'Six things you can do to get boys reading more'
Posted: Wed Oct 10, 2018 4:26 pm
This interesting article in The Conversation challenges some of the notions about boys and reading - such as the idea that boys prefer reading non-fiction. Is this the case? Read on...
https://theconversation.com/six-things- ... ce=twitterSix things you can do to get boys reading more
Stop telling boys they only like non-fiction
To improve boys’ literacy outcomes, parents and educators may look for ways to connect boys with reading. This had led to discussion about the importance of promoting so-called “boy-friendly” books that boys are supposedly “drawn to”, which are typically assumed to be non-fiction works, as it’s regularly contended that boys prefer to read non-fiction.
But this contention is not typically supported by recent quantitative research. For example, OECD and my own research suggests boys are more likely to choose to read fiction than non-fiction. Encouraging all boys to read non-fiction under the assumption this meets an imagined uniform preference can actually lead to negative outcomes.