Newspaper is the most important document engineered to present the globe into the piece of paper. Newspapers are published periodically and contain written information about various sections of the world.
Some interesting facts about newspapers
First newspaper in india
The First newspaper in India was published on 29 January, 1780 by James Augustus Hickey.
Name of the First Indian newspaper: The Bengal Gazette
Most Circulated Newspaper In India
List of english newspapers that tops the list of circulations
| The Times Of India |
| The Hindu |
| The Economic Times |
| Hindustan Times |
Why does everyone ask for correct newspaper reading techniques?
Assuming that you all are planning to take admissions to the higher level of education, you must have heard the question “how to read newspapers?” from a lot of peers. Why is this question so frequently asked?
Because there is a massive array of information available, so most of us get confused while reading newspaper articles.
However, this confusion needs to be addressed, because every entrance exam consists of a section named Current Affairs, for which reading newspapers is necessary.
Newspaper reading will also help a lot in dealing with two other sections of the exams which are General Awareness and General English.
So let us discuss Newspaper Strategies.
How to start newspaper reading at a beginner level
- First try to develop reading habits, as most of us start energetically and end up losing interest day by day.
- Start reading small articles first and try to understand them.
- Summarize what you have read.
- Do not worry much about insights of the article as of now because you just need to develop consistency first.
- Gradually pickup the articles with more content and analyze them.
- Keep your dictionary or mobile dictionary with you.
Moving on to advanced level of newspaper reading
At this stage, we will learn optimization which means you need to read the useful articles only. Optimization will pave your way to maximum benefits in minimum time.
At this level you have developed a regular habit of reading newspapers. Now you have to analyse what things you need to skip and from where you can get the useful information. This is called elimination method.
Things you must read
- Front Page
- National News
- International News
- Opinion and Editorial Section
- Education Section
You can also read the fitness section because ”A healthy mind lives in a healthy body”. A person preparing for a competitive exam needs to be physically and mentally fit so as to give his/her 100% in the examination.
What not to read
You need to understand that every news is not important from an examination point of view.
- Minute political issues, especially the “gossip” kind
- Entertainment news, except for major awards and events
- Regional and local news, unless you are preparing for state related exams.
Major sections to focus on
First of all you need to analyze the exam you are appearing in and its syllabus. Familiarity with syllabus is a must thing so that you can align your newspaper reading with topics which are in your syllabus. As of now we are listing some of the major topics you should read up on, which are definitely going to save your time.
| News containing events of national and international importance |
| Government Policies And Schemes |
| Indian Economy |
| Science And Technology |
| Bilateral Relations Between Countries |
| Visits of PM and Presidents |
Some Other Tips
1. Do a sincere analysis of previous year question papers
A keen analysis of previous year question papers will help you to know about your exam. You will get an idea of which section of current affairs your exam is focusing on from past years.
2. Make handy notes
- Hand made notes will act as a booster at the time of revision
- You will be able to revise all the useful in a less time
- Also writing notes will make you remember the things for a long time
3. Use digitization of newspapers
Nowadays preparation for any examination has become very easy thanks to technology. Most of the prestigious newspapers are available online. Also there are many applications available on PlayStore or AppStore that are built with respect to exams perspective.
- You can save the content online for future reference
- Built in search options are available on e-newspapers so you can search for any topics.
For example you can check the online “The Hindu” newspaper. It is a carbon copy of the offline paper but with value added features. You can also Download The Hindu Vocab App to enhance your vocabulary.
Some other advantages of reading newspapers
At the end, let me just re-emphasize how important news paper reading is to you. Here are are few more benefits in addition to the ones written above:
- Improves you reading and understanding skills
- Improves your general knowledge
- Enhance your vocabulary
- You can be a game changer in a Group Discussion, since many entrance exams have GD as a part of the selection process.
So go on and start reading the newspaper daily from tomorrow onward!
