History of Speed Reading
When taking several high school or college courses at once, it's easy for students to become overwhelmed by all the reading they're required to do for their studies. Besides students, employees can easily become bogged down having to read too many e-mails, reports and other materials. That's why speed reading is a valuable tool as it enables busy people to read and comprehend reading materials at a fast rate and still be able to understand and remember the information read.
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Emile Javal's 1878 Discovery
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A French ophthalmologist, Emile Javal, conducted eye-movement experiments in 1878, laying the foundation for what was later called speed reading. Javal discovered that the eyes moved in a series of jumps and pauses, while stopping three to four times while reading a single line of text. He noted that it was during these steady eye fixations that word recognition occurred. Before Javal's discovery, people believed eyes stopped on each letter or each word while reading.
U.S. Airforce Experiments
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The first major usage and recognition of speed reading came from airforce pilots in1942 during World War II, according to the Secret Government Directory website. Tacticians discovered that some pilots struggled to identify aircraft from long distances so they worked to improve the visual sharpness of pilots. Large pictures of aircraft were displayed on screens and then the images were gradually reduced, while the flashing rate was increased. This triggered more research on speed reading.
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Evelyn Wood Reading Dynamics
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It was an Arizona teacher named Evelyn Wood who first devised the term speed reading. Mrs. Wood was intrigued by how some people, such as one of her professors at the University of Utah, were able to read at fast rates. She discovered that people who were able to read fast didn't read single words but words grouped in chunks. Studying their techniques she herself became her first student as she practiced speed reading principles that worked. She went on to open the first Evelyn Wood Speed Reading Institute in Washington D.C. in 1959. Reading classes sprang up all over America and throughout other English-speaking countries.
Speed Reading Training for Business and Political Leaders
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Major corporations sent their top executives for speed reading training. White House staff members, especially those serving under the administrations of Presidents John F. Kennedy, Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter, were given speed reading training. Students would devote 25 hours studying speed reading, in addition to practicing pacing and scanning techniques.
Dr. Jay Polmar
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In 1979 Dr. Jay Polmar, a certified hypnotherapist, developed courses designed to speed up the learning process. In 1980 his first class on Dynamic Speed Reading was presented to volunteers in Texas and New Mexico. Polmar's course was shortened down to seven hours from Evelyn Wood's longer course of 25 hours. Although Polmar was invited to teach his speed reading methods in other states, he wasn't able to do so because of illness. Instead, he placed his teachings online, teaching students around the world better ways for to learn speed reading methods.
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- Photo Credit Ariel da Silva Parreira -- Stock.xchng Image
