Can People Really Learn to 'Speed Read'?

[admin]

The promise of learning to read significantly faster is intriguing. But true speed reading isn't supported by the science.

Can People Really Learn to 'Speed Read'? : Read more

 

[Larry1944]

I learned speed reading in 7th grade AP. 1000 wpm/90%-1500 wpm/80% comprehension. 5k skim/scan. Down side-novels don't last long.

 

[Suncat2000]

I started an on-line speed-reading course many years ago. The techniques I learned improved my reading speed by about 15% in a handful of lessons. The ideas expressed in this opinion piece are just that - opinion. If I had stuck with it, I feel I could have improved at least 25%. Unfortunately, the lessons weren't that much fun, so I bailed out before really solidifying those results. The idea in the lessons: train your mind to read multiple words at once. We are taught from a very early age to read - and sound out - one word at a time. As we get older, this habit remains, to the point of mentally repeating every word we read. Changing our reading habits to simply reading (and not repeating) multiple words - sometimes whole sentences - at a time is the difference. Unless reading very dense text, reading and understanding all the words rarely matters, so skimming is OK. This is not the first time science hasn't revealed something we inherently know to be true. And it certainly doesn't prove that speed-reading is impossible!

 

[petra4]

In my earlier years, speed reading was an in-thing to do. It was "viewed" as looking more efficient in completing your reading/homework. At that time, our class had reported their comprehension or lack there of, declining to 70-80%. These were studies carried out in 1982/83, in years 8, 9 and 10. By the time most had hit year 11, most had reported of reading at the preferred "normal" speed. Of course, our marks of final papers and exams had gone up also.

My comment is a fact of what did happen at schools in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It was also to see what students comprehension of the English language is (and was) as well as grammar in general.

 

[Mario Sanchez]

One of the secrets to faster reading is to use multiple languages in your studies and communications. I worked out with my study group an improvement on 12 progressive steps for training. I published the Manual in Portuguese in 1984 for the first time. With this system it was possible to gather the materials that took me through 60 years to gravitational machines.

 

[petra4]

One of the secrets to faster reading is to use multiple languages in your studies and communications. I worked out with my study group an improvement on 12 progressive steps for training. I published the Manual in Portuguese in 1984 for the first time. With this system it was possible to gather the materials that took me through 60 years to gravitational machines.

define what you exactly mean by multiple languages?

 

[Mario Sanchez]

Using other languages to communicate means just that - you read faster when you're first interested in understanding each other because that's how you will "read" faster what the "book" wants to tell. Americans consistently refuse visitors to speak in other languages. And they do not go deeper into teaching the American Dream because they always require them to speak English when Latin grew and dominated because it embraced the better words of others.

 

[petra4]

Using other languages to communicate means just that - you read faster when you're first interested in understanding each other because that's how you will "read" faster what the "book" wants to tell. Americans consistently refuse visitors to speak in other languages. And they do not go deeper into teaching the American Dream because they always require them to speak English when Latin grew and dominated because it embraced the better words of others.

Everyone needs to know what the other is communicating. If it's not in English then communication on all levels begin to fall. I also know a few other european languages but my 1st will be always English. I make this comment from personal experience - people speaking a "foreign" language of any sort, speaker faster. Their comprehension is a lot slower.

 

[Mario Sanchez]

EXCUSE MY GRAMMATIC FAILURES
YOU commented:
I also know some other European languages, but my first one will always be English. I make this comment from personal experience - people who speak a "foreign" language of any kind speak faster. Their understanding is much slower.
I agree with you. Understanding what is said in another language takes time to mentally translate into English. When you get used to thinking with the other language as well, your understanding grows as you add synonyms to your words with some variants of understanding from different angles.
This is how I went further to find the gravitational machines I am offering: they are the sum of physical principles that I add to this force (inertia) described in physics as weak force, obeying Newton's second and third laws.
And today my difficulty lies in getting people who can use my inventions to broaden their thinking to embrace the "new" solution that is above their standards of understanding.

 

[petra4]

EXCUSE MY GRAMMATIC FAILURES
YOU commented:
I also know some other European languages, but my first one will always be English. I make this comment from personal experience - people who speak a "foreign" language of any kind speak faster. Their understanding is much slower.
I agree with you. Understanding what is said in another language takes time to mentally translate into English. When you get used to thinking with the other language as well, your understanding grows as you add synonyms to your words with some variants of understanding from different angles.
This is how I went further to find the gravitational machines I am offering: they are the sum of physical principles that I add to this force (inertia) described in physics as weak force, obeying Newton's second and third laws.
And today my difficulty lies in getting people who can use my inventions to broaden their thinking to embrace the "new" solution that is above their standards of understanding.

Thank you for your further explanation and clarifying. So, going back to your gravitational machine (invention), how have you tried marketing this?

 

[Mario Sanchez]

You said:

Thanks for further explanation and clarification. So back to your gravitational machine (invention), how did you try to market it?

