How to Become a Better Reader & Thinker

Reading and critical thinking work together.

Becoming a better reader and thinker go hand in hand and work in tandem. This improvement involves increasing your reading speed and understanding of the words on the page. Critical thinking asks you to take the understanding of the words on the page further as you try to relate what you read to larger themes within the work and, beyond that, relating the work itself to the world in which we live.

Things You'll Need

• Dictionary
• Notebook
• Pen or pencil

Instructions

1. Practice improving your reading skills by reading often and voraciously. Reading whenever you have the chance will help to improve your reading speed and comprehension. You are training your eyes and brain to connect with words. Read the newspaper if it's on the bus seat, or read signs as you pass them. All of this is practice to help when you read text for critical thinking.

2. Read actively. As you read, pay attention to the meaning of each word. If you come across a word and you don't know the meaning, look it up or make a note to look it up when you have access to a dictionary.

3. Read with purpose and deeper meaning in the text. This idea is generally considered finding your theme statement. When you choose or are asked to read for critical thinking, you usually start with a goal or a destination in your reading.

4. Ask questions of the text and of how you perceive the text as you read. Don't take any passages for granted. Analyze the text. Objectively look at your own belief system against what the work may represent. Ask yourself if this colors your world or the way you read the work.

5. Read with discipline. This means reading to understand systems of thought, according to The Critical Thinking Community, and we read for concepts, points of view, structure, theories, interpretations, conclusions, problems and solutions. Evaluate your own conclusions.

Tips & Warnings

• If possible, meet with a study group to discuss ideas so you can find other responses to the work you are reading.

References

• Townsend Press: How to Become a Better Reader and Thinker
• Painless Reading Comprehension By Darolyn E. Jones
• Critical Reading: Critical Reading v. Critical Thinking
• Foundation for Critical Thinking: Critical Thinking & The Art of Close Reading (Part One)
• Empire State College: Academic Reading & Critical Thinking

Resources

• Strategies for Success: Critical Thinking