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Confessions of a Worried Reader

  • Writer: Josephine Mann
    Josephine Mann
  • 3 days ago
  • 4 min read

Updated: 13 hours ago

When scrolling replaces pages, what happens to our literacy?


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Source: The New Yorker

 

 

If you like reading, and you’re picky like me, you’ll know it’s weirdly hard to find good book recommendations these days. Goodreads? Fine, I guess. There’s a subtle art to decoding and interpreting the tags, summaries, and rating. Even then, satisfaction is rare. And if I start reading the reviews — game over. I’m not reading that book.


TikTok? Absolutely not. Maybe it’s just my algorithm, but I’ve had some frankly horrifying recommendations. From books with the worst pacing possible and of course the disturbingly toxic “romances,” it’s enough to make me worry for the collective psychological state of modern readers.


I’m not saying I’m above a little escapism – far from it. And yes, reading something is better than reading nothing at all. But the kinds of books I see and hear being popular these days, combined with a general decline in reading, point to a much larger literacy problem, particularly here in Australia.


Is There Really a Literacy Problem?

Unfortunately, yes. And the data backs it up.


A recent Grattan Institute report paints a bleak picture: in the typical Australian classroom of 24 students, eight can’t read well. Among disadvantaged or rural students, the problem is worse. Two in three aren’t reading proficiently, and half of regional and remote students fall below expected levels.


This isn’t just an academic issue. Students who struggle to read are more likely to fall behind, disengage, and even drop out. That has a lifelong impact. The 2012 OECD Survey of Adult Skills found that about 40% of working-age Australians are not proficient readers, and around 13% are functionally illiterate.


Employers have noticed too. A survey by the Australian Industry Group found that 93% of employers said low literacy and numeracy affected their business, from errors in workplace documents to communication breakdowns. Grattan even calculated that for the most affected students, the cost to Australia could reach $40 billion over their lifetimes. That’s billions in lost earnings, lower productivity, higher welfare, and healthcare costs.


The Power (and Loss) of Stories

Beyond the statistics, there’s something more intangible at stake. Reading isn’t just about decoding words, it’s about accessing stories, history, imagination. Books are one of humanity’s oldest and most powerful creations, connecting us across time and place.


When fewer people read, or when reading becomes purely performative, we lose that quiet, shared experience. A great New Yorker short piece from 2022 joked how unfathomable it is, in certain circles, to admit you’re not currently reading something. Even among readers, the act can feel like a performance, another box to tick for intellectual credibility.


Why Are We Here?

According to the Grattan Institute, the roots of Australia’s literacy problem run deep. Many students simply aren’t being taught to read using the best evidence-based methods.


The once-popular “whole-language” approach, which assumes children naturally absorb reading skills, doesn’t work for everyone. Yet remnants of it still linger in classrooms. Teachers often lack proper training in how to teach reading effectively, and schools don’t have enough literacy experts to provide coaching or support.


And for students who fall behind early, there’s rarely an effective system to help them catch up. This means some kids are years behind their peers before anyone intervenes.


A Cultural Problem, Too

Of course, not all of this is about schools. There’s also a social stigma around literacy. For adults who struggle, it can feel too late to learn, or too embarrassing to admit. And our broader culture doesn’t exactly help.


There’s a moral superiority that surrounds reading, as if being a “reader” automatically makes you more virtuous or intelligent. But at the same time, the most popular books being celebrated, often hyped online through BookTok or social media trends, are, to put it kindly, not exactly Shakespeare. I try not to quantify anyone’s enjoyment (and I’ve certainly read my share of questionable books), but it’s disheartening that the cultural spotlight shines so consistently on works that… well, might make you lose a few brain cells.


Maybe part of the issue is that Australia doesn’t have the same ingrained literary culture as, say, the UK or the US. They have a much stronger tradition of genuine journalism, essays, and literary discourse. Here, literature often feels like an afterthought.


So, What’s the Solution?

You could always do what my mother did, force reading upon your children. I was gifted books for every birthday and Christmas and read them out of pure obligation. (Her secret advantage? This was before iPads.)


But on a systemic level, the Grattan Institute recommends something more structured for general literacy: a nationwide adoption of “structured literacy.” This includes teaching phonics from early years, sounding out letters and words, and ensuring teachers read rich, complex literature aloud to students.


Once kids can decode words, they also need explicit instruction in building vocabulary and background knowledge, so they can actually comprehend what they read. That’s the endgame: not just reading words, but understanding worlds.


Grattan’s proposed “Reading Guarantee” even calls for pledges from governments and schools alike. The report culminates in six suggestions – the first, for example, calling for at least 90% of Australian students to become proficient readers.


Reading Between the Lines

None of this will be easy. Technology has changed how we consume information, attention spans are shrinking, and the lure of screens is hard to compete with. But literacy isn’t just about academics – it’s about access, equality, and connection.


If we let reading fade or reduce it to a handful of fantasy-romance bestsellers, we risk losing more than just a skill. We lose part of what makes us human.

It’s easy to joke about bad books, and I hope not to sound pretentious about it, because there’s a serious side. I hope we can rebuild a culture where reading is more than a fleeting trend, and where books help us think, imagine, and understand the world and our history – not just scroll past it.

 

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