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Identifying Problems that Lead to Slow Reading
This handout is designed to help identify and eliminate problems leading to slow reading. To get the
most out of this exercise, take a sheet of paper and draw a line vertically down the middle. As common
causes of slow reading are covered, list those you believe may be slowing your reading on the left side of
the line. On the right side of the line, list some of the suggested remedies you are willing to try.
When finished reading this handout and making your list of problems and remedies, you will have a self-
diagnosis of some of the factors that affect your reading speed and some definite steps you can take to
increase it. Whatever you discover, it's a good idea to discuss your results with a staff member at your
campus learning center and set up a plan for further refinement of college reading skills.
Keep in mind that campus learning centers have many kinds of written materials and exercises to help
with faster reading and better memory. Also, there are easy-to-use-computerized exercises available
for increasing reading speed and comprehension. As long as you are willing to work on remedies, there
are no good reasons why you should not be able to improve reading speed and comprehension
(understanding).
How Fast Should I Read?
The average person reads at about 250 words per minute (wpm). Some of the faster readers can cover
500 to 600 wpm with comprehension. Good reading is a combination of reading speed and
comprehension adjusted to the material being read. For example, reading at 700 wpm with the ability
to remember 20-30% of what was just read is not very useful unless you are reading for entertainment.
If you are looking up a phone number, you are probably “reading” at about 25,000 wpm! Other than
phone number you looked up, there is no comprehension, and you are likely to forget that number in
less than 1 minute. For textbook learning, reading faster than 250 wpm increases the risk that
important ideas and clarifying details will be missed. Most problems with reading speed come from the
lack of practice and from trying to read and commit the information to memory at the same time.
For information that must be remembered, humans learn faster and remember better when they keep
reading and learning separate. Most humans can be in the information-gathering mode OR in the
learning mode, but not in both modes at the same time.
Learning is promoted when reading material is mentally manipulated in some form. Mental
manipulation speeds learning. Simply stroking words with your eyes involves little mental manipulation,
consequently, little learning results. More later on easy ways to mentally manipulate what it is you have
to learn and remember.
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Problem #1 – Poor Concentration
Having to regress or reread frequently may be caused by the lack of concentration. Here are some
typical symptoms of and remedies for ineffective concentration:
Daydreaming. If you catch yourself daydreaming while you read and don't know what to do to stop it,
try The Mark Technique. Put a checkmark, an "X", or a star on a piece of paper each time you catch
yourself daydreaming. By doing this one simple task, many students find that they daydream less and
concentrate more.
Worrying about problems. This impediment to reading is common to college students but can be
controlled by The Worry List Technique. Each time you catch yourself thinking about something not
related to what you are reading, write that thought down with the intention of doing something about it
later. Then DO something about it later.
Can't remember what is read. Check the distraction level in your study environment. Auditory and
visual distractions interfere with concentration. Eliminate TV, radio, stereo and other sources of sound
or remove yourself from the environment in which they are contained. In other words, study where it is
quiet and where it is going to stay quiet. The potential for noise can be just as distracting as the actual
noise itself.
Remove pictures, souvenirs, and objects from easy view. They can attract visual attention and interrupt
concentration. Don't try to study in front of a window. While it is a good idea to rest the eyes by looking
up from the page periodically, if the view is more appealing than the reading assignment, there will be
trouble returning to the reading.
A remedy for visual distractions may entail moving to a less visually attractive study environment where
an open textbook is the most stimulating thing to see.
Lack of interest in reading. Did you know that when natural interest isn't present in a subject, artificial
interest can be created? The good news is artificial interest works just as well as natural interest on
improving reading speed and comprehension. Try the Create An Interest Technique.
The responsibility for learning rests with the learner. That translates into you being willing to do
whatever it takes to learn ideas and concepts contained in reading assignments. Inevitably, some
assigned readings will not be as interesting as others but the responsibility for reading and learning the
material is the same as it is for more interesting material.
Artificial interest may be created by actively finding reasons for reading and learning. Some sources to
tap for reasons are friends, classmates, professors, and one's own mind. Below are some reasons
students use to create artificial interest and make reading easier.
1) Relate reading to what you'll be doing on a full time job upon graduation from college.
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2) Tactfully question the professor on the relevance of the subject matter to your major and/or life
after graduation.
