4. Read/Think/Select

While the Internet is a text–saturated world, reading online screens tends to be significantly different from reading printed text. Barry W. Cull, Reading Revolutions: Online digital text and implications for reading in academe

How to process information

Concepts:

Strategies that apply to print and digital sources:

1. READ:

"You mean I have to read this?"

1.1 One reason research is so daunting is because nothing is handed to you, almost begging for a "push-back" reaction.

1.2 Information is usually not in a familiar form such as a textbook.

1.3 The only way to learn about your topic is to read about it, and read a lot, in many different places.

1.4 Two steps of critical reading: a) Locational reading such as skimming/scanning to rapidly locate subtopic-related information, and b) evaluative reading with purpose for comprehension and meaning to select facts for good notes.

1.5 Do not sacrifice comprehension for speed. Read to succeed! This means avoid shortcuts or you won't understand the content.

2. THINK:

"Keep your eyes on the prize."

2.1 Focus and filter: Stay focused and think about whether what you read supports your topic and thesis position.

2.2 Compare/contrast information to subtopics.

2.3 Use critical thinking (and video) and critical reading skills first to analyze (break down) what you read, then to assess (process) information.

2.4 Synthesize information by combining new information from many sources with prior knowledge and personal interpretation to solve the research task. This creates information ownership whereby knowledge from other people becomes yours.

3. SELECT:

"So many facts, so little time!"

3.1.Facts to select for good notes jump off the page when you have a guiding purpose---subtopics!.

3.2 Subtopics instantly tell you not just what facts to select, but what to skip! Using subtopics to locate facts is like sorting M&Ms, allowing you to move more efficiently through piles of books and websites. This means you waste less time and are far more productive.

Matching facts to subtopics is like sorting M&Ms.

⭐NEW: Print to Digital Skills⭐

Teachers: Read/Think/Select

Student Hyperdoc

Library (Print) tasks and skills:

Consider the "Read, Think, Select" strategies of your research Checklist.

Reading with purpose involves skills and strategies, such as "close reading" or the SQ3R method with skills that can be identified, learned, and practiced including: chunking, visual clues, skimming and scanning. Ask yourself: "Do I understand what I just read?" See more information in the following articles:
- TIP sheet for skimming and scanning
Thinking, processing information, involves considering information choices by asking: "What best supports my subtopics?" Begin by comparing new information to subtopics, decide what to select, and by contrasting new information with subtopics, decide what to skip! This begins thoughtful analysis.
Selecting information involves the concrete action of picking facts and quotes and writing them down, leading to the next step of note taking.

⭐Connection with Digital Citizenship:

1) (Unit 2.2.b). Read and think about digital information carefully to prevent falling victim to fake Web sites

For example, click the link for "Dihydrogen monoxide." It certainly looks real!

2) (Unit 2.2.b). When is selecting information plagiarism? View this YouTube video on selecting what to cut and paste,

and selecting what to change: "Plagiarism: You Can't Just Change a Few Words."

Digital (Non-Print) tasks and skills:

Reading:
- Skim and scan digital content, but only to get you to the information that requires reading more slowly for greater understanding.
- Chunking means selecting a smaller portion to read so that it can be processed in its entirety.
- Visual cues learned from print materials may be different in digital sources, but prepares the student for easier transition.
- See the following articles to support reading in the digital age:
Thinking:
- Strategies for thinking about digital information include S-L-O-W down... think about what you're reading! Are devices training students to have bad reading habits? “It’s like your eyes are passing over the words but you’re not taking in what they say,” says Claire Handscombe in "Serious reading takes a hit from online scanning and skimming, researchers say."
- Does digital reading affect the way we think?, as seen in this excerpt: "All of this suggests that heavy exposure to digital technology may be altering how learners think and read. As University of California–Los Angeles developmental psychologist Patricia Greenfield (2009) writes, "Every medium develops some cognitive skills at the expense of others" (p. 71). Digital media appear to have improved our visual abilities, for example, but at the expense of some of the very abilities the Common Core State Standards and the Next Generation Science Standards call on our students to develop: "analysis, critical thinking, imagination, and reflection" (p. 71)."
Selecting:
- Do not select and gather information from digital sources by cutting and pasting! This is outright plagiarism.
- Mouseover to highlight online text, then type notes into a note app or simply into a Google doc by blending facts with personal interpretation, analysis, and prior knowledge.

Videos and Powerpoints

Mrs. Stanley's PPT on Read/Think/Select, grades 3-7

Mrs. Stanley's PPT on Read/Think/Select, grades 8-12

Digital Brains?

Better Web Reading

Tools for reading nonfiction

"Skimming - Scanning," What is the difference?(Younger students)

"Skimming and scanning: Reading Comprehension Skills" (Older students)

When selecting information is stealing

Other resources

Articles

Links

Posters for reading sources effectively: Create an SHEG account and download posters on "Sourcing," "Contextualization," "Close Reading," and "Corroboration."

Apps, Web sites, add-ons, or extensions

Research cats. Write a story using Storybird, such as Big Fat Cat, by Deb Stanley.

Common Core State Standards (CCSS)

ESS02.01.03 Select the reading strategy or strategies needed to fully comprehend the content within a written document (i.e., skimming, reading for detail, reading for meaning or critical analysis).
ELA Writing Standards 6-12: 2.b. Develop the topic with well-chosen, relevant, and sufficient facts, extended definitions, concrete details, quotations, or other information and examples appropriate to the audience’s knowledge of the topic.

Works Cited

ChannelCheese. "Non Fiction Rap." YouTube. YouTube, 5 Apr. 2012. Web. 15 Mar. 2015. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8D6cq_-mV90 >.
DeLaPlante, Kevin. "Plagiarism: You Can't Just Change a Few Words." YouTube. YouTube, 2010. Web. 06 Oct. 2016. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NK7PdBBG5po
Evernote. "Evernote Clearly." YouTube. YouTube, 10 Jan. 2012. Web. 15 Mar. 2015. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JL002jzMsvU.
Herold, Benjamin. "Research Drives Teacher Training for Digital Reading." Education Week. Editorial Projects in Education, 6 May 2014. Web. 16 Mar. 2015. http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2014/05/07/30readingside.h33.html
"Reading and research strategies." Palgrave Study Skills. Accessed February 22, 2018. https://www.macmillanihe.com/studentstudyskills/page/reading-and-research-strategies/.

- (Chapter 6, Figure 6.4-SQ3R)

Rosenwald, Michael S. "Serious Reading Takes a Hit from Online Scanning and Skimming, Researchers Say." Serious Reading Takes a Hit from Online Scanning and Skimming, Researchers Say. Washington Post, 6 Apr. 2014. Web. 16 Mar. 2015. <http://wapo.st/1jmVjJQ>.
"Texas type a Mom." Web. 8 Mar 2014. http://www.texastypeamom.com/2013/12/tips-making-learning-fun-with-mms.html
UserExperiencesWorks. "A Magazine Is an IPad That Does Not Work.m4v." YouTube. YouTube, 6 Oct. 2011. Web. 15 Mar. 2015. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXV-yaFmQNk>.
"Web Sites to Use for Evaluation Purposes: Home." Library Guides. Iowa State University, University Library, n.d. Web. 05 Oct. 2016. <http://instr.iastate.libguides.com/c.php?g=49351&p=318220 >.

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