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PasadenaCityCollege

ReadingforChange

ElizabethMoreno
English1A
ProfessorOgden
27April2016

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Abstract
Inthisresearchpapertheauthorexaminesthecommunityofstudentswhodon'treadforpleasureand
thenegativeeffectsithasonthestudentsandwhytheseeffectsimpacttheoverallcommunity.She
explainsthewaythattherapidriseintechnology,lackofcommunitysupportandthediscouragementof
readingeachcausethestudentstomissoutontheacademicandsocialbenefitsofreading.Reading
encouragesstudentstoconnecttootherculturesandcommunitiesmakingthemmoresociallyaccepting
ofothers.Inregardstotheacademicaspecttheauthorusespreviousstudiestoshowthatstudentswho
readmoreoftenexcellbetteracademicallythanthosewhodonot.Theauthorthenpresentsheridea
thatstudentsneedtobeencouragedfromayoungagetoreadbyinfluentialpeopleliketheirparents.
Childrenoftenpickuphabitsfromtheirparentssoitisimportantforthemtobeactiveinexposethemto
readingonaregularbasis.

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ElizabethMoreno

ProfessorOgden

English1A

5April2016

Outlineforresearchpaper

Thesis:Thepercentageofyoungadultswhoreadforpleasurecontinuestodecrease.Readingprovides
multiplesocialandacademicbenefitsbuttechnologicaldistractionssuchaslackofcommunitysupport
anddiscouragementcontributetothedecreaseinreadingrates.Thisissueneedstobeaddressed
becauseyoungadultswithcontinuetomissoutofthebenefitsofreading
I.

Introduction
A. PreviewofMainPoints
1. Myexperiencewhenitcomestoreading
2. Whatreadingdoesforpeople
3. Whataresomecauses
4. Thecommunityefforts
5. Whyisthisimportanttome
B. Thenegativestigmaofreading
1. It'sconsideredasboring
2. Theexcusesmadefornotreading
C. Readingconnectstothecommunity

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1. Gotmeintovolunteerwork
2. Marypipher'srescuers.
a) Thepeoplewhoencourageanopenmind
D. Technology
1. Thewaytechnologyissofacepaced
a) Youonlygettoseethesurface
b) Svenquote
2. Technologydisconnectsus
a) Wedon'tseethefullstoryofothercultures
b) Birkhertsquote
3. Weuseitasentertainment
a) Thetrendofapps
(1) Games/Socialmedia
4. Byunderstandingotherswereflectonourselvestoo
a) Welearnthatweshareexperienceswithothers
b) Relatingculturewise.
E. Culture
1. Thedestructionofstigmas
a) Identifyingwithothercultures
2. Storieshaveawayofbringingpeopletogether
a) Relatinginexperience
3. Mycommunitiesculture

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a) Cautiousofothercultures
(1) Duetolackofknowledgeofothercultures
b) Readinggavemethechancetorelate
(1) Pipherquote
c) Spreadofdiversity
(1) Pipher
4. DiscourseCommunity
a) Youngadultsbecausetheyaredeveloping
b) Goalforacademicandsocialsuccess
c) Discourseexamples
(1) Pipher/Swales
II.

TheCauseandEffect
A. Riseintechnology
1. Theeraofallthenewdevices(phones)
2. Thewaystudentsusetheirphones
a) Interview
3. Percentageofpeoplewholiketoreadisdecreasing
B. Communityencouragement
1. Encouragementoutsideoftheclassroom
a) Parents/friends
2. Parentsarethebiggestinfluence
a) Childrenobserveparentsbehavior

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(1) Powerofinfluencequote
b) Theamountofparentswhoreadisdecreasing
(1) Parentscaninfluencekidstoread
C. Discouragementfromreading
1. Studentsareforcedtoreadinhighschool
a) Readingbecomesanegativeexperience
2. Personalexample
a) Wewereforcedtoreadsoweusedsparknotes

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ElizabethMoreno
ProfessorOgden
English1A
5April2016
ReadingforChange
Readinghasalwaysbeenenjoyableforme.IthasenrichedmylifewhetherIamreadingJane
EyreorHarryPotter.Oneofthemostimportantthingsreadingdoesismakeconnections.Readinghas
beenproventoprovideavastamountofacademicandsocialbenefits.FromreadingIwasableto
relatetopeopleIhavenevermet,IwasabletobesympathetictowardssomethingIwouldnevereven
thinkabout.Ithasopenedmyeyesandmyhearttonewideasandpossibilities.Theproblemweare
facinginthisdayandageisthatnotenoughchildrenandyoungadultsarereading.Readingisnot
associatedwithjoybutit'sassociatedwithboredomorahomeworkrequirement.Thereneedstobea
biggercommunityefforttomotivatetheseyoungpeopletoapplyreadingtotheirdailylives.Therehave
alreadybeeneffortsfromschoolstoencouragereadingsuchasbookfairsorrewardingreaderswith
medalsorperksbutwhatreallymakesadifferenceisthewaythatcommunitymembersincluding
familiesinfluencethechoicesandpreferencesoftheyoungercommunity.
AsachildIdidn'tenjoyreading,Ithoughtitwasboringandittookuptimefromplayingoutside
orwatchingtelevision.Thisnegativestigmahascausedmanystudentstostrayawayfromreadingwhich
isconstantlyseenasboring.Moststudentsencounterreadingwhentheygetenglishassignmentssuch
asbookreportsandprojectsandmoststudentsdon'tfindtimeconsuminghomeworkassignments
enjoyable.Itisseenmoreasachorethananopportunitytodeepentheirunderstandingofacertain
topic.Anothercommonexcusefornotreadingisthatstudentssimplydon'thaveenoughtimetosit

