Let’s get every child in the UK reading well – this is the message from a group of organisations and businesses.

Read On. Get On. is a national campaign to get all our children reading well by the age of 11. At the moment far too many children are leaving primary school without this key skill – including 40 per cent of all our poorest children.


Speech & Language

Speech and language therapists will also have a role to play in this mission. This is because children who show difficulties with acquiring language are more at risk of developing difficulties in learning to read. Therefore it is key that these children are identified and treated early to prevent longer term difficulties in literacy.

Phonological awareness is an important aspect of language development because not only can it predict reading ability but it is also crucial in learning vocabulary (Nicolay and Poncelet, 2013).Phonological awareness of the knowledge and understanding of the structure of the words in language, such as syllables.


The Aim of the Campaign

Anthony and Francis (2011) say there is a causal relationship between developing phonological awareness and learning to read as providing a child with phonological awareness training will improve their reading ability. Children who are insensitive to rhymes and to the beginning sounds of words often show difficulties with learning to read (Whitehead, 2005). Hesketh et al (2000) showed that phonological awareness therapy can have signficant benefits for children with phonological disorders.

The aim of the campaign is that by 2025 all children will start secondary school as confident readers. Everyone can do something – just ten minutes reading a day with a child makes a huge difference and helps them fall in love with reading. It will take everyone, parents, grandparents, business, volunteers, teachers, celebrities and politicians, to crack this problem once and for all.

Each year we leave thousands of young children, very many of them poor, behind in their reading. This means they’re less likely to experience the joy of reading, and they then struggle for the rest of their education and career.


Who is Getting Involved?

Read On. Get On. is a group of organisations and businesses coming together to ensure all our children have brighter futures by leaving primary school as confident readers. This website has been created and is hosted by Save the Children on behalf of the Read On. Get On. campaign.

One and a half million children will reach the age of 11 unable to ‘read well’ by 2025 unless urgent action is taken to tackle the reading crisis facing Britain’s pupils, according to new research.

The worrying situation has prompted leading charities, teachers, parents and businesses to form a coalition called Read on. Get on.

A report by the coalition shows that England is one of the most unequal countries when it comes to children’s reading levels, second only to Romania in the EU. The gap between the strongest and weakest readers is equivalent to seven years of schooling. The report calls for a concerted effort from all corners of society.


The Study

The most comprehensive study of pre-school and primary school-aged children in a generation found disadvantaged children are the worst affected, with four in ten not reading well by the age of 11 – almost double the rate of their better off peers. The report, which uses current data and that from the past decade, also found they are not reading enough outside school, or with their fathers.

Research commissioned for this report, including by Newcastle University, Centre Forum, National Foundation for Educational Research and the National Literacy Trust, also finds:

  • GDP in 2025 could be £32 billion higher if action had been taken to ensure all children were reading well by the age of 11

  • A wide ‘book gap’ in the UK has emerged, with almost a quarter of 11 year olds in the poorest families having fewer than ten books in their home

  • While books remain popular, the most commonly read material by children is now text messages with websites and e-books also growing in popularity

Dame Julia Cleverdon CBE, Chair of the Read On. Get On. coalition, said: “It is tragic and unfair that children from the poorest families and the most deprived communities are least likely to read well at the age of 11 in the UK – one of the wealthiest countries in the world. Four out of ten children on free school meals who struggle to read will also struggle to gain the educational opportunities and life chances that they need to flourish. This vital long term campaign with broad based energetic support aims to make a life-changing difference both for children in poverty and for our society.”

Read On. Get On aims to create a nation of strong readers by:

  • Supporting parents to read with young children for ten minutes a day

  • Urging the public to volunteer to help disadvantaged children improve their reading

  • Building a powerful coalition of the county’s most influential public, private and charitable organisations to pledge to support the mission

  • Urging all political parties to support the 2025 target and two interim 2020 goals

Justin Forsyth, Chief Executive of Save the Children which is part of the coalition, said: “Read On. Get On. is not just about teachers, charities and politicians – it’s about galvanising the nation so that parents, grandparents and volunteers play their part in teaching children to read. We want every child to be given a fair and equal chance to learn to read well, regardless of their background.”

Russell Hobby, General Secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT) which is part of the coalition, said: “This new campaign has the potential to make a real difference to the lives of Britain’s youngest readers. Recent results for Key Stage 2 are impressive and show that 79 per cent of 5-11 year olds are now reading well. This gives us a strong foundation but there’s also evidence that children from disadvantaged backgrounds are still struggling.

“School leaders are at the forefront of improving literacy standards and they’re passionate about helping children become better readers. Read On. Get On. will provide vital support. We can only tackle a challenge like this if everybody works together. This must be beyond politics, a commitment from professionals, parents and the public to achieve the best for our children.”


What you can do

  • Just reading for ten minutes a day can make a huge difference to children’s reading skills.

  • Sign up to get some top tips to get your children reading.

  • Tell politicians to act

  • Sign our petition asking all the party leaders to commit to ensuring that every child leaves primary school reading well by 2025.

  • Volunteer to read

  • Sign up to volunteer and help poorer families in your local community improve their reading, their confidence and prospects.

Why is reading well at 11 so important? Reading is the key to unlocking any child’s future potential. And for our poorest kids it’s one of the best routes out of poverty. Children who read well by 11 do better at school, get better exam results and do better in the workplace – they’re also best placed to give their own children the best start in life.

The report, Read On. Get On. – How Reading Can Help Children Escape Poverty, is based on new analysis of data by Newcastle University (using data from the Millennium Cohort Study), Centre Forum (using data from 2013), the National Literacy Trust (using data from 2005-2013) and the National Foundation for Educational Research (using data from 2011).


Further Information 

See more here 


References:

ANTHONY, J. L. and FRANCIS, D. J. (2011) Development of phonological awareness. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 14 (5), pp. 255 – 259.

HESKETH, A. et al. (2000) Phonological awareness therapy and articulatory training for children with phonological disorders: A comparative outcome study. International Journal of Language and Communication Disorders, 35, pp. 337 – 354.

NICOLAY, C. and PONCELET, M. (2013) Cognitive abilities underlying second language vocabulary acquisition in an early second language immersion education context: A longitudinal study. Journal of experimental Child Psychology, 115, pp. 655 – 671.

WHITEHEAD, M. R. (2005) Developing Language and Literacy with Young Children. 2nd Edition. London: Paul Chapman Publishing.

 

Written by Rachel Harrison, speech and language therapist, on behalf of Integrated Treatment Services.