This is a guest post by Matthew Douglas
In the era of information overload, effective learning techniques have never been more essential. Whether you’re a student, professional, or lifelong learner, absorbing and retaining large volumes of information can be daunting. Enter the SQ3R Method — a powerful reading comprehension strategy designed to optimize learning by encouraging active engagement with the material. This article explores the SQ3R Method, its benefits, and how to apply it to enhance your learning experience and information retention.
So What Exactly Is the SQ3R Method?
SQ3R was introduced by Francis P. Robinson, a prominent American educational psychologist, in his book “Effective Study” (1946). In a very recent article in the journal Reading Literacy, Stahl and Armstrong (2020), define Robinson as a pioneer in the development of postsecondary literacy theory, research, and pedagogy who, despite his enormous and various contributions to the field of reading and learning, is most widely known by SQ3R. Now that we understand the history, let’s go through the five steps needed to use the SQ3R method:
1: Survey
The first step in the SQ3R method is to Survey the material. Before diving into a detailed read, take a few minutes to skim through the text. The goal is to get a general overview of the content. Here’s how to effectively survey a text:
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