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Readathon Research

Readathon recently conducted a research project to find out what educational professionals think about children's reading habits and the important role recreational reading can play in young people's lives. Click on the links below to read our reports.

Teachers, pupils, and reading because you want to

Pupils’ reading in the digital world


Recreational reading and schools – what educators think

Show me a child that learns for him or herself where reading for recreation can lead to, and I’ll show you an adult who’ll benefit throughout their life from that initial discovery.

Brough Girling, Readathon Founder
Why Reading really matters

Independent studies show again and again how learning to love reading can transform a child’s prospects for success in school and the world beyond.

The latest research from the National Literacy Trust shows that 80% of children who read above the expected level for their age have books of their own; while only 58% who read below their expected level have books of their own. 

“…by encouraging children to love reading, families can help them to do well at school and to enjoy opportunites throughout their life. 

Jonathan Douglas, Director of the National Literacy Trust. 

In its 2008 report Literacy Changes Lives, the National Literacy Trust concluded:

 “…reading for pleasure has been revealed as the most important indicator of the future success of a child”

“…research presents overwhelming evidence that literacy has a significant relationship with a person’s happiness and success.”

“…reading for pleasure is more important for children’s educational success than their family’s socio-economic status.”


Click here to view the entire report from the National Literacy Trust.

 

It is a view echoed in To Read or Not To Read, a report from the US National Endowment for the Arts

“Voluntary reading involves personal choice, reading widely from a variety of sources, and choosing what one reads… people who have the ability to read but choose not to, miss just as much as those who cannot read at all. Individuals read to live life to its fullest, to earn a living, to understand what is going on in the world, and to benefit from the accumulated knowledge of civilization. Even the benefits of democracy, and the capacity to govern ourselves successfully, depend on reading.”

Readathon will help you to unlock potential by encouraging pupils to discover just how rewarding reading can be.

Readathon is often a life changing experience. And such a worthwhile event is rarely this easy.