by Terry Heick
Critical reading is reading with the aim of critically examining the text and its ideas.
To add a little more to this definition, we could say: “Critical reading is reading with the aim of critically examining the text and its implicit and explicit themes and ideas. »
What is critical reading? To expand on the simple definition above, critical reading is the close and attentive reading of a text to fully understand it and evaluate its merits. It’s not just about skimming a text or reading plot points; Rather, critical reading requires that you read carefully and thoughtfully, taking into account the structure, purpose, and intended audience of the text, among other characteristics (e.g., tone, mood, diction, etc.)
See also The definition of critical thinking
Critical reading is the process of reading texts to fully understand them. This involves asking questions about the author’s intention, the structure and purpose of the text, and the meaning of individual words and phrases. Critical readers also consider the context in which a text was written and how different audiences might interpret it.
What is a critical reading strategy? A critical reading strategy is anything the reader does to help them evaluate a text critically.
See also Create a culture of reading in your classroom
What are some examples of critical reading strategies?
Critical Reading Strategies
Deduct (“Reading between the lines” is the act of identifying and examining implicit messages and biases.)
Claim/counterclaim (detailing each and how they work/don’t work together in a specific text; mind mapping can be helpful here)
Logging (during or after reading to reflect on both the text and the process of evaluating that text)
See also 8 of the Most Important Critical Thinking Skills
Text marking
Proofreading
Adjusting the playback rate
Understanding tracking
SPQ: Stop, Paraphrase and Question
The Contrarian (viewing the text from a specific perspective other than your own – often the opposite of your beliefs, opinions or perspectives)
Critical Objectives (reading a text while “seeing” that text through a specific concept or category – including socio-economic, historical, gender, race, sexuality, and other “concepts” or realities; this can help uncover biases, create new meaning previously inaccessible to the reader, and, perhaps most importantly, help the reader understand the subjectivity of reading and the impact of our own biases on our understanding of the texts we read and the world around us).
See also How to Help Your Students See Quality
Why is critical reading important?
Critical reading is important because it allows you to read and analyze a text critically, breaking it down into its constituent parts and evaluating its strengths and weaknesses. It also helps you understand the author’s purpose in writing the text and how it relates to your own life.
As a process of reading texts focused on understanding and evaluating the arguments and evidence presented, critical reading involves asking questions about the text, making connections to other texts, and thinking critically about the author’s argument. Critical reading is necessary for success in school and life because it allows you to critically evaluate information and make informed decisions.
How to Read Critically
To read critically, one simply reads to identify and evaluate the “quality” of a text.
Quality can mean different things depending on the purpose and context of a text. Note that quality here is different from the “quality” of literature, film, or other fiction. In these cases, there are certainly specific quality criteria, but they relate to the ability to convey compelling fiction (e.g., telling a “good story”). Using dialogue to establish characters, using conflict staging, and weaving a unifying narrative through dozens of small events, each done with the goal of helping the reader slowly uncover some truth about themselves or the world around them—these are the types of practices that help determine the quality of fiction.
In the nonfiction form – essays, for example – quality is more about the clarity and relevance of a specific claim and the author’s ability to demonstrate the importance and truth of that claim.
Wikipedia offers a good example of the need for critical reading: “Psychologist Cyril Burt is known for his studies on the effect of heredity on intelligence. Shortly after his death, his studies on heredity and intelligence were discredited after evidence emerged that he had falsified research data. A 1994 article by William H. Tucker is illuminating both about how “critical reading” has been carried out in the discovery of the falsified data as well as in the “uncritical reading” of many famous psychologists of Burt’s articles. Tucker shows that recognized experts in the field of intelligence research blindly accepted Cyril Burt’s research, even though it was of no scientific value and probably directly falsified: they wanted to believe that IQ is hereditary and uncritically examined the empirical claims supporting this point of view. This article thus demonstrates how critical reading (and vice versa) can be linked to beliefs as well as interests and power. structures. »
Types of Questions to Ask When Critical Reading
Critical reading is the process of analyzing a text to understand its meaning and evaluate its argument. When you read a text critically, you ask questions about the author’s purpose, the evidence he provides, and the logic of his argument.
Who says what to whom? In other words, who is the author, what is his message and to whom is this message addressed?
Is this true? According to what standard?
Does the thesis pass the “So what?” ” challenge. In other words, are the claims convincing and meaningful? Is this worth understanding?
What is explicitly stated? What is implied? What is the relationship between the two?
What are the assumptions underlying both the text and the claims it makes?
Does the knowledge (facts, truths, information, data, etc.) contained in the text represent our current best understanding of things as they are today? If not, what has changed and why? And what impact does this change have on the strength and meaning of the text itself?
What is a fact and what is an opinion?
What is the meaning of this text?
What are the assertions in this text? Are these statements clear? Relevant? Convincing? New? In other words, has this already been said?
What reasons are given to support these assertions? Do these reasons match the allegations? In other words, is evidence-based reasoning accurate?
In other words, is the evidence-based reasoning accurate?
By framing questions like these, you can not only guide your own understanding of the text, but you can also begin to learn how arguments (and the texts that contain them) are constructed. This can help students form their own rational, strong arguments while allowing them to practice analyzing and evaluating the merit of arguments made by others (these may be formal academic arguments or informal “arguments”/claims made in real, everyday conversations in their lives).
The Critical Reading Mindset
We bring ourselves to a reading and the “me” that we were is forever changed, if only slightly. Acquiring knowledge changes us and reading is a process of acquiring knowledge. The same text read five years ago now has new meaning because the meaning is not in the text but in your mind which has changed over that time. This type of awareness illustrates the need for critical reading (and critical thinking while reading).
See also Critical thinking is a state of mind
As human beings, we understand too little and lack too much information and perspective. This leads to humility being one of the most important reading strategies in critical reading. By bringing this mindset to a text, we have a better chance of assessing the reasoning strength of a text and, in doing so, improving our own knowledge and critical reasoning skills.
In Why Students Should ReadI said, “When we read – really, really – for a while, a part of us that is normally very loud becomes quiet and limp as our minds begin to unravel new ideas. Then, pushing further, we look inward, turning our skin inside out to expose our bare, pulsing nerves to the text. We build a sense of self to resist the momentum of the text, then rummage through the debris when all is finished to see what remains. behind.”
Reading is interested in what was said, comprehension is interested in what was meant, and critical reading is interested in what is said. actually true.