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downandreadeventhoughtechnologicaladvancementshaveprovidedeasieraccesstoreading
materialsuchasebooksandaudiobooksthatcaneasilycanbeusedwhilepeoplecommuteorduring
anyotherleisureactivity.
Readingmadememoresympathetictowardsothers.Iunderstoodthatsomepeopledon'thave
theadvantagesofasupportsystemorsomeonetolookupto.In10thgradeIstartedvolunteeringata
daycareinBoyleHeights.Ialwayshadaspecialinterestinworkingwithkids,tobeablegivethemthe
advantageofgettingextrahelpwassomethingIreallywantedtodo.IfIhadn'treadIwouldn'thave
beenmoremotivatedtoconnectwithmycommunityandhelpothers.ThroughreadingIfeltthatin
somewayIwasrescued.MaryPipher'sdescribestheserescuersas,peoplewhohelpotherpeople
tothinkclearly,andtobehonestandopenminded(7).IfeelasifwitheverybookIgainanew
perspectivethathelpsmeseeothersandtheworldaroundmeinadifferentway.
Incontinuation,weliveinanerainwhichtechnologyandmediaisalwayschangingandalways
hassomethingnewtoshare.Thisfastpaceddigitalsocietyonlygetstoseethesurfaceofthingssince
peoplearealwaysmovingontothenexttrend,theynevertaketimetoseethefullstory.Awardwinning
essayistSvenBirkertshasstatedinhisarticle,Thereadingimaginationfurtheropensontohistory,the
understandingthateverycultureisdeeplylayeredanddoesnotbecomerelevantonlywiththelatest
app(26).Birkertsemphasiseshowreadingprovidesuswithadeeperunderstandingofdifferent
culturesandsocieties.Everythingweknowaboutotherpeopleshouldnotsimplycomefromandapp.
Weneedtoreallyknowthesesocietiesinordertomakeaconnection.Weconstantlyinstalland
uninstallpopularappsthatweuseasentertainmenttopassthetimeandweforgettheancientideaof
passingtimebyreading.Studentsputmoreimportanceongettingthelatestsocialmediaand
entertainmentappthanusingtheirextratimetoreadeventhesimplestofarticlesornewsreports.He

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alsostates,Understandingthelivesofothersasembeddedintimeandplace,howeverremoteor
recent,reinforcesthatawarenessofourownsituation.Wearen'tprivilegedbeingssuspendedinthe
bubbleofthenow,andourexperienceisnotunique(28).Healsoincludestheideathatbytakingthe
timetounderstandthelivesandotherswewillbeabletoreflectonourownexperiencesandpossibly
gainsomeinsightaboutourselves.Butsincepopcultureisconstantlychangingstudentsdon'thavethe
timetoreflectonthemselvesandmuchlessothercultures.
SimilarlytoBirkerts,MaryPipheralsosharessimilarideasonhowwhenweread,
stereotypesandstigmasaredestroyedthroughrealizationthatwecancompareandidentifyourselves
withpeoplef romotherculturesandbackgrounds.Inherbook,WritingtoChangetheWorld,
Pipherstates,...storiesthatconnectreaderstoallthepeopleonearth,toshowthesepeopleasthe
complicatedhumanbeingstheyreallyare,withhistories,families,emotions,andlegitimateneeds.We
canreplaceonedimensionalstereotypeswithmultidimensionalindividualswithwhomourreaderscan
identify.IncreatingaworldofIthourelationships...(7).InthisstatementPipheracknowledgestheway
thatstorieshaveaspecialwayofbringingdifferenttypesofpeopletogetherandprovidingthemwith
commongroundsotheycanseeeachotherasequalsoratleastsimilar.Studentsmissoutonthe
opportunitytoconnectandrelatetotheseothercultures.ForexampleIliveinapredominantlyhispanic
community.Itisrareformetoseeapersonofanotherrace.WheneverIsawsomeonefromanother
racecomeintomycommunityIoftenbecamesuspiciousandcautiousbecauseIknewnothingoftheir
raceandIneverrealizedthatthatpersoncanbesimplyanotherhumanbeingjustlikeme.Othercultures
wereforeigntomeuntilIstartedreadingaboutthem.ThroughreadingIdiscoveredthatpeoplearen't
definedbytheirskincolor.Peoplearemultidimensionalwithdifferentbackgroundsandexperiences.

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ThecommunitythatIamreachingouttoisyoungadults.Theyareatapointintheirlifewhere
theyaredevelopinganddecidingthetypeofpeopletheywanttobe.Becausethisgroupsharesa
commongoaltheyaredefinedasadiscoursecommunity.Inorderforstudentstohaveagreaterchance
ofsocialandacademicsuccesstheyneedto,asJohnSwalesputsit,linkupinordertopursue
objectives...(471).Weneedtotakeadvantageandexposethiscommunitytopricelessbenefitsof
readingandhowitcouldchangetheirlives.Swalesstates,discoursecommunitytestifiestothe
increasinglycommondiscourseoperateswithinconventionsdefinedbycommunities(468).Inother
wordsadiscoursecommunityisagroupthatsharestheirbasicvaluesandtriestocommunicatethemto
others.JustlikeMaryPipherandJohnSwalessharethecommongoalofsharingtheirknowledgeof
readingandpersonalconnection.Theysharethiscommongoalandshareitwithasmanypeopleasthey
canthroughtheirwriting.
Thisissueregardinglackofreadingisveryrealandcontinuestoaffectyoungadultsandvarious
communities.Therearemanycontributingfactorsthathelpexplainwhyreadingforenjoymenthas
decreased.Firstofallit'snothardtoseethattechnologyuseisrisingatanastoundingrate,devicessuch
ascellphonesandgameshasbecomeaconstantdistractionthatmanypeopleespeciallyyoungadults
constantlyindulgein.Peoplearenowmoreattractedtotheirtwitterfeedsandcatgamesthanreading.
Formanypeoplereadingforpleasureneverevencrossestheirminds.Lackofencouragementisalsoa
maincontributingfactor.Eventhoughschoolprogramshavebeenputinplacetoencouragereading
whatreallymakesadifferenceistheinfluencecommunitysuchasfamilyandfriendshasonastudent.
Unfortunatelyinsomesituationsstudentscanevenfeeldiscouragedfromreadingbecausetheymightnot
understandthereadingorhaveotherbadexperiencessuchaslackofunderstandingorenjoyment.

