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Reading
and noting new perspective articles
Click here
to sample one of the articles on this site.
The journal is published simultaneously in print and electronically,
online in the Study Centre
Eight
simple to follow points to gain maximum reward for time and
effort spent reading and noting articles.
Articles
in new perspective are centred on themes or arguments. They
complement information from class texts and, while they may fill gaps in
foundation information, the focus for their use is added insight and
understanding and contributions toward the development of analysis and
sound judgement. It is these skills, when applied to well-grounded
information, that enable students to write high-grade answers.
To
benefit most from the time and effort spent on an article it is advised
that students be circumspect, rather than straightaway plough through
articles from beginning to end. These eight points to gain greatest
advantage from your reading may, at first, seem cumbersome and complicated
but once you have followed them for a few articles (or chapters from
textbooks) the approach will become second nature to you and then you will
really reap the benefits.
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Read
the heading, which is intended as an appetiser, and the summary.
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Then
skim over the subheadings to gain a fuller view of the direction of
content or arguments. If there is a short paragraph at the end with
the heading ‘Conclusion’ it is useful to skim read it.
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Familiarise
yourself with the key concepts and words, which may be new to
you, listed near the end of the article.
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Now,
prime your mind by reading the ‘Questions to consider’ at the
start of the article. You will be able to give answers to the
questions after you have read the article. By alerting your mind, you
are more likely to notice the reasons and information that provides
the answer as you read through.
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Now
read the body of the article. Your notes should be a summary of the
themes or arguments, with the information on which they are based,
mentioned by the author, added to support the statements.
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Aim
to write notes only after you have read a whole section, as denoted by
the subheadings. In the content and layout of your notes, the emphasis
should be on the writer's arguments and themes. With notes written,
add your answers to the questions.
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Always
write the source at the top of notes and space out what you write,
giving prominence to key items. Use indentation (writing that starts
farther to the right of the margin) to indicate items of dependent or
subsidiary importance. The best notes are concise but not too short.
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The
books listed at the end of an article are starting points if you wish
to take your study of the topic further.
Check
out Advanced
History students’ study guide
and/or Study and exam advice
on this site for much more information on study skills.
To
sample one of the hundreds of articles on this web site click here
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