Children's Reading Skills

We all know how important the ability to read is its such a vital part of our everyday lives, road signs, product prices, newspapers, job application forms, benefit claims, directions on medicine bottles, the list is endless. From a very young age, children are bombarded with reading exercises, governments and schools are agreed on this issue, perhaps the only one they do agree on! So why are so many children leaving school without the ability to read and write to the minimal standard required?

Looking at some of the initiatives that have been launched in this area, its disappointing that we dont seem to be making the headway expected.

However, there are glimmers of success here and there. The National Young Readers Programme (NYRP) has recently announced last years results in their Annual Review. According to the National Literacy Trust:

100% of coordinators reported that children who began the project with low level of interest in reading now enjoy reading more.
99% of coordinators reported that children who began with a low interest in reading are now better able to find a book they're interested in.
94.7% of school coordinators found that their NYRP project had helped their schools' approach to reading and literacy.
91.7% of library coordinators feel that they will now work more with the primary schools involved.
This project reaches over 11,000 children in areas of disadvantage. It would appear that we are making headway.
For many of the children we are working with, they don't have access to books in their homes. For these children to receive three beautiful books to take home and keep forever is a very positive step forward in fostering a life-long love of reading.
Since the foundation of the National Literacy Trust in 1993, literacy levels have increased by 24%, with 80% of 11-year-olds reaching the stage expected for their age group in 2009, compared with only 56% in 1995. Yet, as demands on literacy skills are rapidly increasing, there is still much to do to reach those people who are in most need of literacy support. How do we reach them? If such parents grew up without the benefit of books and reading in their day to day lives, how can they impart a love and true enjoyment of books to their own children?
Over the next few weeks we will be exploring what initiatives are in place to tackle this issue, which leads to poverty and disadvantaged families all over the country, in an age when we were all confident that education for all had cured these ills.