Speed Reading

[IWilKikU]

Do any of you guys speed read? I'm reading "The Speed Reading Book" by Tony Buzan and it's increadible. When I started I was horrified to discover that my reading speed was right around 155 wpm. I'm about half way through and I'm going at about 700 wpm now. The goal of the book is to have you at 1000 wpm. Its already totally changed/revolutionized the way I look at a paragraph, a page, and an entire book.

[den]

Really? Does it help you absorb what you're reading though? It depends on how I'm feeling, and like, right now I've got pneumonia, so I'm feverish and stuff, and I can barely read a paragraph and not have to start over... :( Likewise when I'm depressed.

My ability to recall information is dodgy, so I find that reading slower , and I'm notorious for pencilling all over books to underline things I want to refer back to, are really my best bets for reading and comprehension in the first place.

[crisaor]

"Thanks to a speed reading course, I was able to read Crime & Punishment in 10 minutes. I believe it said something about Russia..."
:) :D

[azmuse]

i used to speed read. then i hit 19/20 yrs old, read some really deep stuff that i couldn't absorb at one gasp, and it slowed me way down. i still read fast, but it took about 5 years before i noticed a change back, and it's not as phenom as before.

[IWilKikU]

Originally posted by den
Really? Does it help you absorb what you're reading though?

The book that I'm useing has speed + comprehension tests in it. At first, when my speed was 155 wpm my comprehension and recall was 77%. Then when I first started speed reading it dropped to about 60%, but one day I was doing it and somthing just clicked and my next test was 80%. So my comprehension has actually gone UP since I started speedreading.

[azmuse]

...my guess, den, is that i've always read fast precisely because of interest in the text. and when interested, how can absorption fail to follow? if i don't like a book i don't mire through it though; i leave it either completely or for another day/in some cases, a more appreciative state of consciousness (on the road, for example).

[Dr Cynic]

Actually I've read a couple of books on this subject. One in English [Effective Reading, a Teach Yourself book] and the other in French [Lecture Rapide published by Éditions Marabout]. :nod:

The speed of your reading must vary with the type of material at hand: if it's, say, news in the morning paper then you can do up to 1500 wpm with comprehension very close to that of the ordinary reader. For literary texts you must definitely slow down to enjoy the book and get the same degree of understanding. As for scientific material, you practically can't do it any faster than 200 wpm.

But, after all, it's a skill you MUST learn; you'll be amazed how it improves BOTH the speed and the efficiency of your reading. ;)

[atreides]

"Thanks to a speed reading course, I was able to read Crime & Punishment in 10 minutes. I believe it said something about Russia..."
:) :D

hilarious!!

I did a little test online (amazing the things you can test yourself on) and I have a reading rate of 450 wpm with a comprehension of 65%, the average reader has a reading rate of roughly 250 wpm with comprehension 60%. There are a number of tests online if you guys are interested.

I tend to read parts of dickens novels very fast. But thats because he takes pages and pages to write about the smallest thing, like a cow mooing.

[verybaddmom]

oooh..online links please!

[vaughanj]

no i dont dont speed read, i cant conprehend it that way.

[Connor]

no i dont dont speed read

[starrwriter]

A speed reading course in high school changed my whole life. Before that, I was such a slow reader I never read any serious books. I think students should be tested in grade school and given a speed reading course if they need it.

[Nightshade]

hehe I ont know if its called speed reading but my average for a novel/ "fun" book is 118 pages in 40 minutes. pretty much the same for things like Jane Austen but if we get into the more complicated literature I tend to slow down some too absore things especialy if all the names are shaped the same.

:D

[EAP]

I complete a 220 page Agatha Christie mystery in around 1.5 to 3 hours, depending on my enthusiasm and involvement in the book. I have found out that If I am REALLY engrossed in the plot, my speed slackens as the mind starts wandering around and exploring the myraid thoughts that spring up about the story.

