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TEN WAYS TO STRENGTHEN YOUR READING HABIT:

TEN WAYS TO STRENGTHEN YOUR READING HABIT:
          
                                                            

Most people wish they read more. It is an activity that is both fun and enlightening. It can help us be more knowledgeable and successful. However, it is an activity that many people don't engage in very much. According to the 1999 National Household Education Survey, 50% of the U.S. population aged 25 and over read a newspaper at least once a week, read one or more magazines regularly, and had read a book in the past 6 months. What does this mean? It means that 50% of the population hasn't read a book in the last six months! Looking at the other end of the spectrum, research shows that if you read ten books a year, you are in the top few percent of all people as readers. Simply stated, it doesn't take much to be well read, but we do need to know how to get started. The following are ten suggestions to help you strengthen your reading habit - ways to find and make more time for reading. 1. Always have a book around. Don't go anywhere without reading material. Keep magazines or short stories in your bathroom. Always have something in your briefcase to read. Keep a book(s) by your bed. Having things available makes it easier for you to steal otherwise lost moments. 2. Set a reading goal. Determine how much time you want to spend reading, or how many books you want to read over time. Your goal might be a book a month, one per week, or it might be to read 30 minutes a day. Start out with something attainable but still a stretch. As your habit builds, you might set higher goals. Setting a goal is the first step towards reading more. 3. Keep a log. Keep a list of the books you have read, or keep track of how much time you read each day. You might keep these lists in your journal or your day planner. My son's log is on our refrigerator. My list and log are kept on my computer. It doesn't matter where you keep it, just do it. 4. Keep a list. Make a list of things you want to read in the future. Ask your friends and colleagues what they are reading. Watch for recommendations in the newspaper and magazines. Once you start looking for good books, you'll find them everywhere. This is a great way to keep your enthusiasm up. By knowing what great stuff you want to read, you will reinforce your reading habit. 5. Turn off the television. Many people say they just don't have enough time. Television is one of our major time consumers. Make your television watching more conscious and less habitual. There is nothing wrong with watching television shows you really enjoy. Where the time gets lost is turning it on, and scanning to find "something to watch." Those are the times to turn it off and pick up your book! 6. Listen when you can't read. Use your commute and other time spent in the car to listen! There are great audio versions of all sorts of books. Whether you want to "read" fiction, the latest self-help or diet book, it is probably available on tape. Don't get locked into the idea that you have to read it - listening to the book still gives you the experience, ideas, and imagination that reading a book can. 7. Join a reading group or book club. Reading groups typically meet once a month to discuss a book they have all decided to read. Committing to the group provides a bit more impetus to finish the book, and gives you a great forum for discussion and socialization around the book's themes. 8. Visit the library or bookstore often. You have your list, right? So you'll have some ideas of what you are looking for when you walk in. But there is more to be gained by walking through places where books reside than just to make a transaction. Take time to browse! Let your eyes find things of interest. Let serendipity happen. Browsing will feed your mental need to read, and give you plenty of new things to read. 9. Build your own strategy. Decide when reading fits your schedule. Some people read first thing in the morning, some before bed. Some decide to read as they eat their lunch. And there is more to your strategy than just timing. Make your own decisions about reading. It is ok to be reading more than one book at once. It is ok to stop reading something before you finish if it isn't holding your interest. It is ok to skim the book, getting what you want or need, without reading every page. Determine what works best for you, develop your own beliefs and ideas--then make them work for you. 10. Drop Everything and Read. My son's fourth grade class has DEAR (Drop Everything and Read) time. When the teacher calls for it, that's just what they do. They read now. That is my last piece of advice for you. Do it. Just get started. Make it DEAR time. Now.

