hedge woundwort.
Who needs to learn how to read?
BRIAN CLARK
After all,
we all learned how to read fairly early in life, usually in elementary school,
right?
But do you
know how to really read?
More
importantly, are you really reading?
Reading can make you a better writer, as long as you’re paying attention
and leaving
time to actually write.
But what
we’re talking about here is what you say,
rather than how you say it.
If you
haven’t noticed, competition in the world of online content is fierce.
Anyone
playing to win is searching high and low for information that others don’t
have,
which for
many means subscribing to a ridiculous number of RSS feeds.
While
seeking out novel information from a wide variety of sources is admirable,
it doesn’t
necessarily give you an advantage. The ancient Greeks had a label for those
who were
widely read but not well read—they called them sophomores.
As in sophomoric… not a second-year college student
(I suppose
there’s not really much of a distinction).
Scanners and
Pleasure Seekers
We know that
people don’t read well online. They ruthlessly scan for interesting chunks
of
information rather than digesting the whole, and they want to be entertained in
the process.
This is the
reality that online publishers deal with,
so we
disguise our nuggets of wisdom with friendly formatting and clever analogies.
But that
doesn’t mean you should read that way.
If you’ve
been publishing online for even a small amount of time, you’ve seen someone
leave a
comment that clearly demonstrates they didn’t read or understand the content.
Even more
painful is when someone writes a responsive post that clearly misses the entire
point
of the
original article.
While it
happens to us all from time to time, you do not want to consistently be one of
these people. Credibility is hard enough to establish without routinely
demonstrating that you fail to grasp a topic you’ve chosen to write about,
whether in an article or a comment.
Plus, if
you’re doing nothing but scanning hundreds of RSS feeds
and reading
purely to be entertained, you’re at a disadvantage.
Someone in
your niche or industry is likely reading books and reading deeper
to become
the higher authority.
Or they will
after they read this article.
Information
vs. Understanding
People often
think of learning as an information-gathering and retention process.
But being
able to recall and regurgitate information is low-level learning
compared
with insightful understanding.
Bloggers are
big on regurgitation. These cut-and-paste creatives add value to the world
through a
mash-up of sources, right? Maybe, but without the ability to understand
and
communicate what it all means for the reader, you’re simply passing on your
reading obligations to others, and that’s not giving people what they look for
in a publication.
On the other
hand, if you understand everything you read upon a casual once over,
are you
truly learning anything new? The material that gives you an edge in the insight
department is the stuff that’s harder to understand. In other words, the writer is your
superior when it comes to that particular subject matter, and it’s your job to
close the expertise gap by reading well.
You do that
by moving beyond learning by instruction,
and
increasing your true understanding by discovery.
For example,
you read a challenging book full of great information,
and you
understand enough of it to know that you don’t understand all of it.
At that
point, you can dive into the book again and read more carefully.
You can go
to supplemental resources. You can read other books. All that matters is you do
the work rather than asking someone, and I guarantee you’re really learning in
the process.
For example,
next time you read a challenging blog post and you’re not clear on a point,
your first
inclination might be to ask a question in the comments. Instead, read the post
again.
If it’s
still not clear, go do some research on your own to see if you can figure it
out.
Then when
you finally do ask a question, you’re on an entirely different level of
understanding
and can
likely engage in a meaningful dialogue with the author.
Instruction
is important and beneficial.
But true
understanding comes from your own exploration and discovery along the path.
The Four
Levels of Reading
Back in
1940, a guy named Mortimer J. Adler jolted the “widely read” into realizing
they might
not be well read with a book called How to Read a Book.
Updated in
1973 and still going strong today, How to Read a Book identifies four levels of reading:
Elementary
Inspectional
Analytical
Syntopical
Each of
these reading levels is cumulative.
You can’t
progress to a higher level without mastering the levels that come before.
1.
Elementary Reading – Aptly named, elementary reading
consists of remedial literacy,
and it’s
usually achieved during the elementary schooling years. Sadly, many high
schools and colleges must offer remedial reading courses to ensure that
elementary reading levels are maintained, but very little instruction in
advanced reading is offered.
2.
Inspectional Reading – Scanning and superficial reading are
not evil,
as long as
approached as an active process that serves an appropriate purpose.
