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‘Your Brain on Books’
Reading Notes
Lit of the Millenium
Spring 2015
Emma Willard School
“Teen haven’t
shelved
reading for
pleasure”
Lauren Yerry
Now kids use technology to read…
E-books
Laptops
iPads
Nooks
Kindles
“It’s not that they’re
reading less; they’re
reading in a different
way”~ Kim Patton, President of the Young
Adult Library Services Association
Some Statistics
Pleasure reading dropped 23% from 2003-
2008!
From 65 minutes a week to 50 minutes a
week!
Greatest Fall of between the ages of 12-
14
It’s a broad definition because
we don’t just read books or
magazines, but we also read text
messages, documents, social
media, and games. So
technically we are reading all the
time!
More Statistics!
Kids 8 to 18
Declined from 43 minutes a day to 38
minutes of reading a day!
Entirely related to magazines and
newspapers!
Student spend an average of 2 minutes a
day on online publications!
Technology is an Obstacle?
Even though technology is a
distraction…
There are fan sites and online forums
where you can come together with
people who like the books you like!
“If we take online and in game-playing are
taken into account the digital age has
probably increased reading.”
Randi Adleberg,
head of high school English program at
Robinson Secondary School in Fairfax
County
More Obstacles…
We find ourselves wrapped up in other commitments...
Homework
Sports/Orchestra
Clubs
A job
Girlfriend/Boyfriend
We find ourselves spending time in other aspects of our lives, leaving no time to read!
Works Cited
Donna St. George. “Teens haven’t
shelved reading for pleasure” The
Washington Post. (2011)
Why Aren’t Teens Reading Like
They Used To?
Ludden, Jennifer. “Why Aren’t Teens
Reading Like They Used To?” NPR.
n.p., 12 May 2014. Web. 30 Mar. 2015.
-Kylie Walpurgis
• With more popular teen and young adult
books being released each year (ex. The
Hunger Games), the sales numbers prove
that adolescents still read.
• However, nearly half of 17-year-olds say they
only read a book or two for fun a year, much
lower than the trends of previous decades.
• 21st Century = first generation to grow up
surrounded by accessible technology, which
could imply that there are only more sources
and devices to read from
• Kids use their free time, instead of reading, to
search social media and for personal entertainment
through sites and services like YouTube and Netflix
• Others (as we all can relate) want to read more, but
are preoccupied with homework, sports, and
extracurriculars.
• Note: research is unusal to collect here. When
looking at a paper book, someone is obviously
reading, but when looking at a screen, they could
be doing any number of things, meaning some of
them may actually be reading.
• Kids really aren’t reading as much; technology
seems to be just too distracting.
For Better Social Skills, Scientists Recommend a Little Chekhovhttp://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/10/03/i-know-how-youre-feeling-i-read-chekhov/?_r=0
A study found that reading literary fiction helped people perform better on tests that measured empathy, social perception, and emotional intelligence. These same benefits were not found in the groups that read popular fiction or serious nonfiction.
Literary fiction leaves more to the imagination, so people have to make inferences about characters and be open to emotional nuance.
The Study:
Participants ranging from ages 18 to 75 were paid a small amount of money to read for a few minutes.
Literary fiction (Don DeLillo, Wendell Berry)
Best Sellers (Gillian Flynn’s “Gone Girl,” a Rosamunde Pilcher romance or Robert Heinlein’s sci-fi)
Nonfiction (Smithsonian articles like “How the Potato Changed the World” or “Bamboo Steps Up”
The Study:
Then, they took computer tests that measured their abilities to understand emotions or predict people’s expectations or beliefs.
ex. They had to study 36 photographs of pairs of eyes and choose which adjectives described the emotion.
Findings: As far as perceptiveness and empathy go, literary fiction > nonfiction > popular fiction > reading nothing
This means that it might be possible to prime people for more empathy— if empathy increased after only a few minutes of reading a certain genre of book, could watching a clip from a sad movie make someone more open and perceptive of their date?
The theory behind it:
In popular fiction, the reader plays a more passive role and lets the author drive the story. The main focus of the story is the plot.
