Can one learn to read faster?

[Will]

I was just wondering if one can learn to read faster? I read all the time, but it seems like I'm reading at a really slow pace. I can read approx. 30 pages an hour. I have friends who can read something like 80 pages an hour, or some kind of ungodly speed. So, what do you think; can one learn to read faster? And, if so, how?

 

[Red5]

I believe one can train themselves to read faster, yes. I'd need to search for any further information though. I'll try to find something of interest to you soon, but I'm sure the others here may well be able to help out! ;-)

 

[Will]

Thanks, Red5.

 

[dduck]

I was just wondering if one can learn to read faster? ... And, if so, how?

I'm interested to know what others have to say. But one tip is:

Eye movement

Slow readers tend to have eye movements such that they 'bounce' between words. They're actually reading one.......... word ......... at ....... a ........ time.

Faster readers tend to use eye movements that don't 'bounce'. The eye movement is similar to a straight line drawn through the sentence. You can practice doing this - you should move your eye about 3 to 4 times faster along the line. You're no longer focusing on the words to understand the meaning, instead the words are automatically absorbed by the brain. Try it.

You can speed up or slow down your eye movements according to the complexity of the reading material.

I still haven't figured out how to read paragraphs or pages at a glance.

Iain

 

[Tdol]

It also depends what you are reading and the reason. If you're reading a novel and the objective is just to get to grips with the plot, then you can jump descriptive passages, etc. ;-)

 

[Will]

I've been trying to find some stuff on-line about this stuff, and what dduck says is what I'm doing. I read on word at a time, and that "just absorbing" thing doesn't make sense.

 

[Tdol]

It's strange- I can read at speed, but I'm afraid I can't really say how I do it. ;-(

 

[Will]

I've asked my friends how they read at those insanely fast speeds, and they don't know either. They say they just do. It angers me.

 

[Tdol]

Sorry. ;-(

 

[Will]

Don't worry about it. :wink: I was just trying to see if I could improve my reading speed for college. I'll be going next year, and probably majoring in English, and I don't read all that fast. I wanted to see if I could improve on that.

 

[Tdol]

I learnt preety quickly when they expected a novel read by the next day. Needs must as the devil... ;-)

 

[Will]

Yeah, that's what scares me, too.

 

[Tdol]

Don't get too wound up about it- that'l only reduce your chances. Once you get into the idea that it is possible to read at that speed, then you're more likely to be able to do so. Negativity is often self-confirming. The opposite is equally valid. ;-)

 

[Will]

Well, dduck, I tried what you said to do last night. I used the blunt end of a pencil, and drew an imaginary line through the words to help me not to look back at previous words. I got my speed up to 40 pages an hour. Thanks.

 

[dduck]

I've been trying to find some stuff on-line about this stuff, and what dduck says is what I'm doing. I read on word at a time, and that "just absorbing" thing doesn't make sense.

The key point here is to understand is that your brain works really fast while your one-word-at-a-time eye movements are really slow. As you've already found, if you streamline your eye movements, you're effectively increasing the speed of data arriving at your brain. Which, remember, is really fast. Some people can read a book in a couple of minutes! It's that fast!

When I used the word 'absorb' I was trying to highlight the difference between 'focusing' on the words and reading with less 'care'.

Glad to hear you've made progress.
Iain

 

[Will]

So, people who can read really fast don't really 'absorb' it, they can just move their eyes as fast as their brain can 'absorb' the material? Did that make sense?

 

[dduck]

Some people can just 'look' at a page and understand everything on it. No eye movement involved. These people don't read in straight lines, but in pages.

Iain

 

[Will]

Holy schneikies!!! :shock: :!: That'd be awesome!

 

[Tdol]

I heard of an examiner here, who said she read exam scripts by looking down the centre of each line rather than by reading everything. She said that she could reconstruct the rest of the line without reading it. I'm not too sure I'd like to be marked like that.

 

[Will]

Me neither. :roll: