we discuss how some of those reflections could be drawn together , or contrasted , thereby mirroring the synthesising of ideas that is expected in their academic work . The important thing for students to remember is that rather than just stitching together a collection of sources in their academic work , it must be clear to the reader why this information has been included and how it supports the argument conveyed .
Reflections on the resource and adapting it for future use
This resource was designed as one of three activities in Level 5 ( second year , undergraduate ) and Level 7 ( postgraduate ) workshops on the theme of ‘ returning to study ’. During these workshops , it became clear that time for discussion was too limited and students wanted more time to reflect on how the themes in each question could be applied to the academic context . Therefore , I devised a workshop on the topic of academic reading , with this resource as the main activity . Whilst anecdotal feedback has been positive , there are still opportunities to adapt the resource further .
The first iteration of this resource included three different versions of Hansel and Gretel as the example texts . Students only became aware of the differences once working through the questions in small groups . Whilst this created interesting discussion , replicating this in an online environment proved challenging . The decision to focus on a single text , Rumpelstiltskin , still allowed for small group discussions in online breakout rooms , but reduced the administration of sending different texts to participants and organising groups comprising students who had read different versions of the story .
Moving forwards , it could be possible to re-introduce a variety of texts to the delivery of this resource . Following feedback from a colleague , I wrote a version of Hansel and Gretel from the viewpoint of the witch in order to facilitate conversation around context ( Question 2 ), however , this text is yet to be used in a workshop . In addition to variations on a single story , different fairy tales could also be used , with students selecting which text they work with . Takagaki ( 2002 , cited in Nguyen and Henderson , 2020 , p . 5 ) suggests that allowing students to select material leads to “ increased motivation and improved student attitudes to academic reading ” as students feel empowered when given this agency . Furthermore , offering students the choice of using a printed version or an online version of the text , may allow for individuals to engage with the material in a way that suits their own “ preferences and reading styles ” ( Lim and Toh , 2020 , p . 27 ).
Additional questions can be used to highlight other aspects of academic reading . For example , Shahabudin ( 2011 ) notes that extensive reading lists and access to a vast array of online resources can become overwhelming for students . Whilst the facilitator could introduce these ideas in response to Question 1 above , a more focused discussion on how to select appropriate reading materials would be helpful . This would also allow for consideration of the function of different types of documents ( Manarin et al ., 2015 ) and the credibility and authenticity of materials ( Miller and Merdian , 2020 ). Similarly , facilitators working in different subject areas may wish to add questions that draw attention to particular aspects of academic reading within their field . The key aspect of the resource is to ensure that each question is applied to the academic context .
In previous workshops this resource has been the central activity , but there are various opportunities to use this as a stimulus for further support for academic reading . For example , using a range of texts and creating a hypothetical assignment question relating to the fairy tales could encourage students to take an “ informed position based on a thoughtful evaluation of multiple perspectives ” ( Nguyen and Henderson , 2020 , p . 4 ), thus mirroring the process of preparing an academic assignment . Also , during the discussion at the end of my presentation at ‘ Becoming Well Read 2021 ’, participants commented on how this resource could be an introductory activity to further reading instruction such as Academic Reading Circles ( Marinkova and Leslie , n . d .) and this is
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