In literary fiction, the reader has to listen carefully to each character’s version of reality , which isn’t necessarily reliable. You have to participate actively in the story and decide your own truth.
Why our future depends on libraries, reading and daydreaming
Article by Neil GaimanGaiman, Neil. "Why Our Future Depends on Libraries,
Reading and Daydreaming.” theguardian. 15 Oct. 2013. Web. 30 Mar. 2015.
<http://www.theguardian.com/books/2013/oct/15/neil-gaiman-future-libraries-reading-daydreaming>.
• The Reading Agency is a charity whose mission is to help people become confident and passionate readers
• There have been correlations found between illiteracy and criminality • Gaiman says that the simplest correlation is that literate people read
fiction• Fiction has two main important uses:
• Fiction allows you to discover that reading is actually very pleasurable• Fiction initiates empathy – it allows you to think and feel as someone
else and to discover that you are not alone• The best way to make sure the children in the world (and the children to
come) are literate is to simply have them read and discover how reading is a very pleasurable activity
• Most all children’s books are good books for them because what might seem like an overused plotline to an adult, is a completely new concept for a child
• Let children read what they choose and this will be the kindling to the spark of literacy and a love of reading
• Escapism/Escapist fiction is not a bad thing – escapist fiction can open a door to a world you never imagined and possibly give you skills and knowledge you to take away and use in your own life
• People have seemed to forget that libraries aren’t just a stack of books • Libraries are a place where people can explore books freely and
acquire information• It is a safe space for equal access from anyone who needs to find any
type of information they might need• It is a place for people who may not have a computer or internet and
need to access something in our world where more and more is taking place online
• Our children and grandchildren are going to be less likely to “change the world” if they are less literate and less numerate than we are
Our obligations as readers, writers, and citizens
• Gaiman believes we have obligations to children and the adults that they will become:
• Read for pleasure – people seeing others reading shows that it is a good thing
• Support libraries – support the place that fosters reading– Protest the closure of libraries, influence others to use
libraries, etc.• Read aloud to your children – put every worry in the
world on hold and let the imaginations of children grow• Push yourself when reading – really think about the
words you are reading and don’t just look at it as one-dimensional
Our obligations cont.
• Keep the writing interesting, pass down your wisdom through your writing, do not lecture in your writing, never write something you would not read yourself– “Write true things… to understand that truth is not in
what happens but what it tells us about who we are.” –Neil Gaiman
• Keep the world beautiful. It’s okay to make a mistake but don’t leave your mess for the next generation
• Make sure we are electing politicians that know and support the value of protecting and encouraging literacy
“If you want your children to be intelligent, read them fairy tales, If you want them to be more intelligent, read them more fairy tales.” –Albert Einstein
“Reading at Risk: A survey of
Literary Reading in America” by the
National Endowment of the Arts
Citation: "Reading at Risk: A Survey of Literary Reading in
America." Reading at Risk: A Survey of Literary Reading in
America. USA.gov, 1 June 2004. Web. 30 Mar. 2015.
<http://arts.gov/publications/reading-risk-survey-literary-
reading-america-0>.
Key Facts
• “Less than half of the adult population now reads
literature”
• “The 10 percentage point decline in literary
reading represents a loss of 20 million potential
readers.”
Key Facts
• “Total book reading is declining significantly,
although not at the rate of literary reading.”
• “The percentage of the U.S. adult population
reading any books has declined by -7 percent
over the past decade.”
Key Facts
• “The ten-year rate of decline has accelerated from
-5 percent to -14 percent since 1992.”
• “Women read more literature than men do, but
literary reading by both groups is declining at
significant rates.”
Comer Kidd, David and Castano, Emanuele. “Literary Fiction
Improves Theory of Mind.” Science Magazine 18 October 2013. Print.
• Understanding others mental states is an important skill that allows for complex relationships that build society.
• Little is researched about what fosters this skill, which is called Theory of Mind (ToM).
• Five experiments: Does reading literary fiction lead to an improved ToM?
