Reading academic texts

Reading in the Social Sciences
One Set of Cognitive and Sociocultural Interpretations

First, take a minute and jot down some notes
Pick your preferred theoretical framework
How might it examine reading a paper for this course?

A Cognitive Analysis
The reading
Abstract
Situative…
Situative Cognition
Individual cognitive approach
Interactional approaches
Example…
Tip 1: Use the text as an “advance organizer”
Tip 2: Use the abstract and summaries as a guide

A Cognitive Analysis Continued
Some other key ideas:
The task isn’t just recall
Distributed cognition
Prior knowledge
Metacognition
Problem solving
Assimilation and Accomodation
Tip 3: Remember the task and timeframe (develop understanding over the entire semester)
Situative…
Example…

Prior knowledge
Metacognition
Problem solving
Tip 4: Use the syllabus to frame the topics
Syllabus
Framing
Key terms
Situative…
Tip 5: (also) develop notes and highlighting for referring back to
Example…

Prior knowledge
Metacognition
Problem solving
Tip 6: focus on your understanding
Wiki
reflection
Recap, frame, extend, contrast
Notes
Situative…
Gist?
Cognitive reading
Key relationships / differences
Clarification
Example…
Other readings

Prior knowledge
Metacognition
Problem solving
Tip 7: Use other texts / people’s ideas to expand your understanding
Wiki
reflection
Recap, frame, extend, contrast
Notes
Situative…
Gist?
Cognitive reading
Key relationships / differences
Clarification
Example…
Other readings

A sociocultural analysis
Tip 8: Focus on your object (e.g., how you will want to change and use these ideas)
Tip 8: Make sure the text is a tool, not the object
Tools (the text)
subject
object

Tip 9: Focus on the community and distribution of labor
Tools (the text)
subject
object
Rules
Distribution of labor
Community
Who is this written for?
Who is your community?
Note how interactions in class and with peers can help / extend your understanding?
Can you communicate your ideas?

Tip 10a: find / create other tools (mediators) as needed (charts, tables, web resources, colleagues, etc.)
Tip 10b: change your tools as you change, as your object shifts (also consider revisiting some)
Tip 10c: think about the tools that will help you engage with later objects (final paper)
Tip 10d: the community and distribution of labor should / does include the professor
Tip 10: …all that distributed cognition “stuff”
Tip 10d (cont.): … so be prepared with questions, notes, framings and send them in advance (when possible)
Tools (the text)
Caveat: by focusing on the activity as the unit of analysis many of these tools and relationships are foregrounded
subject
object
Rules
Distribution of labor
Community
Wiki
As a place to try your understandings
Adapt to responses
Engage in a conversation bout the ideas
… as part of your object

Tip 11: Think about the authentic task for you
Other big ideas:
Authenticity is king
What problem are you solving?
How will these ideas advance that work?
That’s what the final (and other) papers will be on
Focus on changes in participation
They take time
They are individual
Progress is progress
Tip 12: Think about whether or not your participation is shifting

Sociocultural analysis
Situated in…
Prior knowledge
Time
Space
Physical
Social
Tip 13: Think about how your thinking, reading, etc. is ALWAYS situated….

Coda
Keep a dictionary handy
(a concluding event, remark, or section)
Reflect on your relationship to the text and the course
Spend the time on the key elements
Trust in the tools and community for the rest
Rely on the re-visiting of the texts

Reading academic texts

by Joshua Danish on Sep 21, 2010

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Reading academic texts — Presentation Transcript