3) Choose to be positive and see assignments as opportunities to learn something new, a chance to
expand knowledge and broaden horizons, and acquire information to be stored for later use. After
all, you have come to college to learn. Don't buy into the limiting attitude that something must be
interesting for you to learn it. That's like saying: “If all food doesn't taste like cake, I won't eat it.”
Knowledge, like food, comes in varying degrees of "taste" appeal. Just as a variety of foods are
needed for healthy physical and mental development, a variety of knowledge is needed for healthy
intellectual development.
4) Set a goal of a high grade or grade average. As long your mind focuses on that goal, the fact that
reading may be uninteresting won't have a slowing effect because reading is done for reasons
other than interest.
5) Watch what is eaten. What is eaten and not eaten can significantly affect the ability to
concentrate while reading.
Hard to believe? Try this: One morning for breakfast, drink coffee with sugar or hot chocolate, eat
a couple of donuts or pastries, toss down some jelly toast, and add a glass of sugary fruit drink.
Watch what happens to your ability to concentrate and read during the remainder of the day. The
next day, make a special effort to eat a breakfast with no sugar in it. Try some combination of the
following: whole wheat toast with butter or peanut butter, an egg or two and/or some meat, drink
milk or 100% fruit juice and have some fresh fruit. If you have cereal, make sure it does not contain
sugar. Then, keep an eye on your ability to read and concentrate after this fare. Many students
have found that with a better diet, there is an increased ability to concentrate while reading.
Problem #2 – Underdeveloped Vocabulary
A second cause of slow reading involves a vocabulary in need of further development. A large part of a
college requires learning new terminology with which to grasp new ideas and concepts.
Without new terminology, understanding new ideas and concepts in college courses is
difficult for most and impossible for the rest.
Therefore, successful college students must be willing to do what's necessary to acquire and expand
vocabularies and refine techniques for doing so.
Below is a list of symptoms that are characteristic of a vocabulary in need of development and some
remedies which successful college students use to make learning new vocabulary easier.
Difficult to learn new vocabulary. The Notecard Technique is an easy-to-use technique involving the use
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of common notecards. When you run across a word or term of which you are not absolutely certain of
the meaning, write that word on one side of a notecard. Look up the definitions (many words have more
than one) and place them on the opposite side of the card along with a sentence in which you have
correctly used the word or an example demonstrating the concept or idea.
For only 5 minutes per day, go over these cards by looking at the word and recalling as much of the
meaning as possible from memory. If you want to speed learning these words, recite the definition out
loud, as best you can from memory. Then, turn the card over to see how you did. Read incorrectly
recited definitions aloud. Then turn the card over and try to recite the definition from memory again.
Do this as many times as necessary to recite the definition correctly. Then, go one to the next notecard.
Take every opportunity to use these new vocabulary words in your themes, essays, exams, research
papers, and class participation. As your vocabulary grows, you will stop to look up words less often
while reading, thus increasing reading speed.
Not sure of the best place to find word meanings. If this is a problem for you, try The Reference Book
Technique. A must for every serious college student is the purchase of two reference books. One of
these essential reference books is a dictionary. Look up words with uncertain or unknown meanings.
Record the words and definitions on notecards. A college bookstore is usually well stocked with the
kinds of dictionaries their customers need. Repeatedly stumbling over the same term will significantly
slow reading. Multiply that by 5 or 10 or 15 unclear meanings, and reading is very difficult and
understanding nearly impossible.
The second essential reference book is a thesaurus. Thesauri contain valuable synonyms, antonyms, and
related words. Its use is valuable for anyone refining the ability to write and speak. Use a thesaurus to
"spruce-up" papers and essays. Using new words in your speech also results in faster word recognition
while reading. This will lead to faster reading speed.
It is hard to understand my classes. The secret to increase understanding in coursework and to increase
reading speed is called the Customized Vocabulary Technique. Each discipline in college such as
psychology, biology, history, chemistry and the like have their own vocabulary that most precisely
represents important ideas and concepts to be learned. The sooner these vocabularies unique to each
discipline are learned, the faster is the reading speed and more accurate is the understanding. This fact
is so important that it is worth repeating:
p.292
Quintessential?
Fundamental
Joe has a quintessential belief
in the goodness of people.
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Without learning the new vocabulary for each course, grasping new ideas and
concepts is difficult for most and impossible for the rest.
