When studying, especially at higher levels, a great deal of time is spent reading.

Academic reading should not be seen as a passive activity, but an active process that leads to the development of learning. Reading for learning requires a conscious effort to make links, understand opinions, research and apply what you learn to your studies.

Learning to read as a child usually results the ability to read simple material relatively easily.

As we develop our skills in reading, the process often becomes more challenging. We are introduced to new vocabulary and more complex sentence structures. Early school textbooks offer us facts or ‘truths’ about the world which we are required to learn; we are not, at this stage encouraged to question the authority of the writers of these published materials.

As schooling progresses however, we are led to consider a range of perspectives, or ways of looking at a topic, rather than just one. We learn to compare these perspectives and begin to form opinions about them.

This change in reading from a surface approach (gathering facts) to a deep approach (interpreting) is essential in order to gain the most out of our studies.

Reading becomes not simply a way to see what is said but to recognize and interpret what is said, taking into account subtleties such as bias, assumptions and the perspectives of the author.