How-to Deck EPQ session

Transcript

1. How to approach reading Journal articles Check the date to ensure it's relevant to your work. Check whether it's peer- reviewed. Read the abstract for a summary of the article. Look out for relevant subject headings and key phrases. Read the introduction first followed by skim-reading the first sentence of each paragraph, before deciding to read the rest of the article.
2. How to approach reading Journal articles What are the main ideas or arguments that author is trying to convey? Does the article aim to prove or disprove an existing theory, or is it proposing a new idea? How does this article fit into the existing field of study? What experimental methods were used (if applicable), and could these be repeated? Are there any missing details that would be helpful to know? Why could these details be missing?
3. How to approach reading Academic books Check the date that it was published. Has anything important in the field been published since then? Read the table of contents and ask yourself if the book contains the material you need. When reading a chapter you can skim ahead. You don't have to read the whole book! Use the headings and subheadings to find what you need.
4. How to approach reading Academic books If this book was written a long time ago, is it still relevant? Or does it contain some historical context that I need? How is the book structured? Are the order of the chapters important to my understanding? If this book is trying to convince me of something, what is its main argument? How could I summarise the information in this book?
5. How to approach reading Government reports Look for the most recent data or something in the time frame that you are researching. Try to find an executive summary version, or read the introduction and conclusion to see if it's relevant to you. Use the table of contents to find specific information. Read the full article for more information if you have time and it seems relevant.
6. How to approach reading Government reports How does the data presented fit in or contradict what I already know? Are there any conflicts of interest between the third-party sources that they have used? Are there any technical terms that I need to find the definitions for? What is the government's political agenda related to this topic?
7. How to approach reading Newspapers Check the source and the political affiliation of the paper. Be aware that bias may be present. Check the date it was written. Use the title and introduction to see if it's relevant to you. Skim the rest of the article to find key information. Cross-check facts with other sources. Check suggested links to other articles at the bottom of the page. Check for any infographics as they may be more helpful than the article itself.
8. How to approach reading Newspapers What type of newspaper am I reading (e.g. tabloid or broadsheet) and how reliable do I think it is? What are the main points of the story? Who are the target audience? Is there any evidence of bias or a political affiliation? Has any information been omitted that could affect how the reader interprets the story? How can I cross-check the validity of this information?
9. How to approach reading Blogs & Vlogs Check the credibility of the content creator. Check for political affiliation or paid content to gauge bias. Try to guess the intended audience, and consider the implication of this. Read through the blog/watch the vlog, and check the sources and references of any facts given. Look at recommendations given by the website you are using. These recommendations are usually relevant to the topic you are researching.
10. How to approach reading Blogs & Vlogs What is the background or expertise of the author/creator? Does the author/creator have any vested interests, e.g. paid adverts, or other known biases? Where did they source this information? Is there evidence to back up what they're saying? Do they refer to other credible sources of information?
11. How to approach reading Wiki articles Wikis should not be your primary source for research, but they’re a good starting point. Read the introduction to check if it's relevant to you. Use the table of contents to find more specific information. Write down any vocabulary that you don't understand, and re-read sections to check your understanding. Always check the references at the end of the page to assess their reliability. Do follow-up reading to check your facts and investigate more credible sources.
12. How to approach reading Wiki articles How can I cross-check this information with other sources? Where will I find these other sources? Does the information support what I already know? Are references given to support the information in the article? How reliable are these references? Does the information in the article match the information from the references?