Most ESL students read at about 200 words a minute, which is the same speed that they speak. The average reading speed for native speakers is about 500 words per minute, and you can reach speeds of 1000 words per minute and above with practice.

So what? With a faster reading speed, you can:

1. save time.
2. read more efficiently.
3. spend more time on more important actions.

If you’re taking a test, faster reading will help you in every section. You’ll have more time to consider the answers, and finding the answers will be faster too. Reading for fun will become more fun. Nobody wants to spend a month reading a popular book, but reading it in a week? That sounds better!

Work will become easier too. Think of how much there is to learn about at your company: business reports, emails, summaries, proposals, contracts, and more. With a higher reading speed, you’ll be able to devote more time to doing your job, rather than just reading about what other people are doing.

Here’s a website that has speed-reading exercises and tests. I taught a reading course for many years, and was amazed by how quickly the students improved their speed. Over a month, most students were able to double their reading speed. You can too!