{"id":58985,"date":"2021-08-24T04:47:10","date_gmt":"2021-08-24T08:47:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/world.edu\/?p=58985"},"modified":"2021-08-24T04:47:10","modified_gmt":"2021-08-24T08:47:10","slug":"up-to-80-of-uni-students-dont-read-their-assigned-readings-here-are-6-helpful-tips-for-teachers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/world.edu\/up-to-80-of-uni-students-dont-read-their-assigned-readings-here-are-6-helpful-tips-for-teachers\/","title":{"rendered":"Up to 80% of uni students don\u2019t read their assigned readings. Here are 6 helpful tips for teachers"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\nUniversity course readings are pivotal to advance student knowledge and prepare them for class discussions. Despite this, only\u00a020-30% of students<\/a>\u00a0read the assigned materials. Drawing on research findings that help explain this alarmingly low rate, this article offers some strategies to help students engage with their required readings.<\/p>\n

Over the past two decades educators have raised concerns about changing patterns of student motivation, engagement and comprehension of academic reading. The power of technology, media and apps have affected student reading patterns.<\/p>\n

Studies indicate that\u00a0students are reading more slowly and comprehending less<\/a>. They often struggle to\u00a0read anything beyond an excerpt<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The challenging statistics on reading show a steep decline in student reading compliance. These trends are emerging not just at primary and secondary education level, but\u00a0increasingly at a university level<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Students often underestimate the\u00a0centrality of course readings<\/a>. They rarely regard textbooks and academic papers as their\u00a0primary source of information<\/a>.<\/p>\n

This often results in a lack of class participation, rich conversations and, at times, assessment quality.<\/p>\n

In our increasingly technological world, new online and application solutions have assisted students with motivation and supported their learning preferences. Digital technology has made access to academic texts more flexible. However, some\u00a0researchers<\/a>\u00a0argue screen-based reading may compromise the quality of the readers\u2019 engagement.<\/p>\n

Why are readings so often left unread?<\/strong><\/h4>\n

A comprehensive\u00a0study<\/a>\u00a0identifies four main reasons university students don\u2019t engage with course readings:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. unpreparedness due to language deficits<\/li>\n
  2. time constraints<\/li>\n
  3. lack of motivation<\/li>\n
  4. underestimating the importance of the readings.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    \u201cUnpreparedness\u201d is an alarming finding, as it highlights deficits in language understanding and use. Some students have\u00a0limited knowledge of technical terms<\/a>\u00a0used in courses, which explains why they struggle to understand assigned course literature.<\/p>\n

    Social and cultural dimensions also influence student engagement (or disengagement) with readings. For example, students\u2019 previous experiences, year in university, and native versus non-native (English) speakers can all play an important role in their perception of, and attitudes to, readings.<\/p>\n

    Students naturally approach the assigned content with their own unique expectations and strategies. Some may review the reading, take notes and google summaries, while others may\u00a0translate each unknown word or difficult concept<\/a>.<\/p>\n

    Don\u2019t just blame the problem on students<\/strong><\/h4>\n

    The engagement with readings is often seen as an exclusively student-centred problem. I urge a move away from this view. Instead, I invite educators, learning designers and educational developers to reconsider the methods we use to integrate assigned academic literature in the course design.<\/p>\n

    Research<\/a>\u00a0indicates that educators struggle to clearly communicate the rationale for why students need to read and how these texts contribute to their learning. We need to recognise different student personalities and anxieties, and to develop flexible ways for students to interact with academic literature.<\/p>\n

    But don\u2019t students know that reading matters? Isn\u2019t that what being at uni is about? Maybe, but here\u2019s the problem.<\/p>\n

    Teachers regularly engage with complex papers, books and reports. Over the years they develop effective approaches to tackling the academic content.<\/p>\n

    Most students, on the other hand, have limited, if any, exposure to such texts. Many have\u00a0low reading confidence<\/a>. This results in situations where students face a black box (of readings) and are simply expected to know what to do with it, how to do it and, importantly, why.\u00a0First-year and international students<\/a>\u00a0are particularly familiar with this scenario.<\/p>\n

    How can educators improve engagement with readings?<\/strong><\/h4>\n

    Educators often use questions and reflections<\/a>\u00a0to determine whether students have learned or missed anything in the readings. While it is a good starting point, quite often these sessions are done to test students rather than foster their learning. So, what else can we do?<\/p>\n

    With the development of\u00a0blended<\/a>\u00a0(in person and online) and technology-rich learning environments, educators can use mixed approaches to engage students with assigned readings. We can divide these into pre-class and in-class strategies.<\/p>\n

    Ideas for pre-class strategies:<\/p>\n