READING RACE
Importance of Reading
Aristotle said, “Man is what he knows”. Someone rephrased it as, “Man is what he thinks the whole day.” Reading not only gives you something to think about, but also makes you think. Reading makes your mind active, it stimulates creative. Without reading you thoughts could become redundant and your actions follow your thoughts.
If you analyse the history of human ideas, those who contributed to history were invariably voracious readers. Karl Marx for instance learnt everything in a library, as he himself was a librarian. As priests and educators we are constantly called upon to give talks, seminars and sermons. So we need ideas. If you look for ideas on that day, you may not get it, nor will you know how where to find it. Reading is a habit that has to be cultivated when you are still young, especially when you are a student.
Many students complain, “we have no time.” Do you remember what I said earlier, “If you want something done give to the busiest person.” You have to find the 25th hour. But believe me, if you are constantly reading you will be more attentive in class, you need less time to revise your class lessons, you write your papers quite fast and that gives you more time to read and the cycle goes on.
What we are going to talk about here is on how to improve your speed of personal reading and how to choose books to read.
Kinds of Reading
There are different kinds of reading:
1. Reading to master information and content, usually done very carefully, slow and repeating some sections, jotting down a few points.
2. Exploratory reading, as in skimming through a book in order to get a general view of it.
3. Revision reading as in reading rapidly through a book with which you are already familiar, in order to confirm the knowledge.
4. Reading in order to search for specific information, for instance in an encyclopaedia.
5. Critical Reading as in reading a book for review.
6. Reading for enjoyment as reading a novel.
7. Proof-reading, when meticulous attention is paid to spelling, punctuation and sentence structure.
Therefore one should adapt the rhythm of reading to suit the type of material and the purpose of reading.
“some books should be only tasted, others must be gulped down and only a few should be chewed.” (Francis Bacon)
How to get the maximum out of your reading
1. Increase your vocabulary. Put down the words that are new to you as you read. Make use of a good dictionary to look it up. Have a small exercise book for jotting down new words and expressions. Since our understanding is based on our pre-understanding the more vocabulary you know the more you will be able understand in a given text.
2. Before beginning to read, ask yourself some questions which you think the book will be able to answer. Establish the purpose of your reading.
3. Don’t forget the appropriate body-posture. Fix targets as you read. Say to yourself you will finish one page in 5 minutes.
4. While reading repeat to yourself the thoughts and arguments developed by the author. This process is called “self-recitation.” Constantly monitor your own comprehension.
5. However, do not read aloud to yourself, this slows you down a great deal. Not even quietly. Personal reading should be your eyes receiving information and sending it to your brain.
6. Look ahead while you read, at least 4 to 5 words.
How to assess a book without actually reading it.
This is to help you decide if the book that you are choosing from the library would be really useful to you, or if it would fit your interest and need.
1. After reading the title and the author, turn to the back-cover of the book to see if there is a write up. Usually this should give you a good idea of the topic and the background of the author.
2. Check for the year of publication. That will tell you if it is sufficiently up-to-date. On some topics books get outdated very soon.
3. Read the table of contents attentively. Sometimes the title of the book could be misleading, but the table of contents can give you good idea, particularly in a scholarly book.
4. Check up the documentation and bibliography on which the book is based.
5. Notice the general tone of the book: is it dogmatic, or is it polemic. Make distinction between classics, scholarly books, popular books and just thrash!