind.
Read:
Now read the document. Read through useful sections in detail, taking
care to understand all the points that are relevant. In the case of some
texts this reading may be very slow. This will particularly be the case
if there is a lot of dense and complicated information. While you are
reading, it can help to take notes in concept map format. Ensure you are
finding answers to the questions you asked above.
Recall:
Once you have read appropriate sections of the document, run through it
in your mind several times. Isolate the core facts or the essential processes
behind the subject, and then see how other information fits around them.
See if you can do this without referring to the reading or your notes.
Review:
Once you have run through the exercise of recalling the information, you
can move on to the stage of reviewing it. This review can be by rereading
the document, by expanding your notes, or by discussing the material with
colleagues. A particularly effective method of reviewing information is
to have to teach it to someone else.
Key
points:
SQ3R is a useful technique for extracting the maximum amount of benefit
from your reading time. It helps you to organize the structure of a subject
in your mind. It also helps you to set study goals and to separate important
information from irrelevant data.
If
you use SQ3R, you will significantly improve the quality of your study
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