Learning new ideas and concepts involves developing a custom vocabulary for each discipline.
Understanding the precise meaning of terms is important because the same term may have several
meanings depending on the course taken. For example, the term "theme" may have a different
meaning depending on whether it is being used in a writing, education, music, art, or psychology class.
In another example, imagine taking an organic chemistry class with reading assigned on a chapter
discussing water and hydrates over a total of 30 paragraphs. The definitions of the terms are contained
in the 1st sentence of the 1st paragraph for each concept. Six paragraphs explain heavy water and the
term is used 12 times, 4 paragraphs clarify specific gravity and the term is used 9 times, 6 paragraphs
explain anhydrous and the term is used 11 times, 7 paragraphs demonstrate hydrolysis and the term is
used 11 times, 3 paragraphs describe efflorescent and is used 6 times, and 4 paragraphs detail
hydroscope where the term is used 6 times. If a reader does not learn the definition of each term
before reading further, reading speed will be agonizingly slow and understanding impossible.
Learning the definitions of terms in bold print and italics will speed reading and understanding. Also,
use glossaries at the end of each chapter or end of the book. Glossaries contain main ideas and brief
definitions and explanations that help in understanding main ideas.
Problem #3 – Poor Reading Techniques
A third cause of slow reading for college students stem from insufficiently refined reading techniques for
handling college level reading material. The good news is that students can improve reading speed and
comprehension by practicing effective reading techniques used by successful college students.
In response to the poor reading technique problems listed below, there suggestions you can implement
to overcome them.
To become good at anything, you must practice. Reading is no exception.
Stuck in one gear. The cure for this problem is to Vary Reading Speed. Understanding what you read
depends on the type of material you are reading and the reading speed you use on it.
Textbooks - Reading speed for textbooks should be slow to gather the main ideas and details necessary
to do well on exams and become an educated person. When textbook reading skills are working
properly, a textbook chapter need only be read once. Learning should take place from notes.
Newspapers and novels should be faster because recall is not as important as it is with text material.
Journals for research papers should be scanned very quickly. The secret to success here is to look for key
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words only. For example, if you are writing a paper on student affairs’ programs in college, “student
affairs” are key words to look for as you scan pages in articles related to that topic.
Takes too long to read my assignments. The Phrase Technique is an excellent way to increase reading
speed. One characteristic of college students who read more rapidly is the ability to read words in
groups instead of one by one. Instead of stopping the eye on each word, some students have learned to
focus the eye slightly above the line they are reading. This encourages the use of peripheral vision that
is necessary for seeing several words at one time.
The next page contains an example of text that is divided into groups or phrases. Focus your eyes on the
dots slightly above these groups of words and discover how many words you can see without looking
directly at those words. With practice, you will get better at perceiving phrases without looking directly
at them as you increase you reading speed.
By using / the study skills / explained and illustrated / in this book,
you should / be able to / master any assignment
at the level / of even the / most brilliant student. / After all,
there is just / so much to know / about an assignment. / Once you
have mastered it, / you have reached / the theoretical 100% mark.
The brilliant student / can't do any more / than that.
When more than one word is perceived and understood at a time, it is called "phrase reading". Below is
another example of reading in phrases:
By using the study skills / explained and illustrated /
in this book, / you should be able to / master any assignment /
at the level of even / the most brilliant student. / After all, /
there is just / so much to know / about an assignment. /
Once you have mastered it, / you have reached the / theoretical 100% mark. / The
brilliant student / can't do any / more than that.
From How to Study in College by Walter Pauk, p. 8-9.
Phrase reading involves literally "reading between the lines" because the eyes are focused slightly above
each line of text.
Develop phrase-reading skills by practicing on magazines and newspapers to begin with. College level
textbooks are not best for initial practice because they require well-developed phrase reading skills for
speed and good understanding. Try reading at least, one magazine or newspaper article per evening
practicing your phrase reading techniques. Once confidence is gained with the phrase reading
technique, transfer the new techniques to textbooks.
Can't find main points and important details. The May I Introduce Technique is one way to spot main
ideas and important details. Virtually every author uses cue words, phrases, and location in the text to
attract attention and introduce important ideas and facts. Textbooks, being instructional in nature, are
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especially noted for this. The reader's job involves learning to recognize the special words and phrases
that typically introduce major points and important facts.
