THE HISTORY OF SPEED READING

Speed reading as a term goes back several decades. The first research dates all the way back to 1878 when the French ophthalmologist Emile Javal did eye-movement experiments and discovered that the eyes move in a series of jumps (saccades) and pauses (fixations).

In 1925 the first formal speed reading course was given at Syracuse University in New York.

Then in the 1940’s the United States Air Force came along with the tachistoscope, which was initially designed to improve the visual acuity of pilots for the purpose of discovering enemy aircraft. It was soon discovered that the device could also be used to increase reading speeds. Long story short, readers achieved full recognition of words that were flashed on a screen as fast as one five-hundredth of a second. From these findings a training program was devised which enabled people to increase their reading speeds from about 200 to 400 words per minute.

However, not only was the machine very expensive, which meant that few people could afford to get their own, but it also became evident that the results were not particularly stable – reading speeds soon dropped back to their old levels when the device was taken away.

Using machines to increase people’s reading speeds was the dominant trend of the 1940’s. After the tachistoscope hysteria had started to settle, Harvard University Business School came up with a film-aided course that was designed to widen the reader’s field of focus in order to take in more words with each fixation. Even though speeds approximating a 100% increase were seen, lasting results had yet to be demonstrated.

A lot of research was done in the 1950’s to try to figure out how naturally fast readers did it – those whose rates were 1,500 to 6,000 words per minute. A variety of techniques were developed to try to emulate these fast readers. Some worked well. Some didn't work at all.

New speed reading methods constantly hit the market. Our purpose at the Speed Reading Review is to help you, the reader, pick one that works and works well. Please see our latest review.