Does it matter if children don’t read?
Discussion
Report in the paper this morning about falling numbers of children reading for pleasure - now more than 50% don’t read in their spare time.
Does it matter? I am not sure. One the one hand it seems a little like a middle class obsession. Yet written language and spoken language are quite different registers and if you have not been exposed to much written language will that mean a smaller vocabulary and a disadvantage when having to write in school or university? Probably.
Does it matter? I am not sure. One the one hand it seems a little like a middle class obsession. Yet written language and spoken language are quite different registers and if you have not been exposed to much written language will that mean a smaller vocabulary and a disadvantage when having to write in school or university? Probably.
Skeptisk said:
Report in the paper this morning about falling numbers of children reading for pleasure - now more than 50% don’t read in their spare time.
Does it matter? I am not sure. One the one hand it seems a little like a middle class obsession. Yet written language and spoken language are quite different registers and if you have not been exposed to much written language will that mean a smaller vocabulary and a disadvantage when having to write in school or university? Probably.
Is reading important?Does it matter? I am not sure. One the one hand it seems a little like a middle class obsession. Yet written language and spoken language are quite different registers and if you have not been exposed to much written language will that mean a smaller vocabulary and a disadvantage when having to write in school or university? Probably.
Rather more it's essential if you want to live a full life and understand all that goes on around you.
There’s a difference between being about to read and write & reading for pleasure. The idea of reading for pleasure being a morally “good” hobby absolutely is a very middle class thing.
The fact that two people have equated reading (a book) for pleasure with being able to read and write rather proves the point.
I would say, no. It doesn’t matter if children don’t read for pleasure. That doesn’t mean they don’t, or can’t, read very well.
The fact that two people have equated reading (a book) for pleasure with being able to read and write rather proves the point.
I would say, no. It doesn’t matter if children don’t read for pleasure. That doesn’t mean they don’t, or can’t, read very well.
Edited by Electro1980 on Monday 4th September 07:07
ZedLeg said:
Reading is middle class?
Being able to read and write is one of the great equalisers.
The OP notes "for pleasure"... Which suggests more than just the pure ability to read and write.Being able to read and write is one of the great equalisers.
I think it partly depends on what materials we consider being included in this.
If it needs to be the greater works of Salman Rushdie or something equally "worthy" then no, I don't think it's the biggest of deals
It is all a great way to expand vocab and how to express yourself in different ways though. So despite the risks of putting him off reading at all, I'll keep "encouraging" my eldest to read more widely than just "how to" pages on the Internet.
Reading plenty of different texts is a a good help in understanding words and being able to speak well with a broad vocabulary and "correct" use of words. So I'd say that it is important.
Having said that, aged 58 I'm having my second go at reading a Charles Dickens book (Great Expectations) after my first try when I was about 14. And I'm struggling just as much this time around. But I am learning about how people spoke and wrote and what they thought important in the mid 1800s which I do find rewarding. Hard to quantify what the exact benefit to me is though.
If you try and break down what's good or bad for any of us it gets a bit subjective.
Having said that, aged 58 I'm having my second go at reading a Charles Dickens book (Great Expectations) after my first try when I was about 14. And I'm struggling just as much this time around. But I am learning about how people spoke and wrote and what they thought important in the mid 1800s which I do find rewarding. Hard to quantify what the exact benefit to me is though.
If you try and break down what's good or bad for any of us it gets a bit subjective.
Electro1980 said:
There’s a difference between being about to read and write & reading for pleasure. The idea of reading for pleasure being a morally “good” hobby absolutely is a very middle class thing.
The fact that two people have equated reading (a book) for pleasure with being able to read and write rather proves the point.
Different but I can swim, certainly don’t swim for pleasure as I’m knackered after 50m. And I’m not unfit otherwise.The fact that two people have equated reading (a book) for pleasure with being able to read and write rather proves the point.
Edited by Electro1980 on Monday 4th September 07:04
So I’d say reading for pleasure likely brings some benefits in comprehension and articulation, which, in turn, makes you a better communicator.
I recently started a "retirement job", working as a mobile librarian, visiting around 20 schools per week, in many cases introducing primary school children to the concept of reading for pleasure for the very first time. It's incredibly rewarding watching their love of reading develop over the weeks, but disturbing to realise that many of them have been brought up in households where this has been an alien concept up till now, many living in homes that have never had a single book.
I think so. It's the greatest technology we developed after fire-making for a reason and allows us trans-generational passage of knowledge and understanding.
Development of imagination, the ability to "read between the lines", awareness of bias in an article or source are all sharpened by reading IMO. At its root it's about absorbing a quantity of information often written using very specific language and still one of the best ways of sharing a mindset or lived experience with another human.
The family members I have who don't like reading are all pretty unphilosophical sorts who are pretty reactive in their opinions. Although the direction of the link is perhaps debatable.
Development of imagination, the ability to "read between the lines", awareness of bias in an article or source are all sharpened by reading IMO. At its root it's about absorbing a quantity of information often written using very specific language and still one of the best ways of sharing a mindset or lived experience with another human.
The family members I have who don't like reading are all pretty unphilosophical sorts who are pretty reactive in their opinions. Although the direction of the link is perhaps debatable.
dave123456 said:
Different but I can swim, certainly don’t swim for pleasure as I’m knackered after 50m. And I’m not unfit otherwise.
So I’d say reading for pleasure likely brings some benefits in comprehension and articulation, which, in turn, makes you a better communicator.