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It'snothardtoseetherapidriseintechnology.Mostpeoplerelyontechnologyjusttogetthem
throughthedaywhetherit'stocommunicatewithothersorevenpaybills.Althoughtechnologyhasits
advantagesitalsohasanegativeeffectwhenitcomestoreading.Technologysuchascellphoneshas
becomeaconstantdistractionthatdrivesstudentsawayfromactivitiesthatrequireeffortandattention
suchasreading.Duringinterviews,studentshaveadmittedthatinsteadofreadingforpleasurethey
prefertousecellphonesforsocialmediaorNetflix,Idon'treallyreadforpleasure...IwatchNetflix
showsandHulashows,mostlyTV.That'sit.(Ludden).Becauseofthisdistractionstudentsaremissing
outonthemultiplebenefitsofreading.Bysimplywatchingshowsstudentsareeasilyentertained,they
don'thavetoputinworktowhattheyaredoing.That'spartofwhatmakesshowwatchingentertaining.
Thisissuedoesn'tjustaffectahandfulofstudents,accordingtoaUSstudy,ThenumberofAmerican
childrenwhosaytheyloveorlikereadingbookshasdroppedabout10%inthelastfouryears(
Flood).It'snosurprizethatastheuseoftechnologyrisestheamountofstudentsreadingisdecreasing.
Aschildrenbegintodeveloptheylearnbywatchingthepeoplearoundthem.Mostofthetime
childrenobservetheirparentssincetheyareconstantlywiththemandtheyareviewedastheir
protectorsandcaretakers.AccordingtoPsychologyToday,Thechildwantstorelateonparental
terms,enjoyparentalcompanionship,andimitatestheparentswhereverpossible.(Pickhardt)Thisis
importantbecausethatmeansthatchildrenpickupthehabitsoftheirparents.Parentalfigureshaveabig
influenceonwhattheirchildisexposedto.Theyobservetheirparentsbehaviorsandreactionsandoften
pickupontheactivitiestheparentsparticipatein.Unfortunatelyreadingisnotsomethingthatamajority
ofadultsparticipatein.Infact.ThepercentageofAmericanswhodon'treadhastripledsince1980
(Weissman).Parentsneedtotakeadvantagethattheyareseenasrolemodelsfortheirchildrenand
introducethemtobetterhabitssuchasreadingforpleasure.

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Furthermore,inmanyoccasionsstudentscanfeeldiscouragedfromreadingevenifatsome
pointtheywereinterested.Sometimesstudentsareforcedtoreadcertainbooksforassignmentswhich
reinforcesanegativeexperienceforreadingdiscouragingthemfromreadingagain.Forexample,inmy
9thgradeEnglishHonorsclasstheclasswasassignedtoreadANighttoRememberbyWalterLord.
Thedescriptionofthecharacterswassolongandextensivethattheclassdreadedreadingthebook.
Wheneverwehadwritingassignmentsbasedonthebookwewouldusewebsiteslikesparknotesto
graspthemainideas.Welearnedhowmuchsimpleritwastojustgooglethethemethantoactuallytake
timetoreadthebook.Thereasonstudentscontinuetoreadisbecausetheyfinditenjoyableandthey
wanttocontinuetohavethatexperiencebutsincetheclasswasforcedtotakepartinthatnegative
experiencetheywillrememberreadingasthebadexperience.
Itshighschool.Senioryear.Theonlythingkeepingmeawakeistheairconditionerthatgently
blowsovermychilledskin.Itssilentreadingtime,atimepeopleloathbuttakeadvantageof.AsIlook
aroundeveryonehasthesamesmallbluenovel.Youcanheartheslowtickingofthewallclockmantled
overthewhiteboard.Thehumoftheairconditioningcontinuestolullmetosleep.Ifyouweretolook
atmeyouwouldseemelookingdownwithinterestasIholdmybookupright.Although,ifyouwereto
standbehindmeyouwouldseemecheckingmysnapchat,twitter,andinstagram,ifimdonewiththat
andthere'sstillextratime,IllplaygameslikeTempleRunorNekoAtsume.Ididn'tunderstandthe
benefitofreading.Ididn'tunderstandthatbehindmyphonewasawholeotherworldwithcharacters
thatIcanconnecttoandreflectonTheirarestoriesthatwillchallengemywayofthinking.YetallIsee
ismyfakefarmwithfakecropsmakingfakemoney.Withoutrealizingittechnologywastakingovermy
life.IthasitsperkslikegivingmedirectionsandmakingthingseasilyaccessiblebutIwouldask,Why
talkwhenyoucantext?Whylearnifyoucangoogle?Whyreadwhenyouhavesparknotes?

