Scribd Logo
Upload

Welcome to Scribd!

  • 63 views

    16.1 Practice Passage 1 PDF

    Uploaded by

    Ahbab Hossain
    Reading is an important skill for acquiring knowledge, but most readers read quite slowly, around 200 words per minute (wpm) with 60% comprehension, while top readers achieve over 1000 wpm at 85% comprehension. The average reader is five times slower than good readers due to lower reading speed and comprehension. While most readers practice daily, few improve their skills after age 12 to reach their full reading potential. The most effective way to significantly improve reading efficiency is through a speed reading computer program, which offers interactive exercises to consistently boost skills, unlike seminars or books which require strong self-motivation to practice effectively on one's own.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd

    16.1 Practice Passage 1 PDF

    Uploaded by

    Ahbab Hossain
    63 views2 pages
    Reading is an important skill for acquiring knowledge, but most readers read quite slowly, around 200 words per minute (wpm) with 60% comprehension, while top readers achieve over 1000 wpm at 85% comprehension. The average reader is five times slower than good readers due to lower reading speed and comprehension. While most readers practice daily, few improve their skills after age 12 to reach their full reading potential. The most effective way to significantly improve reading efficiency is through a speed reading computer program, which offers interactive exercises to consistently boost skills, unlike seminars or books which require strong self-motivation to practice effectively on one's own.

    Original Title

    16.1 practice passage 1.pdf

    Copyright

    © © All Rights Reserved

    Available Formats

    PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd

    Did you find this document useful?

    Is this content inappropriate?

    Reading is an important skill for acquiring knowledge, but most readers read quite slowly, around 200 words per minute (wpm) with 60% comprehension, while top readers achieve over 1000 wpm at 85% comprehension. The average reader is five times slower than good readers due to lower reading speed and comprehension. While most readers practice daily, few improve their skills after age 12 to reach their full reading potential. The most effective way to significantly improve reading efficiency is through a speed reading computer program, which offers interactive exercises to consistently boost skills, unlike seminars or books which require strong self-motivation to practice effectively on one's own.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    63 views2 pages

    16.1 Practice Passage 1 PDF

    Uploaded by

    Ahbab Hossain
    Reading is an important skill for acquiring knowledge, but most readers read quite slowly, around 200 words per minute (wpm) with 60% comprehension, while top readers achieve over 1000 wpm at 85% comprehension. The average reader is five times slower than good readers due to lower reading speed and comprehension. While most readers practice daily, few improve their skills after age 12 to reach their full reading potential. The most effective way to significantly improve reading efficiency is through a speed reading computer program, which offers interactive exercises to consistently boost skills, unlike seminars or books which require strong self-motivation to practice effectively on one's own.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    You are on page 1of 2

    Reading is becoming more and more important in the new knowledge economy and

    remains the most effective human activity for transforming information into
    knowledge.

    If top readers read at speeds of above 1000 words per minute (wpm) with near 85%
    comprehension, they only represent 1% of readers. Average readers are the majority
    and only reach around 200 wpm with a typical comprehension of 60%. This seems
    surprising since most readers, actively reading work documents, newspapers,
    magazines, books or the contents of a computer display are practicing daily for at least
    one hour. With such an intense training everyone should be close to top performances.

    Unfortunately, this is far from the real situation. The average reader is five times
    slower than the good reader. Things are even worse if we consider reading efficiency
    as well as speed. Reading efficiency is reading speed weighted by comprehension rate
    and it amounts to 200 x 60% or 120 efficient words per minute (ewpm) for the
    average reader and to 1000 x 85% or 850 ewpm for top readers. Thus, an efficiency
    ratio of seven divides these two categories.

    Compare the results of the average reader to other areas. We may imagine a sprinter
    practicing every day for several years on the running track and then just calmly
    walking for a race. We can also picture a racing driver never exceeding 30 mph or a
    pianist playing every day of the week for 20 years and only able to play music like a
    beginner. Unfortunately, since the age of 12, most readers do not substantially
    improve their efficiency and never reach their full capacity.

    Every computer-user who is also a slow typist is aware of the benefits he could obtain
    with a typing course, but nearly no one suspects the much higher profits he could
    reach by improving his reading comprehension and speed. The rapid improvement of
    voice recognition may gradually make typing virtuosity obsolete since a good typist
    performs well under the speed of speech. On the other hand, human or computer
    speaking, with an average speed of 150 wpm, will always remain many times slower
    than a good reader, without any consideration of the skimming and skipping
    possibilities.

    There are three possible ways to improve reading. The fastest is probably a speed
    reading seminar based upon good materials and animated by a dynamic instructor. It
    is quite usual for a slow reader to double and even triple his reading efficiency during
    a two-day class offering a positive atmosphere, carefully selected texts and
    comprehension tests. However, as this rapid and encouraging improvement is not
    sufficiently anchored, it often fades with time.
    A book about speed reading is the second possibility. Such a book usually provides
    speed and comprehension tests as well as techniques to improve reading. It often
    includes more general information about concentration, interest stimulation, skimming
    techniques and ways to approach a text. Some methods may include audio or
    videocassettes. A book-based method requires a good deal of time as well as a strong
    commitment from the reader.

    Finally, a speed reading computer program is probably the most efficient way to
    achieve top reading levels. Computers offer unique exercises to boost reading
    efficiency through interactivity, text animation and pacing. Higher reading skills
    obtained with a computer screen are totally transferable to reading from paper.
    Unfortunately the inverse way does not work so well. Speed reading software delivers
    enjoyable and fast paced training, thus giving the consistent practice necessary to
    break lifelong slow reading habits. This is the task that seminars and speed reading
    books usually leave up to the reader.

    You might also like