Your Bad Reading Habits and Solution- Part II

Bad Habit 3:- Vocalization and Sub-Vocalization 
Most ineffective readers have this bad habit and is probably the main cause for slow reading.

What does vocalization and sub-vocalization mean?

Vocalization  means reading aloud  and Sub-vocalization means reading aloud silently in your mind.

Reading is a visual process. You see the words on the page and your brain recognizes these words and understands them.

By vocalizing and sub-vocalizing, you are involving and auditory aspect which is totally irrelevant. To increase your reading speed, you need to eliminate the auditory aspect from reading. 

How do you know if you are vocalizing and/ or sub-vocalizing? 
If your reading speed is around 150- 250 WPM then you are reading aloud to yourself. It is because, human beings talk at the speed of around 150 WPM. In this case, your reading speed is approximately same as your talking speed.

You are sub-vocalizing  and / or vocalizing if you have any of the following habits :

1. Lipping
2. Tongue-warbling
3. Jawing
4. Adam's-appling and

 You may not have all the above 5 bad habits. Read to find which of the bad habits is stopping you from becoming an effective reader.

1.Lipping

Most slow readers "lip-read" while reading.
While reading, if your lips are moving, you are doing it wrong. There is  no need for lip movement while reading. You may be talking or whispering while reading. Both are not necessary and you should stop that immediately.

Do you "lip-sync"? 
To find out, place a finger lightly on the lips as you read, or ask a friend to observe while you read for a few minutes. You may be surprised to find how much your lips are inv­olved with silent reading.

How to overcome Lipping? Solution

"Lipping" habits can be overcome quickly and with relative ease if you are aware of their presence, and apply the following techniques until you succeed.

1. Cup both hands behind the ears as you read. If you hear any sounds or whispers at all, concentrate on maintaining silence, and listen as necessary until you break the habit.
2. Read with a pencil held lightly between the lips. Any movement of the lips will be illustrated and exaggerated by the pencil's actions. Practice until the pencil remains still.
3. In severe or extreme cases, the mouth can be sealed temporarily with plastic tape.

Good News!!

Lipping takes very less time to overcome once you start implementing the above solution.

2,Tongue-Warbling 

What is Tongue-Warbling ?

Tongue-Warbling is when your tongue is busily engaged with forming each and every sound as you read.
As you read this lesson , are you aware of even the slightest movement of the tongue? If so, no matter however slight, you must overcome it.

How to over come Tongue-Warbling ? Solution

1. Read with a pencil gripped midway back in the mouth, with the tongue held underneath.
2. Read with chewing gum held between the top of the tongue and the roof of the mouth.
3. Hold fingers beneath the jaws to detect tongue movement.

3. Jawing 

The "jawer" does exactly what the term suggests; his jaw tends to "keep time" with his reading. It may appear that he is chewing. If you need to check for and/or overcome this habit, try the following.

How to overcome Jawing? Solution: 

1. Read with your chin resting solidly on a clinched fist. (The elbow is planted firmly on a desk or table).
2. Read while chewing gum; however, make certain to avoid chewing in rhythm with your reading.
3. Practice reading with a pencil clinched firmly between the front teeth.

4.Adam's-Appling

Here is what happens when an ineffective reader reads:-

As an ineffective start reading silently, he unconsciously puts the voice box and vocal cords through all or most of the intricate movements and changes necessary for normal speech. Inaudibly, he raises and lowers pitch as he experiences the action of the words being read. If a very sensitive microphone were attached to the throat, he might be surprised to learn how much in-articulated "speaking" is going on beneath the normal hearing level.

 Are you Adam’s appling?
Check yourself now. Place your fingers lightly on both the sides and front of the Adam's apple-voice box. Is there anyvibration or movement there except that necessary for breathing and swallowing?

If yes, then you are Adam’s Appling?

How to overcome Adam’s Appling? Solution:

If so, you are"Adam's-Appling;" You can put a stop it by doing the following:

1. Consciously and deliberately relax the entire throat and neck area. Stop occasionally to roll and turn the head; breathe deeply, comfortably.
2. Continue to read with fingers on the voice box. Any vibration or movement will alert you to relax further.

If you don't have any of the 4 habits:

As far as sub vocalization is concerned, every reader sub vocalizes. Most of the time, your sub-vocalization can be linked to one of the 4 habits I have listed above. If you feel you don’t have the above habits, you can still reduce sub vocalization. It can't be eliminated completely; you can only reduce it to some level. Even after practicing for 8 years, i still sub vocalize.

Here are few things you can do to reduce sub vocalization: 
1. Read the book and sing a song in your mind simultaneously.
2. Read a book with loud music in the back ground.
3. Chew gum while reading.
4. Make funny sounds like la li lu while reading

The above suggestions forces your mind to focus on other things while reducing. This helps in reducing sub vocalization. Within few minutes you will see an improvement.

Again, few things to keep in mind,
You shouldn't do the above suggestions while you are reading at normal times, you only do the above things, in the 30 minutes you have decided to work on to reduce the bad habits.

Important Points:

1. Most of the readers vocalize and sub vocalize. I am sure you are not an exception. If you do what is recommended in solution, your vocalization and sub-vocalization will reduce drastically.
2. You can't eliminate sub vocalization completely, you can only reduce it.You will always sub-vocalize at some level. So, don’t have an exception of eliminating sub-vocalization completely.

Action steps:

1. Become aware of which bad habits do you have?
2. Once you become aware of bad habits, start working on it from today. You needn’t do the exercise for hours. Even 10 minutes a day will take you miles ahead.

~Srinivas Reddy