Developing and sustaining a reading habit among teenagers

Mansor, A. N., Rasul, M. S., Rauf, R. A. A., & Koh, B. L. (2013) Developing and sustaining reading habit among teenagers. The Asia-Pacific Education Researcher, 22(4), 357-365.

Background

Avid readers or students who are highly engaged in a wide range of reading activities have been found to enjoy greater success in their learning than those who seldom read. Recent studies, however, reported a decline in the number of avid readers in Malaysia.  As reported, secondary school and university students are reluctant to engage in pleasure reading outside the classroom.

Aims

The study sought to investigate the reading behaviours of habitual readers so as to gain a better understanding of the factors that promote and sustain reading habits among teenagers in Malaysia.

Sample

Seven Malaysian students aged 15 years participated in the study. Parents were also interviewed to gather the students’ early childhood information and out of school reading behaviour.

Method

A case study approach was adopted. Interviews were conducted with the students to find out about their past and present reading behaviours and how their reading interest was developed. The interviews were transcribed and coded for the key factors.

Findings

Students’ home background was found to be the key factor in the developmentand sustaining of the habit of reading. According to the participants, their mothersplayed a significant role in establishing a positive literacy environment in their childhood years and in developing their reading habits.  Although the participants did not credit their reading abilities to their early childhood education, their mothers suggested that the programmes provided by the kindergartens (e.g., story-telling sessions, phonics classes) helped foster early reading abilities.

A sustained interest in reading was found to be related to the participants’ innate interest in reading. As a result of their positive childhood experiences, the participants perceived reading to be fun and enjoyable. Reading was also recognised to be a beneficial hobby that would help improve their language skills. According to the participants, it was also very important to have a constant supply of books so as to sustain their interest in reading. Many indicated a preference to borrow books from their peers, whichhelped establish a network among friends for sharing information about the stories.

Implications

The authors suggested a need to raise the national awareness of the benefits of reading so that parents would be encouraged to create a positive literacy environment at home. There was also a need to pay more attention to the programmes organised at the school level to sustain students’ reading interest. One suggestion offered was the inclusion of reading programmes based on peer support.

Original article retrieved from Springer Online.