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When a piece of writing or a study material is easy to
comprehend, you will definitely spend less time understanding it (compared to
when it is difficult) and really, that is how things should be. Or, maybe I
should clarify that that is one thing I have realised as a reader too. I
believe that the goal of every writer should be to be easily understood by
their readers. As a writer, you are likely to make maximum impact when you are
able to communicate your ideas or thoughts in a way that all or most of your
readers can clearly understand them. So, except in cases where the target
readers are expected to be familiar with the nature of the material, no matter
how seemingly difficult it may be, or the objective of the writer or
recommender of the text includes the creation of a learning experience in the
minds of the readers through some form of mental exercise, no communication
material should be written in a way that makes it hard for any fairly
knowledgeable reader or potential reader to understand.
However, we all know that that is not the case and
perhaps, that has never been the reality in written communication. Not all writers
write to be understood by almost anybody and not all readers can easily
understand the simplest kind of material. So, when an essential material
appears difficult to understand, what can you do to still comprehend it? Well, there
are certain techniques that you can apply to derive maximum understanding from
any kind of material and I will share the ones I know shortly.
Examine How the
Material Is Structured or Organized from the Beginning to the End
While this does not guarantee an absolute or even
better understanding, you may find it helpful. If you are familiar with or have
previously observed how materials in the same category as difficult material
you are reading are usually structured, you will know if the one you have with
you conforms or not. If you are new to such kinds of materials, try to find
materials that are easy to understand but belong to the same category as the
difficult material and compare their structures or organizations. Ascertaining
whether the material you are reading conforms to the usual convention might
help you realise how best to study and understand it. For instance, if the
material is not well-structured, you may find out from the table of content
that it is better to read randomly in a way that will improve your
understanding than to follow the serial arrangement used by the writer. Also,
you might notice in the preliminary pages that the author actually gave useful suggestions
on what you can do to enhance your understanding of the material.
Identify the Actual Cause of the Difficulty You Are Experiencing
Most times, authors
of written materials follow industry-specific writing standards and have
conscious reasons for writing the way they do. Their reasons are not so hard to
detect. If it is not the about the way everyone writes that kind of material,
it would probably be about the way they have personally chosen to write the
material. Once you have realised that a material seems quite difficult for you
to understand, consciously analyse why the material seems difficult. Are there
too many jargons? Using a dictionary or reference manual might solve that. Do
you find the information presented abstract? Consulting additional material or
finding examples might solve that. Are there no examples you can relate to? Discussing
with a more experienced person might solve that. Are the sentences disjointed? Editing
the material first might solve that. Is the author unable to convey their ideas
or findings meaningfully due to poor lexicon? Contacting the recommender of the
material or revising the material might solve that. Regardless of what the
nature of the difficulty you are facing is, what you need to do is to first identify
its root cause(s) and then seek the best ways to overcome them.
End of Part 1. Please click here to read the concluding part.
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