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Youcantrunawayfromit.Itsalwaysthere.Whereveryougo,whereveryouareitcreepsuponyou.
Thethingisyouloveitandyouneedit.Ithasevolvedintodifferentformstablets,ipods,smart
watches.Technologyisevolvingrapidlyandthepeoplewhouseitmostlyisyoungadults.Accordingto
thePewResearchCenter,Youngadults(ages18to29)arethemostlikelytousesocialmediafully
90%do(Perrin)Youwillalwaysfindateenagergluedtotheirphone.Itsmorecommontoentertain
yourselfwithTap.Tap.Swipe.Thantoreadandobtainingthemeansto,slip,involuntarily,often
helplessly,intoanothersskin,anothersvoice,anotherssoul.asdescribedbyJoyceCarolOates.
(Flavorwire)
LikeforthemajorityofotherteenagersmyphonewasmylifeIhaditwithmeallthetimeeither
inmyhandormypocket.NoOnecouldkeepusapart.Ididn'tseeitasaproblem,everyonearound
mehadthesamecellphoneobsessionincludingsomeadults,itwasasocialnorm.It'sbafflingtorealize
howmuchofaninfluencesocietyhasonyou,isn'tit?JustlikeIpickuphabitsfrommyparentsIpick
upmysocialbehaviorfrommypeers.WhateverwastrendingwaswhatIwassociallyinterestedin.
Mysisterismyrolemodel,eventhoughIdon'tgettospendasmuchtimewithherasi'dlike.
SinceIhadaweekoffofschoolItooktheopportunitytostayoverherhouseforacoupleofnights.
ThedayIsteppedintoherhomeIwaswelcomedbyaplethoraofbooks.Everywoodenbookshelf
waspracticallystuffedwithbooksineverynookandcrannythatavailable.Myexperiencewithbooks
consistedofforcedreadingandthedreadofpreparingforaquizoreventhenextbookthatwasgoing
tobestuffeddownmythroatbytheteacher.FortheweekofvacationIwentthrougheverybookshelf
Icuriouslytriedtoreadsomeofthebooks.ForsomeIcouldn'tgetpassedthefirstparagraph,butafter
sometrialanderrorIfoundabookthatIrelishedin.Itwasfullofadventure,romance,drama
everythingIenjoyedvividlydisplayedinmyownmind.Thephonewasnowheretobeseen.WhenI

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camebacktomyowncommunityIrealizedhowlittlereadingforpleasureisvalued.Therewasno
socialpraiseforreaders.Itwasn'tpopularorencouraged
WithinacoupleofmonthsIwentfrombeingforcedtoreadbookstobuyingandreadingas
manyasIcould.ThrougheachbookIlearnedalessonorventuredwithanewperspective.My
vocabularyimproved,andmostimportantlyIwasabletobemoreopenminded.Iwasmotivatedand
inspiredbythepeopleIreadaboutsuchasthestudentsinFreedomWritersDiarieswhoovercame
povertyandbullyingandcontinuedtheireducation.Thecommunityneedstoworktogethertomotivate
andencourageyoungstudentstotakepartinreadinganduseitasameanstoevokechangein
themselvesandtheircommunity.
Studentaremissingoutonthesocialandacademicadvantagesofreadingthathelpsencourage
studentstoconnecttootherculturesandsituations.Asstudentsconnecttootherculturestheybecome
moreacceptingofpeoplethattheydon'tknowandfeelmorecomfortableindiversecommunitiessince
theunderstandingofothersdestroysstereotypesandbias.Aswellasobtainingthissocialadvantage
studentscanalsodobetteracademicallywhentheyreadforpleasure.Asstudentscontinuetoreadthey
developreadinghabitsandcontinuetoimprovethem.Thesereadinghabitsareimportantbecausetend
toalterthestudentswayofthinking.Therearemultipleapproachesthatthecommunitycanmakein
ordertoencouragestudentstoread.
Whenstudentsreadthemainfocusgoestothecharacter.Asthestudentsreadtheylearnabout
theirpersonalities,environmentsandculture.Sinceliteraturegoesdeepintothepersonalityofthe
charactersthereaderdevelopsopinionsandstartstodevelopemotionstowardsthem.AsJohn
Phythyonremindsusinhisarticle,Whatreallymattersarecomplexcharacters.Peoplewhoaremore
thancutoutstereotypeswillhonethemindandallowyouoperatemoreeffectivelyintherealworld.

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(Phythyon).Withthesecharactersyoudon'tjustseetheoutsideofthemyougettoconnectwithwho
theyreallyare.Theyarenotidentifiedbythecoloroftheirskinortheirracesoweseethemaspeople
whosharesimilaremotionsandlifestrugglesandtherealizationthateveryoneisauniquecomplex
characteriswhatdestroysstereotypesandracism.Asstudentscontinuetoreadandlearnaboutmore
characterstheystarttolearntorecognizecertainemotionsandiftheylearntorecognizethoseof
characterstheystarttoidentifythemwithnormalpeopleandthathelpsimprovesocialskillsAccording
tothestudy,readingfictionactivatesneuronalpathwaysinthebrainthathelpthepersonbetter
understandrealhumanemotions.ReadaboutYossariansfearofflyingbombingmissions,andyoumay
betterunderstandfearinyourfriends.(Python).Whenyouareabletounderstandcertainemotionsyou
areabletosympathisewith.
Everyonecomesfromdifferentculturesandenvironmentsandeachpersonisattheirownlevel
academically.Becauseeachpersonlearnsattheirownleveltheycreatetheirownreadinghabits
Therefore,theyhavedevelopedtheirownwayofreading.Studentsreadinghabitsareimportant
becausetheyhelpshapethestudentspersonalityandwayoflearning.Studentswhodevelopgood
readinghabitsarearemoreliteratethanthosewhohavebadhabits.Thereadinghabitsareinvolvedin
thewaythestudentthinkscriticallyandthewaytheyapproachcertainproblems.Forexample,a
studentwithgoodreadinghabitsmightapproachachallengingwordorsituationbyworkingthroughit
whileastudentwithbadreadinghabitswouldinsteadchoosetogoaroundorignoretheproblem.
ThroughmultiplestudiesMichaelOwusulearnedthat,Theproblemmoststudentshavethatcontributes
totheirpoorperformanceintestsandexaminationsislackofproperreadinghabits.(Owusu).Students
withbadreadinghabitshaveahardertimeworkingthroughproblemsincludingproblemsfrommultiple
subjectslikemathandhistory.Readinghabitscanbeappliedtoallsubjects.Althoughpeoplemayargue

