Mainly in academic reading many times it becomes a difficult task for us to read the large number of chapters that we must address for a tutorial or an exam, if it is clear that we must start with this with a reasonable time and in small doses, but the amount that we read in a given time is related to speed and reading comprehension, since a person who reads faster and understands what he reads usually has a higher concentration capacity as well as more development in his long-term memory.
In relation to the aforementioned, it is important to know that reading fast does not mean and should not lead to sacrificing your ability to understand and abstract from the text, on the contrary, it must be a process, a training that allows you to do all three things at the same time, that is why So today I am going to give you a series of techniques that can help you develop both speed reading and long-term memory.
Exercise your brain with reading.
The brain is just another muscle in our body. If we don’t exercise it, if we don’t give it work, it weakens little by little until it atrophies. Reading frequently modifies the structure of the brain, as well as the way we think and process information, creating and reinforcing the habit of reading. Some psychologists point out that reading has to be active, for this it must be complemented with techniques such as underlining, notes, or cards, likewise we must ask, comment, reflect, repeat and self-explain what we read.
Reading not only has a positive influence on a person’s social behavior (which is already fundamental), but it has also been shown that the acquisition of this competence has a decisive influence on the development of the so-called superior intellectual abilities such as critical thinking, the ability to of reflexion.
Think about what you read.
Repeating the same paragraph over and over again out of distraction is one of the most common mistakes made by those who do not read often. Reading requires a high degree of concentration and to achieve this we must focus 100% on the text, forgetting the cell phone, television and all the factors that may occupy our mind.
Remember that in order to have a successful reading process you have to read and analyze at the same time so that it is active reading and not lose high concentration, that is, a good reading is one that makes us reflect on what we process with our eyes in the text.
Take advantage of reading to change the environment, carefully analyze each paragraph, this will make reading active and fun, it will also help you become a more focused person at work, university, conversations, etc.
You have a pre-reading process.
It is important to prepare yourself before you start reading a text in detail. It is recommended to take this step very seriously, cautiously and calmly, for this study the text you are going to read, know the author, other texts of his authorship, the structure of the text and the references of the text. This will serve as motivation for fluent reading, as well as allow you to plan how you should develop the reading process so that it is efficient over time and allows for greater understanding.
You must understand what you read.
Reading only to decode a series of symbols such as letters is not an adequate practice because in the end it will not allow you to understand or abstract the ideas of the text which is the object of your reading, to read you must be sure that at the end you will be able to give a summary about what you have addressed in the text, since this allows you to know if your reading was an active process that allowed you to decode the message, abstract data and understand them or you just passed your eyes over the letters but did not abstract anything, if at the end of your reading you cannot give a summary of what you read, it is best to rest and do it again later.
If your text brings very technical or complex concepts or words, try to define them with a dictionary, but make a glossary of what you understood from the dictionary, this will allow you to increase your lexicon and expression.
Knowing how to read is knowing how to write and speak well.
Reading is one of the most important tools for study and daily life, since a professional or a university student must handle writing and a lexicon appropriate to their level and context, this leads us to exemplify the ability to produce texts, since it is much It is easier to write an article or a review when your reading comprehension is high, so you can recount the texts in your own words, since it is certain that you will have a broader vocabulary.
Remember to imagine and understand the ideas of an author will open you to the world of writing and improve your vocabulary, all of which leads to the world opening up to better opportunities.
Practice makes a master.
A university student should not concentrate only on reading the academic texts that he should, because he should at least read between 3 and 5 books in a year to improve his information processing capacity, the more you read, the more you will speed up your reading skills, This way you will be able to read more words per minute and become a much more analytical person.
It is recommended to generate a habit you must perform the same activity for fifteen or twenty days minimum. You can start by reading articles of personal interest, news or books that you like. Then you can alternate them with texts that are not to your liking to develop the ability to read quickly in all types of text.
It is better to be ignorant for a moment than for a lifetime.
Throughout the reading you will find data, words, expressions that we do not know. Do not stay with the doubt because this will only block the learning process, you will be distracted and lose continuity. Have a dictionary handy to look up those unknown words. Write down the data you do not know and corroborate in other texts, so you will expand your knowledge.
Reading out loud is a good idea.
An excellent practice to improve reading is to do it out loud. Choose a book of your liking, your tasks, projects and writings, share them with your family, friends or do it; read slowly, take the necessary breaks and at the end perform an analysis of the text, about what was understood, this is a way to reinforce reading, study, review and share.
Reading is one of the most effective study methods. Memorizing, analyzing, reviewing, explaining and presenting are some of the processes that reading can improve. But to achieve a satisfactory result, it is important to improve all areas surrounding reading; speed and understanding are often the most necessary to meet your goals.