B5 1

Slide1: 

Profiling the Reading Habits of Children in Singapore Shaheen Majid and Venus Tan

Reading Habits of Children: 

Reading Habits of Children A matter of interest to educators, parents, librarians, publishers and other stakeholders Too much emphasis on study-related reading due to increasing pressure to perform well academically Many people associate reading with learning, schoolwork, projects, and passing exams Often recreational or leisure reading is ignored An international survey showed (Book Aid Intn., 2004): one-half of the children from UK read to relax a majority of children from 12 developing countries were reading to pass examinations 1

Contribution of Reading: 

Contribution of Reading Studies suggest leisure reading improves reading speed, comprehension, vocabulary, writing style, spellings, and grammar A survey in 35 countries showed that fun reading improved the reading scores of children (Ogle et al. 2003) A positive correlation was found between leisure reading andamp; overall academic performance (Shefelbine, 1998) In Australia, primary school children like reading action adventure, science fiction and fantasy (Woolcott Research, 2001) Fantasy fiction, humor, horror and thriller books were liked by UK children (MORI, 2004) 2

Study Objectives: 

Study Objectives To investigate leisure reading habits of children in Singapore and the motivating factors Types of materials preferred by children (fiction andamp; non-fiction) and their frequency of leisure reading Sources for acquiring the leisure reading materials and referred places for reading Favourite free time activities of the surveyed children 3

Method: 

Method Data collected through a pre-tested questionnaire Questionnaire used a very simple language that primary students could easily understand It was also important the students should not confuse the study-related reading with leisure reading 440 upper primary students form three schools participated in the study Schools set aside a 30 minutes period for this survey and a short briefing on the survey procedure was given to the students Each question was read out to the students and then given time to fill their responses 4

Demographics: 

Demographics 5

Reason for Leisure Reading: 

Reason for Leisure Reading Multiple response 6

Frequency of Leisure Reading: 

Frequency of Leisure Reading 7

Sources for Getting Reading Materials: 

Sources for Getting Reading Materials Preferred Places for Reading Home: 64% School: 22% MRT/Buses: 5% Public library: 4% Fast Food Restaurants: 4% 8

Preference for Reading Materials: 

Preference for Reading Materials More girls preferred reading – Storybooks andamp; Magazines More boys preferred reading – Non-fiction books andamp; Comics 9

Preferred Subjects for Fiction Books: 

Preferred Subjects for Fiction Books Girls Adventure, mysteries and humor Animal stories Boys Adventure, humor and mysteries Relationship stories 10

Preferred Subjects for Non-Fiction: 

Preferred Subjects for Non-Fiction Girls Handicrafts, cooking Sports Boys Sports Supernatural 11

Favorite Leisure Time Activities: 

Favorite Leisure Time Activities 12

Conclusion: 

Conclusion Leisure reading helps children relax and learn new things beyond their curriculum A majority of the students were reading to improve their academic performance Several students expressed the wish to have more time to read, but … Many leisure activities are competing for children time (Internet, TV, computer games, SMS, chat rooms, Blogs) Too heavy study-related workload Teachers and parents can educate children to keep a balance between leisure activities as well keep some time for leisure reading 13