Reading speed

[fleetfootmike]

From hobbitblue's journal comes this reading speed test.

I knew I was pretty quick - it clocks me around 750-800 wpm.

Comments

[pocketnaomi.livejournal.com]

Likewise, but it's a strange test for me. I don't read consecutive words; I read blocks of text at a time. Picking the last word I read was difficult.

[bardling.livejournal.com]

I wanna see djbp's result...

[pbristow.livejournal.com]

Hmmm... The test is slightly flawed. It doesn't take into account the fact that I read narrative as quickly as my eyes land on it, but I always read character dialog at what feels like the correct speaking pace for that character. (I've always done that, but even more so since taking acting classes.)

Reading the passage as straight narrative, I got: "-
You read between 300 - 350 words per minute. Above-average reading level"

However, if I do it again pretending that the text I'm reading is a character passing on the information verbally to someone else, I get: "You read between 200 - 250 words per minute. Average reading level."

[agentrayevyn.livejournal.com]

Good God I'm pathetic. I read 300-350 wpm, without total comprehension. With it, it takes me a lot longer. Then again, I have to go back and listen to the words in my head, otherwise nothing makes sense.

[fleetfootmike.livejournal.com]

No crime being above average.

[vampirdaddy.livejournal.com]

For me it's 550-600 wpm - didn't know I was that fast in English language. Being pretty fast in reading German since youth probably helped, though I do not remember the "score" of the test I once took - was way back before university, though...

[bardling.livejournal.com]

I came out at 300-350 wmp, above aveerage reading speed. I know I read slower on a screen than I do in print.
I wonder if the result would be different for me, if the text were in German...

[bardling.livejournal.com]

Oh, and it slowed me down that the text was boldened. Much prefer normal, unboldened fonts for general reading of paragraphs...

[armb.livejournal.com]

The test seems to be broken - if you set the timer to a shorter value because the default was more than enough to read to the bottom of the text, it jumps to the same result as if you wait the full minute.

[oreouk.livejournal.com]

You're showing off Alan!

I came in 300-350, above average, though being honest I'm only just in there since my last word read was the first word of that block, so 300wpm. I'm happy with that. I suspect I read faster a) in hard copy rather than on screen and b) when I'm into something rather than coming to a block of text I'm not really interested in cold. SStill, it's an interesting test.

[armb.livejournal.com]

> You're showing off Alan!

I could have been just a webpedant complaining about a hypothetical problem. But I see filkerdave hit it too, unless I'm misreading him.

[filkerdave.livejournal.com]

I just clicked on the last word when I was done. Somewhere between 850 and 900 wpm both times I took it.

*sigh* That Kennedy inaugural speech makes me long for an America that might have been.

[keristor.livejournal.com]

550-600. However, some time was wasted due to scrolling (I don't like reading on the screen, it's not the right distance or position and I'm not used to scrolling rather than flipping pages) and I prefer fully-justified text for lines of that length.

[grey-lady.livejournal.com]

Between 800-850 when I'm reading at what I consider a "standard" light reading pace, about 650 WPM if I actually read every single word.

[bedlamhouse]

I also clicked at the last word because the timer hadn't gone off yet.

The piece I got was a bit denser than most day-to-day reading I do, rather multisyllabic and full of words not normally in daily use. From others' comments it sounds like it has a random bit of prose each time.

I remember in a (required) reading improvement class I took in high school I was clocked at about 3000 words per minute in some situations. They had these funky machines with light bars that moved down the page at the reading speed you were expected to be making - I had to ignore them because they were too slow.

As the eyes have gotten tired and I've spent more time on the computer, I've slowed down quite a bit since then ...