• The ability to identify and understand others mental states is due to human evolution.
• ToM allows for complex relationships that helps to support the empathetic responses that maintain them.
• Deficits in ToM are associated with psychopathologies.
• Affective ToM- the ability to detect and understand others emotions (linked to empathy).
• Cognitive ToM- the interference and representation of others beliefs and intentions (linked to antisocial behavior).
• Ex: Parents ask their children questions that fosters affective ToM such as: “Do you think he is happy or sad as a consequence of your action?”
• Reading fiction increases empathy.
• It expands our knowledge of other’s lives.
• Fiction may change how people think about others.
• Literature encourages readers to search for “meanings in among a spectrum of possible meanings.”
• Engages the psychological process that gains access to characters experiences and emotions.
• The Experiments:
• Testing the effects literary fiction on ToM.
• Literary fiction was chosen because it draws on more flexible interpretations of characters emotions, as opposed to popular fiction, where the character’s emotions are explicitly stated.
• Prize winning literary texts were selected.
• Experiment 1:
• 86 participants randomly assigned to read one of six short stories.
• Completed a false-belief test as a measure of cognitive ToM, and they RMET test to measure affective ToM.
• Scores were higher in the literary fiction than nonfiction when tested for ToM.
• Experiment 2:
• 114 participants randomly selected to read one of three excerpts from two different sources.
• Aimed to replicate the findings from experiment 1 by using a different test (DANVA2-AF).
• Test was designed to differentiate the effects of popular and literary fiction.
• Few errors were made in the literary condition than in the popular condition.
• Experiment 3:
• 69 participants each read three texts of popular fiction and three of literary fiction.
• Aimed to replicate the literary fiction and popular fiction comparison in experiment 2.
• RMET scores were higher in the literary condition than in the popular condition.
• Experiment 4:• 72 participants read four texts used in
experiment 3 along with two new stories (literary and popular).
• New test was used: the Yoni test, which assess both cognitive ToM and affective ToM.
• RMET scores were higher in the literary fiction condition.
• Yoni test revealed that participants in the literary fiction condition scored higher on all ToM trials than those in the popular fiction category.
• Experiment 5:
• 356 participants read three works of literary fiction and three works of popular fiction.
• Aimed to replicate experiment 4 and test the influences of subject variables (education, age, gender, etc).
• The affect condition was significant, score were significantly higher in the literary fiction condition than in the popular reading condition.
• Experiment 1 showed that literary fiction improves affective ToM.
• Experiment 2 to 5 showed that this effect is specific to literary fiction.
• Results suggests the need for more research.
• However, the results supported the hypothesis that literary fiction enhances ToM.
• Literature has been used in programs to promote social welfare that promote empathy among doctors and life skills among prisoners.
• Literature classes have been questioned about its importance in the education system in the US.
• 46 states adopted new standards that call for less emphasis on reading fiction in middle school.
To Read or Not to
Read
By: Maya Greenstein
Bauerlein, Mark, comp. To Read or Not to Read: A Question of National Importance. Rep. no. 47. National Endowment for the Arts, Nov. 2007. Web. 30 Mar. 2015. <http://arts.gov/sites/ default/files/ToRead.pdf>.
General Trends
• Data comes from various sources, including US
Federal agencies and academic, foundation, and
business surveys
• Progress in reading ability diminishes during early teen
years (after seeing an incline during the elementary
years)
• Decline in reading leads to socioeconomic
consequences (for example, correlations to prison
time, less employment opportunity/growth, etc.)
• “It is no longer reasonable to debate whether the
problem exists”
What’s Different About
Readers?
• Attend more concerts & theater performances
• Exercise more
• Play more sports
• These characteristics are independent of
education level
Decline in Pleasure Reading
• Americans are reading less, especially teens and young adults
• Nearly half of all Americans aged 18-24 read NO books for pleasure
• But 17 year olds are still reading the same amount for homework (around 15 pages)
• Less than one-third of 13 year olds are daily readers
• 65% of college freshmen pleasure read for less than 1 hour per week (or not at all)
Alternate Leisure Time
• On average, 15-24 year olds read 7-10 minutes
per day voluntarily—but this same age range
spends 2-2.5 hours per day watching television
• 58% of middle and high school students use other
media while reading (TV, music, etc.)
