Recently, according to new research from the National Literacy Trust, only 56% of children aged 8-18 enjoy reading. This is an all-time low statistic since surveys began in 2005 and is down by 15.2 percentage points since its height in 2016. Why is this the case, and what can be done about this?
Reading, especially for leisure, has been something that many people, for an immeasurable amount of time, have generally enjoyed. So why is it that now reading has decreased in popularity? According to Highams Park School Librarian, Miss Shanmugapriyan, there is a noticeable trend in terms of children becoming less interested in reading as they grow older. She commented that only sixty-two books had been borrowed over the course of the last month in the entire school and that mostly year seven students, “who are more enthusiastic”, come to the library. Year eleven students, by comparison, rarely come in. She attributed this to the fact that as children progress through education, they take on more responsibilities and have more worries, such as GCSE exams, and this leaves less time for reading and makes it seem like a “chore.”
So, what could be done to encourage students to read more, which has the benefits of reducing stress, improving your breadth of vocabulary and improving concentration? Miss Shanmugapriyan has chosen to tackle this by encouraging student librarians to volunteer in the library, starting a book challenge that will run until the 15th of December, creating displays and lists of book recommendations based on a certain theme such as Black history month, Diwali or Remembrance Day and also by creating more general book recommendation lists that consider students from different backgrounds and that encourage students to read books that are meaningful, as well as enjoyable. Future plans for the library include setting up a book club where students can participate in a variety of activities such as designing book covers, making bookmarks and writing letters to favourite authors. Activities like these, aim to maintain students’ enthusiasm for reading and help them understand the importance and benefits of it.
