Unleaded – Fuel for Writers

Well, another year means another word has been selected to represent that year. And while the fun of selecting the word has gone by the wayside, the new way of selecting the word of the year is much more telling of the way the people using Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. So take a listen and let me know what you think.

-Renee

See comments for a transcript of the podcast.

P.S. We are currently experiencing technical difficulties in uploading the audio files for the podcasts. Stay tuned, we hope to have this corrected soon!

I was recently looking at the National Endowment for the Arts’ (NEA) report, To Read or Not To Read. It is described as a comprehensive analysis of reading patterns of Americans. Despite the enormous success of J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter books, only 30 percent of 13-year-olds read for fun almost every day. The number of 17-year-olds who “never or hardly ever” read for pleasure has doubled, to 19 percent, and their comprehension scores have fallen. More Americans are reading less for pleasure.

But what I was wondering about is that electronic media – specifically reading online is not counted in the NEA study as reading, but who knows, maybe it should. With more and more internet-based and electronics-based and communication and technology such as the Kindle and Sony’s Reader Digital Book available – reading success, for the children of the electronic era, could depend on assimilating information in ways different than previous generations.

 

 NEA Reading Report [1:02m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download