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thatgoodreadinghabitsaren'tessentialtoanoverallsuccessfullifeMichaelOwususstudyclearlyshows
thewaythatstudentswhoreadoftenanddevelopgoodreadinghabitsreachmoreacademicsuccess
thanthosewhodon't.
Thecommunitycanmakebettereffortstoensurethattheirstudentsgetthesesocialand
academicbenefitsthatnotonlybenefitthembutworktoimprovethecommunityandcreatewell
educatedandsocialcommunitymembers.Eventhoughschoolsoftensponsorbookfairsandreading
competitionsitisnotenoughtomotivatestudentstoread.Studentsneedtobeencouragedandexposed
toreadingfromayoungage.Parentshaveabiginfluenceonthewaytheirchildrenbehaveandwhat
theyareexposedtosotheyneedtomaketheefforttointroducereadingdirectlyintheirhome.Asmore
peoplestarttotakepartthenumberofstudentsreadingwillgoupanditwillthenbeinfluencedby
peers.
Whenstudentsareabletounderstandthatpeoplearecomplexcharactersandtheyarealso
abletoidentifycertainemotionstheywillbeabletobehavebettersociallymakingthemmorediverse
andopentonewideasandcultures.Thisbenefitisasimportantasthereadinghabitsthatstudents
developastheyread.Goodreadinghabitscanbeappliedandusedinmultiplesubjectsthatwillhelp
studentsoverallacademically.Studentswhoareeducatedandcanworkwellsociallywillbecomeactive
membersofsocietyandthesememberswillbeopenmindedandusestheireducationtocreatechange
intheircommunity.Itisuptothecommunitymembersespeciallyparentstomotivatestudentstostart
readingatayoungagesinceparentsareveryinfluentialofthehabitsthattheirstudentspickup.

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WorksCited
Battye,Claire."Readingforpleasureputschildrenaheadintheclassroom,studyfinds.Centrefor
LongitudinalStudies.UCLInstituteofEducation.,11Sept.2013.Web.15Mar.2016
Birkerts,Sven."WhyRead?."SchoolLibraryJournal:AcademicSearchPremier.(2012):2628.
Web.1Mar.2016.
Flood,Alison."SharpDeclineinChildrenReadingforPleasure,SurveyFinds."TheGuardian.
GuardianNewsandMedia,09Jan.2015.Web.03Mar.2016.
Ludden,Jennifer."WhyAren'tTeensReadingLikeTheyUsedTo?"NPR.NPR,12May2014.
Web.03Mar.2016.
OwusuAcheaw,Michael."ReadingHabitsAmongStudentsandItsEffectonAcademicPerformance:
AStudyofStudentsofKoforiduaPolytechnic."LibraryPhilosophyandPractice131(2014):
110.DigitalCommons.Web.18Apr.2016.
<http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2908&context=libphilprac>.
Perrin,Andrew."SocialMediaUsage:20052015."PewResearchCenter.N.p.,8Oct.2015.Web.
22Mar.2016.
Phythyon,John."HowReadingImprovesSocialSkills."N.p.,13Jan.2012.Web.18Apr.2016.
Pipher,Mary.WritingtoChangetheWorld.NewYork:Riverheadbooks,2006.Print.
Pickhardt,CarlE."AdolescenceandtheInfluenceofParents."PsychologyToday.N.p.,18Oct.
2011.Web.5Apr.2016.
Swales,John.TheConceptofDiscourseCommunity.Feb.2016.PDFFile.
Tung,Chi,andShuChang."DevelopingCriticalThinkingthroughLiteratureReading."FengChia
JournalofHumanitiesandSocialSciences(2009):287318.Web.4Mar.2016.

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"40InspiringQuotesAboutReadingfromWriters."Flavorwire.N.p.,03Dec.2011.Web.17Mar.
2016.

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ElizabethMoreno
ProfessorOgden
English1ASTACC
21April2016
AnnotatedBibliography
Anzalda,Gloria.HowtoTameaWildTongue.ReadingsforRevolutionaryWriting.
Boston:Bedford/St.Martins,2013.2232.Print.

InGloriaAnzaldua'sessayHowtoTameaWildTongueshediscussesherchildhoodandthepressure
thatshefelttoidentifyherselfwitheitherherMexicanorAmericanculture.Aftermuchselfreflectionshe
chosetoidentifywithboth.Whenshewritesshewritesinbothlanguageswithouttranslationsandthatis
herwayofexpressingherauthenticvoice.AnzalduaissimilartoSantiagoBacabecausehealsouseshis
authenticvoiceinhispoetry.Writersliketheseareperfectexamplesofwriterswhoexpresstheirculture
andbackgroundthroughtheirwriting.

Baca,JimmySantiagoPoemHunter."ThereAreBlack."Poemhunter.com.3Jan.2003.
Web.06Apr.2016.