WHY SHOULD YOU HAVE A READING HABIT:

                                       

We often hear from others that "Reading" is a good habit . Well fed up of the constant reminders i searched the world wide web for the answers and i came up with reasons such as :

1. Increases Concentration Power

Reading is one of the most enjoyable hobbies a person can have Since you must concentrate in order to read, this requires you to focus and think about what you are reading. If you want to break the monotony of an uncreative and uninterested life, go and grab an interesting book

2. Develops The Mind
Our mind needs regular exercise to develop and reading is the most effective way to do that. Reading the written word and developing an understanding of it is a skill that is cultivated overtime by the habit of reading. Reading books also help to develop one’s listening ability which is very important to succeed in every aspect of life

3. Improves Creativity
Reading is one of the best ways to give a creative orientation to one’s mind. When you read a story, you are constantly wondering what will happen next. This often makes you imagine a sequence of events in your mind on how the story will unfold further. Gradually, when your power to imagine develops, you are able to make better guesses and determine the course of the stories or fictional novels you read.

Friends as suspicious as i was of the idea  "Reading " in the beginning, the more confident and sure of it I have became after following it for a year So it's a chain reaction. When you are well read, people will look to you for answers. Then your feelings about yourself only get better. Even more confidence!

Its never too late , so go to a bookstore grab anything you like , its worth giving a shot !

"In our new knowledge economy, if you haven't learned how to learn, you'll have a hard time." --- Peter Drucker

"Books serve to show a man that those original thoughts of his aren't very new after all." --- Abraham Lincoln

"Not every reader is a leader, but every leader must be a reader." --- Harry Truman.

GETTING THE READING HABIT:

                                            

Today we report on a new reading system that has crossed the Atlantic and is being piloted in a number of schools in London. It is not about teaching children to read. That is best done by a method such as synthetic phonics, recommended by Jim Rose, the former Ofsted inspector. The American scheme is concerned with persuading children to read more, and to read more fluently, once they have learnt the business of decoding the words and letters on a page.

Reading is a habit, a way of life, that can be learnt by encouragement and by following good examples. Children who read well do better in school. They also have an imaginative life that will stay with them all their lives, giving them endless pleasure through university and adult life, into old age. That is why the American tool is worth studying closely. The fact that it has been greeted with such enthusiasm by schools in the States is another bonus

The system relies on computers to keep tabs on pupils' silent reading. They read a book at their reading level and then take a test to ensure that they have understood what they have read. This test is in multiple-choice form, and is done on the computer. The beauty of it is that it tells the children how well they have done and indicates the level of book they can read next.

In other words, the computer monitors their progress, something that a busy teacher cannot do with all the children in a big class. It may sound mechanical and quintessentially American to rely on multiple-choice tests and computers, but it is important to remember that reading is a skill. Sir Cyril Taylor, chairman of the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust, is right that poor reading skills have held back successive generations of children. At a time when improvement in literacy at the age of 11 appears to have stalled, schools would be well advised to take a look at an initiative that encourages children to read to themselves.

The reading scheme has not yet been proven to work in the London schools in which it is being tried out. But if it is found to be effective by the National Foundation for Educational Research when it publishes its evaluation next year, head teachers and local education authorities are bound to want to adopt it. 

SUNDAY, JULY 31, 2011

“To acquire the habit of reading is to construct for yourself a refuge from almost all the miseries of life.” — W. Somerset Maugham

Somewhere after “lose weight”, “stop procrastinating”, and “fall in love”, “read more” is one of the top goals that many people set for themselves. And rightly so: A good book can be hugely satisfying, can teach you about things beyond your daily horizons, and can create characters so vivid you feel as if you really know them.
If reading is a habit you’d like to get into, there are a number of ways to cultivate it.
First, realize that reading is highly enjoyable, if you have a good book. If you have a lousy book (or an extremely difficult one) and you are forcing yourself through it, it will seem like a chore. If this happens for several days in a row, consider abandoning the book and finding one that you’ll really love.
Other than that, try these tips to cultivate a lifetime reading habit:

