Reading in a Digital Society: Promoting Book Use Around the World

• In Event: Books in a digital society? Improving the book supply chain for learners to read from classroom to libraries to home.

Proposal

One cannot aspire for a better world if one does not know the possibilities of a world beyond one’s own lived experience. Books can serve as a window to other worlds (Sims, 1990); they show the potential of a life that is different; they allow us to travel without taking a single step; they spark our imaginations and curiosity; and they contribute to our knowledge base.
As an organization that works across the full book chain, we know that it is not enough to simply develop books, print them, and deliver them to schools. Books need to be used by teachers and children in ways that support literacy development and encourage a love of reading. And in an increasingly digital society, technology plays a role across the book chain in promoting effective book use. In a portfolio that spans 23 countries, Room to Read has approached the use of books by children in a holistic way and has learned that the following components are necessary for effective book use (AASL, 2007; Hughes, 2013), and technology can strengthen each of them:
1. If we want children to read, we need to provide them with books that are worthy of reading:
Are the books in a collection attractive, relevant, and appropriate for a young child; diverse enough to cater to varied interests; numerous enough to provide opportunities for book choice; and of an overall high quality?
2. We need to train teachers to bring books to life through engaging read alouds that model fluent, expressive reading and expose children to diverse children’s literature:
Are teachers trained in ways that may account for the fact that they may not have experienced read alouds themselves? And if we want to develop reading for children in alignment with this year’s CIES theme, are teachers trained in pedagogies that develop the capacity of children to act on what they have read?
3. We need to create an enabling environment that makes books easily accessible to children: Are books in a place where children can reach them, choose from them, and borrow them to read in school and in their communities? Are there education policies in place that encourage book use in schools?
This presentation will share the ways in which Room to Read addresses what we have found to be the three necessary components to support book use listed above. The first is addressed through book collection development, including book purchase and publishing books to meet gaps in the market. The second and third are addressed through a school library program, preservice teacher preparation, and advocacy efforts in national library standards and policies. We will draw on our experiences in establishing more than 30,000 school libraries globally to share data on book use by children and best practices in teacher preparation around book use.
This holistic approach has been successful in ensuring that books are used by children in both schools and their communities.

Author

• Christabel Pinto, Room to Read