Reading Correlations
• The number of books in a home is a good
predictor of academic success
• In recent years, there has been a decline in the
amount families spend on books
• Non-readers have lower reading scores on
standardized tests
Social Ramifications
• 63% of employers rate reading comprehension as
“very important” for high school graduates (and,
thus, possible employees)
• Readers are more than two times more likely than
non-readers to volunteer/do charity work
• Poor reading skills are very common in the prison
population (3% of adult prisoners read at a
Proficient level, where as 56% read at or below
the Basic level)
The Verdict
• Empirically, the data clearly shows that young
adults should be active readers—for fun and for
themselves—in order to live happy, productive
lives
• So yes, READ!
The Importance of Pleasure
Reading for Teens
Douglas, Jonathan.The
Importance of Instilling a Need to
Read. The Telegraph, 4 May
2013. Web. 30 March 2015. <
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/educati
on/educationopinion/10035473/Th
e-importance-of-instilling-a-need-
to-read.html>
The Importance
• Reading for pleasure at age 15 is most
important factor in determining the
teen’s future success
• Pleasure reading indicates
predisposition to lifelong learning that
enables more social mobility
The Problem
• There are many other leisure activities
for teens to choose from, so it’s difficult
to get them to read for pleasure
• The books read in school may also be
discouraging teens from pleasure
reading
Possible Solutions
• School libraries should have books that
interest the students to help spark their
interest in reading
• Altering school curriculums to reflect
that both classics and teenage fiction
are important in encouraging reading for
pleasure
A Snapshot of Reading in America in 2013
Presentation by Rira Choi
Article by Kathryn Zickuhr and Lee Rainie
A Demographic Portrait of Who’s Reading
• 78% of American adults (18 and
older) said they read at least one
book in the past year
• Women are more likely than men
to have read a book
• Adults of higher levels of income &
education are more likely to have
read a book
• No significant differences by age
group
Book Format
Print E-book
WomenWhites & BlacksAdults of higher education & incomes
HispanicYounger AdultsPeople who live in urban & suburban areas
- Adults of higher level of education are more likely to listen to audio books.
- Though e-books are rising in popularity, PRINT REMAINS THE FOUNDATION OF
AMERICANS’ READING HABITS.
How Many Books Americans Read Last Year
• Average number of books read/listened to in
the past year: 12
• Median number of books read/listened to in
the past year: 5
=> Half of adults read more than 5 books, and
half read fewer.
E-reading and E-reading Devices
◼︎ TABLET COMPUTERS
• As tablet ownership grows, more
adults use them for e- books.
• 42 % of adults own a tablet.
• 78% of adults who own tablets
read e-books on their device.
• Male tablet users are more likely
than female to read e-books on
these device.
E-reading and E-reading Devices
◼︎ Desktop/Laptop Computers
• 75 % of adults own a
laptop/desktop computers
• Few use them for e-book
reading (Only 31%).
◼︎ Cell Phones
• 92% of adults own a cell phone.
• 1/3 of cell phone owners use
them for e-book reading.
E-readers
• 32 % of adults own an e-reader i.e. Kindle, Nook
• 87% of e-reading device owners read books on
that device (53% read at least weekly).
• Adults who own e-readers read e-books more
frequently than those who only own other
devices i.e. tablets or cell phones.
Bibliography
Zickuhr, Kathryn, and Lee Rainie. "A Snapshot ofReading in America in 2013." Pew Research Centers Internet American Life Project RSS. N.p., 16 Jan. 2014. Web. 30 Mar. 2015. http://www.pewinternet.org/2014/01/16/a-snapshot-of-reading-in-america-in-2013/
Thank You
A Snapshot of Reading in America in 2013
Presentation by Rira Choi
Article by Kathryn Zickuhr and Lee Rainie
A Demographic Portrait of Who’s Reading
• 78% of American adults (18 and
older) said they read at least one
book in the past year
• Women are more likely than men
to have read a book
• Adults of higher levels of income &
education are more likely to have
read a book
• No significant differences by age
group
Book Format
Print E-book
WomenWhites & BlacksAdults of higher education & incomes
HispanicYounger AdultsPeople who live in urban & suburban areas
- Adults of higher level of education are more likely to listen to audio books.
