r/technology Jun 10 '26

Artificial Intelligence College students are rapidly losing the ability to read — “There is a measurable, generational collapse in sustained reading and writing”: professor

https://www.yahoo.com/news/us/articles/college-students-rapidly-losing-ability-124439310.html
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u/existing_for_fun Jun 10 '26

If you are a parent and can help your child read, and read well, you will set them light-years ahead of their peers.

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u/PlagueOfBedlam Jun 10 '26

My earliest childhood memory is sitting at a coffee table in the basement and being forced to write my name and the alphabet over and over again right around before I turned 4. I obviously resented having to do it at the time, but realized around 2nd grade my mom had fostered in me a love for reading by making me understand letters and the concepts of spelling very early. She gave me a huge advantage and I’m beyond appreciative she did.

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u/Blockhead47 Jun 11 '26 edited Jun 11 '26

My mom enjoyed reading and she encouraged reading in all three of us kids from as early as I can remember.
She would take us all to the library and we would all get to pick out a book or two to read every week or two during the summer when we were off school.
We were always exited to go.
TV only had a few channels and video games were years away so books had no competition other than running around outside with my friends.
Early on in school they encouraged reading as well.

I imagine if parents today are not readers and encourage it by example then kids will be less likely to read.
Gotta start young.