EAPP Handout 1 o Annotating a text help you determine essential
ideas or information, main ideas or arguments,
Reading Academic Texts
(Fundamentals of Reading Academic Text)
Academic Text – a reading material that provides
information which include concepts and theories that
are related to the specific discipline.
General Purposes for Reading an Academic Text
 To better understand an existing idea
 To get ideas that can support a particular writing
assignment
 To gain more information
 To identify gaps in existing studies
 To connect new ideas to existing ones
Structure of Academic Text
 Academic texts are typically formal
 They have clearly structured introduction, body, and
conclusion.
 They include information from credible sources
which are properly cited.
 They include a list of references used in developing
the academic paper.
Content and Style of Academic Texts
(In general, authors observe the following when
writing academic text.)
 They state critical questions and issues.
 They provide facts and evidence from credible
sources.
 They use precise and accurate words while avoiding
jargon and colloquial expressions.
 They take an objective point-of-view and avoid
being personal and subjective.
 They list references.
 They use hedging or cautious language to tone
down their claims.
Critical Reading Strategies
Before Reading
 Determine which type of academic text you are
reading.
 Determine and establish your purpose for reading.
 Identify the author’s purpose for writing.
 Predict of infer the main idea or arguments of the
text based on its title.
 Identify your attitude towards the author and the
text.
 State what you already know and what you want to
learn about the topic.
 Determine the target audience.
 Check the publication date for relevance.
 Check the references list while making sure to
consider the correctness of the formatting style.
 Use concept map or a graphic organizer to note
your existing ideas and knowledge on the topic.
During Reading
 Annotate important parts of the texts.
and new information or ideas.
Ways to Annotate a Text
 Write key words or phrases on the margins in bullet
form.
 Write something on the page margin where
important information is found.
 Write brief notes on the margin.
 Write questions on information that you find
confusing.
 Write what you already know about the ideas
 Write the limitations of the author’s arguments.
 Write notes on the reliability of the text.
 Comment on the author’s biases.
 Use a concept map or any graphic organizer to note
down the ideas being explained.
 React on the arguments presented in the text.
 Underline important words, phrases, or sentences.
 Underline or circle meanings or definitions.
 Mark or highlight relevant/essential parts of the
text.
 Use the headings and transition words to identify
relationships in the text.
 Create a bank of unfamiliar or technical words to be
defined later.
 Use context clues to define unfamiliar or technical
words
 Synthesize author’s arguments at the end of the
chapter or section.
 Determine the main idea of the text.
 Identify the evidence or supporting arguments
presented by the author and check their validity and
relevance.
 Identify the findings and note the appropriateness
of the research method used.
After Reading
 Reflect on what you learned.
 React on some parts of the text through writing
 Discuss some parts with your teacher or classmates.
 Link the main idea of the text to what you already
know.
Other Reading Strategies
 SQ3R Method of Reading – stands for Survey (or
Skim), Question, Read, Recite (or Recall), Review.
1. Survey
o Skim the target text.
o Check the heading and tables, diagrams, or
figures presented in the text.
o Read the first few and last sentences of the text
to determine key information.
o Get a feel of the text.
2. Question
o Annotate the headings with your questions.
o Develop questions on the types of information
you expect from the text.
3. Read
 o Look for answer to your questions while
reading.
o Stop and slow down if the passage is not clear.
o Make sure to proceed reading only when you
already understand the previous texts.
4. Recite
o Recount the main points of the text.
o Recall by writing a summary or synthesis based
on what you understand of the text.
o Highlight or underline the important points you
read.
5. Review
o Re-read the question you wrote and see if you
can answer them.
o Evaluate what you learned to ensure that you
are convinced and satisfied with the
information presented in the text.
 KWL Method – To apply KWL method, simply make
a table with three columns. In the first column,
write what you know about the topic (K); in the
second columns, list down what you want to learn
(W); and in the last column, write down what you
learned (L).
Structure of a Specific Academic Texts
o Depends on a primary purpose of a text which in
turn determines how it is written.
o What information the author introduces in the
text
o How this information is organized
Nine main Structures
1. Definition – explain the nature of something
2. Description – gives concrete details about the
appearance, characteristics and actions
3. Recount of Sequence – chronological narration
4. Cause and Effect – presents the reason why a
situation is obtained
5. Comparison and Contrast – presents similarities
and differences
6. Enumeration – listing parts and characteristics of
examples
7. Problem Solution – starts off with a negative
situation and ends with positive situation
8. Classification – presents groupings, types, classes,
categories
9. Thesis evidence – argues, points, interpretation