Comprehension (ideas recalled) shows very little difference across slow, normal, and rapid silent reading rates¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · causal r2 · q2
Currency · newest study 1922 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q2 i? Across four groups (fourth grade, seventh grade, high school, college), the number of ideas reproduced was about the same whether paragraphs were read slowly, at normal rate, or rapidly. → Gilliland 1922

Evidence¶

Gilliland 1922¶

Gilliland, A. R. (1922). The effect of rate of silent reading on ability to recall. The Journal of Educational Psychology. https://psycnet.apa.org/record/1922-02093-001

q2 · i? · causal · r2

Controlled experiment in which each subject read two paragraphs at each of three rates with order counterbalanced across subjects; comprehension scored as ideas reproduced. The author reports "very little difference for any of the groups" across rates, with a possible slight advantage for rapid reading in children and slow reading in older students.

"In comprehension there was very little difference for any of the groups resulting from the different rates of reading. If there was any advantage it seemed that it was in favor of the rapid reading with the children and in favor of slow reading for the older students."

Discussion¶

Learner Variables¶

• Reading Fluency — predictor: learners who differ on it differ in outcomes

Related Claims¶

• Rapid reading gains about 26% more ideas per second than normal reading, and slow reading about 20% fewer, in all four groups — related
• Earlier investigators found rapid readers recall as well as or better than slow readers — related
• Instructed slow reading ran about 40% below normal rate and rapid reading about 16% below normal time, fairly uniformly across groups except seventh graders — related
• The new silent-reading test combines rate and comprehension scores into a single score via partial regression equations on teacher-rated reading ability — related
• Knowing that reproduction will be demanded slows reading rate across all readers and methods — related
• Rate of silent reading rises most rapidly in grades 2, 3 and 4, while quality of silent reading increases at about the same rate throughout the grades. — related