Inspectional
reading means giving a piece of writing a quick yet meaningful advance review
in order to evaluate the merits of a deeper reading experience.
There are
two types:
Skimming:
This is the equivalent of scanning a blog post to see if you want to read it
carefully.
You’re
checking the title, the subheads, and you’re selectively dipping in and out of
content
to gauge
interest. The same can be done with a book—go beyond the dust jacket
and peruse
the table of contents and each chapter, but give yourself a set amount of time
to do it.
Superficial:
Superficial reading is just that… you simply read.
You don’t
ponder, and you don’t stop to look things up.
If you don’t
get something, you don’t worry about it.
You’re
basically priming yourself to read again at a higher level if the subject
matter is worthy.
Stopping at
inspectional reading is only appropriate if you find no use for the material.
Unfortunately, this is all the reading some people do in preparation for their
own writing.
3.
Analytical Reading – At this level of reading, you’ve moved
beyond superficial reading
and mere
information absorption. You’re now engaging your critical mind
to dig down
into the meaning and motivation beyond the text.
To get a
true understanding of a book, you would:
Identify and
classify the subject matter as a whole
Divide it
into main parts and outline those parts
Define the
problem(s) the author is trying to solve
Understand
the author’s terms and key words
Grasp the
author’s important propositions
Know the
author’s arguments
Determine
whether the author solves the intended problems
Show where
the author is uninformed, misinformed, illogical or incomplete
You’ll note
that the inspectional reading you did perfectly sets the stage for an
analytical reading. But so far, we’re talking about reading one book. The
highest level of reading allows you to synthesize knowledge from a comparative
reading of several books about the same subject.
4.
Syntopical Reading – It’s been said that anyone can read
five books on a topic
and be an
expert. That may be true, but how you read those five books will make all the
difference.
If you read those five books analytically, you will become an expert
on what five authors have said.
If you read five books syntopically, you will develop your own
unique perspective
and expertise in the field.
In other
words, syntopical reading is not about the existing experts.
It’s about
you and the problems you’re trying to solve, in this case for your own readers.
In this
sense, the books you read are simply tools that allow you to form an
understanding
that’s never
quite existed before. You’ve melded the information in those books with your
own life experience and other knowledge to make novel connections and new
insights.
You, my
friend, are now an expert in your own right.
Here are the
five steps to syntopical reading:
Inspection:
Inspectional reading is critical to syntopical reading.
You must
quickly indentify which five (or 15) books you need to read from a sea of
unworthy titles. Then you must also quickly identify the relevant parts and
passages that satisfy your unique focus.
Assimilation: In analytical reading, you identify the author’s chosen language
by spotting
the author’s
terms of art and key words. This time, you assimilate the language of each
author
into the
terms of art and key words that you choose, whether by agreeing with the
language
of one
author or devising your own terminology.
Questions:
This time, the focus is on what questions you want answered (problems solved),
as opposed
to the problems each author wants to solve. This may require that you draw
inferences
if any
particular author does not directly address one of your questions.
If any one
author fails to address any of your questions, you messed up at the inspection
stage.
Issues:
When you ask a good question, you’ve identified an issue.
When experts
have differing or contradictory responses to the same question,
you’re able
to flesh out all sides of an issue, based on the existing literature.
When you
understand multiple perspectives within an individual issue,
you can
intelligently discuss the issue, and come to your own conclusion (which may
differ
from
everyone else, thereby expanding the issue and hopefully adding unique value).
Conversation: Determining the “truth” via syntopical reading is not really the
point,
since
disagreements about truth abound with just about any topic. The value is found
within the
discussion among competing view points concerning the same root information,
and you’re
now conversant enough to hold your own in a discussion of experts.
This is what
the “online conversation” was supposed to look like according to early
bloggers,
and
sometimes, it does. But mostly, the online conversation looks like the
unqualified, unsubstantiated opinions of the ill-informed, and you’re not
looking to be part of that scene.
Be a
Demanding Reader for the Win
Reading, at
its fundamental essence, is not about absorbing information.
It’s about
asking questions, looking for answers, understanding the various answers,
and deciding
for yourself. Think of reading this way, and you quickly realize how this
allows you
to deliver
unique value to your readers as a publisher.
