How to read efficiently

How do you manage a large volume of reading and make sure that you use your reading time as efficiently as possible? This page will provide strategies to stay on top of your reading including the use of ebooks and using Sensus Access.

Volume of reading

Like it or loathe it, you will find that you are asked to read an enormous amount of material during your time at University.

Some modules will include substantial reading lists that feature a number of books, articles and papers, many of which will be long and complex.

You'll also have the often challenging task of working out for yourself which parts of this material are most relevant to the particular task or subject area that you are currently working on and which are not.

In order to get the most out of any text or set of texts, you need to be ready to adopt a range of different reading strategies depending upon the task at hand and the amount of time you have available to complete it.

There is no magic formula to becoming a faster and more selective reader, but there are a number of techniques that you can practise that will, over time, help you to increase both your reading speed and the quality of your reading.

Do I need to read everything?

Sometimes the answer will be yes. Some reading is mandatory for classes or coursework. If this is the case, you will probably need to read it all with focus and attention. You might want to consider taking notes [link to How to Make Notes] on it too.

However, much of the reading that you do as part of your coursework will not require reading every text from cover to cover. Instead, academic reading is usually a strategic process of scanning, skimming and selecting the priority texts and parts of texts for deeper engagement.

This online tutorial will introduce the key skills you will need to read quickly and efficiently at university.

Academic reading online tutorial

This workshop provides opportunities to develop and practise reading and note taking strategies.

Reading and note taking workshop: book here

Attend a short course on academic reading and writing which includes note making, and effective and efficient reading strategies.

More informationAttend a workshop on reading academic texts effectively which includes dealing with unknown vocabulary.

More information

Scan reading an academic text

What do you do first when you encounter a new text? Read the title? Read the abstract? Read the full text?

Reading a whole text from start to finish may not always be the most effective or efficient way to make use of your independent reading time.

Scan reading is often a good first step to allow you to gain an overview of the reading material. You can do this initially by focusing on the following:

Title and abstract: an abstract is a short summary of a whole academic text and if available it is usually an ideal place to start.
Chapter or section headings: how is the text broken up? How are the main sections organised?
Introduction: this should provide you with a summary of the aims and objectives of the text.
Conclusion: this is where you will find out what the main take-away messages are from the text.
Figures or pictures: data, models, processes, etc. will sometimes be shown visually, which can provide a quick and easy way to understand a complex set of information.

For a systematic approach to selective reading that will help you to locate the most important information quickly and easily, have a look at this short Scan Reading video.

Watch the scan reading video here (2.22)

Speed reading

Speed reading is an approach to reading that can help you to get through a text more quickly and fluently.

However, speed reading is not something that can be learnt overnight. It takes time, effort and practice to increase your reading speed.

The following techniques are ways to practice and experiment with speeding up your reading. Try them out over time and they should begin to have a positive impact on your overall ability to get through the reading on your course.

Pacing techniques

Use a pen, your finger or a ruler to help you pace yourself through a page of text. The pacer will help your eyes to move more smoothly and efficiently across the page.

Pacing techniques include

tracing a loose "s" or "z" shape through the lines of text
drawing a horizontal pen/ruler/card down the page line by line
drawing your fingers or pen down one margin of the text
drawing a pen or your fingers down the centre of the text

Read further

Read for one minute and mark where you get to. Next

add an extra third of the text and mark your new finishing place
read again from start and reach your new goal
repeat 3 more times

Go faster than comprehension speed. You can read a new text each time.

Read faster

Read for one minute and mark where you get to. Next;

read the same amount of text in 50 seconds
repeat, reducing the time to 40, then 30, then 20 seconds

You can read a new text each time.

Reading with attention

Read text with comprehension for 3 mins and mark where you get to. Write down one bullet point about what you've read. Next;

mark out a new section of the same length, read this in 3 minutes, then write another bullet point
mark another new section of the same length and add on a quarter more text. Read this in 3 minutes and write out bullet point. Complete twice more

Think using the pacing techniques. Try and retain comprehension and attention while putting pressure on your reading speed.

How to find and use ebooks

Ebooks are digital versions of books which can be read online from anywhere and at any time.

Publishers provide access to their ebooks through different platforms. Some are exclusively ebook platforms while others provide access to a variety of online academic content. Some platforms will have different tools and features available. Some will allow you to search for a specific keyword, add notes, highlight text, and bookmark pages which are saved for when you next use the ebook.

The Library has close to 1 million ebooks that can be accessed through StarPlus, the Library discovery tool.

By working through this online tutorial you will learn how to discover and use ebooks effectively on some of the key ebook platforms.

Discovering and using eBooks effectively

How to use Sensus Access

If you are a student with dyslexia, a visual impairment, or a print based disability, you can use Sensus Access software to convert a document into an alternative format.

By working through this video you will learn how to convert PDF, JPEG, Powerpoint or Word files into text or audio to make them accessible.

Using Sensus Access

StudySkills@Sheffield