Teachers and parents have noticed that their kids and students can not read properly and proficiently. They are right too. According to Bright Futures, as of October 2023, a shocking 64% of fourth graders are not proficient in reading. Bright Futures were referring to the NAEP’s survey they conducted in 2018. In the most recent study which was in 2022, the NAEP tested another group of fourth graders and collected similar data.
There are a few theories as to why the average reading levels are decreasing. The first is a collective disinterest in books. It has always been a trope that children think reading is boring, but with the increased use of smart devices in the lives of younger children, the disinterest has deepened.
Short-form content has also been proven to destroy attention spans and weaken literacy rates. Some scientists have even started to use the term, ¨TikTok Brain¨ to describe children with low attention spans and low-functioning intelligence.
The last big theory on why child literacy rates are so low at the moment is the fact that the US is still coming out of a pandemic. It has been over a year since the COVID-19 pandemic was declared over, but the four years between impacted the education of millions of children. Studies have shown that young children are best at learning at ages two through seven years old; the US had about 23 million children between those ages in 2020 alone.
Knowing this, the question as to why child literacy levels are so low seems to have an answer: children’s learning was stopped during their most important time for brain development, and then they were offered an environment dominated by iPads and fed non-informative content instead.
Child development is a super important topic that needs to be discussed. Some ways to up child literacy rates are to get kids into books, limit screen time, and have children interact and experience new things. Activities like going to aquariums or libraries give children experiences that will help them learn and grow.