Once this ability is mastered, main points and valuable facts literally "jump out" at you as you read.
Without the ability to recognize cues that introduce main points, college reading is difficult to master.
Below are examples of introductory cue words and phrases to important information:
First... One important...
This means... Several factors...
For example... Clearly...
Next... Another development…
Finally... Still another point…
The first thing... An important reason…
An illustration... In other words...
Note that... The evidence shows...
Furthermore... In contrast...
There are many kinds of introductory cue words and phrases which authors use to draw attention to
important material. The above list includes a few of many examples of how authors try to attract
attention to important information in college textbooks.
Neon Arrow Technique. Another way that helps spot main ideas and important details is the Neon
Arrow Technique. Authors of college textbooks really do care and want students to learn what is
contained in their books. If flashing neon arrows could be included in textbooks that point to important
ideas, many authors would include them. Until that is possible, there is something just as useful which
indicates the location of major points and valuable details and, in a way, point to the key ideas just as
bright, flashing “neon arrows" would.
Once you are able to recognize “neon arrows” in textbooks, reading speed and comprehension improve.
Examples of “neon arrows” which authors use to indicate the location of important material are listed
below:
TITLES...; HEADINGS...; SUB-HEADINGS...; bold print...; italics...; CAPITAL LETTERS...; indented
material; numbers - 1, 2, 3; letters - A, B, C; summaries...; highlighted material; material in
boxes; terms in margins...; diagrams, charts, pictures, graphs...; end of chapter questions...;
glossaries at the end of a chapter or book
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Learn to recognize the “neon arrows” and enjoy the benefits of greater understanding in textbook
reading
.
How Fast Should You Read?
Effective readers have different reading speeds for different material. In other words, reading speed
should be flexible depending on what is read. On the next page, there is a chart containing five common
reading speeds and the kinds of material on which to use each of them.
Type of Reading
Type of Material
Purpose
Speed
SCANNING
Dictionaries, thesauri,
telephone directories,
material where material is
clearly presented. (lists,
numbered items, outlines,
etc.)
Locating specific
information.
About 1500 words per
minute or more.
SKIMMING
Newspapers, journals,
novels, research.
Reading for general topics
and main ideas.
About 1000 words per
minute or more.
EXPLORATORY
READING
Easy textbooks,
newspapers, stories,
magazines. Any material
where only main ideas are
to be learned. Generally
lighter study.
General understanding of
main ideas and details or
relate new information to
what is already known;
creating interest in
reading material; reading
where you will be tested
on details.
About 400 to 600 words
per minute.
READING FOR
LEARNING
Most textbooks, journals
and technical materials.
Reading with maximum
understanding of main
ideas and their
relationships to each
other; making questions
from main ideas; taking
notes; material where you
are responsible for recall.
About 250 words per
minute.
ANALYTICAL &
CRITICAL READING
Detailed textbooks in
math, science, poetry,
love letters; material to be
studied intensively or read
aloud such as drama,
philosophy, religion; any
material that requires or
stimulates deep thinking.
Evaluate and/or reflect on
content, to follow
directions as in
performing a chemistry
experiment, extract
precise meanings, read
aloud, reading intimate
material, reading for
emotional stimulation.
Less than 250 words per
minute.
To find your reading speed:
1. Have someone time you for 1 minute on a magazine or newspaper article.
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2. Read to understand the material but don't try to memorize it on this first reading.
3. After 1 minute has passed, count the average number of words in one complete line you have just
read and multiply that times the total number of lines read during that one minute.
4. The result will give an approximate reading speed or words per minute reading rate.
Remember 2 very important factors: 1) Your reading rate should speed up or slow down depending on
the type of material you encounter. For example, you run the risk of overlooking important information
if you read faster than 250 to 300 words per minute for college textbooks. 2) You will become better at
that which you practice, so read – read – read.
Problem #4 – Never Developed a System for Reading a Textbook
Success at any task is more likely if a strategy, a system, or method is used. In other words, your
chances of doing well are enhanced if you have a plan. A plan is like a racing car, once you have one,
you can make modifications and refinements to increase speed and handling to satisfy personal
preferences. But, unless you have a car in the first place, there is no chance to modify anything let alone
win a race.
