Yardlings Receive New Reading Instruction to Raise Eye Speed

Part of the work of the recently created Bureau of Supervisors will be to conduct a course in Remedial Reading which will be given the first time this Fall to improve and speed up the reading habits of a limited number of Freshmen, it was learned yesterday.

The new instruction in reading springs from the Dean's Office's recognition of the fact that poor scholastic records can be causes by many factors besides lack of intelligence. The College has known for some time that difficulty in reading is a great handicap to the student.

All Yardlings will be required to take a new Reading Test at 9 o'clock this morning in Emerson D, and those who show a reading difficulty will be invited to enroll in the course.

Will Cost $16

Entirely voluntary, the course will cost $15, although the college will make reductions when necessary. Enrollment will be strictly limited to 88 men who will be divided into 4 sections of 22 each. The sections will have two 45 minute sessions a week for 10 weeks. Each student will receive an eye and ear examination.

Consisting of a new motion-picture technique for training in reading, developed at the Graduate School of Education, the new course is but an expansion of a successful experiment carried out last year.

In the experiment, a group of sixteen Freshmen showed marked improvement in reading skill and some advance in scholastic standing, after eight weeks of special training last fall. They increased their reading speed by 50 percent, gained in reading accuracy, and altered for the better their habits of eye movement.

Resulted in Better Grades

Progress of the experimental group was compared with the records made by a control group of 16 Freshmen, with admission records similar to those of the control group. The control group was given no special training. Comparison of Midyear with November grades showed that while ten students in the experimental group had better records, only five of the "control" group had made improvement.

Final eye movement records of the experimental group showed a fundamental change in reading habits, and also in reading attitude, it was reported last year. The students began for the first time to exercise control over the eye movements in reading. How permanent these changes will prove to be will quite certainly depend on the intentions of the learners and will, of course, vary with the individuals, it was said.

Improves Eye Movements

In the Remedial Reading course, the eyes of the spectator are forced through the use of movies to follow the movements that a skillful reader's eyes would follow. The movie shows successive phrases flashed rapidly across and down the screen in such a way that the reader's eyes are involuntarily attracted to each group of words as it appears. Thus the student learns to read by phrases rather than single words.

Developed by Walter F. Dearborn, director of the Harvard Psycho-Educational Clinic, this new technique in reading gives promise of being one of the most effective devices for the improvement of skills in reading.

The course will be taught by Elden Bond, instructor in Education, while the whole program will be under the direction of Stanley C. Salmen '36, director of the Bureau of Supervision.