Page 26 - ACADEMIC REDING

Activity 3

After reading the essay entitled “Should Schools Switch to Electronic
Textbooks to Save Money & Paper?”, discuss in groups whether college
students should use online textbook or printed textbook.

2. Identifying Main Ideas and Details

Being able to understand the main idea of a passage is a very useful reading
skill to develop. It is a skill you can apply to any kind of reading. The main idea of

a passage is the thought that is in the passage from the beginning to the end. In

a well-written paragraph, most of the sentences support, describe, or explain the
main idea. It is sometimes stated in the first or last sentence of the paragraph.
Sometimes the main idea must be inferred as it is not stated.

Use these clues to help find the main idea:
o Read the first and last sentences of the paragraph (or

the first and last paragraphs of the article). Authors often
state the main idea near the beginning or end of a paragraph.

o Pay attention to any idea that is repeated in different
ways. If an author returns to the same thought in several

different sentences (or paragraphs), that idea is the main or
central thought under discussion.

o Look for a sentence that states the main idea. This is the
stated main idea.

o Look for reversal transitions at the beginning of
sentences. Some samples of reversal transitions: But,

Nevertheless, Nonetheless, Unfortunately, Even so, On the
contrary, etc.

o Once you feel sure that you have found the main idea,
test it. Ask yourself if the sentence could act as a summary of

the other sentences in the paragraph.

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