https://tachiapp.com/learn Plain, sourced guides to how reading works and how to read faster: eye movements, subvocalization, RSVP, Schulte tables and more. en © Tachi Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://tachiapp.com/learn/speed-reading-techniques https://tachiapp.com/learn/speed-reading-techniques Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Techniques The main speed reading techniques are previewing, skimming, scanning, the key word method, meta guiding, timed pacing, RSVP, chunking, reducing regressions, reducing subvocalization, SQ3R and PhotoReading. Previewing, skimming for gist, scanning and the recall steps of SQ3R are well supported for what they do. Pacers, RSVP and chunking help focus on easy text but do not raise speed at full comprehension, and PhotoReading has failed testing. https://tachiapp.com/learn/speed-reading-exercises https://tachiapp.com/learn/speed-reading-exercises Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Techniques The most useful exercises to read faster are done on real text: paced reading slightly above your normal speed, reading in short phrases, previewing, deliberate skimming and writing down what you remember. Drills such as Schulte tables, flashed words and eye warm-ups help you settle your attention but have not been shown to raise reading speed by themselves. Ten to twenty minutes a day, with a speed and comprehension check every four weeks, is enough. https://tachiapp.com/learn/average-reading-speed https://tachiapp.com/learn/average-reading-speed Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT How reading works The average adult reads English silently at about 238 words per minute for non-fiction and 260 for fiction, and aloud at about 183, according to a 2019 meta-analysis of 190 studies. Most adults fall between 175 and 300 WPM for non-fiction. Children, older adults and people reading in a second language are slower, and a good speed is whichever one lets you understand what you are reading. https://tachiapp.com/learn/best-speed-reading-apps https://tachiapp.com/learn/best-speed-reading-apps Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Guides The best speed reading app depends on where you read: SwiftRead for web pages in the browser, Outread for a native iPhone and Mac reader, Spreeder for a guided course, Speechify if you would rather listen, and Tachi for free drills and a paced reader without an account. All of them work best as pacing and focus tools; none has been shown to multiply reading speed with full comprehension. https://tachiapp.com/learn/chunking-reading https://tachiapp.com/learn/chunking-reading Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Techniques Chunking means reading in word groups, treating a phrase such as "in the morning" as one unit instead of separate words. Eye-movement research shows that readers of English identify words only up to about 7 letters to the right of where they are looking, so a realistic chunk is two or three short words, not a whole line. Practising phrase reading can improve rhythm and focus, but there is no good evidence that it produces large gains in speed. https://tachiapp.com/learn/photoreading https://tachiapp.com/learn/photoreading Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT How reading works PhotoReading claims you can absorb a page per second at 25,000 words per minute and recall the content later, but there is no independent evidence that it works. The only controlled evaluation, a small NASA-funded study by Danielle McNamara (2000), found no benefit on any comprehension test, and the expert PhotoReader understood less with the technique. Its preview, question and review steps are useful study habits that work just as well with normal reading. https://tachiapp.com/learn/does-speed-reading-work https://tachiapp.com/learn/does-speed-reading-work Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT How reading works Speed reading works only in a limited sense: you can go faster, but beyond your normal pace you understand and remember less. A 2016 review of decades of research by Rayner and colleagues found no method that doubles or triples reading speed without a loss of comprehension, and tests of trained speed readers show they perform like skimmers. What does help is skimming when the gist is enough, reading practice, vocabulary and subject knowledge, and pacing tools that support focus. https://tachiapp.com/learn/speed-reading-and-dyslexia https://tachiapp.com/learn/speed-reading-and-dyslexia Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT For students, work and different readers Speed reading does not treat dyslexia, and promises of much faster reading do not apply to it. Controlled studies found that dyslexia fonts such as OpenDyslexic and Dyslexie did not improve reading speed or accuracy compared with ordinary fonts, while extra letter spacing and short lines showed some benefit in studies of children and teenagers. Choose a clear font, a large size and a comfortable background, and seek a specialist assessment for real support. https://tachiapp.com/learn/eye-movements-in-reading https://tachiapp.com/learn/eye-movements-in-reading Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT How reading works Reading is a series of fixations, pauses of about 225–250 milliseconds, joined by saccades, quick jumps of about