Skip to Main Content
Webpage header image

ENG104: Introduction to Research Writing: Reading Sources

An orange background with the words Research Process on the left. To the right are 3 arrows labeled Video, Graphics, Activity to indicate the order to engage the page content

Reading sources in order to write a paper uses a different strategy than reading something for fun. They don't need to be read front to back. Use the strategies and skills outlined below to better approach sources for research.

Step 1: Video

This video will go over strategies for reading for scholarly articles. It will help you identify important sections when researching to help you read your articles efficiently!

Reading Scholarly Articles

Step 2: Graphics

Scroll through the images below to learn about how to approach reading different types of scholarly articles. There are quite a few ways to categorize scholarly articles, but one easy way to determine the best strategy is to decide whether or not your article contains an experiment or study in it or not. These two examples below will show you how to approach each type.

 

An image labeled Review of Scholarly Articles. Text on the image are split into two columns. The left column is labeled With a Study. The text below that heading are in bullet points. 1. Abstract is the best place to start. It will summarize the article including results of any experiment and the question the author is trying to answer. 2. Keywords provide the idea of main topics covered in article. 3. Introduction (also the literature review) is less helpful, and often give more background and history than introduction. 4. Methods (sometimes labeled methodology, procedures, design or study). It will describe how researchers designed the experiment. 5. Results is the section where you will find graphs, charts, tables, etc. It will discuss results of experiments, not the answer to the research question. 6. Discussion (this is sometimes combined with the conclusion section). It's a great place to start. It describes and explains the results found and puts results in a larger scholarly context. 7. References are more than just a list of other articles cited. They can be used to find more similar or related research on your topic. The right column is titled Without a Study. The text below are in bullet points. 1. It may or may not have an abstract. 2. Introduction does a better job of introducing the article topic or question. 3. Headings are more descriptive of the content of that section. 4. Scholarly articles without a study tend to have citations throughout the article. 5. Look out for tables, graphs, charts, etc. These may have definitions, descriptions, or identifications (this information is sometimes found in the surrounding text). 6. Conclusion will explain scope of an article. It will be helpful when trying to understand the argument the article is trying to make. 7. Reference is more than just a list of other articles cited. They can be used to find more similar or related research on your topic.

A screenshot of the first page of a scholarly article. A label at the top says Scholarly article with an experiment. The abstract is circled in a blue box. In a corresponding blue text box is the following text: The abstract is the best place to start reading. It will summarize the article, including results of any experiment and the question they are trying to answer. The keywords on the article are circled in green. In a corresponding green text box is the following text: Keywords from an article will help you find more similar articles and give you an idea of the main topics covered. A purple text box is over the beginning of the article and has the following text: Introductions are less helpful places to start as they often give more background and history than introduction.
Page 2 of a scholarly article with a study in it. The first column of text has a burgundy text box. The text in the box is: The section of the introduction that has a lot of citations is called the Literature Review. It explains how this study or article fits into the scholarly conversation that already exists on this topic. It sets the stage and background about what has already been discovered. It's best to come back to this section after figuring out what this study or article is about. It also contains definitions of terms. The methods section of the article is circled in pale blue. The corresponding pale blue text box says: Method sections indicate this article contains a study. It can also be called methodology, procedures, design or study. It will describe how researchers designed the experiment (step-by-step directions), who or what is included, how they plan to measure it, and any tools or tests (sometimes called instruments) they use to do so. This is a great place to start reading to identify what they're trying to learn before reading the results and discussion.

Step 3: Activity

Use the appropriate worksheet below to guide your reading of a scholarly article. First determine which worksheet to use. You can do this by looking for a Methods or Methodology section. Only articles discussing an experiment or study will have those. Use the categories to help you unlock these articles.