閱讀，是考研英語中的重頭戲，幾乎佔到試卷總分的一半，而且閱讀題的詞彙量大，題目多，一旦做不好，不但會失分，還會影響後面試題的發揮，閱讀就此成了英語考試失分的重災區，如果能夠攻克這一堡壘，既為考試開個好頭，又能得分，一舉兩得。
如何高速有效地閱讀原文？許多同學運用「地毯式」閱讀法，一字一句地讀下去，讀到每個詞時都若有所思、戰戰兢兢，惟恐意思稍有偏差，影響對整個文章的理解；或者沉溺於個別句子的繁瑣分析，惟恐不清楚句子的構成，不理解句子的含義，從而導致答錯題。這種緩慢而謹慎的閱讀方法，在心理上給閱讀者似乎一種虛假的踏實感，但是無論是從理解原文還是從做題的角度來看，這種方法花費時間長、效率低，不是很好有效的方法。
針對這一普遍情況，跨考輔導老師結合2006年閱讀題的第一篇文章介紹閱讀原文的一種行之有效的：詳讀重點、略讀細節、跳讀修飾——「三讀法」。
重點：就原文而言，就是文章的基本結構、內容和態度；就答題而言，就是問題所對應的原文的出題句。以這個標準來衡量，需要重點閱讀的原文詞句就不會很多，因為文章後面只有五道題，它們對應的原文在五句左右，為了回答文章後面的問題，需要重點閱讀原文的下列內容：
1． 宏觀方面――①文章結構；②文章主題句；③各段首末句；④作者態度。
2． 微觀方面――①有轉折處；②重要標點；③句子主幹。
二、 略讀細節相對於論點而言，論據是細節性的，如果明白論點，論據可以讀得較快；相對於段落主題而言，解釋段落主題的支持句是細節性的。可以略讀的細節包括例子和解釋。
細節性的修飾，只對論點起次要的補充說明作用，第一遍閱讀時可以跳過。此外，這些細節性的東西通常也不出題，即使涉及問題，到時候看也來得及。可以跳讀的細節包括：
1． 兩個逗號之間的問題
2． 兩個破折號之間的問題
3． 人物的頭銜
4． 並列敘述
下面以2006年考研閱讀第一篇為例，具體說明如何運用「三讀法」達到最佳效果。
In spite of 「endless talk of difference, American society is an amazing machine for homogenizing people. There is 「the democratizing uniformity of dress and discourse, and the casualness and absence of deference」 characteristic of popular culture. People are absorbed into 「a culture of consumption」, launched by the 19th-entury department stores that offered 「vast arrays of goods in an elegant atmosphere. Instead of intimate shops catering to a knowledgeable elite」 these were stores 「anyone could enter, regardless of class or background. This turned shopping into a public and democratic act. 」 The mass media, advertising and sports are other forces for homogenization.
Immigrants are quickly fitting into this common culture, which may not be altogether elevating but is hardly poisonous. Writing for the National Immigration Forum, Gregory Rodriguez reports that today’s immigration is neither at unprecedented level nor resistant to assimilation. In 1998 immigrants were 9.8 percent of population; in 1900, 13.6 percent. In the 10 years prior to 1990, 3.1 immigrants arrived for every 1,000 residents; in the 10 years prior to 1890, 9.2 for every 1,000. Now, consider three indices of assimilation—language, home ownership and intermarriage.
The 1990 Census revealed that 「a majority of immigrants from each of the fifteen most common countries of origin spoke English 『well』 or 『very well』 after ten years of residence. 」 The children of immigrants tend to be bilingual and proficient in English. 「By the third generation, the original language is lost in the majority of immigrant families.」 Hence the description of America as a 「graveyard」 for languages. By 1996 foreign-born immigrants who had arrived before 1970 had a home ownership rate of 75.6 percent, higher than the 69.8 percent rate among native-born Americans.
Foreign-born Asians and Hispanics 「have higher rates of intermarriage than do U.S-born whites and blacks. 」 By the third generation, one third of Hispanic women are married to non-Hispanics, and 41 percent of Asian-American women are married to non-Asians.
Rodriguez notes that children in remote villages around the world are fans of superstars like Arnold Schwarzenegger and Garth Brooks, yet 「some Americans fear that immigrants living within the United States remain somehow immune to the nation’s assimilative power.」
Are there divisive issues and pockets of seething anger in America? Indeed. It is big enough to have a bit of everything. But particularly when viewed against America’s turbulent past, today’s social indices hardly suggest a dark and deteriorating social environment.
21. The word 「homogenizing」 (Line 1, Paragraph 1) most probably means
[A] identifying. [B] associating.
[C] assimilating. [D] monopolizing.
22. According to the author, the department stores of the 19th-century
[A] played a role in the spread of popular culture.
[B] became intimate shops for common consumers.
[C] satisfied the needs of a knowledgeable elite.
[D] owed its emergence to the culture of consumption.
23. The text suggests that immigrants now in the U.S.
[A] are resistant to homogenization.
[B] exert a great influence on American culture.
[C] are hardly a threat to the common culture.
[D] constitute the majority of the population.
24. Why are Arnold Schwarzenegger and Garth Brooks mentioned in Paragraph 5?
[A] To prove their popularity around the world.
[B] To reveal the public’s fear of immigrants.
[C] To give examples of successful immigrants.
[D] To show the powerful influence of American culture.
25. In the author’s opinion, the absorption of immigrants into American society is
[A] rewarding. [B] successful.
[C] fruitless. [D] harmful.
1）詳讀重點
根據上述要求詳細閱讀的內容，跨考輔導老師以紅色標出了重點。首先是宏觀方面：從文章結構而言，本文主要闡述一個概念homogenization（同化），屬於常見的「一枝獨秀型」結構，即主要說明一個核心概念。文章首句In spite of 「endless talk of difference, American society is an amazing machine for homogenizing people就是全文的中心。除了這一句之外，其他段落的首末句也值得關注。從態度而言，跨考輔導老師在首句用amazing（令人驚嘆的）、第二段首句（hardly poisonous）與全文末句（hardly suggest a dark and deteriorating social environment）使用雙重否定表明移民成功融入美國社會。
從微觀方面而言，第二段首句(but)、倒數第二段末句(yet)與末段末句(but)三處的轉折對應三道題，加上文章首句也對應一道題，這樣四道題——1、3、4、5題所對應的原文就確定了。剩下的第二題也很容易根據問題中的關鍵詞19th-century定位第一段。
由此可見，只要閱讀時抓住了重點，就能迅速地定位各個問題所對應的原文。
2）略讀細節與跳讀修飾
一方面為了加快速度，另一方面為了提高準確率，對於細節與修飾部分可以較快地閱讀甚至跳過。在第一段中，第二句難以理解，但是由於放在文章的主題之後，應該屬於對首句主題的細節性說明。所以，閱讀的時候如果看不懂不要較真兒，因為它只是一個論據，而且通常不考。
在第二段中，段末包含數字年代的兩個句子屬於並列性的細節，應該速讀甚至跳讀。第三段與第四段是對第二段末句所說的三個同化指標——language, home ownership and intermarriage 的詳細說明，屬於明顯的細節，閱讀時應該速讀。如此閱讀不僅抓住了重點，而且節約了時間。
綜上所述，只要詳讀重點、略讀細節與跳讀修飾，就能做到正確率與速度雙豐收。所以，考研閱讀的最高境界是：精讀要考的，略讀次要的，不管無關的。
（註：本文撰寫時參考了李傳偉編著的《2008考研英語閱讀真題全方位突破》）