How to Read the Right Way: A Complete Guide PART I
Reading is dead.
The nature of books has evolved. Society and
technology have changed. Forcibly, our approach to reading has taken on new
forms to accommodate a different way of life.
The question is: For better or worse?
Although books give us new ideas, spark
discussions, and explore topics in detail, the same information can be
delivered in a variety of formats. When it comes to exactly how we
should absorbing books, the debate rages on.
Let’s take a look.
The Effectiveness of
Speed Reading
Since the 1950s, speed reading has been touted as
an effective way to get through reading material quickly. Scientists,
psychologists, and teachers have come up with methods to increase reading
speed, whether through manual tools or visual movements.
At the World Championship Speed Reading
Competition, top contestants can reach 1,000 to 2,000 words per minute.
Six-time champion Anne Jones reached 4,200 words per minute at one point.
Those rates seem phenomenal compared to the average adult’s 300 words per minute. So then, what types of strategies are speed
readers using?
Here are four common methods:
1. Skimming involves quickly
going through passages to find the main points.Instead of combing each word
carefully, you go over first and last paragraphs, headings, and similar cues to
find key ideas. Scanning, a similar method,involves running your eyes down the
text to find certain words and phrases.
2. Meta guiding uses a pointer,
such as your index finger or a pen, to guide your eyes along the lines of text.
A pointer helps your eyes move horizontally, focusing on the word that you should
be reading.
3. Vision span method uses the
span of human eyesight to read words in batches. Readers focus their eyesight
on one central word, and then use their peripheral vision to see adjacent
words. By relying on our peripherals, it’s believed that we can read about five
words at once.
4. Rapid serial visual representation
(RSVP) is a more recent technique where an electronic reading system
displays words one at a time. You can choose the speed at which the words show
up on the screen.
While many readers stand by these methods, they’re
not without controversies. Skimming means that you lose out on the details of a
piece. On the other hand, preliminary skimming and scanning can help you to
quickly hone in on certain topics, and then read those passages in greater detail.
In the comprehensive book Psychology of
Reading, Keith Rayner dismisses speed reading techniques. He explains that
we’re constrained by the anatomy of our eyes and the ability of our brains to
process information. While some techniques aim to eliminate the process of
sounding words in our head to save time (otherwise known as subvocalization),
Rayner states that our memory and comprehension levels decrease dramatically.
As for the top speed reading contestants at the
world championships, their comprehension rates tend to hover around 50 percent.
While Anne Jones’s 4,200 words per minute rate is impressive, her comprehension
was at 67 percent, and she had been exposed to the material before.
Regardless of which reading method you use, the
evidence points towards the fact that speed comes at the sacrifice of
understanding.
Depending on what you’re reading, this might not
necessarily be a bad thing. If you’re trying to get through a dry piece to
capture a few key points, skimming makes sense. The RSVP method can work if
you’re going through a short piece that’s easy to understand. Personally, I
like using a pen to guide my eyes along the text.
But if you’re going through a difficult book or
one that you want to savor and reflect on, it probably doesn’t make sense to
use methods that involve skipping or plowing through the material as fast as
possible.
Choosing the Format You
Want to Read In
A long time ago, there was only one option
available: the traditional paper book. Nowadays, we can choose to read, watch,
or listen to books. While there’s the luxury of options, new questions arise,
such as: How should we read a book? Is one format superior to the other?
We’ll look first at traditional books, then
e-books, and finally, audiobooks.
Paper Books
According to research, paper books have certain
advantages over other formats. For one, readers have a better sense of
progression when they can physically flip through pages. This progression also
contributes to greater memory retention. Also, paper books act as effective sleeping aids, since they don’t
emit the blue light that electronic devices do.
The other advantage to traditional books is a more
personal preference. Some people like the feeling of paper. The pulpy smell,
the weighty feeling, and the ability to flip through the pages enhance the
reading experience. The drawback behind paper books, though, is that they’re
often heavier and more inconvenient to carry around than other types of reading
formats.
E-Readers
The greatest advantage e-books offer is
convenience. Whether you carry one book or a hundred makes no difference in
weight. This is useful for traveling, especially if you want more reading
options. E-books also provide a sense familiarity, as we become accustomed to
electronic devices such as smartphones and tablets.
The big issue around e-readers, however, is the
blue light effect. In one study,
researchers found that people who read light emitting e-readers took longer to
fall asleep than those who read paper books. Readers who used devices such as
tablets, laptops, smartphones, and backlit readers reduced their levels of
melatonin, a hormone that increases in the evenings and induces sleepiness. As
a result, they experienced low-quality sleep and were tired the next morning.
The good news is that e-ink readers, such as the
Kindle, are an exception.These devices emit light towards the screen to cast a
glow, rather than directly shining a light towards the reader’s eyes. The
resulting effect is similar to a lamp shining onto a paper book.
Audiobooks
There is some skepticism behind audio, as some
people feel that it doesn’t provide the same level of immersion as reading. A study notes that you can absorb information almost as well through
audio as reading (whether they’re fully equal is another topic of debate). In
some cases, the narrator’s tone can even help listeners to better understand
the meaning behind texts.
The issue with audio, though, is that humans are
prone to multi-tasking. If you’re typing up an email or cooking a meal while
listening to the narrator, the message can become lost. Personally, I like
using audiobooks when I’m less likely to be distracted, such as when waiting
around or going for a walk.
Lately, speeding through audiobooks has become
popular. Some people zip through a book at 2x, or sometimes even 3x the regular speed. While they
claim that no information is lost, should we be approaching material this way?
A book is not simply an open box waiting to be
checked off. Going through a book is an experience — one that requires
absorbing the material, reflecting on it, and coming out having learned
something new. Similar to how creative moments
happen during quiet periods, our insights from books happen during periodic
pauses.
CONTINUES INPART II
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