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Student Feedback

Student feedback is extremely import for us, as it helps us understand what we are doing well and what we can improve on.

You can find examples of the feedback we have received from our students after they complete our coach led Visual Reading course below.

The feedback ranges from the parents or guardians of dyslexic children, university students who have completed the course through the DSA to working adults who have completed our course privately...


Lucy, dyslexic dance teacher, now reading at 600wpm, October ’23.

“I thoroughly enjoyed the reading course. It significantly improved my reading speed. The engaging tutor, content and effective strategy made learning enjoyable. I'm now a more confident and efficient reader. Thank you for this valuable experience! At 29, I am FINALLY starting to love reading because of my new understanding and support – I never thought I’d see the day.”

Sarah Wicks, GMBPsS AMBDA APC PPM, Specialist Teacher Assessor and Literacy Consultant

“She (15 year old dyslexic child now reading at 1500 wpm with ‘perfect recall’) has amazed herself and her teachers as she has never been able to retain anything she has read. Her grades are improving, and she has masses of confidence. This has changed her life. The first time we did this and she could remember everything, she cried.“

Jamie, dyslexic dyslexia specialist.

“Thank you so much! I really enjoyed your class! I am thrilled to learn that I am not doomed to being a slow reader after all at the age of 60! It is exhilarating to sit down to read now! What a huge help this would have been when I was in School"

Ann, dyslexic PhD student.

“Since I started Visual Reading, I’ve read 7 novels. Before this, I don’t think I’d read 7 novels in my entire life!”

Annette

“Visual Reading is proving life-changing for me even though I only found out about the technique in my mid-fifties!

“With dyslexia and ADHD both wreaking havoc with my reading speed and comprehension, my efforts to improve my reading skills over four decades had got me precisely nowhere. So I was deeply sceptical that visual reading would make any difference. But it has – and I am still improving gradually now I have completed the course.

The process of gradually widening saccades and implementing the neurocognitive techniques of pre-viewing and reviewing the text has improved my speed greatly and comprehension is very good. The fact that I get through the chapters at pace – and with good comprehension means I don’t lose focus and give up the book after three arduous chapters because I have already forgotten the beginning of the book! That was what used to happen. Now I read whole books because reading suddenly feels easy and pleasurable which is something I have never experienced before! It is incredible. And it is simply joyful.

“Learning the techniques of Visual Reading later in life means changing some very established habits, especially if, like me, you have had to read a lot over the years for work and study. And changing very established habits is hard, as we all know. So my results may not have been as fast and spectacular as some young students. Nonetheless, the progress has been incredible, and the fact that I continue to improve makes me certain that the new neural pathways will become just as established as the old ones were – and make it even easier and more joyful to read my way through all the books I have bought over the years and which I so desperately want to read.”

Carla, 3rd year undergraduate.

“Amazing! I found this course extremely helpful. My reading speed and comprehension skills have drastically improved! I would 100% recommend this course. Thank you! I would also just like to say thank you this has helped me so much and I am feeling the difference as I continue to read in this way!”

Sarah, dyslexia specialist, 22.11.22

“I wanted to say thank you for many reasons:

1. I cannot believe how much my reading speed and information storage capacities have increased since starting the programme. Managing the reading for my MSc Psychology was possible due to Visual Reading! In every essay, the first compliment was always how clear it was that I had read widely and deeply and understood often tricky concepts.

2. Absorbing information through Visual Reading feels like I’ve reached some Nirvana; it is incredible!

3. I cannot wait to share this with other readers; everyone should be able to access this programme: it would revolutionise reading.""

Fran, qualified teacher studying as a speech and language therapist, October 2022

“I have just completed the visual reading programme under the supervision of Ross Cooper and I couldn’t recommend it enough. Over the course of just a few weeks Ross has helped me to improve my reading speed and comprehension massively which will have a great impact for my studies in the coming year (and beyond). The investment of time feels very light touch and completing the course was completely manageable alongside family life and studying with just a short weekly on-line meeting. I was able to use the time I would normally use to read (for pleasure and academically) to apply my set weekly technique and target.

The method of teaching and learning is very simple and logical; Ross’ engaging style of delivery means that techniques are explained in context and tailored to you as an individual learner. He is very knowledgeable, and Ross was always happy to extend the session to answer my questions about the broader field of dyslexia as I am learning to manage, adapt and understand more effective ways of reading and writing as a dyslexic learner.

I found much of what Ross had to say very encouraging as he also regularly draws on the positive aspects of being dyslexic and has empowered me to feel confident about how to apply myself effectively as I move into my final year of study. I highly recommend this course.”

Vicky, dyslexia assessor and specialist tutor, August 2022

“As a dyslexia assessor and tutor, as well as being an avid reader, I was so excited to hear about Visual Reading and I signed up to learn more about this fascinating strategy.

