Tips on How to Read Scientific Articles Easily

Name : Anis Septianingsih

Class : 4E

NPM : 1910631060066

Critical Reading

How to Read Scientific Articles Easily

Entering the world of lectures, the source of learning material is more varied than during high school. In high school we learned more from textbooks, teacher explanations, and the internet. In college we would often face scientific journals. Reading scientific journals is a regular activity for college students. When there are assignments, lecturers relatively more often ask students to look for sources from scientific journals. Compared to textbooks, scientific journals are more appropriate as references because usually the research is more updated. So, in conclusion, reading scientific journals is mandatory for college students.

For those of you who are struggling with assignments and stacks of scientific articles or journals, follow these simple tips for reading and understanding scientific articles or journals:

1. Start reading from the Introduction, not the Abstract.

Abstract contains a brief description / summary of the entire contents of the journal. In the abstract alludes to the background, methods, results, and conclusions of the journal. However, sometimes the abstract content does not explain the contents of the journal. So, so that you don't just quote, first understand the research background that is listed in the opening chapter.

2. Find the big question

What's important isn't "what is research about?" but "what, is the problem of this research that you want to solve?". If you start from that question, you will be more focused when reading scientific journals. The purpose of research is to solve a problem, right? From this big question, later you will better understand why this research should be done.

3. Make a summary from the background, not more than five sentences

The introduction section contains some important things such as what previous research has been done, the importance of doing this research, and what further research should be done. So, try to make a summary of this information. If you know the basic flow of research thinking from a scientific journal, you will also find it easier to understand the whole content.

4. Create a diagram or workflow from the methods section

The content of the method is the steps the researcher takes to answer the problem of his research. In the method, the researcher will tell the method used. For experimental research, for example, of course the tools, materials, and treatments given to the object are included.

5. Read the results section

After reading the results section, you can summarize it. No need to try to conclude the content of the results, really. It is enough to write down what is the result of the research. And actually, you can see the contents of the results through existing charts and tables. There are several pieces of information that you should pay attention to when reading the results section. For example, regarding the significance and insignificance of the results. In addition, the sample size used must also be considered. Is the sample used sufficiently representative?

6. See the conclusion

A good conclusion is one that answers the heart of the problem. For example, there is research on the effect of the duration of social media use on adolescents on academic achievement. The conclusion section must answer whether there is a relationship between social media and achievement. Even if a relationship is found, it must be clarified whether it is significant (significant) or not.

7. Refer to the Abstract section to confirm your understanding of the entire journal

If you have read the sections of the journal in sequence from the opening, the method, the results, to the conclusion, this is the time for you to start reading the abstract section. Actually, this is to double-check whether what you caught from the journal is appropriate or not. If you find that something is wrong, you can reread the part that is still misunderstood.

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