Wot e said bruv.So I’d say reading for pleasure likely brings some benefits in comprehension and articulation, which, in turn, makes you a better communicator.
One of the most interesting aspects about reading novels is that doing so increases people’s ability to empathise.
Fiction provides us with the opportunity to mix up and confuse the overly simplistic standard good/evil trope - one many business leaders and politicians deploy regularly to support their position. We can read about characters who hold competing viewpoints, all of them valid and reasonable, that just aren’t simply reconciled. We can experience a world from a completely different, even unpleasant or odious (think Lolita…) position. Fiction lets us see the true complexity of the world and experience it through the viewpoint of others.
Exposure to new ideas, new experiences, and new blends of emotions develops the acuity of your thinking and the agility of your mind. It will helps you keep an open mind, too, training you to avoid coming to conclusions too soon and too concretely. It can help train out the aversion to ambiguity that many people have ( https://www.researchgate.net/publication/247163935... ).
Regularly reading handles how you think and it will change how you act in the world - for the better.
Fiction provides us with the opportunity to mix up and confuse the overly simplistic standard good/evil trope - one many business leaders and politicians deploy regularly to support their position. We can read about characters who hold competing viewpoints, all of them valid and reasonable, that just aren’t simply reconciled. We can experience a world from a completely different, even unpleasant or odious (think Lolita…) position. Fiction lets us see the true complexity of the world and experience it through the viewpoint of others.
Exposure to new ideas, new experiences, and new blends of emotions develops the acuity of your thinking and the agility of your mind. It will helps you keep an open mind, too, training you to avoid coming to conclusions too soon and too concretely. It can help train out the aversion to ambiguity that many people have ( https://www.researchgate.net/publication/247163935... ).
Regularly reading handles how you think and it will change how you act in the world - for the better.
ZedLeg said:
Reading is middle class?
Being able to read and write is one of the great equalisers.
AgreedBeing able to read and write is one of the great equalisers.
And the more you read the better your comprehension and use of language. Hence the whole "reading for pleasure" argument, because if you are reading for pleasure then you will spend more time reading.
It highlights the importance of school libraries, particularly in primary schools.
One thing I’ve experience this year - that surprised me - is shopping for a ‘new’ house and selling my own. When viewing other houses, I am always surprised by how few books they are (few have more than one small bookcase!). When selling my own, people have commented constantly (literally every viewer has said it) “what a lot of books you have”/“there are so many books”/“you could open a library”. I’ve found it odd that what I thought was normal (filling your house with books) is, er, not.
“When I have a little money, I buy books. If I have any left, I buy food and clothes” - Erasmus.
“When I have a little money, I buy books. If I have any left, I buy food and clothes” - Erasmus.
Skeptisk said:
Report in the paper this morning about falling numbers of children reading for pleasure - now more than 50% don’t read in their spare time.
Does it matter? I am not sure. One the one hand it seems a little like a middle class obsession. Yet written language and spoken language are quite different registers and if you have not been exposed to much written language will that mean a smaller vocabulary and a disadvantage when having to write in school or university? Probably.
Solid working class upbringing here (my dad was a fisherman and my mother was a homekeeper). It was instilled on us from an early age (3-4 years old) how important reading was. We all joined the local library at the earliest age possible.Does it matter? I am not sure. One the one hand it seems a little like a middle class obsession. Yet written language and spoken language are quite different registers and if you have not been exposed to much written language will that mean a smaller vocabulary and a disadvantage when having to write in school or university? Probably.
Sheets Tabuer said:
Multiple studies show children that read do better in exams, have higher cognitive development and have better mental health in later life.
I'd say it is quite important.
Austinsmirk of this parish manages thousands of “social” housing, er, houses. I’m sure that it was him that said that when you go in one of said houses there are never any books to be seen. I'd say it is quite important.
So, ok, the kids in these households might technically be able to read, but I think the outcomes when it comes to qualifications, subsequent jobs and future life are very evident.
Reading enriches your vocabulary, stimulates interest and imagination and will give rewards with greater opportunities later on. I’d say it’s very important. However as this country slides inexorably into a real-life version of Idiocracy I’m not surprised to see people claiming it doesn’t matter.
I went to school during the 1980’s when grammar wasn’t formally taught.
I also was bone idle at school so any information pushed my way wouldn’t have sunk in anyway.
I function extremely well as an adult, write reports & policy documents for my company & can speak well to many people on a wide variety of topics.
This is because I have always read for pleasure & have always read books in a rotation of something ‘good for me’ followed by something enjoyable followed by something factual.
My English teacher at secondary school espoused this and I have stayed with it. Slogging through the occasional weighty tome is no bad thing.
Many of us former ‘Overactive Underachievers’ (1) who academically were late bloomers have used reading to fill the gap our lack of engagement with our formal education left.
You never know, you may even learn something.
(1) Tom Sharpe, Vintage Stuff.
I also was bone idle at school so any information pushed my way wouldn’t have sunk in anyway.
I function extremely well as an adult, write reports & policy documents for my company & can speak well to many people on a wide variety of topics.
This is because I have always read for pleasure & have always read books in a rotation of something ‘good for me’ followed by something enjoyable followed by something factual.
My English teacher at secondary school espoused this and I have stayed with it. Slogging through the occasional weighty tome is no bad thing.
Many of us former ‘Overactive Underachievers’ (1) who academically were late bloomers have used reading to fill the gap our lack of engagement with our formal education left.
You never know, you may even learn something.
(1) Tom Sharpe, Vintage Stuff.
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