I answer:

I searched for three lines of stakeholders - governments and official knowledge entities; companies that produce, trade or consume a lot of energy; offices that claim to be inventor patent specialists. In the first place there was silence even without accusing my communication or forwarding to anyone they deemed competent. I understood that they did not believe I had this knowledge. By the way I was approached by some knowledge pirates wanting to see. In these cases I pretended to accept demonstration and all were clear that they would seize knowledge without any promise of recognition. One declared as a patent registrar denied having an interest in securing my rights by explaining that they earned more by waiting for inventions to fall into the public domain to sell to companies. I ended these robbery attempts by implying that there was still a large investment that would have to come to me to complete, and they disappeared.

What I seek is to be able to show in the United States, the only country that I still consider interested in truth, prosperity, meritocracy and respect for private property.

 

[Truthseeker007]

"Speed reading is not actually possible," said Elizabeth Schotter, a cognitive scientist at the University of South Florida.

Well apparently Eliabeth Schotter's science is off compared to the posters above.

 

[rglsun]

One of the secrets to faster reading is to use multiple languages in your studies and communications. I worked out with my study group an improvement on 12 progressive steps for training. I published the Manual in Portuguese in 1984 for the first time. With this system it was possible to gather the materials that took me through 60 years to gravitational machines.

Hi, Mario Sanchez. As I lay researcher on speed reading for the last several years, as well as having an interest in learning how to learn foreign languages really fast, I am interested in obtaining a copy of your manual, if it is available.

 

[dan]

I learned speed reading in 7th grade AP. 1000 wpm/90%-1500 wpm/80% comprehension. 5k skim/scan. Down side-novels don't last long.

Me to? But it made reading alot less enjoyable

 

[rglsun]

Me to? But it made reading alot less enjoyable

Hi, Dan. I'm curious what specific program you learned speed reading from.

 

[sarajo]

I only speed read if Im reading something thats not so interesting -like the newspaper for example

 

[dan]

Hi, Dan. I'm curious what specific program you learned speed reading from.

Simply a high school credit course referred to as speed reading many years ago. . . ..based on retention, comprehension, test questions that scores I couldn't remember today. Yes I enjoy reading but in no way did I feel I could "speed read" after the course.

 

[Ront5353]

I taught myself to speed read when I was 11 and still speed read to this day. I can look at complicated linguistic compositions in whatever areas interest me at the time and synthesize it into layman's terms by getting rid of the filler statements and only sticking to the subject matter. I have a question I just look for the answer.

 

[sarajo]

I taught myself to speed read when I was 11 and still speed read to this day. I can look at complicated linguistic compositions in whatever areas interest me at the time and synthesize it into layman's terms by getting rid of the filler statements and only sticking to the subject matter. I have a question I just look for the answer.

it depends on the subject for me if its brill tyen I ll take my time but if it looks boring then i can speed read quite quickly

 

[Hayseed]

I can't read faster than I talk.

 

[rglsun]

I taught myself to speed read when I was 11 and still speed read to this day. I can look at complicated linguistic compositions in whatever areas interest me at the time and synthesize it into layman's terms by getting rid of the filler statements and only sticking to the subject matter. I have a question I just look for the answer.

People who have claimed to learned how to speed read without any prior training in speed reading or without even knowing about the concept of speed reading have been called "natural speed readers", which to me backs up the belief that speed reading is real and is perhaps a natural way or the natural way we are to read.

Note: when the term "speed reading" comes to mind some people think of skimming- reading material without reading all the words- which is not what speed reading is, speed reading is where you read all the words at a faster rate.

 

[rglsun]

Simply a high school credit course referred to as speed reading many years ago. . . ..based on retention, comprehension, test questions that scores I couldn't remember today. Yes I enjoy reading but in no way did I feel I could "speed read" after the course.

Thanks for the reply, Dan. I asked you because I am looking for a speed reading program that actually teaches you how to speed read. Most of the speed reading products and programs out there, I'd say, are probably nonsense.

 

[ThomasCurran]

In my earlier years, speed reading was an in-thing to do. It was "viewed" as looking more efficient in completing your reading/homework.
https://writemyessaysonline.com

Both speed reading and touch typing is important for homework.
Those who has a speed reading can read book fast, those who can type fast, can finish homework research fast.

 

[chqr819]

We had speed reading class freshman year in high school. Six week class. Thought it was great and helped me in school alot. Though it was hard finding enough books to read that I liked at the time. That was a long time ago but kept it up as much as possible. I like Victorian murder mysteries and can read one in a few hours. Even without speed reading I read Jules Verne 20000 leagues under the sea while in 5th grade.

 

[hellopunyhumans]

I had a friend who claimed he read the hobbit in 20 minutes. Thats less than 7 seconds a page (in his edition). We determined that he couldn't even turn the pages that fast without tearing them. (after a demonstration)