• Set times. You should have a few set times during every day when you’ll read for at least 5-10 minutes. These are times that you will read no matter what — triggers that happen each day. For example, make it a habit to read during breakfast and lunch (and even dinner if you eat alone). And if you also read every time you’re sitting on the can, and when you go to bed, you now have four times a day when you read for 10 minutes each — or 40 minutes a day. That’s a great start, and by itself would be an excellent daily reading habit. But there’s more you can do.
• Always carry a book. Wherever you go, take a book with you. When I leave the house, I always make sure to have my drivers license, my keys and my book, at a minimum. The book stays with me in the car, and I take it into the office and to appointments and pretty much everywhere I go, unless I know I definitely won’t be reading (like at a movie). If there is a time when you have to wait (like at a doctor’s office or at the DMV), whip out your book and read. Great way to pass the time.
• Make a list. Keep a list of all the great books you want to read. You can keep this in your journal, in a pocket notebook, on your personal home page, on your personal wiki, wherever. Be sure to add to it whenever you hear about a good book, online or in person. Keep a running list, and cross out the ones you read. Tech trick: create a Gmail account for your book list, and email the address every time you hear about a good book. Now your inbox will be your reading list. When you’ve read a book, file it under “Done”. If you want, you can even reply to the message (to the same address) with notes about the book, and those will be in the same conversation thread, so now your Gmail account is your reading log too.
• Find a quiet place. Find a place in your home where you can sit in a comfortable chair (don’t lay down unless you’re going to sleep) and curl up with a good book without interruptions. There should be no television or computer near the chair to minimize distractions, and no music or noisy family members/roommates. If you don’t have a place like this, create one.
• Reduce television/Internet. If you really want to read more, try cutting back on TV or Internet consumption. This may be difficult for many people. Still, every minute you reduce of Internet/TV, you could use for reading. This could create hours of book reading time.
• Read to your kid. If you have children, you must, must read to them. Creating the reading habit in your kids is the best way to ensure they’ll be readers when they grow up … and it will help them to be successful in life as well. Find some great children’s books, and read to them. At the same time, you’re developing the reading habit in yourself … and spending some quality time with your child as well.
• Keep a log. Similar to the reading list, this log should have not only the title and author of the books you read, but the dates you start and finish them if possible. Even better, put a note next to each with your thoughts about the book. It is extremely satisfying to go back over the log after a couple of months to see all the great books you’ve read.
• Go to used book shops. My favorite place to go is a discount book store where I drop off all my old books (I usually take a couple of boxes of books) and get a big discount on used books I find in the store. I typically spend only a couple of dollars for a dozen or more books, so although I read a lot, books aren’t a major expense. And it is very fun to browse through the new books people have donated. Make your trip to a used book store a regular thing.
• Have a library day. Even cheaper than a used book shop is a library, of course. Make it a weekly trip.
• Read fun and compelling books. Find books that really grip you and keep you going. Even if they aren’t literary masterpieces, they make you want to read — and that’s the goal here. After you have cultivated the reading habit, you can move on to more difficult stuff, but for now, go for the fun, gripping stuff. Stephen King, John Grisham, Tom Clancy, Robert Ludlum, Nora Roberts, Sue Grafton, Dan Brown … all those popular authors are popular for a reason — they tell great stories. Other stuff you might like: Vonnegut, William Gibson, Douglas Adams, Nick Hornby, Trevanian, Ann Patchett, Terry Pratchett, Terry McMillan, F. Scott Fitzgerald. All excellent storytellers.
• Make it pleasurable. Make your reading time your favorite time of day. Have some good tea or coffee while you read, or another kind of treat. Get into a comfortable chair with a good blanket. Read during sunrise or sunset, or at the beach.
• Blog it. One of the best ways to form a habit is to put it on your blog. If you don’t have one, create one. It’s free. Have your family go there and give you book suggestions and comment on the ones you’re reading. It keeps you accountable for your goals.
• Set a high goal. Tell yourself that you want to read 50 books this year (or some other number like that). Then set about trying to accomplish it. Just be sure you’re still enjoying the reading though — don’t make it a rushed chore.
• Have a reading hour or reading day. If you turn off the TV or Internet in the evening, you could have a set hour (perhaps just after dinner) when you and maybe all the members of your family read each night. Or you could do a reading day, when you (and again, your other family members if you can get them to join you) read for practically the whole day. It’s super fun.

SUNDAY, JULY 17, 2011

Academic Credentials:

• Presented a poster in the topic “BITTER BLOCKING TECHNOLOGY” at AICTE sponsored National Conference on “Emerging Trends in Pharmaceutical Sciences” conducted by MNR college of Pharmacy on 27-02-09 and 28-02-09.