seven to nine letters. About 10–15 percent of saccades are regressions that go back in the text. In each fixation, readers of English pick up information from 3–4 letters to the left and 14–15 to the right, but identify words only within about seven letters. The eyes are moving for only around a tenth of reading time, so changing eye movements cannot make reading much faster. https://tachiapp.com/learn/eye-warm-up-exercises https://tachiapp.com/learn/eye-warm-up-exercises Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Training drills Eye warm-up exercises are short gaze drills such as following a dot between fixed points or around a circle. There is no good evidence that they improve eyesight, raise reading speed or prevent eye strain; at best they are a brief ritual that helps you settle your attention before reading. For eye strain from reading on a screen, what helps is blinking, a comfortable viewing distance and a 20-second look into the distance every 20 minutes. https://tachiapp.com/learn/history-of-speed-reading https://tachiapp.com/learn/history-of-speed-reading Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT How reading works Speed reading became popular in 1959, when Evelyn Wood opened her first Reading Dynamics institute in Washington, D.C., building on tachistoscope training used since the Second World War. Courses spread in the 1960s, RSVP moved from the laboratory to apps with Spritz in 2014, and a 2016 review by Rayner and colleagues concluded that large speed gains come at the cost of comprehension. What has held up is modest: practice, vocabulary, pacing and skimming on purpose. https://tachiapp.com/learn/how-to-focus-while-reading https://tachiapp.com/learn/how-to-focus-while-reading Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Techniques To focus while reading, decide what you want from the text before you start, read in blocks of 15 to 20 minutes, silence your phone and use a steady pacer such as a finger or an on-screen guide. Mind wandering during reading is common, increases with difficult text and lowers comprehension, so the goal is to catch it quickly and set up your reading so it happens less, not to eliminate it. https://tachiapp.com/learn/how-to-improve-reading-comprehension https://tachiapp.com/learn/how-to-improve-reading-comprehension Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Techniques To improve reading comprehension as an adult, build background knowledge and vocabulary, preview a text and set questions before you read, explain each section to yourself as you go, and test yourself by recalling what you read rather than re-reading it. Research rates practice testing and spaced review as the most effective techniques, and highlighting and re-reading as among the least. Slowing down on hard material is often the right move, because speed and comprehension trade off. https://tachiapp.com/learn/reading-faster-at-work https://tachiapp.com/learn/reading-faster-at-work Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT For students, work and different readers To read faster at work, decide how closely each document deserves to be read before you start: skim newsletters, find the request in emails, skim reports by their structure and read only the sections that matter in full. Check email in a few planned batches, ask colleagues to put the main point first, and read contracts and figures at your normal pace. Selection saves far more time than raw reading speed. https://tachiapp.com/learn/reading-faster-in-a-second-language https://tachiapp.com/learn/reading-faster-in-a-second-language Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT For students, work and different readers Second-language reading is slower mainly because recognising each word takes longer; rates below 100 words per minute are common. To read faster, build vocabulary until you know about 98% of the words in a text and read large amounts of easy material, such as graded readers. Research links extensive reading of simplified books to gains in reading rate, while speed-reading tricks help little until vocabulary is in place. https://tachiapp.com/learn/how-to-read-faster https://tachiapp.com/learn/how-to-read-faster Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Techniques To read faster, measure your current speed and comprehension, then work on what actually limits you: vocabulary and background knowledge, attention, and careless re-reading. Practise with a pacer slightly above your comfortable pace, read in short phrases, and skim whatever only needs the gist. Research finds that doubling your speed with full understanding is unlikely, so expect modest gains on careful reading and large savings from reading selectively. https://tachiapp.com/learn/how-to-read-more-books https://tachiapp.com/learn/how-to-read-more-books Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Techniques To read more books, set aside a fixed time every day, choose books you want to read and drop the ones that do not hold you. At the average adult speed of about 238 words per minute, 20 minutes a day is enough for roughly two dozen typical books a year. Adding minutes does more than reading faster, and audiobooks and ebooks on your phone are legitimate ways to fit more in. https://tachiapp.com/learn/how-to-read-research-papers