This article discusses interconnections between research methodology and English pedagogy in a recent study I undertook. The study was designed to deepen understandings about adolescent reading, using particular English teaching approaches to generate data, mindful that ideas about what constitutes the act of reading are often wide-ranging. I…

At the end of 2009 the National Literacy Trust surveyed 17,000 children and young people online in the United Kingdom's largest ever study of young people's attitudes to literacy and literate behaviour. This survey was of special interest as it repeated questions asked by the National Literacy Trust in a survey of attitudes and reading behaviour…

The main purpose of this study was to state the relationship between the parenting style and students' attitude toward leisure reading. A total of 147 (65 male and 82 female) students from two classes (class five, 80 and class six, 67) were participated in the present study. The Parental Authority Questionnaire (PAQ) and the Elementary Reading…

To examine the current state of reading attitudes among middle school students in the United States, a survey was developed and administered to 4,491 students in 23 states plus the District of Columbia. The instrument comprised four subscales measuring attitudes toward: recreational reading in print settings, recreational reading in digital…

Earlier this year Michael Gove, Secretary of State for Education, announced that British children were not reading enough and should, he believed, reading 50 books a year. This idea had come from a charter school he had visited in the US and was met with some degree of scepticism by authors and professionals who questioned whether a focus on…

The 160 third, seventh, and eleventh-graders involved in this study agreed, almost unanimously, that reading was "important." Participants cited the empowering benefits of reading as they justified this opinion. However, with regards to the enjoyment of reading, fewer middle and high school participants reported "liking"…

This paper explores the key findings of a range of research on teenagers and reading, focusing on the implications for classroom practice and student engagement. There is a particular emphasis on addressing the needs of underachieving and reluctant readers and the ways in which promoting reading for pleasure and enjoyment can contribute to student…

Each year, teachers are overwhelmed with too much to cover and an endless list of things to accomplish between the first bell and the final report card. In addition to helping students master mandated curriculum and prep for standardized tests, there seems to be a never-ending stream of surprise fire drills and last-minute assemblies that rob…

This report reveals that children and young people are reading less and more are embarrassed to be seen reading, while many also believe that their parents don't care if they spend time reading. However, not only are children and young people reading less and developing more negative attitudes towards reading, but there is also a clear correlation…

A recent ground-breaking study from the University of Nevada (Evans et al., 2010) found that the number of books in the home has as great an impact on children's attainment as parental education levels. The 20 year study by Evans and her colleagues found that having as few as 20 books in the home still has a significant impact on propelling a…

The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) reports that for the first time in over a quarter-century, literary reading has risen among adult Americans, with measurable increases among all groups represented in this comprehensive national survey. Combined with general population growth, higher reading rates have expanded literary readership by 16.6…

This report presents the 5th Edition of Scholastic's biannual study of children's and parents' attitudes and behaviors about reading. The latest research touches on reading aloud to children of all ages, the impact of reading independently for fun at school and at home, the importance of frequent reading, and the books children want most to read.…

News reports and well-publicized government studies have led to a popular perception that reading is an endangered activity, particularly among youth. In this study we surveyed college students, librarians, and college writing instructors about students' attitudes toward reading for pleasure, examine barriers to voluntary reading among college…

This article is based on a qualitative study that explored the impact reading had on the lives of two female students who attained exemplary results in their final year of high school. The reading practices of these two high achieving students provided data rich information. Both students were academically successful in completing their Victorian…

This study sought to determine the effectiveness of the "Language!" reading curriculum and a school district-developed grade-level reading curriculum in raising student reading scores on Tennessee state-mandated tests and to determine if student attitudes toward academic and recreational reading differ based on reading curriculum. The…