Slow Reading Movement

I have known about the slow food movement and done my level best to support it; we even have a news tag for slow foods on the left-hand side of our blog.  Today was the first time I had heard about the slow reading movement.  The main concern being that we are becoming a nation of shallow skimmers hopping from one news source to another like butterflies collecing nectar from a meadow of wildflowers.  Current research is even being conducted to show that our brains are being transformed according to the way we hopscotch around the internet.

Below is a press release about the Slow Reading book written by John Miedema in 2009. 

In the face of ever-increasing demands for speed-reading of volumes of information fragments, some readers are choosing to slow down. While it often seems necessary to read quickly, many readers share a conviction that reading slowly is essential to enjoyment and comprehension.

The involuntary practice of slow reading has been a subject of much research, but little is known about the voluntary practice. Slow Reading examines the research, from the earliest references in religion and philosophy, to the practice of close reading in the humanities, and the recent swell of interest associated with the Slow Movement. It looks at the diverse angles from which slow reading has been approached in education, library sciences and media studies. Research in psychology and neurophysiology provides a tentative explanation for the ongoing role of slow reading.

Slow Reading brings attention to emerging ideas in technology and culture. The traditional technologies of print and the book have persisted as part of our information ecology because of the need for slow reading and deep comprehension. The theme of locality in the Slow Movement provides insight into the importance of physical location in our relationship with information. Most of all, Slow Reading represents a rediscovery of the pleasure of reading for its own sake.

I will be adding it to my reading list and perhaps it will be added to yours for the sake of our students. It is very important for students to continue to read and we should not shy away from giving them reading assignments due to the documented benefits it provides for fear of them knowing very little about alot, if that makes sense.