https://tachiapp.com/learn/how-to-read-research-papers Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Techniques To read research papers fast, read them in passes instead of front to back. Spend five to ten minutes on the title, abstract, introduction, headings and conclusions, then decide whether the paper deserves a second pass of up to an hour on the figures and argument. Save a slow, full third pass for papers you must review or build on, and never skim the methods of a result you will rely on. https://tachiapp.com/learn/how-to-speed-read-a-pdf https://tachiapp.com/learn/how-to-speed-read-a-pdf Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT RSVP and reading tools To speed read a PDF, import it into an RSVP reader, which extracts the text and shows it one word or short phrase at a time at a speed you choose. The PDF must contain real text: scanned, image-only files need OCR first. Start near 250 to 300 words per minute with one to three words per chunk and raise the speed only while you still follow the meaning. Layout, tables, footnotes and equations do not survive, so the method suits linear prose. https://tachiapp.com/learn/how-to-test-reading-speed https://tachiapp.com/learn/how-to-test-reading-speed Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT RSVP and reading tools To test your reading speed, read an unfamiliar passage at your normal pace, time yourself, and divide the words by the minutes taken: words × 60 ÷ seconds gives words per minute. Read for several minutes rather than one, test more than once, and check comprehension afterwards, because speed without understanding is not reading. The adult average for English non-fiction is about 238 words per minute. https://tachiapp.com/learn/meta-guiding https://tachiapp.com/learn/meta-guiding Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Techniques Meta guiding is reading with a pointer, such as a finger, pen, card or on-screen cursor, that moves along the lines for your eyes to follow. It was popularised by Evelyn Wood's speed-reading course from 1959. There is no good controlled evidence that it raises reading speed at full comprehension, but it does help many readers keep their place, hold a steady pace and notice when their attention drifts. https://tachiapp.com/learn/optimal-recognition-point https://tachiapp.com/learn/optimal-recognition-point Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT How reading works The optimal recognition point (ORP) is the letter, usually just left of a word's centre, that RSVP apps highlight as the place to fix your eyes. It is based on the optimal viewing position: isolated words are recognised fastest when the eye starts near their middle, with about 20 milliseconds added per letter away from it. In normal reading the effect is smaller still, so a pivot letter can make RSVP more comfortable but does little for speed. https://tachiapp.com/learn/peripheral-vision-training https://tachiapp.com/learn/peripheral-vision-training Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Training drills Peripheral vision training can make you better at noticing letters away from the point you are looking at, but it does not let you read whole lines at a glance. Readers of English use only about 3 to 4 letters to the left and 14 to 15 to the right of each fixation, and experiments show that this span is limited by attention and language processing more than by eyesight. Use peripheral drills as short attention practice; the span itself widens as reading becomes more fluent. https://tachiapp.com/learn/reading-on-screen-vs-paper https://tachiapp.com/learn/reading-on-screen-vs-paper Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT How reading works Meta-analyses find that people understand informational text slightly better on paper than on screens, a gap known as the screen inferiority effect (g = −0.21 in Delgado et al., 2018; g = −0.25 in Clinton, 2019). The gap grows under time pressure, is largely absent for narrative text, and comes with more overconfidence on screen. Reading speed is about the same. Removing time pressure, avoiding scrolling and writing keywords as you read all help. https://tachiapp.com/learn/regression-in-reading https://tachiapp.com/learn/regression-in-reading Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT How reading works A regression is a backward eye movement to text you have already read. Skilled readers make them on roughly 10 to 15 percent of eye movements, and experiments show that blocking them lowers comprehension, so the goal is not to eliminate re-reading. What you can reduce is re-reading caused by drifting attention, habitual checking or losing your place, using a steady pacer, a clear purpose and a quick recall check. https://tachiapp.com/learn/rsvp-vs-bionic-reading https://tachiapp.com/learn/rsvp-vs-bionic-reading Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT RSVP and reading tools RSVP shows text one word or chunk at a time at a set pace, while bionic reading keeps the page as it is and bolds the first letters of each word. Tests of bionic reading, including a 2024 study in Acta Psychologica, found no gain in reading speed. RSVP does control your pace, but comprehension falls when it is pushed well past normal reading speed. For long or difficult text, a pacer or plain reading usually serves better. https://tachiapp.com/learn/schulte-table