ThroughpoemhuntermygroupandIfoundapoemcalledThereAreBlackwhichwaswrittenby
SantiagoBacafromhistimeinprison.Inthepoemhetalksabouthoweveninprisontherewasstill
segregationandhowtheinmatesweredehumanizedbecausehedescribesthemasantpilesandhow
theyjustmindlesslymarchhedescribeshisfellowinmatesandmindlesswithoutrealpurpose.Hispoetry
wasanescapeforhimandwasawayforhimtoreconnecttowhohewasandexpresseverythinghe
feltwhileinprison.Itgavehimasenseofpurpose.Thisconnectstoauthenticvoicebecausethereason
hispoetrywassopowerfulandmeaningfulisbecausehesharedhispersonalityandexperiences.

Baca,JimmySantiagoPoemHunter."AsLifeWasFivePoem."Poemhunter.com.3Jan.
2003.Web.06Apr.2016.

ThepoemAsLifeWasFivewaswrittenbySantiagoBacaandhewritesaboutatimewhenhewas
youngerandhewatchedhisgrandfathergetdiscriminatedagainst.Throughhiswritingheexpressedthe
angerandconfusionhefeltandhementionshowitpersonallyaffectshisfamily.Bysharingthispersonal
experiencehisreadersareabletosympathisewithhissituationandtheyarealsoabletogetaglimpseof
anexampleofracismandseehowmuchofanegativeaffectishas.

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Battye,Claire."UCLInstituteofEducation,UniversityCollegeLondon."Readingfor

PleasurePutsChildrenAheadintheClassroom,StudyFinds.N.p.,11Sept.2013.
Web.04Mar.2016

TheauthorofthisarticlewroteaboutacohortstudybyInstituteofEducationthatcomparesstudents
whoreadforpleasureandstudentswhodont.Thestudywasmainlybasedonthetestscoresofthe
students.Aftermultipletesttheresearchersconcludedthatthechildrenwhoreadmoreoftendidatmost
3timesbetterthanthestudentswhorarelyread.Theysawthatthechildrenwhoreadhadawider
vocabularyandtheyevenshowedbetterscoresinmath.Itwaseasierforthosestudentstoanalyzeand
understandthemathquestions.ThisstudyhighlightstheacademicbenefitsthatIwroteaboutinmy
researchpaper.

Birkerts,Sven."WhyRead?."SchoolLibraryJournal(2012):2628.AcademicSearch
Premier.Web.1Mar.2016.

SvenBirkertsscholarlyarticlediscussestheimportanceofreadinghabitsinchildren.Heexplainshow
goodreadinghabitsenhancesimaginationandhavinggoodimaginationislinkedtoimproveacademic
successandpersonaldevelopment.Whenchildrenreadtheystarttocreatecertainreadinghabitsthat
theyapplytothewaythatlearninothersubjects.Studentswhohavealreadyworkedtodevelopthese
goodhabitshaveaneasiertimewhenitcomestoschoolbecausetheyareabletounderstandtocontext
betterandbebetterproblemsolvers.Birkertsarticlesupportstheideathatchildrenshouldbemore
encouragedtoreadfromayoungagebecausetheywillshowbetteracademicsuccess.

Davis,Sampson,GeorgeJenkins,andRameckHunt.ThePact:ThreeYoung
BlackMenMakeaPromiseandFulfillaDream.NewYork,NY,U.S.A.:
Riverhead,2002.Print.

ThenovelThePactisanautobiographybasedonthelivesofthreeyoungmenwhocamefroma
brokenunderprivilegedcommunityandovercametheviolenceanddruglifethatsurroundedthem.The
threefriendssupportedeachother'seducationalgoalsandworkedhardtostayawayfromtheganglife
thatwasconstantlytryingtopullthemin.Theymadeapacttobecomedoctorstogetherandtosupport
eachotherthroughthedifficultprocess.Evenaftertheylefttheirhomebehindtoattendtheuniversity
theystillfacedmanyobstaclessuchasracismandtheoveralldifficultyofgoingtomedicalschool.Each
oftheyoungmenwereabletoabletogettheirdegreesintheend.Thisinspirationalstoryisimportant
becauseitbeusedtomotivateotherstudentswhocomefromunderprivilegedcommunitiesandthatare
facingsimilarchallenges.TheirstoryconnectstowriterslikeSantiagoBacabecausetheybothshare
theirpersonalexperiencesandchallengeandshowthatit'spossibletoobtainyourgoalsnomatter
whereyoucomefrom

Flood,Alison."SharpDeclineinChildrenReadingforPleasure,SurveyFinds."The

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Guardian.GuardianNewsandMedia,09Jan.2015.Web.03Mar.2016.

AlisonFloodconductedmultiplesurveysinordertoseeiftheamountofchildrenwhoreadforpleasure
haschanged.Throughherresearchsheconcludedthatinrecentyearstheamountofchildrenwhoread
hasgraduallydecreased.Aftereightyearsoldreadingforenjoymenthasasharpdecline.Althoughin
herstudyshecompareschildrenwhowerereadtobytheirparentsandthestudentswhoreadontheir
ownandthestudyshowedthatchildrenwhowerereadtohadlargerchancesofcontinuingtoreadthan
studentswhoreadontheirown.Thestudysupportstheideathatifparentsexposetheirchildrento
readingatayoungagetheyaremostlikelytocontinueontheirown.

Frank,Anne.AnneFrank:TheDiaryofaYoungGirl.NewYork:Bantam,1993.Print.

