Acclaimed author Stephen King famously observed that “books are a uniquely portable form of magic”, however for millions of South Africans, that magic is unavailable. A recent poll by the Paper Manufacturers Association of South Africa (PAMSA) indicated that 41% of the respondents possessed 10 books or fewer.
Some 80% stated that they own 50 books or less, with only 8.6% indicating that they had more than 100.
“It is a disturbing statistic,” says Jane Molony, the executive director of PAMSA. “However, owning books should not be the sole measure of our literacy culture. We need to improve access to books in all forms: books in libraries and comparable facilities, and books in a diversity of languages for South Africans. Picture books for young hands and developing minds also carry immense power, and preferably the books should be paper based.”
The same poll also indicated while reading for leisure, 32% preferred physical books to electronic versions.
“Reading itself takes us to new places; books – especially in paper format – have the power to immerse us in the story,” adds Molony, also a former chair of the now defunct South African Book Development Council.
Molony adds “countless research studies have shown that paper-based materials promote reading comprehension, information retention and learning and that print-based texts are superior to digital texts in facilitating learning strategies. Therefore, having or sharing books, and developing a culture of reading is crucial.”
Julia Norrish, the executive director of Book Dash adds: “Some statistics are encouraging: many people find print materials valuable in their daily life and in how they prefer to consume information. Unfortunately, this doesn’t necessarily correlate to how many people possess and access books.”
Book Dash gathers talented volunteers to design and pump an excess of relevant African picture books to youngsters and their families.
“A society that reads tackles problems of unemployment, poverty, and inequality better than a society that does not read. Professor Tshilidzi Marwala, the outgoing vice-chancellor and principal of the University of Johannesburg, wrote in an article covering 10 principles and how we can reform and fix our education system that reading is even more important for our educators to ensure that they serve as role models who instill a reading culture in their students.
According to the 2016 Progress in International Reading Literacy Study, little under eighty percent of fourth graders cannot read for meaning in all languages.
The leisure reading rates of both children and adults are declining. Only 2% of commercially produced children’s books in South Africa are written in local African languages. In a nation where eight out of ten people speak a home language other than English or Afrikaans, it is crucial to create meaningful books in indigenous languages if we wish to enhance childhood literacy and foster a love of reading in future generations.
www.thepaperstory.co.za
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