• Presented a paper on the topic “CLINICAL PHARMACY” at DST Sponsored National level seminar on “challenges and opportunities in pharmacy” conducted by CMR college of Pharmacy on 08-08-08.
• Review paper in the poster session entitled ‘NOVEL DRUG DELIVERY SYSTEM’ during the year 2008.
• Have given seminars on various topics as a part of my curriculum during graduation.

TEN WAYS TO STRENGTHEN YOUR READING HABIT

TEN WAYS TO STRENGTHEN YOUR READING HABIT:
          
                                                            

Most people wish they read more. It is an activity that is both fun and enlightening. It can help us be more knowledgeable and successful. However, it is an activity that many people don't engage in very much. According to the 1999 National Household Education Survey, 50% of the U.S. population aged 25 and over read a newspaper at least once a week, read one or more magazines regularly, and had read a book in the past 6 months. What does this mean? It means that 50% of the population hasn't read a book in the last six months! Looking at the other end of the spectrum, research shows that if you read ten books a year, you are in the top few percent of all people as readers. Simply stated, it doesn't take much to be well read, but we do need to know how to get started. The following are ten suggestions to help you strengthen your reading habit - ways to find and make more time for reading. 1. Always have a book around. Don't go anywhere without reading material. Keep magazines or short stories in your bathroom. Always have something in your briefcase to read. Keep a book(s) by your bed. Having things available makes it easier for you to steal otherwise lost moments. 2. Set a reading goal. Determine how much time you want to spend reading, or how many books you want to read over time. Your goal might be a book a month, one per week, or it might be to read 30 minutes a day. Start out with something attainable but still a stretch. As your habit builds, you might set higher goals. Setting a goal is the first step towards reading more. 3. Keep a log. Keep a list of the books you have read, or keep track of how much time you read each day. You might keep these lists in your journal or your day planner. My son's log is on our refrigerator. My list and log are kept on my computer. It doesn't matter where you keep it, just do it. 4. Keep a list. Make a list of things you want to read in the future. Ask your friends and colleagues what they are reading. Watch for recommendations in the newspaper and magazines. Once you start looking for good books, you'll find them everywhere. This is a great way to keep your enthusiasm up. By knowing what great stuff you want to read, you will reinforce your reading habit. 5. Turn off the television. Many people say they just don't have enough time. Television is one of our major time consumers. Make your television watching more conscious and less habitual. There is nothing wrong with watching television shows you really enjoy. Where the time gets lost is turning it on, and scanning to find "something to watch." Those are the times to turn it off and pick up your book! 6. Listen when you can't read. Use your commute and other time spent in the car to listen! There are great audio versions of all sorts of books. Whether you want to "read" fiction, the latest self-help or diet book, it is probably available on tape. Don't get locked into the idea that you have to read it - listening to the book still gives you the experience, ideas, and imagination that reading a book can. 7. Join a reading group or book club. Reading groups typically meet once a month to discuss a book they have all decided to read. Committing to the group provides a bit more impetus to finish the book, and gives you a great forum for discussion and socialization around the book's themes. 8. Visit the library or bookstore often. You have your list, right? So you'll have some ideas of what you are looking for when you walk in. But there is more to be gained by walking through places where books reside than just to make a transaction. Take time to browse! Let your eyes find things of interest. Let serendipity happen. Browsing will feed your mental need to read, and give you plenty of new things to read. 9. Build your own strategy. Decide when reading fits your schedule. Some people read first thing in the morning, some before bed. Some decide to read as they eat their lunch. And there is more to your strategy than just timing. Make your own decisions about reading. It is ok to be reading more than one book at once. It is ok to stop reading something before you finish if it isn't holding your interest. It is ok to skim the book, getting what you want or need, without reading every page. Determine what works best for you, develop your own beliefs and ideas--then make them work for you. 10. Drop Everything and Read. My son's fourth grade class has DEAR (Drop Everything and Read) time. When the teacher calls for it, that's just what they do. They read now. That is my last piece of advice for you. Do it. Just get started. Make it DEAR time. Now.

