Do you wish to become an efficient reader?

Thinking about our reading is valuable and necessary.Thinking out is educative.But thinking by itself-on life,on things in general....must be cultivated in order to develope a fully integrated personality.


We can divide reading skills in two. The eyes track across the page and the mind takes in what the eyes see. The two are, no doubt, closely interdependent---- It is very difficult to know how the mind goes about comprehending what the eyes perceive.


You may believe that your eyes move smoothly and steadily along a line of print, and that in doing so they are reading words. But in reality,your eyes do not behave that way. Instead , they move along a line in jerky stop-go-stop-go movements. When your eyes stop or pause for a small fractions of a seconds they are picking up groups of words and transmitting these words to your brain, provides the meaning for these words.


The number of words you see at one glance is called your recognition span.


There is no 'Ideal' speed of reading common for everyone, even for the same kind of reading material. Some can read faster than others. That is , the top speed with which they can comfortably recognize and understand printed words is higher than that of other people. So there is no uniform, 'Ideal' speed. The reading rate of an average is calculated to be about 250 words per minute(W.P.M). Experts say that it is physiologically possible to read about 10000 W.P.M. We consider a person who reads at the rate of 600 W.P.M an excellent reader!


The poor reader, as we have seen, reads word-by-word, taking in only one word at a glance, pausing for every word on the line.


To increase your recognition is to develope a keen 'Phrase Sense', that is, to improve your awareness of how words are correctly grouped into meaningful reading phrases. Only if you take in meaningful phrases will you be able to read fast and accurately.


An example-to show the difference between meaningful and non-meaningful phrases below:
a) Police/officials have/realized that/most murders in/ Bombay city occur/during the early/hours of/the morning.
b)  Police officials/have realized/that most murders/ in Bombay city/ occur during/ the early hours/ of the morning.


In sentence (a) the words don not group meaningfully, which makes the sentence harder to understand than (b). A very first reader would combine several of the groupings. 
Police officials have realized/ that most murder in Bombay City/ occur during the early hours/ of the morning.
So we can get the rules for reading phrases are (a) Read by 'thought units', (b) Read 'between the lines', (c) Read 'Rhythmically'.
Make it a point to spare time daily for reading -as a regular habit. Reading is necessary for your mental development as well as for your growth as a person. The person who reads well is the person who usually thinks well;he has a basis for opinion and a reference point for judgement. The semi-literate person tends to be narrow-minded, his interest and scope of reading are limited. Besides, those who read only the sport page, the comics, or the entertainment sections of the newspaper are usually unable to any but frivolous conversation.


Study would help immensely of all kind of reading.
Remember the basic principle: Read for ideas : Read to understand : Read to learn. Leisure reading widens your horizon, sharpens your perceptions, increases your word power and knowledge.


Reading is a mind exercise, mind needs daily exercise and if done in the right spirit and in a healthy manner, reading will help keep your mind fresh and active always. The more efficiently you read, the more you will tend to read. The more you read, the wider will grow your knowledge and interest. This is the 'reading-learning' cycle, once you begin the cylce you can barely predict how far it will take you ! Only make it a point to enjoy your reading rather than take it as a task to be accomplished.