One of our Logic School teachers recently shared an article in the Associated Press highlighting the fact that teens are reading fewer whole books in their school literature classes. It also references an NAEP study that shows a steady decline in the percentage of teens who read for fun on a daily basis (from 30% in 2004 to just 14% in 2022). In the ensuing email thread that followed, another teacher commented that she remembers hearing the refrain, “It doesn’t matter what they’re reading, just get them reading,” echoed among educators 20+ years ago.
This got me thinking. In light of this article that teenagers are reading far less than they once did, shouldn’t we want them to read more — even if it isn’t fine literature? Shouldn’t we want them to spend less time on screens and more time with their nose in a book — regardless of the content’s “timelessness?”
The short answer is, no.
The longer answer is: while I want our young people to spend less time on digital technology and more time reading, I also want them to be reading important, thoughtful, well-written texts. It seems to me that having our students move from social media to a work of literature that is poorly written, vacuous, dishonest, and/or reprehensible isn’t really a win. In other words, what we read matters, and here’s why.
What we think about shapes who we are. The things on which we fixate, fills our minds. And those thoughts in which we are immersed have a profound ability to shape our values, loves, and habits. This is why Scripture encourages us to focus on that which is transcendent and of value: “...whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things” (Philippians 4:8). If we want our children to exhibit wisdom and virtue, then we need to make sure they have a steady diet of texts that promote those values.
Thinking is a muscle. Just as the combination of weights and reps leads to increased strength, so does thinking deeply in a sustained way lead to increased cognition. Simply put, the more we challenge ourselves to ponder difficult ideas — to press for greater clarity and nuance — the better thinkers we become. If we want to help our children become more thoughtful, then we need to provide them with texts that encourage and promote deep thinking. That means providing reading that’s both well-written and that explores complex questions.
Reading requires practice. Building off of the previous point, increased skill in reading comes through a combination of reading frequently (one point for the “read anything” crowd), and reading increasingly difficult pieces (higher vocabulary, grammar, and syntax). We all intuitively know this. That’s why we push our children to progress from Level One readers with the simplest of sentences, to readers with compound sentences, and then to advanced readers with compound and complex sentences. But it shouldn’t stop when they can master chapter books. We should continue to push our children to read increasingly detailed and nuanced texts to help them become even stronger readers (note: this is to say nothing about speed of reading, and everything about comprehension).
Delayed gratification, hard work, and self-discipline matter. Given the previous points, there’s no doubt that reading well-written pieces that promote wisdom and virtue while also helping us to become better readers is challenging. But this doesn’t mean it isn’t worthwhile. Often (always?) that which is worth doing involves some level of difficulty. However, we live in a society where “the good life” is marked by ease, speed, and the absence of friction. Unfortunately, this isn’t actually how life works. We need to learn to pursue what is good, true, and beautiful regardless of the time, energy, and effort that it takes. We need to put aside quick-fixes and the easy way out. And this includes the way that we view reading. As Thomas Paine put it, “The harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly; 'tis dearness only that gives everything its value. I love the man that can smile in trouble, that can gather strength from distress, and grow brave by reflection. 'Tis the business of little minds to shrink; but he whose heart is firm, and whose conscience approves his conduct, will pursue his principles until death.”
Reading well allows us to join in the great conversation. Finally, reading worthwhile texts will often carry us into “classic” works — that is, pieces that have withstood the test of time. Those literary works that wise and virtuous people of every age go back to again and again. In reading the classics, this doesn’t mean that we agree with everything we read or that we think every text was correct. But it does mean we value these texts for the way that they have shaped history (including intellectual history) and the world in which we live today. It is to acknowledge that we can’t really understand our modern era without understanding something of the ideas, values, traditions, habits, etc. that led us to this point. And this means reading books from the past — not just the latest YA or graphic novel. Philosopher Rene Descartes put it aptly when he said, “The reading of all good books is like a conversation with the finest minds of past centuries.”
In closing, I think we should resist the false dichotomy that says we either need to get our kids to read more or have them read better material. Let’s put those together and encourage our students to read more and to read pieces that are well-written/worthwhile. Let’s show them the beauty of time-tested texts so that they want to experience more of them. Let’s read these works with them, so that it becomes something that binds us together and gets us all off of our screens. Let’s dare to do what is difficult and see the fruit that ensues.
Let’s read what matters.
If you’d like some ideas of things to read, you can find a partial list of what we read here at Redeemer: PK - 8th grade | 9th - 12th grade