Books are something we are introduced to at a very young age, either because our parents read us fairytales to bed, or because schools have them everywhere and as you get older, it’s required that you read a book.
We all know the books we all had to read as a class throughout school, but does that play a part in why so many students don’t enjoy reading as much? Reading has seemingly become a chore for students. Perhaps this is because students are required to read a certain book that they may not really enjoy, and complete a lot of repetitive assignments based on the book. When students are continuously asked to prove that they are reading, students start to lose motivation. This may not be the case for all classes, some let you choose what to read and then allow you to write whatever you feel about the book. But most students don’t find themselves so lucky.
The passion for reading may have started to decline as early as first grade when you were given a calendar of the month that would have to be signed by your parents, saying you have read for 20 minutes. Most kids would read for 20 minutes and as soon as the time was up they would check it off their to-do list. It was highly unlikely that most kids would sit and read longer than 20 minutes.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics states that, the average teenager only reads six minutes a day for personal enjoyment. Only six minutes. The amount of work and feelings associated with reading for class affects how students feel about reading outside of school. Students don’t feel at all compelled to pick up a book, if they will always feel like it’s a chore or it’s going to be associated with tons of questions and work.
In order for students to not lose pleasure in reading, schools need to help students understand not only the benefits of reading but show them that you can have fun reading. Even when given assignments about reading, the book should be a book they enjoy reading or even just a genre they prefer and allow students to have a say in what sort of assignments they have to complete. Students should have more control over the books and assignments given if we want to get to a point where reading isn’t a chore or another task on our to-do lists.