After practising the Visual Reading techniques for just a week, my reading speed had gone from 167wpm to 286wpm, all from just 10 minutes of practice a day! By the time I finished the course, I was reading at a speed of 500wpm.

In my 16 years experience of teaching and championing reading as a crucial skill for pupils to learn, I’ve never come across anything like Visual Reading. It’s simple and easy to learn but has the potential to transform the reading experience for individuals who find reading difficult or tedious.

Now that I’ve completed the course, I’m excited to introduce this technique to the pupils and school staff I work with and I can’t wait to see the impact it has.“

Janaina, May 2022.

“I would like to say thank you for all the great and crucial help before my exam in Finance on my Master course. To be able to have someone nurturing and understand my difficulties made an incredible difference to my speed, understanding and interpretation of reading for exam questions. I highly recommend the reading technique for those that have dyslexia. Ross was an essential person for my good performance on the most difficult exam I have ever done in my academic life. Thank you so much from the bottom of my heart."

Jessica Postgraduate Student at the University of Edinburgh

“Thank you for your training and support in improving both the speed and accuracy of my reading.

As a mature student, and a practicing teacher, I was always self conscious of how slow I could be to process information when reading unfamiliar text. I am now quietly impressed with how quick my reading has become but without a loss of comprehension or understanding. It has given me such confidence and also allowed me to progress further in my studies. Before I was struggling to read a required range of materials from my module reading lists, now that I am faster, I read several papers in a morning where I would have once read one.

I have also recommended your course to my school, with the hope that more students will benefit.”

Ricky, PhD candidate and surgeon.

“It is no exaggeration to say that this course has more than doubled my reading speed in a matter of weeks. I feel as though I have been taught to read effectively for the first time and as both an academic and a clinician, this will significantly improve my work efficiency. I wish I had undertaken this course at the very start of my studies and I would recommend this course to everyone, no matter the stage in their education or career.”

Mother of 9 year old now reading at over 800 words per minute with excellent comprehension.

”I noticed a marked increase in his enthusiasm and confidence in reading as a result of the programme. When we first contacted you he had recently been diagnosed with Dyslexia, and though it was very thoughtfully managed in school, I feel in his own mind the diagnosis reaffirmed his fear that he would be someone for whom reading would always be a struggle. By taking part in your programme and doing so well (exceeding me!) he was able to switch around what was perceived as a deficit in his mind, to something that now was a “superpower”. This boosted his confidence enormously. It also taught him valuable skills for learning (and life) more broadly – such as the need to review and revise texts to aid retention and comprehension and also that with the right approach, pretty much anything can be overcome if we apply ourselves to it. I’m so pleased you can offer this to other children.”

Gianluca, September 2023

At 47 years old, I was diagnosed with dyslexia and AD/HD. Slowly discovering the amount of masking and coping strategies collected during the years provided justification and a better understanding of my struggles but not relief.

As the honeymoon period with my newly discovered neurodivergent mind dissipated in the air, I was left in academic limbo. While studying psychotherapy and having a lot to read, I was met with lots of understanding from peers with the same issue but next to no help from the institutions; in fact, the common question a neurodivergent hears from the like of disabilities officers and tutors is

"What do you need? How can I help you?"

I need help figuring out what I need. I always thought I was not clever enough to understand and retain what I meant to read, so I read it multiple times for extended periods. I had to quit my job to have enough time to read the same amount other students read but not get an extra allowance. Maybe I need a brain transplant. Can you do that?

There is plenty of software that can correct my writing. Still, when it comes to the pleasure of reading, at best, you can listen to a somewhat robotic voice that further confuses my understanding of punctuation and limits me to electronic devices.

That was until Dr. C. taught me about Visual Reading and, with immense kindness, guided me through the training my eyes and brain needed to hold a book, read it once and understand what I read.

At the first appointment, I could not stop crying; as I told my peers about the experience, I cried some more. Having the feeling of comprehension is not something I can describe easily. The closest to it was a comment from a lady with 40 years of experience in mental health telling me that I reminded her of a child who can hear for the first time.

When I read now, I can not stop listening to my voice in my head (I did not have before) instead of wondering and picturing what was said in the book, which, most of the time, became a jumble of opinions instead of comprehending notions. And believe me, as N.D. I still have time to form my opinions.

The training is easy, quick, kind and can be naturally tailored to the individual's perspectives. It is very effective. I started reading 65 words per minute and went to 400 words per minute. The training becomes autonomous after a while, which to people like me who spent the best part of five decades navigating resilience and autonomy struggle to depend on something new.

I can not recommend Visual Reading enough; I will be disappointed if this knowledge is not made available to all students, especially kids trying to make sense of the reading experience.

How many books have I lost? How much of me was lost in it? Give yourself a chance to experience comprehension with an added dimension.