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Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 14
Junior Member
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Junior Member
Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 14 |
Hi,
I learned photoreading about 2 years ago and have used it with pretty good success. I am now in a residency program in veterinary emergency and critical care and the reading load is tremendous. The material is very detailed and when I read it the regular slow way I find that I have to read very slowly and concentrate very hard to get the material. I would like to apply photoreading to this material, but I'm afraid that I may not grasp the content to the level that I need. Any tips or advice would be much appreciated. Thank you!
Lisa
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Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 7,089 Likes: 1
Learning Strategies Admin Member
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Learning Strategies Admin Member
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 7,089 Likes: 1 |
I suggest PhotoReading the textbook daily for couple of weeks before activating. Remember to ask mind probing questions. When you have a question to answer you move faster.
Alex
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Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 14
Junior Member
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Junior Member
Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 14 |
Hi Alex,
Thanks. I find myself in overwhelm because I have numerous of these books and they are 1300-1500 pages each. I need to understand the material on a detailed level. So, I'm wondering if the I should take it a section at a time rather than do the whole textbook at once? For eg. just take the 8 chapters in cardiovascular physiology and leave the other sections for later? Also how do you only do previewing for 8 minutes on a book that size. I'm determined to master this and so appreciate your words of wisdom.
Lisa
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Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 7,089 Likes: 1
Learning Strategies Admin Member
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Learning Strategies Admin Member
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 7,089 Likes: 1 |
I'd pick one book per day to PhotoRead. And use the strategy of working in sections when it comes to activation. That is PhotoRead before activating that section. Only preview the book for 90 seconds. Then treat each chapter as a book and spend a few minutes postviewing, pulling trigger words and forming questions. This is the first activation, follow up with a superread activation to answer a couple of key questions and then skitter. Remember to treat each chapter as a book in itself.
As for PhotoReading PhotoRead the textbook as a whole. Do it sometime during the day. If you only manage to get part way through the book in the five minute commercial break during the news leave the book open. When the next commercials come on go back a few pages and continue PhotoReading till the time is up again. That way you can get through one or two of your textbooks in a day leaving study time for activation.
Alex
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Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 14
Junior Member
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Junior Member
Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 14 |
During my 20 minute break after photoreading a section should I activate something else that I had photoread earlier, or take a complete break from my study materials?
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Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 7,089 Likes: 1
Learning Strategies Admin Member
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Learning Strategies Admin Member
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 7,089 Likes: 1 |
Take a complete 3 minute break. Get up stretch, change position, refill your water glass and then you can continue. Or you can even get on with other things during the day.
For example PhotoRead part of the book in the morning. Leave it on the table go to work and come home finish PhotoReading and start activating.
Alex
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Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 14
Junior Member
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Junior Member
Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 14 |
Thanks Alex,
So, I can feel a difference now and the material doesn't seem nearly so overwhelming.
I am finding myself still spending several hours/chapter slow reading after photoreading and activating. My rapid reading usually actually just turns into slow reading. Then I take copious notes/mind map and it slows me down a lot. Does this sound like I could be doing it better or different?
Thanks for all of your help.
Lisa
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Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 771
Member
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Member
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 771 |
It sounds like you are just regular reading. Skittering would be ideal for your situation. Also the key is layers multiple passes of skittering. You are not going to get it all on the very first pass. That is the fallacy of regular reading that you are going to get everything on the very first pass or attempt.
It is a lot more effective to do layers or multiple passes than trying to get everything on the very first pass.
Photoread4me
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Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 7,089 Likes: 1
Learning Strategies Admin Member
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Learning Strategies Admin Member
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 7,089 Likes: 1 |
I suggest giving the chapter a certain amount of time say 20 minutes. Use the activation technique and get what you can in that time. Then check your purpose, do you still need more how much more again give yourself a limited amount of time this time say 6 minutes to get those answers. Repeat a couple more times. Then allow the last 10 minutes of your study time to be for a rapid read of the chapter to look if you missed anything. Don't go into too much details. Just note it to yourself and start with a 10 minute activation for that information during your next study session.
I find it wise to break down study sessions into chunks. You might consistently study between 9pm and midnight. Working non stop learning what you can in that time. It's better if you plan what you plan to get done.
So I suggest planning one study session to be 1 hour long. Break it into portions. 20 minutes the first activation, 3 minutes to review, stand, stretch and decide what you want to achieve in the next 10 minutes. Do that and take another short break change in position and plan again. 20 minute activation, Shift review plan for the next study period whether that is after the bathroom break or tomorrow. At that point plan what you want to achieve in the next hour.
In the beginning your estimates of what you can achieve will miss the mark. It's better to fall short of your target than let the task take as long as you've allocated.
The whole point of it is like coming up to air regularly so that you can see where you are at and what still needs to be done. Often when we are reading we think we are studying when in fact we are just looking at words some which are entertaining and some useful. Some that take you away from what you need for your assignments right now.
To say it another way. It's like trekking through a jungle, you want to stop regularly to check you are still going the right direction and not walking too far off the path.
Alex
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Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 7,089 Likes: 1
Learning Strategies Admin Member
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Learning Strategies Admin Member
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 7,089 Likes: 1 |
I just want to add, by setting a block of time you will develop your activation and rapid reading skills and you will look at the chapter 3 or more times. Calmly accept that you won't get it all in the first 20 minutes and aim to have superread all the pages. Some ideas and answers will stick. Skitter on the second, 3rd and 4th pass focusing on answering your questions.
If you don't have questions there isn't much point in reading. You need some idea of what you hope to learn. Again that becomes clearer with each activation layer. The final rapid read would just be the assurance you've covered it all and nothing seems new to you.
I also recommend mind mapping over any note system. The 3 words to a line rule stops you from writing pages and creatively helps you convert the information so that you own it because you understand it. (You need to understand it if you want to write key words on a mind map.) If you want to write too much write ???? and drop the pen. Superread past it. You now have a cue that you need to come back to this.
Alex
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