This is a skill that help any student, particularly distance learners, like one taking courses through IGNOU, who learn primarily by self-study. If one can increase his or her reading speed without losing track of important details, then efficiency increases as well as more time that would be available for even more studying, revising, and even exam prep. Here’s how to cultivate this skill and how to make better preparation for the exams.
Knowing Speed Reading
Before discussing the techniques, first, it is necessary to know what speed reading is. Speed reading can be defined as the art of reading at a greater pace than normal without sacrificing the understanding of the subject. The idea is to read more in lesser time so that you can scan huge chunks of material in a very short time and retain the core ideas.
Concentration and Focus
Speed reading is not about reading fast; it’s about reading smart. One of the first steps to becoming a speed reader is enhancing your ability to focus. When distracted, it’s impossible to read quickly and effectively. How to improve concentration:
Eliminate distractions. Study in a quiet environment, away from your phone, TV, and other distractions.
Toward focused goals: Before you leave for your reading session, set prior goals of what it is you want to master. This could be mastering concepts or memorizing details.
Mindfulness exercise: This would either be through mindfulness practice or a short meditation to prepare the brain for concentrating over extended periods of time.
Utilizing Peripheral Vision
Most of the reading speed of people depends on word by word reading, and that may slow down the whole process. Speed readers tend to make use of their peripheral vision, which captures more words within one glance, therefore reading fast. Instead of concentration on one word at once try to read some words together or even reading some lines at once. That reduces the number of movements in eyes, thus the speed is increased.
Eliminate Sub-vocalization
The habit of reading silently in your head subvocalizes each word, so the reading will naturally slow down. But to understand some things, there is always some sub vocalization in you; when you are supposed to read fast, try not to subvocalize; here’s how you could:
Finger or pen pointer: Read along the lines of print with your finger or a pen. This will help you not have to “sound out” words in your head.
See, don’t say it: Do not read words as you would say them in your head. Try to read with pictures in your head. Your brain will do better processing of material.
Practice Reading Groups of Words
When you’re reading academic material, you don’t need to read every word in order to know what it means. Try to concentrate your reading on blocks of words at a time. This is called **chunking** and it lets you look at more information per glance. Instead of reading word for word, look at phrases or small groups of words.
For example:
Try to catch the whole sentence like “The quick brown fox” or “jumps over the lazy dog, where instead of reading “The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.
Practice does make you better at reading in chunks. So it makes you faster without you losing your comprehension.
Preview Material
Before you enter a very long chapter or reading assignment, take a few minutes to **preview** what you’re going to be reading. Scan the headings, subheadings, bolding or italicizing, or any summary or bullet points. That gives you a general overview of what is to come so you might read with more purpose. You can also use the **SQ3R method**-Survey, Question, Read, Recite, Review-to have a big-picture overview of the material prior to detailed reading.
Practice Speed Reading Techniques
The best way to enhance a specific skill is through the practice of that activity. Dedicate 20-30 minutes a day to training yourself in speed reading. Start with easy texts and work your way to tougher academic texts.
Here are a few techniques in general
Fixation reduction: Reduce the number of eye fixations as much as possible. This can be done by conscious attempts at minimizing the pauses made by your eyes between words.
Regression reduction: Many readers go back and read sentences or words again. Try to reduce this habit because it slows up the reading speed.
Reading exercises: Online speed reading tools or apps can practice with and track improvements. Improving with the tools: Spreeder, AccelaReader, or ReadSpeeder to enhance speed reading.
Setting Realistic Speed Goals
You should find some way to increase the rate of reading by percent or two every week. This may be that you get through this week at, say 200 words per minute, but then by end of week, you strive for 250. Minute increases over month after month start getting realized in long run-a long time of small increases and eventual marked speed in reading without dropping their level of comprehension.
Remember Through Active Reading
Active reading techniques assist in information retention when reading at any speed. Instead of passive perusing of texts, the reader will have to engage with them through:
Note-taking: While reading, you actually jot down key points or concepts. Learning is strengthened and memory improved.
Summary: You stop at a specific section and summarize in your own words what you have just read.
Self-testing: Test yourself on the material after reading for the purpose of reinforcing retention.
Speed Reading and Preparing for IGNOU Exams
When you have become an efficient speed reader, you can use that to your strategic advantage as you prepare for your IGNOU exams:
Speed read chapters: Use the skills in order to read through chapters then focus on summaries, key concepts, and practice questions.
Skim past papers: The best way to understand the question patterns is by going through the past exam papers and then focusing on areas of concentration.
Time yourself: Give yourself a time constraint while practicing so that you simulate how you would be during the examination condition. You will read fast when you are under the pressure of time.
Conclusion
Speed reading is an invaluable skill for IGNOU students aiming to study more efficiently and effectively. By practicing the techniques outlined above—such as chunking, reducing subvocalization, and previewing material—you can boost your reading speed and improve retention, ultimately enhancing your exam preparation. Like any skill, speed reading requires consistent practice, but with dedication, you’ll find yourself able to tackle large volumes of study material faster and more effectively.
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