RUB Research School

Wr_07: ONLINE Boost your reading skills for your writing: reading scientific literature efficiently

For researchers from all research fields | Level all

Online Workshop

Date: 24.-25.06. + 27.06.2024 (4 hrs each day)
Time: 09:00 to 13:00 h each day with flexible time schedules and breaks + 2 hours individual work
Trainer: Dr. Martha Boeglin
Language: English
Participants: max. 20 persons
Credit Point: acknowledged with 0,75 CP for the doctoral training programme of RUB-RS Certificate

Course description

The workshop will facilitate you to read faster and understand scientific literature quicker, increase retention, organize your reading process efficiently, stay focused and work with scientific literature more organized for your own papers and theses.

In this reading workshop you will learn efficient techniques that will definitively improve your way of dealing with scientific literature. Dealing with tons of papers will no longer seem to be an overwhelming task. You will know how to select what you need and how to find information fast. You will be able to understand your texts quicker, reading in an active way. This worskhop is enterily action-oriented. You don’t only learn what to do – you do it.

Objectives of the course:

  • Increase your reading speed.
  • Understand quicker, retain more.
  • Save time by organising your reading flow.
  • Take notes for your future writing projects.
  • Break out the passive reading habits by learning efficient techniques to deal with information.

Content of the course:

Three techniques to increase your reading speed:

  • Three ways to skim your text.
  • One exercise to move your eyes quicker.
  • Stop jumping from reference to reference: how to focus on your text.

Three techniques to read a text actively:

  • Define your reading goals – and reach them.
  • Pose questions efficiently to interrogate the texts.
  • Visualize the text structure to identify its logic.

 A matrix to take notes on literature for future writing projects:

  • Taking notes is more than copying-pasting!
  • Structure your notes to find information quickly.
  • One tip to prepare your notes according to your thesis outline.

Three ways to increase retention:

  • Draw a graph: your brain retains pictures better than words.
  • Rephrase a content with your own words.
  • Recapitulate a text orally.

Four methods to sharpen your critical mind:

  • Exploit others’ texts to create new ideas.
  • Put different texts into perspective to review literature.
  • Write a critical report.

Methodology: This course is a reading workshop. It is project-based. You will work on your own literature applying different reading techniques. The course alternates individual work, peer work and plenary sessions.

All sessions will be recorded - you will have access to all replays during one month.

Trainer:

Dr. Martha Boeglin studied Philosophy in Strasbourg and Berlin and did her PhD in Philosophy at the University of Strasbourg. Since 2002 she is a trainer for academic writing and an expert writing coach. 

Please click here to register for the workshop: REGISTRATION

After you logged in for the registration you can identify the workshop by the first four characters (e.g. Wr_01, Pr_01) together with title and date.

What is this workshop about?

The workshop supports 

  • a professional and efficient approach to research literature
  • techniques to read faster & to understand scientific literature quicker
  • to work with scientific literature more organized
  • participants work with examples from own literature