Enjoying reading puts pupils ahead in the classroom

Research by the National Literacy Trust highlights the link between enjoyment of reading and attainment, with enjoyment of reading putting children over three years ahead in the classroom.

The data shows that 10-year-olds who enjoy reading have a reading age 1.3 years higher than their peers who don’t enjoy reading, rising to 2.1 years for 12-year-olds and 3.3 years for 14-year-olds.

Looking at the levels of children that enjoy reading, three-quarters (78 per cent) of primary school children enjoy reading – the highest levels we have ever recorded.

Nearly twice as many children aged 8 to 11 than those aged 14 to 16 said that they enjoy reading (77.6 per cent vs. 43.8 per cent).

The research launch marks the 20th anniversary of the Trust’s Young Readers Programme – the first-ever national school based reading for enjoyment initiative.

Jonathan Douglas, Director of the National Literacy Trust, said: “20 years after we launched our Young Readers Programme – the first national school based reading for enjoyment initiative of its kind – we are thrilled that our research has found children’s enjoyment of reading to be at an all-time high. When children enjoy reading and have books of their own, they do better at school and later in life, so we must continue to do everything we can to inspire children to fall in love with reading for a lifetime.”