How Speed Reading Began And Where It Is Today.
It was in the 1950s that the most portable device was found to help in speed reading. Found completely by accident, it was the human hand. It was then called the "wood method" but later renamed as "reading dynamics". It was that time that Evelyn Wood, who first speed read coined the term "speed reading".
Today software and online courses promise speed reading techniques that not only speed up the reading but also promise not to diminish comprehension levels. Numerous books have found place in the market promising the same. The main enemy of speed reading is considered to be subvocalisation and all these courses aim at eradicating that evil. These speed reading courses involve the training of the eyes and brain to read together and speed up the entire procedure.
The first Speed Reading software was Vortex by Vallier. It has since not been updated hence it does not work on Windows XP. Other programs available on the Internet, also seem to employ the same program by Vortex.
Different speed reading programs have different approaches. Some claim that with the increase in speed of reading, comprehension levels also increase. Others do not even believe in considering comprehension as a criteria since according to them the maximum bulk of reading material is useless. There is a general belief that while speed reading, one can achieve the mark of 1000 words/min. But in speed reading competitions, where comprehension is considered important, speed readers are found to have a comprehension level of 50% which is below accepted norms. Different speed reading concepts claim different processing of text. Some say it is processed subconsciously, some say its haphazard and others say it is in a linear fashion. Different softwares use different methods of aiding in speed reading. Some use groups of words and flash them across the screen at a random pace and others use pictures. But they all follow one common rule, that is developing the subconscious side of the brain and aiding the eye to see more. The newest speed reading software make the reader read an onscreen book at different levels of speed. Texts are hilighted to indicate where the reader should be looking. Readers are taught to read by viewing the words as images rather than by pronouncing. The exercises help in eradicating subvocalization and thus increase the reading speed. The best way of using images as words are used by advertisements. Visuals create the words and we hardly need to pronounce them. It is the same method that aids us in speed reading- viewing words rather than reading them.
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