Plans for reading textbooks include specific skills for increasing understanding and reading speed. The
plan can be refined and modified as needed to suit the subject matter or individual preference. In
general, students who have a plan for reading textbooks read faster and with greater understanding.
Fortunately, many successful systems for reading textbooks have been developed by experts in reading
skills who want to help college students read faster with better comprehension. Those systems include
skills characteristic of excellent readers plus many "short cuts" to efficient processing of text material.
One successful textbook reading system is listed below. Try it out a few times and see if you too can
notice an increase in your understanding of textbooks. Many successful college students already have.
The name of this textbook study system is called SQ3R. It stands for:
Survey Question Read Recite Review
Surveying consists of previewing a chapter before reading it and looking for clues to main points such as
subtitles, bold print, italics, end of chapter questions, chapter summaries, etc. This step should not take
more than a few minutes. By surveying, students can see where and what the main topics are. This
increases understanding, reading speed and the ability to locate material likely to appear on exams.
Question is the next step that involves making questions out of main ideas. Clues used to indicate the
importance of an idea are in the form of bold print, italics, headings, and sub-headings among other
clues.
When you make questions out of main points, you utilize one of the most powerful aids to reading and
that is reading for a purpose and not just because it was assigned. The purpose becomes finding an
answer to a question. This leads to better concentration and combats the Blank Mind Syndrome. Many
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successful students have found that placing a question on one side of a notecard and the answer on the
other results in a very fast method for organizing and learning text material. Many of these questions
up on exams and quizzes.
Read is the next step in SQ3R. Once questions have been made, you read for the purpose of answering
them. Reading consists of consciously seeking out definitions, examples, explanations, steps, and
sequences of events, etc. that comprise answers to questions. Most textbooks contain one main idea
per paragraph and that central idea is frequently contained in the first sentence. The remainder of the
paragraph is used to help the reader understand each main idea. This fact helps students know where
to look for main ideas and clarifying details thus, increasing reading speed. This system even works well
on less interesting material.
Recite is the third R in SQ3R.
Repeated recitation is the most important step to combat forgetting.
For example, when using notecards to learn, recitation consists of saying questions aloud and reciting as
much of the answer as possible out loud without looking. Then, look at the answer and check for
accuracy of recall. If the answer is recited correctly on the first try from memory, place that notecard in
an "I know it" pile. If an answer is not recited completely and accurately from memory, read the correct
answer aloud. Then read the question aloud again and try answering aloud from memory, again. Do
this as many times as necessary until the complete answer can be correctly recited from memory. Place
that card in the "I missed it" pile. By reciting an answer aloud, there can be no doubt whether it is
learned or not. Either it can be recalled correctly from memory or it cannot. This eliminates the
problem of believing or thinking something is learned or understood when it really isn't. Recitation in
this manner is an excellent way to self-test on important material and a quick way to
Discover what has and has not been learned before taking a test when something can still be
done about it.
Review is the final step in SQ3R and consists of reciting notes regularly at spaced intervals. For most
students, the more often material is reviewed, the higher the grade on exams. This is especially true
when review is spaced over time. For example, 8 reviews over 2 weeks will get more information into
long-term memory than 8 reviews the day or two before a test.
Problem #5 – Blank Mind Syndrome
This is not an uncommon phenomenon for students who use reading and rereading as a means for
learning. Stroking words with eyeballs does not require mental manipulation of ideas which is very
important in learning.
If you have tried to learn by rereading and rereading and come up blank at test time, that’s fairly
common. If you are tired of the Blank Mind Syndrome, try some of the following techniques that
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involve mental manipulation.
Organize lecture and textbook notes using notecards and recite them in the manner described above.
Use nature of the details will tell you what kind of question to make. For example, if the details are 5
phases in a process, your question should be “What are the 5 phases in ……. This separating and
organizing of ideas requires mental manipulation but the best is yet to come.
What you do from this point on can be the difference between an A and lower grades. How you review
notecards can speed your learning or slow it down. The following the steps on how to recite properly
are repeated below because they are so important to learning:
1. Read your question aloud.
2. Recite the answer aloud without looking.
3. Check for accuracy.
4. If correct, place that card in the “I know it” pile and go on to the next notecard.
If incorrect, read the answer aloud and repeat steps 1 through 3 as many times as it takes to get 5.
the answer correct. Then place that card in the “I don’t know it” pile and go on to the next
notecard.