[Jessica222]

ahhh speed reading... junior high flash backs! i remember i would wait until the night before a test and try to pull off reading like half a book... i was very confused.. and failed many tests! if only i knew there was a book to speed up this reading! where did you find this book???

[A Hard Rain]

Speed reading is a worthwhile tool. It can actually improve the overall understanding of a work. Think about finishing a book in a day and being able to reflect on the whole versus taking 5 days to finish it? The thing about speed reading is that it actually speeds up your reading faster than just the wpm jump. There is too much good stuff to read and come back to again and again to not learn this skill. The important point is that with the ability to read faster does not mean you lack the ability to read slower. You can do both. What is negative about this?

[squibbles_318]

I've tried speed reading before but I'm not a very good sponge when it comes to small details that become important later and I find myself going back.

[ClaesGefvenberg]

Speed reading is a worthwhile tool. It can actually improve the overall understanding of a work.

Quite right, it does...


The important point is that with the ability to read faster does not mean you lack the ability to read slower. You can do both. What is negative about this?Well, yes, you can force yourself to read slower, but why would anyone do that? There is so much to read and so little time... :D Anyway, when I read something, I usually fade away from the rest of the world. Thus, I have no real notion of how fast I'm reading while I'm at it, and thereby little or no control over the speed. What I do know is that I'm faster than most people I know.

As a matter of fact, I had a bit of a surprise many years ago, when a teacher decided to introduce speed reading techniques. It turned out that I was already using nearly all the tricks she wanted to convey to us... without knowing it :nod:

/Claes

[Papillion]

I was given the rudiments of speed reading by a Medical Lecturer and became proficient within 10 days. (Equipment: A novel and an alarm clock) I found comprehension and memory improved because I didn't become as fatigued when studying. (I marked key point for extension study where necessary.) Years later the subject of speed reading came up in a discussion with a Lawyer who claimed he studied 'speed memory' as an extension to speed reading at Uni. Has anyone heard of this? The technique allowed him to remember page numbers and paragraphs when prompted by a legal precedence. Once again, the Lawyer, learned this process from a Lecturer.

I guess Medicine and Law are subjects better suited to these processes than say, Physics! :idea:

[bazarov]

You wanna tell that I'll understand some book just the same or even better, even I've read it much faster?? Will I thinka faster about what i just read?? I allways thouht is a joke but... :confused:

[ClaesGefvenberg]

You wanna tell that I'll understand some book just the same or even better, even I've read it much faster?? In so many words: yes. Even though it may sound strange, that is is exactly what it boils down to.

You may want to check http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Speed_reading or http://www.mindtools.com/speedrd.html out. Letting google look for "Speed reading" provided an incredible bag of hits: Speed reading (http://www.google.se/search?hl=sv&q=speed+reading&meta=).

/Claes

[bazarov]

You really wanna tell that instead reading War and Peace for 10 days I could read it in 2 days and it would be just the same???? :confused: :confused: .Anyone really tried it and it was successfully at all??

[vrianto3]

Don't confuse the definition of Speed-Read here.
You can speed-read how Agatha Christie described a person character or slow-read it and your mind will absorb the same thing.
But I don't think you can speed-read Shakespeare and absorb what he meant exactly like when you slow-read it (afterall, even if you slow-read it, you might not absorb what he meant really).
On the other hand, there are writings like PG Wodehouse that will actually be absorbed as more hilarious when you actually speed-read it.

[aabbcc]

I finished a course of speed-reading. In two words: it works.
However... One of the things I despise about the modern society is its utilitaristic and time-sparing nature. Yes, one can read books in a couple of minutes and absorb information from them; but what about experience, what about ART - for literature is supposed to be an art? Art is not to be approached with busy attitude, in a way "let me see what is the quickest way to go through this".

I found that I enjoy literature much, much more if I go by my own pace (and even that is a couple of times quicker than that of an average reader), and that I have more personal gain from it. I speed-read scientific texts, school textbooks, things I read in order to get information.
But that which I read for joy, for experience, I read at my own pace.

