There have been a lot of claims about how speed reading can change your life by improving your understanding, knowledge and income earning potential. This is because speed reading can help you absorb information significantly faster than normal, improving your value to an employer.
While the ability to read faster may be beneficial for some, for others it is more a matter of improving comprehension of what they have read as well as being able to retain the information they have received that will make a difference in their work and personal lives.
On average, a person will read at the rate of about two words per second with typical comprehension, and for most that will be fast enough. Taking a speed reading course may improve their reading speeds to four or even six words per second without any loss of retention as to the material.
However, some people have very specific reading needs and may desire to increase their reading speed to ten or more words per second with higher than average comprehension. An in-depth speed reading course with plenty of exercises and tests can help them achieve their goal.
Most speed reading courses teach readers to quickly sort through material to avoid unimportant information and focus on relevant aspects of the material. You will learn to read phrases or even sentences rather than words individually as well as skimming over unimportant words and getting to the heart of the meaning of the text.
Improving Speed Without Losing Understanding
One of the biggest challenges in speed reading is what is termed sub-vocalization. Children in their early years are taught to read to themselves, causing them to sound out every word in their head as they are reading. With speed reading, the words are not silently read in their mind while going through the material and only the words that have meaning to the context of the material are retained to become part of the comprehension of the material.
There are various ways of teaching speed reading, as well as different ways that each individual learns. One method might work better for some students than another. Basically, speed reading endeavors to guide the brain to distinguish only important words without sounding them out mentally. If you have difficulty with one approach, find another speed reading course that teaches these skills in a way that will assist you to progress more efficiently.
Just like learning any new activity, you need to continuously practice your speed reading techniques in order to master the art.
Kim Allarie would love to find a course in speed writing, but is content to learn speed reading for now. Learn more about this useful skill at The Speed Reading Site.
