Critical thinking, reading and taking notes

2. Critical thinking, reading and taking notes Developing Business Practice –302LON Unit: 4Knowledgecast: 1

3. Module Learning Outcomes In this Knowledgecast, we will: • Analyse a range of learning styles and the factors that influence successful study • Evaluate current academic skills and present a plan for the development of academic skills • Demonstrate a critical understanding of the importance of independence in learning and the need for a ‘growth’ mindset

4. Module Overview

5. 4 Steps to Develop Your Reading Skills

6. Step 1: Be Clear About Your Purpose • What are you try to achieve? • Why do you want read about the subject? • What type of information are you looking for? • How will you use this information now or in the future?

7. Step 2: Choose What to Read • Identify your options • Identify all your options • Use a selection criteria • Make your selection

8. Step 3: Choose How to Read • Go back to your purpose • Use the Index and Contents pages • Use Introductions and Summaries • Scan for key words • Identify the main arguments • Take good notes • Apply what you’re learning

9. Step 4: Read Critically • Engage with the content • Relate to other sources • Think about the context and period when the writer was active • Think about the assumptions

10. Recognising Key Terms

11. Analysing Arguments

12. What are we going to cover next? • In our next Knowledgecast, we will look at: • Analyse a range of learning styles and the factors that influence successful study • Evaluate current academic skills and present a plan for the development of academic skills • Demonstrate a critical understanding of the importance of independence in learning and the need for a ‘growth’ mindset

13. Knowledgecast Summary In this Knowledgecast, we have looked at: • Analyse a range of learning styles and the factors that influence successful study • Reading and Critical Thinking skills for academic and business sources • Evaluate current academic skills and present a plan for the development of academic skills • Evaluate and develop your skills by applying a new framework to reading and analysing sources • Demonstrate a critical understanding of the importance of independence in learning and the need for a ‘growth’ mindset • Take responsibility to apply reading and critical thinking skills in your studies and in the workplace

15. Seminar – Critical Thinking

16. Seminar: Creative Note Taking • An introduction to Mind Maps • Creating your own mind maps

17. Group Activity – Creative Note Taking Source: Buzan, T. et al (2007)