- Though e-books are rising in popularity, PRINT REMAINS THE FOUNDATION OF
AMERICANS’ READING HABITS.
How Many Books Americans Read Last Year
• Average number of books read/listened to in
the past year: 12
• Median number of books read/listened to in
the past year: 5
=> Half of adults read more than 5 books, and
half read fewer.
E-reading and E-reading Devices
◼︎ TABLET COMPUTERS
• As tablet ownership grows, more
adults use them for e- books.
• 42 % of adults own a tablet.
• 78% of adults who own tablets
read e-books on their device.
• Male tablet users are more likely
than female to read e-books on
these device.
E-reading and E-reading Devices
◼︎ Desktop/Laptop Computers
• 75 % of adults own a
laptop/desktop computers
• Few use them for e-book
reading (Only 31%).
◼︎ Cell Phones
• 92% of adults own a cell phone.
• 1/3 of cell phone owners use
them for e-book reading.
E-readers
• 32 % of adults own an e-reader i.e. Kindle, Nook
• 87% of e-reading device owners read books on
that device (53% read at least weekly).
• Adults who own e-readers read e-books more
frequently than those who only own other
devices i.e. tablets or cell phones.
Bibliography
Zickuhr, Kathryn, and Lee Rainie. "A Snapshot ofReading in America in 2013." Pew Research Centers Internet American Life Project RSS. N.p., 16 Jan. 2014. Web. 30 Mar. 2015. http://www.pewinternet.org/2014/01/16/a-snapshot-of-reading-in-america-in-2013/
Thank You
Independent
Reading and School
Achievement
Does Reading for Fun Help Us Grow as Student Learners?
E. Cullinan, B. 2000. Independent Reading and School Achievement. School Library Media Research: Research Journal of the American Association of School Librarians. Retrieved from http://www.ala.org/aasl/sites/ala.org.aasl/files/content/aaslpubsandjournals/slr/vol3/SLMR_IndependentReading_V3.pdf
Independent Reading: What is it?
• Independent reading happens when students choose to read on their own. It is neither assigned nor supervised.
• Independent reading is also known as
• Voluntary Reading
• Leisure Reading
• Spare Time Reading
• Recreational Reading
• Reading Outside of School
Why Read Independently?It’s All About Personal Choice
• Students read independently in order to pursue information on a topic of interest or simply for the pleasure of reading.
• Students have the freedom to read from a wide variety of novels, memoirs, plays, and other literary works.
• As Cullinan states:
“Individuals read to live life to its fullest, to earn a living, to understand what is going on in the world, and to benefit from the accumulated knowledge of civilization. Even the benefits of democracy and the capacity to govern ourselves successfully depend on reading.”
Choose Not to Read?That’s Called Being Aliterate
• Aliterates miss out on just as much as those
who are illiterate, who do not know how to read
at all.
• “A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies.
The man who never reads lives only one.”
― George R.R. Martin
a·lit·er·ate
/āˈlidərət/
adjective
1. unwilling
to read,
although
able to do
so.
noun
1. an aliterate
person.
Let’s Talk NumbersResearch Statistics
• Over years, research studies have shown that students often times choose not to read.
• Fifth graders spent only 5.4% of their free time reading
• 23% of fifth graders chose not to read at all
• On average, students spend <2% of their free time reading
• Most students do not associate reading with pleasure
• for many the amount of reading decreases even more as they grow older
Age Influences Reading PatternsEspecially with Middle Schoolers and High Schoolers
• Age is a major factor in determining why people read, what they read, how much/how often, and what they do with the knowledge they get from reading.
• Students who begin reading very early will likely continue to read when older.