If you think
all of this sounds like a lot of work, well… you’re right. And most people
won’t do it,
just like
most people will never blog or publish online in the first place.
That’s why
your readers need you. They need you to do the work for them,
because they
don’t want to become an expert. So, it’s your job to understand the complex
and grasp
the essentials, then make it simple, easy to read, and entertaining.
You’re on
it, right?
http://www.copyblogger.com/how-to-read/
A practical overview of Turbo Charged Reading YouTube
How
to choose a book. A Turbo Charged Reading YouTube
Advanced Reading Skills Perhaps you’d like to join my FaceBook group ?
Perhaps
you’d like to check out my sister blogs:
www.innermindworking.blogspot.com gives many ways
for you to work with the stresses of life
www.ourinnerminds.blogspot.com which takes
advantage of the experience and expertise of others.
www.happyartaccidents.blogspot.com
just for fun.
To
quote the Dr Seuss himself, “The more that you read, the more things you will
know.
The
more that you learn; the more places you'll go.”
Comments
WORLD TRAVELING ARTIST
As people
won’t learn to read online properly any time soon,
we’ve got to
stick to a several researches that point to the fact that the most important
information should be placed at the upper middle part of the screen.
Nice post
b.t.w.
SIMON
I’d not
heard of “How to read a book” – thanks a lot for bringing it to my/our
attention
Skim reading
without duly taking in the context or argument is something
that I’ve
been consciously guilty of for some time.
I’ve largely
failed in my attempts to remedy it so far, but this offers some great tips.
When I prune
my reading list to be able to concentrate more on my core areas of interest,
I’ll be sure to retain Copyblogger
JAMES
This may be
the best, most valuable thing you have published to date. And that’s saying
something.
I will try
to get my college-bound daughter to read this. It can only help. Thank you.
James
ULTIMATE BLOGGING EXPERIMENT
Just reading
other blog posts can make you a better writer.
I try to
explain that to my readers all the time.
JESSE HINES
Brian, Thanks
for the link.
Some great
points and perhaps controversial (but true) statements.
I love this
one:
“Plus, if
you’re doing nothing but scanning hundreds of RSS feeds and reading purely
to be
entertained, you’re at a disadvantage. Someone in your niche or industry
is likely
reading books and reading deeper to become the higher authority.”
It’s what
I’ve been trying to get across myself–that bloggers who regularly read books
written by
accomplished authorities and experts will become better writers
(both in style
and substance) than bloggers who only read blogs.
And:
“But being
able to recall and regurgitate information is low-level learning compared with
insightful understanding. Bloggers are big on regurgitation.”
All of us
bloggers know this, whether we’ll admit it or not.
Nice
explanation of The Four Levels of Reading.
I used Level
2: Inspectional Reading to read it. It looks like it “merits…a deeper reading
experience” so I’m going to reread it on Level 3.
Really good,
substantive, thought-provoking post.
CHRIS PEARSON
Looks like
somebody’s been reading Mortimer J. Adler syntopically.
JOEL MARK WITT
I don’t
usually leave comments all that often on blog posts but I had to say – Well
put.
I know that
I get overwhelmed with the bulk of information online.
I think that
we oftentimes swap great books and “deeper” reading material for quick blog
posts
and even
twitter feeds.
Those that
are succeeding in online publishing master the fundamentals you’ve laid out.
Joel Mark
Witt
FRANCIS ABLOLA
Very true…to
be a better writer, even a direct response copywriter,
you must
become an avid reader.
Reading
fiction novels develop story telling skills and stories draw people into
reading sales letters.
“How To Read
A Book” is a must. I first picked up a copy when the self-help guru Jim Rohn
mentioned it at one of his seminars.
NIMIC
This article
expertly highlights the differences between being well read and being well,
read.
The amount
of cutting and pasting in the world of blogs, and even in real life is
maddening.
I recently
wrote an article on Fight Club on my blog. In addition to my readers,
I showed it
to a bunch of friends and family members. Not one of them understood
what the
movie was about. Hint: It’s not about crazy people blowing stuff up.
Basically,
with any media, I feel that most people have become sophomoric, in that they
consume the information, regurgitate quotes and viewpoints, but never truly
understand anything.
ETC.
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