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Course Name
Efficient Reading: Improving Speed and Comprehension

Contact Hours: 8
Course Description
Initially, you will diagnose your strengths and weaknesses in reading ability through a questionnaire that will show your reading habits as they presently are.

The student will learn to read more efficiently and thus improve your speed and comprehension through procedures applied for both casual and academic reading.

An introduction to reading skills will teach you how to be a flexible and involved reader, limit re-reading, and overcome habitually slow reaction time. Learning how to skim and scan will allow you to go through materials quickly. Building a better vocabulary is also a part of improving reading ability, and learning to use words in context and word origins will help in this effort. Author and publisher aids, and punctuation will be used as reading aids.
Outcome
Upon completion of this course, student will be able to:
  • Be a flexible and involved reader.
  • Limit re-reading.
  • Minimize vocal involvement
  • Read in thought groups.
  • Overcome habitually slow reaction time.
  • Learn how to skim.
  • Learn how to scan.
  • Use words in context.
  • Develop a better vocabulary.
  • Use author and publisher aids.
  • Use punctuation as a reading aid.
  • Read and understand your textbooks.
  • Apply critical reading.
  • Learn how to read and recall.
  • Apply textbook skills to other materials.
  • Read faster with better comprehension.
  • Gain more insight and enjoyment from reading.
Assessment
  • During the first lesson, students will fill out a questionnaire to assess their current reading habits.
  • After the final lesson, students will fill out another questionnaire to assess their improvement during the course, and note areas where they may still need further attention to improve their reading habits.
Outline
  1. How do you become an active reader? You will learn the first steps toward more efficient reading by becoming a flexible and involved reader through previewing and limiting re-reading. Included in these skills will be minimizing vocal involvement and learning to read in thought groups. You can begin to read in-depth without being overwhelmed by large amounts of reading material by looking for logical breaking points.

  2. What do you need to know about the material? You'll learn how to skim for general information. As a flexible and involved reader you'll be able to judge whether skimming (skipping with judgment) of a given selection would be appropriate for your needs, or if an in-depth reading might be necessary. When you answer the question, "What do I need to know about this?", you can apply the appropriate reading techniques. Scanning techniques will allow you to look for specific information such as names, dates, statistical data, numbers, or ideas.

  3. Why is developing a better vocabulary important for efficient reading? Your level of comprehension is dependent on your degree of understanding of the words in a given selection. This observation shows the need to develop a better vocabulary in order to read more efficiently. You will learn how to understand words in context, and to use the root wood, prefix, and suffix to gain clues to a word's meaning. This avoids constant use of a dictionary that slows down the reading process and makes it less efficient.

  4. What are reading aids provided by the author and publisher? Author and publisher reading aids can help you to read more efficiently by directing your attention to significant information in a variety of ways. An awareness of the role of punctuation in sentence structure can be an important aid in reading more efficiently. Commas, parentheses and dashes set off parenthetical material that qualifies or explains.

    The reader can expect an example, explanation or quotation to follow a colon. A period notes the end of a statement, and reminds the reader to "switch gears" for the next information. Publisher aids include numbered or lettered sequences, boxes, and highlighted or boldfaced words. Graphics (charts, graphs, and other illustrations) provide visual aids, which often summarize the textual information.

    This lesson concludes with an overview of how to read more efficiently by reviewing the skills used in the course. Another questionnaire will evaluate how your reading habits have changed. This follow-up evaluation will allow you to assess if you may need additional improvement in your reading habits.