To Read or Not to Read

I have always been a voracious reader so, for me the answer to that question is most emphatically: TO READ. I had the good fortune to have parents who were always reading. They read the paper everyday and I never saw either one of them without a book. So, naturally to read or not to read was never a question in our family. For many that is not the case. The statistics among young readers is staggering and quite frankly a bit dire in my opinion. Literacy skills among teens and our country's reading culture are quickly deteriorating. Following are some sobering statistics:

- Reading scores drop significantly over the course of middle school. In Dorchester County, Maryland, scores drop from 67.2% in sixth grade to 58.9% in seventh grade to 57.3% in eighth grade.

- Teens spend only 7-10 minutes per day on voluntary reading -- about 60% less than the average American.

- 1 in 5 U.S. workers read at a lower skill level than their job requires.

- 84% of proficient readers voted in the 2000 presidential election while only 53% of below basic readers voted.

Poor reading skills directly contribute to high school dropout:

- 1/2 of below basic readers and 1/3 of basic readers fail to complete high school.

The combination of poor academic skills and low self-esteem is particularly dangerous for girls because it strips them of their power to make good choices:

- According to www.teenpregnancy.org, educational failure is a key predictor of teen pregnancy and teen pregnancy is one of the leading causes of dropout for girls.

Teen pregnancy is devastating to girls' futures and contributes to a cycle of poverty and low academic achievement:

- Only about 2% of teen mothers have a college degree by age 30.

- Teen pregnancy costs the U.S. at least $9 billion annually.

- Children of teen parents are 50% more likely to repeat a grade.

If, after reading this, you feel compelled to make a difference you can. Elizabeth Devlin created a grass roots organization called Page Turners which addresses these issues. PageTurners: Girls Who Read to Achieve is a network of school-based afterschool book clubs to empower at-risk adolescent girls, through the discussion of literature, to become leaders in their communities while improving their reading and critical thinking skills. The organization is in its infancy and needs our support. Join Elizabeth in her effort to help support after school literacy clubs in our public school systems . Go to www.pageturnersread.org for additional information.