How to read : three-pass approach

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Post

Created date

Jun 15, 2022 06:01 AM

Three-pass [Post]

1st pass : a general idea about the paper

Take 5-10 mins to get a bird’s eye -view:

Read the title, abstract, and introduction with care.

Read the section and sub-section headings.

Go through all the available mathematical/statistical content to determine the underlying theoretical foundations of the paper.

Go through the conclusions.

Browse over the references and mentally tick the ones you’ve read already.

2nd pass : grasp its content

Examine presented figures, diagrams and other illustrations, by paying special attention to graphs.

Mark references you find relevant so that for later readings and a great way to learn the backgrounds of the studied paper.

Summarize the paper into a few short key points along with some supporting evidence.

3rd pass : understand an article in depth

Helpful for readers who need to fully apprehend the contents of the paper, as is in the case of manuscript reviewers.

Make an effort to “virtually re-implement” the paper – that means to re-create the work and assumptions of the authors.

Requires a huge attention to details as innovations and assumptions. Moreover, some hidden authors’ failures may be identified here.

Through the process of virtually re-implementing the work you challenge your thoughts and redirect them to approach the paper proactively.

Here, you are also focusing your attention on writing down possible ideas or recommendations for future research.

The third pass can take from three to five hours for beginners and up to one hour for an experienced reader.

By the end of

1st pass : Ask

Is this paper useful or of interest?

Does this paper makes you easier to validate some of the author(s)’ claims?

What level of knowledge do I need to fully understand the paper ?

answer five C’s when you are done

Category:

What type of paper is this?

Is it an experimental study?
A combined analysis of previous studies?
An introduction of a new methodology?

Context:

Which other literature papers is it related to?
What were the theoretical bases that were used to analyze the problem?

Correctness:

Are the assumptions valid?

Contributions:

How does the paper contribute to the existing scientific understanding?

Clarity:

Is the paper well-written and easy to understand?

2nd pass : Ask

Are the axes properly labeled?

Are the results shown with error bars, so that conclusions are statistically significant? (Keshav, 2012, p. 1-2). This will help you to distinguish good work from those that are poorly done.

What are the 3-5 points you can Summarize ? (What are their evidence?)

3rd pass : Ask

when you want to re-implement the idea, what are the assumption?

what are the possible ideas or recommendations for future research?

The first pass gives you a general idea about the paper

centers on getting a bird’s-eye view of the read paper so performing a quick scan that takes up to 5-10 minutes.

determine whether the paper will be useful or of interest and make it easier for you to validate some of the author(s)’ claims.

gauge the level of knowledge you require to fully understand it.

Things to skim

Structure of an academic paper

Read the title, abstract, and introduction with care.

Ignore everything apart from the section and sub-section headings.

Go through all the available mathematical/statistical content to determine the underlying theoretical foundations of the paper.

Go through the conclusions.

Browse over the references and mentally tick the ones you’ve read already.

answer five C’s when you are done

Category:

What type of paper is this?
Is it an experimental study? A combined analysis of previous studies? An introduction of a new methodology?

Context:

Which other literature papers is it related to?
What were the theoretical bases that were used to analyze the problem?

Correctness:

Are the assumptions valid?

Contributions:

How does the paper contribute to the existing scientific understanding?

Clarity:

Is the paper well-written and easy to understand?

The second one helps you grasp its content.

Examine presented figures, diagrams and other illustrations, by paying special attention to graphs.

Answer these questions:

Are the axes properly labeled?
Are the results shown with error bars, so that conclusions are statistically significant? (Keshav, 2012, p. 1-2). This will help you to distinguish good work from those that are poorly done.

Do not forget to mark references you find relevant. It is important for later readings and a great way to learn the backgrounds of the studied paper.

Try to Summarize the paper into a few short key points along with some supporting evidence.

The third pass that allows you to understand an article in depth.

Helpful for readers who need to fully apprehend the contents of the paper, as is in the case of manuscript reviewers.

Make an effort to “virtually re-implement” the paper – that means to re-create the work and assumptions of the authors.

Requires a huge attention to details as innovations and assumptions. Moreover, some hidden authors’ failures may be identified here.

Through the process of virtually re-implementing the work you challenge your thoughts and redirect them to approach the paper proactively.

Here, you are also focusing your attention on writing down possible ideas or recommendations for future research. The third pass can take from three to five hours for beginners and up to one hour for an experienced reader

This paper further explain the details of this approach.