Joint effort urged in boosting reading ability
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Parents, teachers and the government can all play a vital role in overcoming the dismal track record in reading by Thai children - less than five books a year, academics said yesterday.
Parents should promote a reading habit among their children when they are still young, while teachers should make Thai language studies both fun and educational and the government should ensure access to quality books for underprivileged kids, the Quality Learning Foundation seminar heard.
Assoc Prof Wittayakorn Chiangkul, head of a research project for the “100 books that youths should read”, said it was imperative to motivate children to read more. Most people view fiction as being for leisure reading when in fact fiction is a great help in promoting youths’ reading habits, he said.
The book list, which is available at www.QLF.or.th, is divided into three age groups according to interest and comprehension.
Picture books with easy-to-read content are for small children aged up to 6 years. Books that youths could joyfully relate to that have more life-reflecting content but are not too depressing or violent are for those aged 6 to 12.
Books with a variety of content and more complicated plots but that use simple and clear language are for teenagers up to 18. The recommended books – mostly fiction, as they were more appealing to youths than academic books – would be accompanied by the project committee’s advice in terms of the advantages and weak points for future development in book writing.
Thailand doesn’t develop enough good books for small children, though at this age they have the best opportunity to develop a love of reading – especially 4-year-olds.
Citing the National Statistical Office report in 2008 that Thais over 6 spend 39 minutes a day reading books outside school or work, with youths reading the most at 46 minutes, he said this was low compared to other countries.
Besides, it was reported that Thais read about five books a year while Vietnamese read 60 books, Singaporeans 45 books and Malaysians 40 books. Citing the Thai children’s low PISA test scores, ranking 50th out of 65 participating countries, he urged the government to promote reading and teachers to adjust classroom methods, making lessons fun and engaging rather than focusing only on grammar.
Committee member Preeda Panyachan said Thailand produced more children’s and youth books than other Asean countries, as Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam focused on remaking folk tales, while Malaysia and Singapore imported books as they had widespread English literacy.
Vietnam was an interesting case study in the benefits of translating foreign books and improving folk tales to be universal to stimulate youths’ love of reading.
Thai readers were still among the well-to-do and educated group, so the state should have measures to ensure the availability of books for poor kids, he said.
