Reading for fun has quickly turned into a thing of the past for many high school students, due to busy schedules and constant screen time.
The high school library has two librarians, Ann Libbey and Kimberly Bronzino, whose aims are to keep the library popular and ensure that all the students’ interests are represented. The library gets a lot of attention from the students, but the books are seemingly left alone. Many factors play into this such as school work, extracurriculars, technology, and socializing in general.
“You want to see your family, your friends, you have soccer, you have all kinds of different things to do, and I do think devices distract a little and pull attention away. And I think that’s for everyone, including adults, because they say adults aren’t reading as much anymore as they used to as well. Since students are not supposed to be using phones, I thought maybe it would increase a little, but people like to socialize…,” said librarian Ann Libbey.
The notion that there are fewer students reading may not be completely true. It could also be that students don’t reach for books anymore or don’t try out books that they may like. Many educators ensure to include material in their classes like movie clips or paintings to promote reading.
“I don’t find that students are reading less, I find that they are generally more resistant to reading than they used to be, kind of less willing to give it a try, less willing to see things through. And so I know in my own practice, I’ve tried to incorporate clips of things to help teach while giving students enough to hold on to,” said English teacher Sarah Beth Vogt.
Reading books and collecting knowledge from them brings many benefits to high school students such as improved reading comprehension, writing skills, and emotions.
“Reading books really encourages a lot of sustained reading, sustained attention. And I think especially vocabulary is so important getting into a story and a whole narrative and […] it helps with empathy. I think reading helps with writing. When people read a lot, they write better; their syntax, their structure, their sense of the storyline is improved,” said Libbey.
There are still many students that enjoy reading in their free time. Most students learn numerous lessons and ideas from books.
“I think my favorite book is either ‘Prison Healer’ or ‘Of Mice and Men’. Although they are very different books, they transport you into different worlds. The authors really bring the characters and their experiences to life. I think it is important to read a mix of both classics and newer books to help expand your point of view. I enjoy realistic fiction such as John Steinbeck’s novels as they always teach an important lesson,” said sophomore Sophia B.
It’s appropriate for the library to be a space not just for reading but also learning and exploring. This enables students to grow in what interests them.
“I think it’s wonderful that the library can be a place where students feel safe and comfortable and can be with their friends and can hang out. As an institution, libraries are spaces of learning. I think that’s not always a space for reading, but it is certainly a space where students should be able to learn about things that they are interested in,” said Vogt.
The library offers many ways to access books. The library even offers books for English as a New Language (ENL) students and books just for the Schools of Study. They host a district wide “Books and Bots” event that integrates literacy and technology. There are online catalogs, interactive padlets, book talks through English classes, and many additional online resources to bring students towards literature.
“We have a resource called Sora, and it’s through our home page. The Opals has a section that says Sora and you can go on there and there’s books, e-books from art collections and audio books and then also [materials] from Long Island Reads, like from all different libraries,” said Libbey.
Not everyone sees technology or social media as a negative influence on students’ interests in reading. Many students gravitate towards reading as it is portrayed on social media as an aesthetic activity.
“I think social media has increased reading among students because it portrays it as an enjoyable and cozy thing to do,” said Sophia.
There are many opportunities for students to find a book that’s for them. Students often claim that they don’t enjoy reading but base it off of books they read in school as part of curriculum.
“Everybody likes to read. I would say it’s not that you don’t like reading, it’s that you haven’t found something yet that you enjoy. I think so often students base that on the texts that they read in school, which are often from the literary canon,” said Vogt.
Taking some time out of the day to sit down and read a book can also be very beneficial to a student’s mental health, as it will help decrease stress for the time being.
“And also just having that time to escape is even important, like instead of just looking at a screen all the time or just to have that quiet time. That’s what is hard in high school. I could be with friends, I could be outside, but sometimes even if you do it just 10 or 15 minutes a day, it could just be relaxing and an escape from some of the pressures that people have at this age too,” said Libbey. 