AnneFrank'sdiaryisaveryfamousbookthatrepresentsthewaythatthroughwritingyoucaninspire
hopeforothersanduseyourvoicetofindthelightinthedarkness.AnneFrankwroteherdiaryduring
worldwarthreeandshesharedeverythingshewitnessedsuchastheviolencethattookplaceandallthe
segregationofJewishpeople.Althoughshelivedduringatimeofhateandgenocideshestillfoundthe
lightinthelittlemoments.SheusesauthenticvoicejustlikeSantiagoBacaandAnzaldua.

hooks,bell.WhereWeStand:ClassMatters.NewYork:Routledge,2000.Print.

Inhernovelbellhooksdiscussesclass.Sheexplainshowit'sasubjectthatmostpeopledon'tbotherto
discusseventhoughitmatters.Classisimportantbecauseshesaysitiswhatcauseslackofdiversity.
Mostpeoplebelievethatitisbecauseissueswithrace.Shealsohighlightsthatpeoplenevereventake
thetimetothinkaboutwhatclasstheywouldidentifythemselveswithbecausepeoplefromlower
classesdon'twanttoseethemselvesthatway.Inherwritingyoucanseethewaythatsheusesher
authenticvoice.Shewritesinnonacademiclanguageasifshewastalkingtoafriendalthoughshestill
soundsconvincingandsureofhertopic.

King,Dr.MartinL.IHaveaDream.ReadingsforRevolutionaryWriting.Boston:
Bedford/St.Martins,2013.189192.Print.

TheIhaveadreamspeechisafamousspeechgivenbyDr.MartinLutherKingduringthecivilrights
movementandcalledforequaltreatmentforAfricanAmerican.Duringthetimeofthisspeechtherewas
violentracismtowardsAfricanAmericanstothepointwheretheyweresegregated.Kingusedhisvoice
torallypeopletogetherandmotivatethemtostandforequalityandinspirethemtofightfortheirrights.
KingissimilartoGloriaAnzalduabecausesheusedhervoiceinherwritingtoshowthatshewasproud
ofherMexicanAmericanroots.KingusedhisvoicetoshowprideforhisAfricanAmericanheritage
anddidn'tletsocietysilenceorcensorhim.

Ludden,Jennifer."WhyAren'tTeensReadingLikeTheyUsedTo?"NPR.NPR,12May
2014.Web.03Mar.2016.

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ThissourceisanNPRinterviewthatdiscussessomeofthereasonswhyteenagersarestartingtoread
lessandless.DuringthisNPRinterviewvariousstudentswereaskedinwhatwaystheyspendtheirfree
timeandmanyansweredbysayingtheyspenttheirfreetimeontheirphonesusingpopularappslike
HuluandNetflix.Whentheydiscussedwhyreadingwasacommonthingtodointheirfreetimemost
studentsrespondedsayingthatreadingisboringandtheydoitonlyifitsahomeworkassignmentand
theyfeelliketheyhaveto.Throughthisinterviewwecanidentifyhowreadinghasanegativestigma
attachedtoitsinceit'sseenassomethingtheywouldonlydoifitwasforced.

OwusuAcheaw,Michael."ReadingHabitsAmongStudentsandItsEffectonAcademic
Performance:AStudyofStudentsofKoforiduaPolytechnic."LibraryPhilosophyand
Practice131(2014):110.DigitalCommons.Web.18Apr.2016.

Theresearcherconductedastudytotestiftherewasalinkbetweenacademicsuccessandreading
habits.Thestudywasmadeofofmostlyquestionarsandthestudywasalsofocusedtowardscollege
students.Theystudyshowedthatthemajorityofstudentsknewthatreadingwasimportantandthatit
hadmanybenefitsbutlessthanhalfreadanovelinthepastsixmonths.Moststudentsconfirmedthat
theyonlyreadwhenitwasnecessarytopassanexamination.Thisarticleisusedinmyresearchpaper
tohelpexplainhowtheissueisnotraisingawarenessabouttheimportanceofreadingbecausestudents
alreadyknowthatanditdoesn'tinfluencethemtoreadmore.

Perrin,Andrew."SocialMediaUsage:20052015."PewResearchCenter.N.p.,8Oct.
2015.Web.22Mar.2016.

ThePewResearchcenterconductedastudybasedontheusageofsocialmedia.Theyfocusedonthe
agesofthepeoplewhousedsocialmedia.Itexplainshowyoungadultsaremostlikelytousesocial
mediabutitisstillwidelyusedbyallages.Socialmediahasaneffectonhowstudentslearnbecauseitis
adistractionandthisdataremindsreadersthatthisdistractionisonlybecomingmorepopular.This
informationprovidedonereasonthatstudentsstrayawayfromreading.Readingisnotapopularactivity
butsocialmediaissomethingaliveandthriving.

Pipher,Mary.WritingtoChangetheWorld.NewYork:Riverheadbooks,2006.Print.

MaryPipherwritesalotabouttheimportanceofauthenticvoiceandhowpeopleshouldincorporateit
ineverythingtheydobecauseit'swhatmakestheirworkconnecttoothers.Shereferencesmultiple
historicfiguressuchasAnneFrankandJamesBaldwintoshowhowevenasinglevoicecanhavethe
powertoinfluencethewaypeoplefeelandreacttocertainsubjects.Shedescribesthiswayofwriting
aschangewritingandsharessomeideasonhowtodiscoverauthenticvoice.MaryPipher'sidea
branchesoutandconnectstoalltheworkthatwehavedonethroughoutthesemester.

Pickhardt,CarlE."AdolescenceandtheInfluenceofParents."PsychologyToday.N.p.,18
Oct.2011.Web.5Apr.2016.

