Fastest speed reader in the world archive#

This is why she can read faster when the topic is familiar. However, this seems possible when you have extensive knowledge like Calderon.Ĭalderon uses this technique when reading and fills in the gaps of what she is reading from her stock knowledge. She was called the World’s Fastest Reader” by the Guinness Book of World Records because she set a record of reading 8,000 words per minute and maintained 100% comprehension.īecause of her outstanding feat, her records were featured in academic journals and the Encyclopedia Britannica Volume 19 in 1971.Ĭalderon has a technique called “gestalting,” which refers to the human’s response as a complete and whole to specific events instead of their sum of responses. reported and publicized her exceptional reading speed.

Maria Teresa CalderonĪt 15, Maria Teresa Calderon was an international sensation when the Associated Press of the U.S. Until the late 1990s, she held her classes frequently at college campuses throughout the U.S. It captured public attention, which led her to launch her first speed-reading institute in Washington, D.C.Īdditionally, she is famous for having her methods taught to Presidents John F. She also had an average speed of 2,500 words per minute.Īfter studying the habits of naturally fast readers, she developed a methodology called “Reading Dynamics” that increases one’s pace in reading.

She coined the term “speed reading” before it became a conventional phrase. Evelyn WoodĪlthough not as well known as the two presidents, Evelyn Wood popularized speed reading in the U.S. It was run by the Ohio State University and Georgia State University.

Fastest speed reader in the world archive#

He also made a significant contribution to The Digital Archive of Literacy Narratives (DALN) not only because he was a president but also because he helped DALN reach a new milestone of 6000 submissions.ĭALN is a public archived narrative project that collects archives of personal literacy narratives that serve as references and historical records of different literacy practices and values. Coming from a family emphasizing the importance of education and reading at an early age, he was a speed reader who could read up to 2,000 words per minute. President Jimmy CarterĪnother well-known speed reader is U.S. Mears taught the class entitled ‘How to Read Better and Faster.’ It met Tuesday evenings from 8:30 to 10:30, and the brothers had to drive more than an hour each way to attend it.” 2. For several weeks in the spring of 1954, Jack and Bobby had been traveling to Baltimore to attend a speed reading class at the John Hopkins University’s evening college. “JFK developed a phenomenal ability to read material quickly. in the 1960s.Ī passage from the book “Camelot at Dawn” titled “The Speed Reader” describes JFK’s ability to read fast: He encouraged many in his cabinet to take similar courses and helped make speed reading popular throughout the U.S. He was reported to read 1200 per minute after he took the course. He took the course in Baltimore around 1954. President Kennedy was a strong proponent of speed reading after taking a speed reading course with his brother Bobby Kennedy. Let’s look at the profile of the most famous speed readers of all time to learn about their reading rates and how they developed this speed reading skill. Most importantly, it acknowledges how reading faster can benefit their lives. It takes time, practice, and dedication to read faster. How did they become speed readers? They certainly did not acquire this skill in a blink of an eye. Kennedy, Evelyn Wood, Maria Teresa Calderon, and Howard Stephen Berg, among others. Over time, some famous speed readers gained a reputation for reading more than the average reading speed of 238 words per minute for adults. It is an essential skill that not everyone has developed yet. It is a drastic increase in word per minute rate when you are reading while still maintaining your comprehension level. Speed reading is a skill that lets you recognize and absorb rapidly the phrases or sentences you are reading. Top 7 Most Famous Speed Readers of All Time