Though Term 1 has just started, you may be finding it hard to keep up with your required reading, especially if you study the Arts and Humanities. Readjusting to – or just beginning – university life is big, so don’t feel like you’re the only one who’s skimming or skipping texts (and seminars). I’m a third-year English Literature and Creative Writing student, and here are my tips on trudging through required reading:
Understanding Teacher Expectations
Most of them won’t say it, but they know that you won’t do all the reading. Once upon a time they were students too, so they know how difficult it can be. Shocker, right? Many a seminar has featured a professor reminiscing about their own student days and how low the attendance was after club night, or nobody wanting to go to that 9am class. I don’t even go clubbing and I still struggle to drag myself to class. One thing that makes university life different from sixth form and secondary school is that it really is your responsibility to do the work. Your teachers won’t nag you for it, and they’ll only check in on the odd occasion. Ultimately though, it’s down to you. Your professors get paid either way, and if you aren’t prepared for that seminar, then it’s you who’ll be missing out. I get it though, it’s hard to do all the reading. And so do your professors. At the end of the day, they’re people too, so show them some respect and try your best to contribute.
The Power of Skim-Reading
Contrary to popular belief, your teachers don’t expect you to have a deep understanding of every set text. Skim-reading, when done right, can be an absolute lifesaver. It’s better than a Sparknotes summary (which I am certainly guilty of) and you’ll be secure in the knowledge that you’ve read the text without missing out on other things. Most of the time, you’ll recap the reading in class before moving onto the harder stuff. In my experience, the professor wants to gage how confident the students are anyway, so both sides benefit. After all, there’s no point delving deeper if the required reading isn’t understood. This is especially true for first year, where the class would begin by sharing thoughts on the text(s) before delving deeper. These could be surface-level comments, such as what character you liked/disliked the most, or they could be more insightful and link to the context.Skim-reading is absolutely acceptable, especially when you have multiple modules with heavy workloads. I know this is something I did often when deadlines were coming up, and it takes so much pressure off. Be selective about what you focus on. What are your eyes most drawn to? There’s a reason for it, and these descriptions are likely key to the narrative. This way, you understand the main events and be able to talk about the writing style.
Set Timers
There’s nothing worse than when your workload is piling up but you feel utterly unmotivated. Trust me, I’ve been there. I have, however, started to set timers to keep me going. I wouldn’t recommend constant use of them, unless you’ve really got your life together, but it definitely helps for when you have lots of note-taking to do but no idea where to start. The reason I’m against frequent use of them is because it makes the days seem repetitive and indifferent. I’ve found this to work especially well when your required reading is not made of one chunky text but rather multiple extracts or short stories. Also, setting timers is good for dealing with general workloads, such as: cleaning, reading, note-taking, essay planning and more. It’s also good for the ego, making you feel accomplished and productive. At least that’s how I feel. The Pomodoro Technique is quite popular, where a 25-minute timer is set, then followed by a 5-minute break, before starting up again. This is absolutely great for productivity, but there is no need to be so regimental with it. If you’re struggling to get started, try setting a 10-minute timer and tidying bits around your room. Maybe put some work into their folders or highlight your notes. Start off small and achievable, easing yourself into it. Once you’ve done that, go for a 20-minute timer and try to summarise your required reading. Or use the time to do some of the reading. After a break, you could go for a 30-minute timer, or whatever feels natural for you. Eventually, once you’ve gotten used to setting timers, you could launch straight into a 30-minute block. I tend to switch between 20 and 30-minute timers, doing between 2-4 hours of work a day with this method. It works well, but not in the long run. If you go at it too hard, you’ll burnout. So don’t forget to give yourself some downtime!
Experiment with Alternative Methods
It sounds bizarre, but there are other ways to do the reading without doing the reading. For example, audiobooks, Youtube videos and critical essays. They’re all great ways to understand a text and see how others interpret it. On top of that, they’re great for when you need a break from staring at words on a page (or a screen). As an English student, the majority of my work outside of seminars involves reading. So, it really piles up. When I know that I’m not going to be writing an essay on that book, I’ll often watch video essays on it and do some skim-reading. On the other hand, if it’s a book I’m genuinely interested in, watching these videos can really help deepen my understanding. In first year, a lot of the texts studied will be classics, so finding material on them is not difficult. In terms of audiobooks, they’re definitely great ways to listen to a book whilst doing other things, but the obvious downfall is the amount of time it takes to complete them. With this in mind, I’d only recommend audiobooks for texts that you won’t be discussing in class for another few weeks. This could be good for the Christmas holidays, or for when you’re wanting to get ahead.
So, I hope these tips have helped you out, or at least given you someplace to start. If nothing else, you’ve killed a few minutes of phone scrolling, so take this as your sign to start a task or take that dirty plate into the kitchen.