Parentsarethepeoplewhoarethemostinfluentialtotheirchildrenbecausetheirchildrenarealways
observantandpickingupontheirparentshabits.Childrenoftenwanttofeelconnectedtotheirparents

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that'swhytheyoftenmimicthemortrytobehavelikethem.Childrenalsovaluetheopinionsoftheir
parentsandalwaysfeeltheneedtomeettheirexpectationsthat'swhytheydothingsthatwillresultin
praisefromtheirparents.Thisinformationisimportantbecauseitcanbeappliedtoreading.Onewayto
getstudentstoreadwouldbetogettheparentsofstudentstoincorporatereadingintotheirlivesand
introducingitassomethingimportant.

Phythyon,John."HowReadingImprovesSocialSkills."N.p.,13Jan.2012.Web.18Apr.
2016.

Studentswhoreadforpleasureonaveragehavebettersocialskillsthanthosewhodon't.JohnPython
explainsthatstudentswhoreadalotlearnhowtoidentifyemotionsbecausetheylearnthemthroughthe
characterstheyreadabout.Byalsogettinginsighttohowitistoexperiencetheseemotionsmakesthe
readermoresympathetic.Acombinationofunderstandingandsympathyhelpscreatestudentswho
behavebettersocially.Thisinformationsupportsmyargumentthatreadingforpleasureincludesmore
benefitsthanjustacademic.Itcanimprovetheoverallcharacterofapersonandit'sthesetypeof
studentswhowillmakeadifferenceinsociety.

SnchezFlavian,Patricia."LanguageAndPoliticizedSpacesInU.S.LatinoPrisonPoetry:
19701990."BilingualReview27.2(2003):114124.AcademicSearchPremier.Web.6
Apr.2016.

LanguageisapowerfultoolusedbywritersandPatriciaSanchezexplainsthewaySantiagoBacauses
languageinthepoetrythathewroteinprison.Shetalksabouthowpoetrywasanemotionalescapefor
prisonersandhowitgavethemasenseoffreedomeventhoughtheywereincarcerated.SantiagoBaca
isaninfluentialfigurebecausehewasaprisonerwhousedhisvoiceandpoetrytocreateabetterlifefor
himselfandnowhereisafamouspoetandauthor.Heisanexampleonhowlanguagecanbelife
changing.Iuseherarticletoarguethebenefitsofwritingandlanguageandhowevenreadingstorieslike
hiscaninspirestudents.

Swales,John.TheConceptofDiscourseCommunity.Feb2016.PDFFile

LinguisticsprofessorJohnSwalesdefinesdiscoursecommunityandexplainsthewaythatitinvolvesthe
socialnatureoflanguage.Inthesimplesttermsadiscoursecommunityisagroupofpeopleor
communitiesthatworktogetherforapurposeortoachieveagoal.Thisgroupevenworkstogetherto
extendtheirknowledgeoftheirtopicoridea.Iusedhisarticleinorderexplainthatmydiscourse
communityisyoungstudents.Iidentifythemasadiscoursecommunitybecausetheyareacommunityof
studentsthatworktoachievethesamegoalwhichistobecomeproperlyeducatedandapplytheir
educationintheirdailylives

Tung,Chi,andShuChang."DevelopingCriticalThinkingthroughLiteratureReading."

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FengChiaJournalofHumanitiesandSocialSciences(2009):287318.Web.4Mar.
2016.
Inthisscholarlyarticletheresearchersconductstudiesinordertodetermineifthereisalinkbetween
developingcriticalthinkingskillsandreadingliterature.Theyhadstudentstakemanyquizzesand
practiceexercisessuchaslearninglogsandinclassdiscussions.Theresultsofthisstudyconcludedthat
thestudentswhoreadliteratureimprovedoverallcriticalthinkingskillsespeciallyinanalysis.Also,the
studyrevealedthattheinclassdiscussionsbasedontheliteraturetheyreadwasthemosteffective
exerciseindevelopingcriticalthinkingskills.Criticalthinkingisanessentialtoolforthesuccessof
studentsandtheresearchersprovethatliteraturereadingbasedexercisesexceedsthemajorityofother
exercises.

Weissman,Jordan."TheDeclineoftheAmericanBookLover."TheAtlantic.Atlantic
MediaCompany,21Jan.2014.Web.05Apr.2016.

ThearticlesharesstatisticianinformationonhowtheaverageamountofAmericanreadersasdeclined
dramaticallyovertheyears.ThewriterusesdatafromthePewResearchcenterthathasbeengathering
datafromthistopicsince1978.Heincludesthefactthattheamountofbooksapersonreadsdirectly
connectstotheirlevelofeducation.Evenpeoplewhohaveminimalcollegeeducationshowtoread
morethantheaverageperson.Iusedthisinformationinmyresearchpapertoarguethattheamountof
peoplereadingiscontinuingtodeclineandhasbeendecliningforseveralyears.Itreinforcesmyidea
thatsocietyneedstocometogetherasacommunitytomakeachange.

"BeingYoungandMakinganImpact."NatalieWarne:.TEDxTeen,Apr.2011.Web.
21Feb.2016.
https://www.ted.com/talks/natalie_warne_being_young_and_making_an_impact

InhertedtalkNatalieWarnetalksaboutthehowat18shedecidedtonottakethetraditionalpathof
goingtocollegeoutofhighschoolandinsteadbecominganactivistintheInvisibleChildrenmovement.
Shedescribeshowmuchshestruggledbutattheenditwasworthitbecauseshewasdoingsomething
thatsheloved.Shesharesherstoryinordertoremindyoungadultsthatifyouwanttoworktomakea
changeit'spossible.HerstoryconnectswithotherauthorslikeSantiagoBacaandthethreemenfrom
thepactbecausetheyallhadtostruggletoachievewhattheywantedandattheendtheywereableto
fulfilltheirdreams,expresstheirauthenticvoiceandatthesametimeinspireothers.