Good Reading Speed - Many People Claim to Speed Read, But What is a Good Reading Speed?

Both U.S Presidents, John F Kennedy and Jimmyrequired.
Carter were excellent speed readers. Over theOn the other hand, Howard Stephen Berg reads
years, certain individuals have claimed to be ableat 25 000 words per minute and claims to be the
to read 10 000 words per minute, even 25 000fastest reader in the world. He has appeared on
words per minute. The question is - does readingvarious television shows, including 'Cleveland's
at this rate still allow the reader to comprehendMorning Exchange' and 'On Live with Regis and
the information, or does he miss important facts?Kathie Lee', to demonstrate his reading abilities. On
Through research it is definitely established that aTV he was able to read a 1100 page book, and
faster reading rate does improve comprehension.when tested on the information he was able to
When reading slowly, word-for-word, the brain'sanswer all the questions without difficulties. Three
focus is on each individual word and in reading thisyears after reading that book, he was tested
way it is difficult to grasp the relationship betweenagain and once more scored a perfect recall.
sentences and the overall concepts which theAmazing!
writing is trying to convey. When reading largerThese skills can benefit many people with various
groups of words simultaneously, as speed readersjob descriptions. You don't need to read at 10 000
do, the brain is able to process the informationwords per minute or even 2000 words per
together as a whole and understand it's meaning.minute. A small increase in speed will help you to
This is good, but is there an optimal reading speedcomplete the required work. Students will
for perfect comprehension and can there be aobviously benefit a great deal from speed reading,
rate that is actually too fast for understandingbut it will also have advantages in professions like
purposes?law and public relations. People in these professions
In the World Championship Speed Readingand others are required to read large amounts of
Competition, top contestants read approximatelyinformation. For example, a lawyer will need to sift
1000 to 2000 words per minute. Theirthrough files and files to prepare for court
comprehension level, though, is only about 50%.hearings. Someone who loves to read, but has
Certain educationalists analyze 50%little time, would enjoy being able to speed read.
comprehension as unusable, while other readersCertain professions, however, are not suitable for
find this level as quite acceptable and good forspeed reading. Editors and proofreaders need to
many purposes. When speed reading, always firstcarefully examine writings for grammar and
determine the reading purpose and the type ofspelling mistakes. Speed reading would definitely
information to be read. A good speed readercause them to miss some of the errors!
should be able to identify when adjustment ofOverall, a person needs to choose the speed
speed is necessary. To understand difficult,reading technique that is suitable for his/her
technical and unfamiliar information, it is notpurposes as well as the best speed for his/her
possible to race through the work. For easiermaterial. Enjoy the speed that works well for you
writings, one can increase the rate of reading.and avoid rating yourself on other's claims of
Decide as well if much detailed information isachievements.
needed to be learnt or if only a general idea is