📘 How to Read an Academic Paper (Without Getting Overwhelmed)

By DalatTESOL
👉 This guide shows you how to read academic journal articles effectively, using simple strategies and practical examples tailored to EFL/TESOL graduate students.

Let’s be honest: academic articles can feel intimidating—especially when you’re new to research. Long texts, dense arguments, statistical tables, and references everywhere. But don’t worry—reading papers is a skill, and like any skill, it can be learned.

This article offers a step-by-step method for reading academic papers strategically—not from start to finish like a novel, but with a clear purpose.

🎯 Step 1: Know Why You’re Reading It

Start by asking:

Am I reading for a literature review?
For ideas to design my study?
To learn about a theory or method?
Just to understand a topic better?

👉 Example: If you’re writing a thesis on intercultural pragmatics, you may only need to read a paper’s literature review and findings—not its full statistical procedure.

🔍 Step 2: Start with the Abstract and Conclusion

These two parts tell you:

What the study is about
What it found
Whether it’s useful for your purpose

📌 Tip:

Highlight or copy phrases from the abstract that relate to your topic—e.g., “intercultural miscommunication,” “EFL learners,” “pragmatic awareness.”

🧱 Step 3: Skim the Structure (Don’t Dive Yet)

Check the headings:

Introduction
Literature Review
Methodology
Results
Discussion
Conclusion

Then skim each section briefly. Try to understand:

What kind of study is it? (qualitative, quantitative, mixed?)
What’s the research question?
Who are the participants?
What are the main findings?

🧠 Step 4: Read in Layers – Not Line by Line

Instead of reading the whole thing slowly, read in layers:

🔹 First Pass:

Just skim—underline key sentences in the intro, method, and findings.

🔹 Second Pass:

Focus on sections that serve your purpose.

Need background? Focus on lit review
Need methodology ideas? Focus on method
Need findings to support your claim? Go to discussion/conclusion

🧾 Step 5: Take Notes in Your Own Words

Avoid copying long quotes. Instead, note:

The author’s main idea
What they found
How it relates to your study

👉 Use a citation like:

Nguyen and Bui (2021) explored how EFL students in Vietnam manage intercultural misunderstandings, emphasizing the role of pragmatic instruction.

This makes it easier to integrate into your assignments or thesis later.

📊 Step 6: Don’t Fear the Statistics (Just Find the Story)

If you’re not trained in statistics, skip complex numbers for now. Look for:

Whether the result was “significant”
How groups differed
What the authors say the numbers mean

🧡 Focus on the interpretation—not the formula.

🧩 Step 7: Use a Reading Log or Summary Table

Keep a spreadsheet or notebook with:

Author & Year
Research Question
Methods
Key Findings
Notes or quotes
Relevance to your topic

This is gold for your literature review.

📘 Step 8: Revisit the Paper Later

Some papers make more sense the second or third time, especially after reading others in the same topic.

👉 Think of it like this: Each article is a piece of the puzzle—you don’t need to understand it 100% at once.

🧠 BONUS: Questions to Ask While Reading

What is this paper trying to answer?
What concepts or theories are central?
What’s unique or new in this study?
How does it relate to my research or interest?
What gaps or limitations do the authors mention?

🚫 Common Mistakes to Avoid

Reading everything in order without skimming
Getting stuck on difficult paragraphs
Ignoring the abstract or conclusion
Copying large blocks of text into notes
Thinking you must understand everything

✍️ A Final Note from DalatTESOL

Reading academic papers is not about finishing every word. It’s about extracting useful knowledge that supports your own learning and research.

The more you read, the easier it becomes to see patterns—familiar theories, methods, and common findings.

So start with purpose. Read with curiosity. And remember—you’re joining a global scholarly conversation, one page at a time.