The first article entitled “Critical Reading Towards Critical Writing” explained some ways to critically read so that the reader could be a better research writer. Some of the big points I got out of it were things such as to not go into your research reading and solely look for the information alone, but to read the article/journal once, and then go back over it and highlight the key information you want to use. Examine the article to find a voice in it. Who is the author trying to appeal to? Is there evidence to support the assumptions? The article then goes into some other things such as quotations, and says that a research writer should justify the quote with how it relates to the topic. Also make judgments about the quotation in the writing. I think the most important part of this article is to read over the material once before even looking for the information that immediately relates to the topic.
The second article I summarized was titled “How to Read Academic Texts Critically”. I have created a bullet list of its most important points.
- Never read without a specific question in mind
- Dont read to whole thing, but select certain points which pertain to the research. ( weird because the other article said not to do this )
- Read the summary, conclusion, and abstract first
- Give personal responses
- While reading ask: What are the main points?, Can I put them in my own words? Could a different conclusion be drawn from the writing? Do I disagree with the author?
I think that the point I like the most in this article is to not read the whole thing, but search for questions which pertain to what I need.
Next I read “Writing for an audience”, by Linda Flower. She explains that you need to know who you want to read your paper before the researcher even starts. It doesn’t really matter to the audience that you didn’t enjoy writing it, as long as they are enjoying reading it. Flower tells us that you have to appeal to the readers attitudes to make your audience want to read the research that’s been done. Purdy then says that if the researcher want the reader to take them seriously, they will have a mastery of the English language. This means that the researcher will have to use correct punctuation, grammar, and spelling.
The article I found to go along with Linda Flower’s is written by Julia Purdy, and is entitled “How to Write for an Audience”. She starts off by relating the topic to Aristotle’s triangle, which says no matter if the audience agrees or disagrees, they will still enjoy your writing. They may enjoy it because they agree, or just enjoy disagreeing with you.
Knott, Deborah . “Critical Reading Towards Critical Writing.” Writing at the University of Toronto. Web. 8 Feb. 2010. http://www.writing.utoronto.ca/advice/reading-and-researching/critical-reading.
Flower, Linda. (2010). “Writing for an Audience.”
retrieved February 16,2010 from Marlen’s website.
http://marlenharrison.com/images/flower_writing_for_an_audience.pdf
Flake, K. (No Date). ”How to Read Academic Texts Critically”
Retrieved February 16,2010 from Vanderbilt University.
http://people.vanderbilt.edu/~kathleen.flake/skills/How_to_Read_Academic_Texts_Critically.htm
Knott, D . (No Date). “Critical Reading Towards Critical Writing.”
Retrieved February 16,2010 from the University of Toronto.
http://www.writing.utoronto.ca/advice/reading-and-researching/critical-reading
Purdy, J. (2009, March 31). ”How to Write for an Audience”.
Retrieved February 16,2010 from Suite101.com.
http://technicalbusinesswriting.suite101.com/article.cfm/how_to_write_for_an_audience
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