A Case For Reading

I've always loved reading. Whether it was Swift Arrow in the first grade, Sports Illustrated, or a good John Grisham novel (i.e. The Runaway Jury), I've always been enthralled by a good read. Each Friday evening growing up, my family would gather in the living room (or whichever room had a fireplace...) and read for several hours. This was a great tradition, one I hope to continue.

I say all this because of a blog post I read today by Donald Miller. I was shocked by the statistics on American readership. Apparently when people don't have to read, they don't. Seriously. I mean, I have a few roommates who never read, but even they've read Three Cups of Tea.

As a future teacher, the statistics concern me. 1/3 of high school graduates won't read a book again. And (this shocked me even more...!), 42% of college grads won't either. I'd conversely be interested to see statistics on video game usage... I realize that Americans have far more entertainment options than in previous years, but books contain relevant information. Video games (and even my beloved sports) are frivolous with absolutely zero meaning. This shows a disinterest in lifelong learning.

When I was 10, there was an old, retired doctor in our church who would volunteer for the juniors' Sabbath School class, especially teaching nature. I've never forgotten him because he had so much knowledge. Though I didn't know it at the time, he took college courses every semester at the local community college, just for fun and to keep his mind active.

Not every person needs to take college classes for their entire life, but I am nervous when I see a general disinterest in lifelong reading. How can this be averted? How can I instill a lifelong interest in reading (or at least learning in general) in my students? I have no easy solutions (especially since I have only one year of teaching as an SM), but I would think the main solution is to make classes relevant and to suggest specific books that would pique students' interest. I hope this concerns other too and that American culture strives to bring reading back to its prior prominence.