RAWS

• Reading


  A cognitive process of decoding symbols to derive meaning from a text
• Reading Strategies


  • Previewing
  • Skimming
  • Scanning
• Previewing


  • Looking at the readily visible parts of the text
  • Getting an idea of what a text is about without actually reading the main body of the text
• Previewing


  1. Read the title and author details

  2. Read the abstract (if there is one)

  3. Read only parts that stand out like main headings or subheadings, chapter summaries, or any highlighted text

  4. Examine illustrations or graphs and their captions

  5. Read the first sentence of each paragraph
• Skimming


  • Looking at the main point of the reading and identify the ideas that develop it
  • Running your eyes quickly over large chunks of text to locate relevant sections from a large quantity of written material
• Skimming


  1. Note any bold print and graphics

  2. Start at the beginning of the reading and glide your eyes over the text very quickly

  3. Do not actually read the text in total
• Scanning


  Reading to look for specific information
• Scanning


  1. After gaining an overview and skimming, identify the sections of the text that you probably need to read

  2. Start scanning the text by allowing your eyes (or finger) to move quickly over a page

  3. As soon as your eye catches an important word/phrase, stop reading
• Writing


  The process of using symbols (letters of the alphabet, punctuation, and spaces) to communicate thoughts and ideas in a readable form
• Writing


  • The content and the form must be present
• Writing Process


  1. Pre-writing

  2. Organizing

  3. Writing

  4. Revising

  5. Editing

  6. Writing the final draft
• Pre-writing


  The invention or brainstorming stage where you narrow your topic into the most important and relevant
• Pre-Writing Strategies


  • Brainstorming
  • Clustering
  • Outlining
• Brainstorming


  Listing or jotting down as much ideas as you can within a given amount of time
• Clustering


  Finding the relationships between ideas by putting a subject forth, enclosing it in a circle or underlining it, and then connecting other related ideas to it
• Outlining


  The process of laying out the main ideas, key concepts, supporting details, and evidence to be included in the paper
• Instructors may require you to submit an outline with the final draft of a paper, and you should revise the outline to reflect any changes you made while writing the paper
• Two Types of Formal Outlines


  • Topic Outline
  • Sentence Outline
• Topic Outline


  Uses words or phrases instead of complete sentences
• Sentence Outline


  Uses complete sentences instead of words or phrases
• Both topic and sentence outlines are formatted the same way
• A topic outline lists words or phrases, while a sentence outline lists complete sentences
• Characteristics of a good outline

  • Logical subordination - the subtopic must be related to the main topic but it should not exceed or be equal to the main topic in terms of importance
  • Parallel structure - each level must be of the same grammatical form
• Traditional formal outline


  Indention helps clarify how the ideas are related
• Parts of a traditional formal outline

  • Introduction
  • Main point 1
  • Supporting detail
  • Subpoint
  • Main point 2
  • Supporting detail
  • Main point 3
  • Supporting detail
  • Conclusion
• Characteristics of a good or viable outline

  • Logical subordination - Subtopic must be related to main topic but not exceed or be equal in importance
  • Parallel structure - Each level must be of the same grammatical structure
  • Proper mechanics - Correct capitalization and punctuation, no punctuation at end of topic outline
• Writing an outline may vary for each writer
• The following characteristics are vital for an outline to be considered good or viable
• In a topic outline, there is no punctuation at the end
• In a sentence outline, shifts in voice (passive to active) or form (statements to questions) must be avoided
• In a topic outline, if the first main topic is in noun phrase form, the subsequent main topics must also be noun phrases
• The subtopic must be related to the main topic but it should not exceed or be equal to the main topic in terms of importance
• Each level in an outline must be of the same grammatical structure
• Proper capitalization and punctuation must be used in constructing an outline
• Reading


  A cognitive process of decoding symbols to derive meaning from a text
• Reading Strategies


  • Previewing
  • Skimming
  • Scanning
• Previewing


  • Looking at the readily visible parts of the text
  • Getting an idea of what a text is about without actually reading the main body of the text
• Previewing


  1. Read the title and author details

  2. Read the abstract (if there is one)

  3. Read only parts that stand out like main headings or subheadings, chapter summaries, or any highlighted text

  4. Examine illustrations or graphs and their captions

  5. Read the first sentence of each paragraph

  
• Skimming


  • Looking at the main point of the reading and identify the ideas that develop it
  • Running your eyes quickly over large chunks of text to locate relevant sections from a large quantity of written material
• Skimming


  1. Note any bold print and graphics

  2. Start at the beginning of the reading and glide your eyes over the text very quickly

  3. Do not actually read the text in total