WHY SHOULD YOU HAVE A READING HABIT:

                                       

We often hear from others that "Reading" is a good habit . Well fed up of the constant reminders i searched the world wide web for the answers and i came up with reasons such as :

1. Increases Concentration Power

Reading is one of the most enjoyable hobbies a person can have Since you must concentrate in order to read, this requires you to focus and think about what you are reading. If you want to break the monotony of an uncreative and uninterested life, go and grab an interesting book

2. Develops The Mind
Our mind needs regular exercise to develop and reading is the most effective way to do that. Reading the written word and developing an understanding of it is a skill that is cultivated overtime by the habit of reading. Reading books also help to develop one’s listening ability which is very important to succeed in every aspect of life

3. Improves Creativity
Reading is one of the best ways to give a creative orientation to one’s mind. When you read a story, you are constantly wondering what will happen next. This often makes you imagine a sequence of events in your mind on how the story will unfold further. Gradually, when your power to imagine develops, you are able to make better guesses and determine the course of the stories or fictional novels you read.

Friends as suspicious as i was of the idea  "Reading " in the beginning, the more confident and sure of it I have became after following it for a year So it's a chain reaction. When you are well read, people will look to you for answers. Then your feelings about yourself only get better. Even more confidence!

Its never too late , so go to a bookstore grab anything you like , its worth giving a shot !

"In our new knowledge economy, if you haven't learned how to learn, you'll have a hard time." --- Peter Drucker

"Books serve to show a man that those original thoughts of his aren't very new after all." --- Abraham Lincoln

"Not every reader is a leader, but every leader must be a reader." --- Harry Truman.

GETTING THE READING HABIT:

                                            

Today we report on a new reading system that has crossed the Atlantic and is being piloted in a number of schools in London. It is not about teaching children to read. That is best done by a method such as synthetic phonics, recommended by Jim Rose, the former Ofsted inspector. The American scheme is concerned with persuading children to read more, and to read more fluently, once they have learnt the business of decoding the words and letters on a page.

Reading is a habit, a way of life, that can be learnt by encouragement and by following good examples. Children who read well do better in school. They also have an imaginative life that will stay with them all their lives, giving them endless pleasure through university and adult life, into old age. That is why the American tool is worth studying closely. The fact that it has been greeted with such enthusiasm by schools in the States is another bonus

The system relies on computers to keep tabs on pupils' silent reading. They read a book at their reading level and then take a test to ensure that they have understood what they have read. This test is in multiple-choice form, and is done on the computer. The beauty of it is that it tells the children how well they have done and indicates the level of book they can read next.

In other words, the computer monitors their progress, something that a busy teacher cannot do with all the children in a big class. It may sound mechanical and quintessentially American to rely on multiple-choice tests and computers, but it is important to remember that reading is a skill. Sir Cyril Taylor, chairman of the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust, is right that poor reading skills have held back successive generations of children. At a time when improvement in literacy at the age of 11 appears to have stalled, schools would be well advised to take a look at an initiative that encourages children to read to themselves.

The reading scheme has not yet been proven to work in the London schools in which it is being tried out. But if it is found to be effective by the National Foundation for Educational Research when it publishes its evaluation next year, head teachers and local education authorities are bound to want to adopt it. 

SUNDAY, JULY 31, 2011

“To acquire the habit of reading is to construct for yourself a refuge from almost all the miseries of life.” — W. Somerset Maugham

Somewhere after “lose weight”, “stop procrastinating”, and “fall in love”, “read more” is one of the top goals that many people set for themselves. And rightly so: A good book can be hugely satisfying, can teach you about things beyond your daily horizons, and can create characters so vivid you feel as if you really know them.
If reading is a habit you’d like to get into, there are a number of ways to cultivate it.
First, realize that reading is highly enjoyable, if you have a good book. If you have a lousy book (or an extremely difficult one) and you are forcing yourself through it, it will seem like a chore. If this happens for several days in a row, consider abandoning the book and finding one that you’ll really love.
Other than that, try these tips to cultivate a lifetime reading habit:

• Set times. You should have a few set times during every day when you’ll read for at least 5-10 minutes. These are times that you will read no matter what — triggers that happen each day. For example, make it a habit to read during breakfast and lunch (and even dinner if you eat alone). And if you also read every time you’re sitting on the can, and when you go to bed, you now have four times a day when you read for 10 minutes each — or 40 minutes a day. That’s a great start, and by itself would be an excellent daily reading habit. But there’s more you can do.
• Always carry a book. Wherever you go, take a book with you. When I leave the house, I always make sure to have my drivers license, my keys and my book, at a minimum. The book stays with me in the car, and I take it into the office and to appointments and pretty much everywhere I go, unless I know I definitely won’t be reading (like at a movie). If there is a time when you have to wait (like at a doctor’s office or at the DMV), whip out your book and read. Great way to pass the time.
• Make a list. Keep a list of all the great books you want to read. You can keep this in your journal, in a pocket notebook, on your personal home page, on your personal wiki, wherever. Be sure to add to it whenever you hear about a good book, online or in person. Keep a running list, and cross out the ones you read. Tech trick: create a Gmail account for your book list, and email the address every time you hear about a good book. Now your inbox will be your reading list. When you’ve read a book, file it under “Done”. If you want, you can even reply to the message (to the same address) with notes about the book, and those will be in the same conversation thread, so now your Gmail account is your reading log too.
• Find a quiet place. Find a place in your home where you can sit in a comfortable chair (don’t lay down unless you’re going to sleep) and curl up with a good book without interruptions. There should be no television or computer near the chair to minimize distractions, and no music or noisy family members/roommates. If you don’t have a place like this, create one.
• Reduce television/Internet. If you really want to read more, try cutting back on TV or Internet consumption. This may be difficult for many people. Still, every minute you reduce of Internet/TV, you could use for reading. This could create hours of book reading time.
• Read to your kid. If you have children, you must, must read to them. Creating the reading habit in your kids is the best way to ensure they’ll be readers when they grow up … and it will help them to be successful in life as well. Find some great children’s books, and read to them. At the same time, you’re developing the reading habit in yourself … and spending some quality time with your child as well.
• Keep a log. Similar to the reading list, this log should have not only the title and author of the books you read, but the dates you start and finish them if possible. Even better, put a note next to each with your thoughts about the book. It is extremely satisfying to go back over the log after a couple of months to see all the great books you’ve read.
• Go to used book shops. My favorite place to go is a discount book store where I drop off all my old books (I usually take a couple of boxes of books) and get a big discount on used books I find in the store. I typically spend only a couple of dollars for a dozen or more books, so although I read a lot, books aren’t a major expense. And it is very fun to browse through the new books people have donated. Make your trip to a used book store a regular thing.
• Have a library day. Even cheaper than a used book shop is a library, of course. Make it a weekly trip.
• Read fun and compelling books. Find books that really grip you and keep you going. Even if they aren’t literary masterpieces, they make you want to read — and that’s the goal here. After you have cultivated the reading habit, you can move on to more difficult stuff, but for now, go for the fun, gripping stuff. Stephen King, John Grisham, Tom Clancy, Robert Ludlum, Nora Roberts, Sue Grafton, Dan Brown … all those popular authors are popular for a reason — they tell great stories. Other stuff you might like: Vonnegut, William Gibson, Douglas Adams, Nick Hornby, Trevanian, Ann Patchett, Terry Pratchett, Terry McMillan, F. Scott Fitzgerald. All excellent storytellers.
• Make it pleasurable. Make your reading time your favorite time of day. Have some good tea or coffee while you read, or another kind of treat. Get into a comfortable chair with a good blanket. Read during sunrise or sunset, or at the beach.
• Blog it. One of the best ways to form a habit is to put it on your blog. If you don’t have one, create one. It’s free. Have your family go there and give you book suggestions and comment on the ones you’re reading. It keeps you accountable for your goals.
• Set a high goal. Tell yourself that you want to read 50 books this year (or some other number like that). Then set about trying to accomplish it. Just be sure you’re still enjoying the reading though — don’t make it a rushed chore.
• Have a reading hour or reading day. If you turn off the TV or Internet in the evening, you could have a set hour (perhaps just after dinner) when you and maybe all the members of your family read each night. Or you could do a reading day, when you (and again, your other family members if you can get them to join you) read for practically the whole day. It’s super fun.