Somebody brought up an argument that by speed-reading one has more time to reflect on what one has read - I disagree; I believe that the point is in the process, that reflection is something that accompanies every step of reading, and that one cannot have any but the very theoretical reflection of literature without personal experience with it.

After all, pose yourself a question - do you read books for the sake of having read them, or for the sake of the process of reading which you enjoy?
If the information and time-sparing is what you want, sure, speed-read; but when you will start to feel that you are losing your soul in the process (if you ever had it, of course), that you do not "feel" art but only approach it theoretically - then ask yourself whether sparing a couple of hours is worth it.

Speed-reading literature is similar to glancing the masterpieces of visual art; sure, you have seen the picture, even in details perhaps, but have you experienced it?

[Thecolorgreen]

Speed reading is a worthwhile tool. It can actually improve the overall understanding of a work. Think about finishing a book in a day and being able to reflect on the whole versus taking 5 days to finish it? The thing about speed reading is that it actually speeds up your reading faster than just the wpm jump. There is too much good stuff to read and come back to again and again to not learn this skill. The important point is that with the ability to read faster does not mean you lack the ability to read slower. You can do both. What is negative about this?

Mm, that's my problem. If it takes me more than a day to read a book I have to go and find notes and summaries on it because I'm so horrible about forgetting things over night. I'm really interested in speed reading, but I don't know for sure if I really want to give it a try.

[RoCKiTcZa]

One woman who wishes to be accredited as the fastest reader in the world reads at a minimum rate of 800 words per minute.

I can do 2 pages (maximum).
Years ago when I was a little kid of seven I completed one early HP book in one sitting.

How fast can you read???;)

[Brit Junkie]

This is a good argument. As a high school English teacher who is constantly faced with students who want to find the "quickest way out," I can see the potential value in teaching them to speed read.

Non-students have one advantage over the kids in schools. If we don't like a book, we get to put it down and stop reading. But students have a grade to earn, so the only choice they have is to either trudge forward or fail. It's no wonder that kids aren't big fans of reading!!

So, I ask, is speed reading an option for students who have to get through a book for a grade? If so, what are some programs that provide the instant gratification they crave? Any suggestions?

Thanks!

[Bakiryu]

ahhh speed reading... junior high flash backs! i remember i would wait until the night before a test and try to pull off reading like half a book... i was very confused.. and failed many tests! if only i knew there was a book to speed up this reading! where did you find this book???

Hullo Namesake!

Well, I usually do this same thing but I ace all my tests, except math (I can't read numbers!:bawling: ) I wonder why anyone would like to read faster, I'm a fast reader myself (I was on tv for it when i was 8~In Cuba), You're supposed to ENJOY the Book!




How fast can you read???;)

I haven't timed myself but my typing speed is 90 wpm and I can read 4 hp books in about 3 or four hours, does that help?


I don't think speed reading is a worthwhile tool. If you want to study, study right or you won't retain much info!

[Dublo7]

"Thanks to a speed reading course, I was able to read Crime & Punishment in 10 minutes. I believe it said something about Russia..."
:) :D

:lol:

I might actually see if I can hunt this book down. It sounds interesting.


How fast can you read???
I haven't timed myself but my typing speed is 90 wpm and I can read 4 hp books in about 3 or four hours, does that help?
:goof:

You mean you can read 4 of the Harry Potter books consecutively within three to four hours? That's impressive.

[Lyn]

I read pretty fast, but I'm not sure of the value of it. I read most 'popular fiction' books in a few hours, and once read Tom Jones in a day. I do think that being able to read a whole text in one day helps comprehension and memory, but I don't think that speed reading would always increase my enjoyment of a text. I get great joy out of reading poetry, where thinking about specific words and images, turning them over and over and considering multiple meanings is pretty much the point. You can't speed read poetry. The best novels have touches of the poetic about them, and I like to take my time over them. If its just fluff (I mean that in a good way - enjoyable uncomplicated novels) then I'll read it as quickly as possible.