https://tachiapp.com/learn/schulte-table Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Training drills A Schulte table is a square grid, classically 5×5, of numbers in random order that you find in ascending sequence as fast as you can, ideally while keeping your eyes on the centre. It is used in research as a quick test of attention and visual search and is named after the German psychiatrist Walter Schulte. Practice makes you faster at the table itself; there is no good evidence that it widens your reading span or raises your reading speed. https://tachiapp.com/learn/skimming-vs-scanning https://tachiapp.com/learn/skimming-vs-scanning Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Techniques Skimming is reading selectively to get the gist of a whole text; scanning is searching a text for one specific item, such as a name, date or keyword, and ignoring the rest. Skim when you do not yet know what a text says or whether it is worth reading, and scan when you know exactly what you are looking for. Both save time by giving up detail, so neither replaces careful reading when you need full understanding. https://tachiapp.com/learn/speed-reading-for-adhd https://tachiapp.com/learn/speed-reading-for-adhd Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT For students, work and different readers Speed reading does not treat ADHD, and reading faster is rarely the goal; staying on the page and remembering what you read usually is. Short timed sessions, a question before you start, fewer distractions, audio and pacing tools are common strategies. One small 2025 study found RSVP reading at a moderate pace improved comprehension for students with ADHD, but the evidence is early, and a clinician is the right person to talk to about treatment. https://tachiapp.com/learn/speed-reading-for-students https://tachiapp.com/learn/speed-reading-for-students Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT For students, work and different readers Students save the most time not by moving their eyes faster but by previewing each chapter, reading core sections properly, skimming the rest on purpose and replacing re-reading with self-testing. Research rates practice testing and spaced study as highly effective and re-reading as weak. Keep full speed for exam questions, problem sets and anything you will quote. https://tachiapp.com/learn/speed-reading-guide-2026 https://tachiapp.com/learn/speed-reading-guide-2026 Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Guides Speed reading in 2026 is best treated as a set of skills, not a trick: steady attention, a strong vocabulary, fewer careless re-reads, reading in short phrases and knowing when to skim. The leading review of the research (Rayner et al., 2016) finds that large speed gains cost comprehension, so expect modest gains on careful reading and large savings from reading selectively. Apps such as RSVP readers and pacers help with focus and tempo, not with multiplying speed. https://tachiapp.com/learn/speed-reading-on-your-phone https://tachiapp.com/learn/speed-reading-on-your-phone Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT RSVP and reading tools To read faster on your phone, swap scrolling for a paced RSVP reader that shows one or two words at a time in large type, start near your normal speed, and raise it only while you still follow the meaning. Silence notifications and read in 5 to 15 minute sessions. Research finds comprehension on phones is about the same as on computers, though difficult text takes longer. https://tachiapp.com/learn/subvocalization https://tachiapp.com/learn/subvocalization Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT How reading works Subvocalization is the inner speech most people hear while reading silently. You cannot eliminate it and should not try: experiments that suppress it find that comprehension of difficult text gets worse, because the sound of words helps you recognise them and hold sentences in mind. The realistic goal is to stop mouthing words and over-pronouncing easy text, using phrase reading and a pacer, while letting the voice work on anything demanding. https://tachiapp.com/learn/what-is-a-tachistoscope https://tachiapp.com/learn/what-is-a-tachistoscope Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Training drills A tachistoscope is a device that displays a word, number or image for a very brief, precisely controlled time, from a fraction of a second down to a few milliseconds. First described by the physiologist A. W. Volkmann in 1859, it became a standard tool for studying perception and was used in the Second World War to train aircraft and ship recognition. Flash training makes you better at recognising briefly shown words, but there is no solid evidence that it raises everyday reading speed. https://tachiapp.com/learn/what-is-rsvp-reading https://tachiapp.com/learn/what-is-rsvp-reading Fri, 13 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT RSVP and reading tools RSVP (rapid serial visual presentation) reading shows text one word or short chunk at a time at a fixed spot and a set pace, so your eyes do not move along lines. Research finds comprehension holds up near your normal reading speed and falls as you go well beyond it, because you cannot look back or preview the next word. It suits short texts, small screens and getting started on a backlog more than dense material.