Raising Readers In The Digital Age

Can eBooks get reluctant teens to read?

Let’s face it. Our kids’ lives are hectic – busy beyond belief. Combine this with a plethora of technology begging for their attention, and is it any wonder that reading for pleasure often takes a backseat to everything else? In fact, there is no denying that the Internet, social media, twitter and text messaging have changed what it means to read (and write for that matter) in the Digital Age.

In fact, research shows that as kids get older and more involved with technology, they are reading fewer and fewer books. The amount of time kids spend reading books for fun declines while the time kids spend online and using a cell phone increases, according to the Kids and Family Reading Report conducted by Scholastic.

For most parents, this is a scary thought. We know that reading is an important life skill. Additionally, strong readers, and those kids who read for enjoyment, typically do better academically. As a result, we employ all sorts of tactics including limiting technology, purchasing award-winning books and requiring daily reading – all in an effort to be sure we are raising readers.

Meanwhile, some experts say our approach is all wrong. They maintain that allowing kids to use technology and the Internet for reading is nothing to worry about. The Internet, they say, has simply created a new kind of reading that parents and educators should not discount but instead embrace. In fact, they maintain that online reading will prepare teens for jobs in the Digital Age because they are learning how to gather and sort information and they are learning to determine what is relevant and what is not. Finally, experts point out that teens can access a lot of information quickly through the Internet while reading books on a particular subject may take much more time.

Skeptics, on the other hand, argue that online reading is only part of the answer. Their concern is that a heavy dose of online reading can be a lot like empty calories  – severely lacking in everything a teen needs. They worry that teens are not learning to contemplate things or to use their imagination as much as they could if they were reading books. They also maintain that online reading habits – such as reading only snippets of material – can have a long-term effect on concentration and memory. Furthermore, they are concerned that many teens often assume everything published on the Internet is true, which in turn can impact teens’ critical thinking skills. In fact, nearly half of the kids in the Scholastic study said they believe the information they find online is always correct!

So when you add these facts with the reality that kids and parents today can't even agree on what constitutes reading, you can see why parents are worried. For instance, 28 percent of kids between the ages of 9 and 17 think that looking through postings or comments on social networking sites like Facebook counts as reading. Only 15 percent of parents agree. And 25 percent of kids ages 9 to 17 think texting back and forth with friends counts as reading. Conversely, only 8 percent of parents agree.

While the majority of kids are not trying to make the argument that reading comments on Facebook is reading, it is clear that they embrace the technology more than their parents might. The answer, some experts say, is not to fight technology but for parents to meet kids where they are at.

But how?

The good news is that kids eagerly embrace technology. As a result, eBooks and eBook readers may be the answer in getting kids to read more for enjoyment. According to the Scholastic study, 57 percent of kids ages 9 to 17 said they were interested in reading an eBook and one third of them said they would read more books for fun if they had access to eBooks or an electronic device – this includes both kids who say they read five times a week and those who say they only read once a week. So even reluctant readers say they would read more books if they could do it electronically. The report also found that choice is crucial to getting even the most reluctant teens to read. In fact, nine out of ten children say they are more likely to finish a book when they choose it themselves.

Perhaps the answer then lies in this ... by combining technology with the power of choice parents may still be able to raise readers ... even in the Digital Age.