SUNDAY, JULY 17, 2011

Academic Credentials:

• Presented a poster in the topic “BITTER BLOCKING TECHNOLOGY” at AICTE sponsored National Conference on “Emerging Trends in Pharmaceutical Sciences” conducted by MNR college of Pharmacy on 27-02-09 and 28-02-09.

• Presented a paper on the topic “CLINICAL PHARMACY” at DST Sponsored National level seminar on “challenges and opportunities in pharmacy” conducted by CMR college of Pharmacy on 08-08-08.
• Review paper in the poster session entitled ‘NOVEL DRUG DELIVERY SYSTEM’ during the year 2008.
• Have given seminars on various topics as a part of my curriculum during graduation.

GETTING THE READING HABIT:

GETTING THE READING HABIT:

                                             

Today we report on a new reading system that has crossed the Atlantic and is being piloted in a number of schools in London. It is not about teaching children to read. That is best done by a method such as synthetic phonics, recommended by Jim Rose, the former Ofsted inspector. The American scheme is concerned with persuading children to read more, and to read more fluently, once they have learnt the business of decoding the words and letters on a page.

Reading is a habit, a way of life, that can be learnt by encouragement and by following good examples. Children who read well do better in school. They also have an imaginative life that will stay with them all their lives, giving them endless pleasure through university and adult life, into old age. That is why the American tool is worth studying closely. The fact that it has been greeted with such enthusiasm by schools in the States is another bonus

The system relies on computers to keep tabs on pupils' silent reading. They read a book at their reading level and then take a test to ensure that they have understood what they have read. This test is in multiple-choice form, and is done on the computer. The beauty of it is that it tells the children how well they have done and indicates the level of book they can read next.

In other words, the computer monitors their progress, something that a busy teacher cannot do with all the children in a big class. It may sound mechanical and quintessentially American to rely on multiple-choice tests and computers, but it is important to remember that reading is a skill. Sir Cyril Taylor, chairman of the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust, is right that poor reading skills have held back successive generations of children. At a time when improvement in literacy at the age of 11 appears to have stalled, schools would be well advised to take a look at an initiative that encourages children to read to themselves.

The reading scheme has not yet been proven to work in the London schools in which it is being tried out. But if it is found to be effective by the National Foundation for Educational Research when it publishes its evaluation next year, head teachers and local education authorities are bound to want to adopt it. 

“To acquire the habit of reading is to construct for yourself a refuge from almost all the miseries of life.” — W. Somerset Maugham

“To acquire the habit of reading is to construct for yourself a refuge from almost all the miseries of life.” — W. Somerset Maugham

Somewhere after “lose weight”, “stop procrastinating”, and “fall in love”, “read more” is one of the top goals that many people set for themselves. And rightly so: A good book can be hugely satisfying, can teach you about things beyond your daily horizons, and can create characters so vivid you feel as if you really know them.
If reading is a habit you’d like to get into, there are a number of ways to cultivate it.
First, realize that reading is highly enjoyable, if you have a good book. If you have a lousy book (or an extremely difficult one) and you are forcing yourself through it, it will seem like a chore. If this happens for several days in a row, consider abandoning the book and finding one that you’ll really love.
Other than that, try these tips to cultivate a lifetime reading habit:

• Set times. You should have a few set times during every day when you’ll read for at least 5-10 minutes. These are times that you will read no matter what — triggers that happen each day. For example, make it a habit to read during breakfast and lunch (and even dinner if you eat alone). And if you also read every time you’re sitting on the can, and when you go to bed, you now have four times a day when you read for 10 minutes each — or 40 minutes a day. That’s a great start, and by itself would be an excellent daily reading habit. But there’s more you can do.
• Always carry a book. Wherever you go, take a book with you. When I leave the house, I always make sure to have my drivers license, my keys and my book, at a minimum. The book stays with me in the car, and I take it into the office and to appointments and pretty much everywhere I go, unless I know I definitely won’t be reading (like at a movie). If there is a time when you have to wait (like at a doctor’s office or at the DMV), whip out your book and read. Great way to pass the time.
• Make a list. Keep a list of all the great books you want to read. You can keep this in your journal, in a pocket notebook, on your personal home page, on your personal wiki, wherever. Be sure to add to it whenever you hear about a good book, online or in person. Keep a running list, and cross out the ones you read. Tech trick: create a Gmail account for your book list, and email the address every time you hear about a good book. Now your inbox will be your reading list. When you’ve read a book, file it under “Done”. If you want, you can even reply to the message (to the same address) with notes about the book, and those will be in the same conversation thread, so now your Gmail account is your reading log too.
• Find a quiet place. Find a place in your home where you can sit in a comfortable chair (don’t lay down unless you’re going to sleep) and curl up with a good book without interruptions. There should be no television or computer near the chair to minimize distractions, and no music or noisy family members/roommates. If you don’t have a place like this, create one.
• Reduce television/Internet. If you really want to read more, try cutting back on TV or Internet consumption. This may be difficult for many people. Still, every minute you reduce of Internet/TV, you could use for reading. This could create hours of book reading time.
• Read to your kid. If you have children, you must, must read to them. Creating the reading habit in your kids is the best way to ensure they’ll be readers when they grow up … and it will help them to be successful in life as well. Find some great children’s books, and read to them. At the same time, you’re developing the reading habit in yourself … and spending some quality time with your child as well.
• Keep a log. Similar to the reading list, this log should have not only the title and author of the books you read, but the dates you start and finish them if possible. Even better, put a note next to each with your thoughts about the book. It is extremely satisfying to go back over the log after a couple of months to see all the great books you’ve read.
• Go to used book shops. My favorite place to go is a discount book store where I drop off all my old books (I usually take a couple of boxes of books) and get a big discount on used books I find in the store. I typically spend only a couple of dollars for a dozen or more books, so although I read a lot, books aren’t a major expense. And it is very fun to browse through the new books people have donated. Make your trip to a used book store a regular thing.
• Have a library day. Even cheaper than a used book shop is a library, of course. Make it a weekly trip.
• Read fun and compelling books. Find books that really grip you and keep you going. Even if they aren’t literary masterpieces, they make you want to read — and that’s the goal here. After you have cultivated the reading habit, you can move on to more difficult stuff, but for now, go for the fun, gripping stuff. Stephen King, John Grisham, Tom Clancy, Robert Ludlum, Nora Roberts, Sue Grafton, Dan Brown … all those popular authors are popular for a reason — they tell great stories. Other stuff you might like: Vonnegut, William Gibson, Douglas Adams, Nick Hornby, Trevanian, Ann Patchett, Terry Pratchett, Terry McMillan, F. Scott Fitzgerald. All excellent storytellers.
• Make it pleasurable. Make your reading time your favorite time of day. Have some good tea or coffee while you read, or another kind of treat. Get into a comfortable chair with a good blanket. Read during sunrise or sunset, or at the beach.
• Blog it. One of the best ways to form a habit is to put it on your blog. If you don’t have one, create one. It’s free. Have your family go there and give you book suggestions and comment on the ones you’re reading. It keeps you accountable for your goals.
• Set a high goal. Tell yourself that you want to read 50 books this year (or some other number like that). Then set about trying to accomplish it. Just be sure you’re still enjoying the reading though — don’t make it a rushed chore.
• Have a reading hour or reading day. If you turn off the TV or Internet in the evening, you could have a set hour (perhaps just after dinner) when you and maybe all the members of your family read each night. Or you could do a reading day, when you (and again, your other family members if you can get them to join you) read for practically the whole day. It’s super fun.

SUNDAY, JULY 17, 2011

Academic Credentials:

• Presented a poster in the topic “BITTER BLOCKING TECHNOLOGY” at AICTE sponsored National Conference on “Emerging Trends in Pharmaceutical Sciences” conducted by MNR college of Pharmacy on 27-02-09 and 28-02-09.

• Presented a paper on the topic “CLINICAL PHARMACY” at DST Sponsored National level seminar on “challenges and opportunities in pharmacy” conducted by CMR college of Pharmacy on 08-08-08.
• Review paper in the poster session entitled ‘NOVEL DRUG DELIVERY SYSTEM’ during the year 2008.
• Have given seminars on various topics as a part of my curriculum during graduation.