Reading Comprehension: What does key concepts mean by reading a college/university textbook?

Answer 1

Key concepts indicate the main concepts, themes, and/or ideas. Many of these concepts in textbooks are bold or italicized; however, not all of them are. One way to think of key concepts are the words or phrases that contribute to the overall idea. For example, if I'm reading a paragraph about wind turbines, what key words are going to help me understand the paragraph as a whole so I grasp the main concept of what a wind turbine is and does. Another example could be in a history textbook. What words or phrases truly help me grasp the event that took place. If those words and phrases were taken out, the main concept would not be understood. So the key concepts are simply the words or phrases an author uses to help understand the MAIN concept.