• Several studies have shown that both watching television and spare-time reading decrease in adolescence.
• Some studies show that reading declines in mid-adolescence, and increases again during the junior and senior years of high school.
• Other studies have shown that light reading, i.e. reading books in series, motivates students to eventually read more complex material.
Programs for PromotionEfforts to Get Students Reading
• Active parental involvement: in one program, parents came to [middle] school to join in on discussion groups on books chosen by their children; this led parents to continue reading along with their children outside of school.
• One common teaching practice used is silent reading time, i.e. DEAR time; used both in middle and high school.
• Businesses, schools and libraries are increasingly forming alliances to encourage independent reading
• Public librarians visit local schools, teachers bring their students on library field trips, businesses provide book prizes
Your Brain on Fiction
Notes
Jharana Greene
‘Your Brain on Books’
Reading Notes
Lit of the Millennium
Spring 2015
Emma Willard School
Notes● Studies have shown that stories stimulate the brain and can change how we act in
real life
● “Classic” language regions: Broca’s area and Wernicke’s Area
o Involved in how the brain interprets written words
● Narratives activate many other parts
o Reasons for why stories can feel so real
Ex. Lavender, cinnamon (you have memories of smelling them etc…)
Not only the language parts of the brain but also the parts dealing with
smells
● Study where subjects brains were scanned in an fMRI machine
o Words like perfume and coffee were compared with words like chair and key
o Studied the scans on how different parts of the brain reacted and lit up most
o Words that had to do with smells aroused the primary olfactory cortex
o Words that had to do with texture aroused the sensory cortex
o Words describing motion stimulated regions distinct from language-processing
areas
Notes ● The brain doesn’t make a large distinction between reading about an experience
and actually encountering it in real life
● The same neurological regions are stimulated
● Reading produces a vivid simulation of reality
● Fiction has a lot of details and metaphors so it’s easy to replicate it in one’s mind
● Reading is an opportunity to enter into another person’s thoughts and feelings
Key Facts
• “Literary reading is declining among all education
levels.”
Key Facts
• “Literary reading is declining among all age
groups.”
• “The steepest decline in literary reading is in the
youngest age groups.”
• “The decline in reading correlates with increased
participation in a variety of electronic media,
including the Internet, video games, and portable
digital devices.”
Key Facts
• “The decline in literary reading foreshadows an
erosion in cultural and civic participation.”
The Psychology of Reading
for Pleasure: Needs and
Gratifications
Joie Mitchell
● Pleasure reading is a form of play, it is pursued for its
own sake
● 120 readers were recruited for a series of studies on
fictional reading
● Background on Fictional Reading:
o Fiction reading accounts for most pleasure reading
o Reading fiction most commonly incites the feeling of
being “lost in a book”
o In the eighteenth century reading fictional books was
considered addictive
Ludic Reading (Pleasure Reading)
● Antecedents of Ludic Reading
o Reading Ability and Habits
o Reading Speed
o A book’s merit and difficulty
o Physiology of ludic reading
o Sovereignty of reading
● Readers greatly prize the control they exercise over
reading
Motivational Analysis of Ludic Reading● The reader’s reinforcements are found in the cognitive
events that result from the interaction between book
and reader
o Narrative Structure
o Nature of Storytelling
o Skills of Reading
o Determination of Reading Ability
o Nature of Comprehension
o Attentional Mechanisms that occur
Reading Ability and Habits
● Ludic readers most often do not have a precondition for
ludic reading
● Ludic reading and skilled reading are likely to co-occur
● Reading ability, as measured by reading
comprehension, is positively correlated with quantity
and time spent reading books
Conclusion
● It is not possible to carry out a study in which reading
ability it manipulated as the independent variable
● No inferences can be drawn about the strong positive
correlations between reading speed, book reading time
and motivation
● High reading comprehension speeds may be a
precondition for ludic reading , or they may develop as a
consequence of it
● ANYONE CAN READ, AND BE GOOD AT IT.
Sources
The Psychology of Reading: Needs and
Gratifications by Victor Nell
