Reading Strategies
How to Scan
Scanning is a pre-reading activity. When you scan, you are trying to decide if a document is worth using for your assignment. If you determine it is useful for your research, you can read your source actively after scanning.
| Scanning Tip | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Write down your goal | Am I looking for a specific piece of information? |
| Consider the author's purpose & source type | Before reading a text closely, develop a sense of the source's audience and why it was created. Be critical of the material and maximize your understanding of the source's structure. |
| Scan Titles & Headings | Determine if the source may contain useful information. |
| Scan the Abstract & Introduction | The abstract and introductions of a journal article will contain the purpose or main argument of the paper. |
| Scan Images & Tables | Large visuals can quickly tell you a lot about the material inside your source. |
Scanning a Journal Article's First Page
Note. Adapted from Stachowiak-Szymczak & Behrens, 2021, p. 65. CC BY.
Detailed Image Explanation
The image above is an example of a journal article's first page with key information highlighted. This example can help train your eyes to scan for important information.
- In the header, the date of publication (2021) is highlighted in blue. When you look at a journal article's date of publication, think about if the material is up-to-date or if it is from a time period that is relevant to your research question.
- The header's listing of the special edition and journal title is highlighted in grey. Consider what the source type indicates about the type of information or type of source you are using. This example is a peer-reviewed academic journal article. We can tell by performing some basic research on the title of the journal itself.
- The journal article's title is highlighted in yellow. A box with an arrow pointing to the article title asks you to consider the title of a document when assessing its relevancy to your reading goals. The box also has an arrow pointing to the article's abstract, a place you can also quickly get an idea of an article's main argument.
- The author names, located under the article title, are highlighted in purple. A box with an arrow pointing to the authors' names asks you to consider credentials and specializations when scanning research material.
References
Stachowiak-Szymczak, K., & Behrens, B. (2021). Processing possessives in simultaneous interpreting from English to Polish. Oslo Studies in Language 12(2), 65-95.