36 What is Photo-Reading?
Description
This article is from the Self Improvement FAQ, by Loren Larsen llarsen@cs.clemson.edu with numerous contributions by others.
36 What is Photo-Reading?
A. I took it here in California. I was very disappointed and got a
refund on the class fee.
Most of the class time was spent on standard speed reading
techniques, such as preview, skimming, review (they use other terms
to describe it). The 'Photo' part is, as best I could tell, more a
gimmick than a real technique. After doing the 'Photo' process you
still have to go back and apply standard reading and/or speed
reading techniques to 'activate' the information. Without the
'activation' step they assert that your 'subconscious' knows the
information but you don't have conscious access to it.
The brochure I have from them says "...mentally photograph the
printed page at rates exceeding a page per minute..." but the class
teaches, in effect, that's an undeveloped photograph and if you want
to know what was in the picture you have to go back and use other
techniques -- skimming if you want a general idea of the material,
and maybe old-fashioned reading and study if you want detailed
understanding. Our instructor wasn't able to demonstrate anything
better than this.
In discussing my refund with Peter Bissonette, president of Learning
Strategies Inc. which developed Photo Reading, he admitted to me
that's about how it is -- but he still asserted that on the whole
it's a more effective reading method than anything else out there.
Maybe so, but the spread between promise versus delivery was too
great for me.
It DOES teach some useful (standard) speed reading/learning
techniques. But if you really want to read 12,000 WPM, then
question them very carefully on just what they mean by that
claim versus what you're expecting.
(From: fluke@netcom.com (Fred Fluke))
Q. Where can I learn more about speed reading?
A. The most famous speed reading method is called 'Evelyn Wood's
Reading Dynamics'. You can learn this method through a number
mediums including seminars, books, cassette tapes, or computer
software. The number to call for more information is
1-800-447-READ. A book is also available called "The Evelyn Wood
7 Day Reading & Learning Program" , ISBN 0380 715775, $4.99.
A computer software program is also available called "The
Evelyn Wood Dynamic Reader" from Timeworks. See Appendix A for
details.
Another program is called 'Speed Learning' from Learn Inc. They
claim their program goes beyond ordinary speed reading.
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