As an added bonus at the end of the ceremony, which was great fun, the CYL (Centre for Youth Literature) 'Keeping Young Australians Reading' report was released early for those attending.
The report is commissioned by the State Library of Victoria, and provides a snapshot of the reading landscape for 10 to 19 year olds. It looks at the factors inhibiting reading in this age group, and it also applauds those things we're getting right. It also takes into account findings from other youth surveys conducted at the same time which offer further insight into readers in this age bracket.
Mission Australia findings for example, resulting from a survey they conduct of 45k young people each year on their 'interests, attitudes and concerns', were taken into account.
For anyone involved in young adult literacy, the CYL report makes for fascinating reading.
I've outlined below, some of my own observations, some of the things I found particularly interesting. This is not to say that there aren't many more nuggets of interest to be found in the report. These are just the things that jumped out at me. I'd encourage you to seek out a copy of your own when it's released next week.
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- CYL believe that there should be at least five books read each term by students in this age bracket. The benefits of this increase in reading in school are wide ranging and significant. Apart from the expected literacy and intellectual benefits, there are evident advantages in positive social outcomes and personal wellbeing.
- Reading is becoming more socially acceptable in this age bracket. I found this particularly interesting ... Harry Potter certainly had a place to play in this, but the new slew of vampire books and movies are also drawing in many young readers.
- 10 - 13 year olds that are not reading for pleasure are less likely to read for pleasure as adults. This is for neurological reasons. During puberty, the new cells and connections made in the brain made by those that are reading form the basis for their engagement later in life. These connections are not formed, or are shed by those that are either not reading during these years, or that stop reading during this time of physiological and neurological change.
- More than one in five young adults between the ages of 11 and 19 are concerned about ... 'body image, drugs, family conflict, suicide, personal safety, bullying, emotional abuse, physical or sexual abuse, alcohol and copying with stress.' We KNOW young adults are facing these areas of conflict in their lives, what's encouraging is that there is evidence that reading allows young adults to engage with and find a way to work through concerns they may have about these issues.
- There continues to be a substantial gulf in reading accomplishments between those young adults of indigenous and very remote communities and other students, particularly those in metropolitan Australia. Apparently. This particular part of the report I struggled with. I'm not an expert on this subject by any means. I do know however that indigenous Australians have a rich history of oral storytelling, and wonder how significantly this was taken into account. As nation we are still failing our indigenous people in ways both baffling and disheartening. Perhaps one of the reasons is that their accomplishments are still not understood? How on earth can you compare a young regional indigenous Australian's oral storytelling knowledge to the reading behaviours of 'other students' (their term)??
- Graphic novels are experiencing a rise in popularity, amongst literacy professionals as well as young adults! I'm a big fan of the opportunities that graphic novels offer us in the classroom. It's encouraging to see them on the rise!
This just a small selection of areas covered in the report that I found particularly interesting. Of course there were mentions of subjects such as the rise of an e-book culture, migrant reading behaviours, economic factors and many others.
As I stated earlier, I'd encourage you to head out and get a copy when it becomes available next week.
