Library staff are always talking to our students and one of the things that a lot of students tell us is that when you start your university programme and begin your modules, the amount of reading that you are expected to do seems overwhelming.

The good news is that the library is here to help. As you work through this tutorial you will learn about what is expected but will also find some strategies that will help you decide what to read and how to read (as a student).

By the end of this course you will be able to:

• Explain the difference between reading as an interest and reading as a student
• Identify critical questions that can be used when reading, writing and when completing other academic activities
• Identify and find appropriate sources to develop understanding of a topic
• Determine when help is needed and where to find support

We think working through this tutorial in full will take you less than an hour. You can also complete a specific section if it is more relevant to the skills you need to develop.

Attribution Information

• Questioning activity adapted from My Learning Essentials developed by The University of Manchester Library, and licensed under CC BY-NC 3.0. My Learning Essentials © The University of Manchester.
• Critical Thinking Model Plymouth University, Learning Development, 2010 and Learnhigher via creative commons NC-SA licence

Images not owned by the University of Sunderland are taken from Unsplash or Pixabay under creative commons licences