On the average, a person with a college-level education reads at around 300 words per minute, assuming that the material is not of a technical nature. On the other hand the fastest readers can read more than a thousand words per minute.
A measurement of reading speed is meaningful only when combined with information on how much of the text was understood by the reader. It has been found that people with higher reading speeds also have higher comprehension. Even more surprisingly, a person usually improves their comprehension as well when they improve their reading speed.
There are several factors that inhibit speed reading:
Techniques for increasing the speed include:
In general, reading employs various skills depending on the level of text and the intent behind the action. For example, if reading to obtain a general overview of a piece of text we might skim, or alternatively, if searching for an important quote or piece of technical information (where full understanding isn't important) we might scan.
See also: Mind sport.
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