Speed Reading, a Crash Course

Have you ever wondered how those incredible people on TV can take a book and finish it off in minutes? More importantly, have you ever wondered how you can take a book and be done with it in minutes? Are they genius-aliens born with this freakish ability to absorb knowledge like a space-age mop?

Here's the secret: Speed Reading is a skill. It can be taught, and there are several ways to do it, depending on your preference and intentions.

I learned to speed-read in my teens (so long ago that Sony Walkmans hadn't even become popular, so it's been a while); while I probably don't use all its principles on a daily basis, here are methods I do use to this day. I've placed focus mainly on academic material, but also mention how it can apply to reading for relaxation as well.

1) Pre-Read: Look at the book before opening it. Usually even before buying the book I would read the notes on the back cover. If it's a fiction book, you'll get a very clear idea of the premise, or even a summary of how the plot is going to run. If these are not on the back, they can sometimes be found in the inner flap of the dust jacket, if there is one. Once in a while you'll see no liner notes whatsoever; perhaps you can find an author biography on the inside cover, and there is a chance you are familiar with other books the author has written. For example, if the book is written by Stephen King, you can pretty much expect eerie, supernatural entertainment, and not, say, the style and theme of another American Author such as Mark Twain.

Other things to watchout for are the publisher's name (if the name rings a bell, you'll have a good guess what kind of book it will be) and the year (for many technical books and some texts, an older year may suggest interestingly out-of-date ideas)

2) Look at the Skeleton - for school textbooks, there will always be a Table of Contents. This gives you a really descriptive guide to the "terrain" of the book. How does the book begin? How does it end? What ideas are included in between? You'll be given a taste of this through the Table. You will notice also that some chapters are longer than others, some more detailed and with more subheadings than others. This is also a great clue as to what the author thinks is important enough to devote plenty of time expounding on.

Also, did the author of the text organize the entire book chronologically (like some American Literature or History books), or is there some other way he or she chose to order the chapters (Alphabetically? Simpler ideas to more complex?).

This is also a great opportunity to do what I call Out-Reading. If it is a textbook you are previewing in a bookstore or library, take another book on the exact same topic and compare the Table of Contents against the Table from another book. This is an excellent chance for you to note what your author is choosing to leave out, as contrasted to another author's treatment of the topic. Some professors may even be impressed if you mention your findings at this stage!
For similar (although not as revealing) insight you can also go to the index, and glossaries, for the same reasons.

3) Find a Comfortable Posture - While you don't need to be sitting bolt-upright, you can't be slouching or reclining, either. Sit up comfortably straight, and hold the book so that your eyes can get a good view of an entire page at a glance. This ensures you're not holding the book too closely, focusing on just one or two words at a time, trudging at a snail's pace through each sentence. And it also makes sure that you are not holding the book so far from your eyes you have to strain at the page. Ideally you should be able to hold the book from beneath, and your eyes have a comfortable grasp of the page as well.
For a paperback this should be easy enough because of the small size of the book. For some hardbound textbooks you may have to rest the book on a table, especially if the book is a little hefty.

4) Take a (Chapter) Break - If this is a schoolbook, you can safely assume that there will be questions at the end of the chapter. Read the questions first! This teaches you what you need to know, for almost any test covering this chapter. Most professors will even lift questions directly from this part of the book! The questions are valuable in learning what the author thinks you need to remember after reading that chapter. While you might not be able to answer every question (because you haven't read the chapter yet) you will be given a heads-up on what to watch out for when you are reading. This literally tells you the important parts of the chapter ahead of time! You will later recognize while reading the chapter when the author is either talking about significant ideas, or just making a side-comment. And it will save you lots of time from laboring through those unimportant parts.
After a few chapters, you will come to a Unit Review. Look through this section for the same reasons.

5) Pace-Reading: This is when you read the actual chapter. Traditional speed-reading uses your finger as a "pacer". One reason for this is when an object moves across your field of vision, your eyes will track it and read things it passes. So it stands to reason that if you move your hand faster, your eyes can go across the page faster as well, as your field of vision is being pulled along at a faster-than-normal rate. I still believe this, although for textbooks I prefer to use a pencil instead of just a finger. The beauty of this is that when you come across an important idea or term, you can immediately underline or encircle it and move on. For obvious reasons, avoid using a pen, highlighter or permanent marker.

While it should look like you are underlining every word in the book, you are actually scanning every line very rapidly, pausing only to make your pencil marks for review later on.(note: pencil marks are erasable and help maintain the value of your textbook, if you are planning to resell it at the end of the semester)

For enjoying fiction books, this underlining method still works well with your finger, as there is no actual marking-up to do. Just a bit of warning: make sure to wash your hands before and after, as the ink tends to rub off on fingers, especially with inexpensive paperbacks. And if your hands are dirty to begin with.
The reason pacing works is because we don't speak or think in words, but in blocks of thought. Instead of reading individual words, you will be picking up chunks of meaning-- a more efficient way to absorb the material.

This is basically speed reading in a nutshell, and how I have adopted it to work for me after years of practice. Other books and courses on the subject will have varying terms and steps, but the idea for grasping a textbook is basically the same: getting an overview of the material, and then reading with a pacer to quickly pick up all the key ideas, as revealed by the questions at each chapter's end. I highly suggest looking into the subject of speed reading a bit more, as it is a very worthwhile and timesaving skill.