1.1: Introduction to Integrated Reading and Writing

Integrated Reading and Writing

Reading and writing are integrally connected. Before we consider the connection between reading and writing, we must consider how our brains function when we read something. Reading is a workout for our brains and essential to keep it sharp. When we read, we process the ideas, relate it to our own life experiences and create new knowledge. Reading stands at the heart of the process of writing academic essays. No matter what kinds of sources and methods you use, you are always reading and interpreting text. Most of us are used to hearing the word “reading” in relation to secondary sources, such as books, journals, magazines, websites, etc. But even if you are using other research methods and sources, such as interviewing someone or surveying a group of people, you are reading. You are 'reading' the subjects’ ideas and views on the topic you are investigating. When you study photographs, cultural artifacts, and other non-verbal research sources, you are 'reading' them by trying to connect them to their cultural and social contexts and to understand their multiple meanings. Principles of critical reading, which we are about to discuss in this chapter, apply to those research situations as well.

In the following video "Why Reading Matters," Rita Carter a writer, broadcaster and journalist who specializes in the workings of the human brain, discusses how reading creates new pathways in our brains.

Reading and writing are not two separate activities, but two tightly connected parts of the same whole. That whole is the process of learning and the creation of new meaning. It may seem that reading and writing are complete opposites of one another. According to the popular view, when we read, we “consume” texts, and when we write, we “produce” texts. But this view of reading and writing is true only if you see reading as a passive process of taking in information from the text, and not as an active and energetic process of making new meanings and new knowledge. Similarly, good writing does not originate in a vacuum, but is usually based upon, or at least influenced by, other ideas, theories, and stories that come from reading. So if, as a college student, you have ever wondered why your writing teachers have asked you to read books and articles and write responses to them, it is to help you actively engage with the reading and respond to it meaningfully.

As rhetorical processes, reading and writing cannot exist without each other. The goal of good writers is to engage the readers into a dialog presented in their writing. Similarly, the goal of a critical and active reader is to participate in that dialog and to have something to say to the writer and to others. Writing leads to reading, and reading leads to writing. We write because we have something to say, and we read because we are interested in what others have to say.

Reading what others have to say and responding to them helps us make that all-important transition from simply having opinions about something, to having ideas. Opinions are often over-simplified and fixed. Different people may have different opinions that they are not willing to change or adjust. Ideas, on the other hand, are ever evolving, fluid, and flexible. Our ideas are informed and shaped by our interactions with others, both in person and through written texts. In a world where thought and action count, it is not enough to simply “agree to disagree.” Reading and writing, used together, allow us to discuss complex and difficult issues with others, to persuade and be persuaded, and, most importantly, to act.

Contributors

• Adapted from EDUC 1300: Effective Learning Strategies(opens in new window). Provided by: Lumen Learning. Public Domain: No Known Copyright(opens in new window)
• Adapted from Writing for Success(opens in new window). Provided by: The Saylor Foundation. LCC-NC-SA(opens in new window) 3.0(opens in new window).