The importance of reading. We’ve all heard of that one before, teachers and parents alike, encouraging on the one thing that most students would think as useless. Of course, that little voice in their head tells them otherwise, what does that voice know anyways? Well, ladies and gentlemen, I’m going to tell you exactly what that voice knows.
Books and even the simple act of reading, now sometimes seems under the threat of extinction, shown every day in our everyday lives, when was the last time you saw someone reading a newspaper? A book? Of course, texts don’t count, every other word is an English professor’s nightmare, word and abbreviations with grammatical errors that would make anyone question your ability to write. Why is that we forget and disregard all the hard work our former English teachers?
As an avid reader, I always feel the need to hide my passion for my books. Why is it that I can’t bring my books to anyone’s house or to a party without being seen as antisocial but when I bring out my phone to text someone, I am just seen as the average teenager, hiding behind my phone instead of facing the world head on. Why is it that reading is “geeky” and not “cool”? What’s so bad about reading?
And although books may seem daunting, here are 4 reasons why reading is significant enough for you to put that phone down and pick up a book. It doesn’t matter if you pick up a newspaper or even a comic, but reading does have its advantages, don’t believe me? Well, I present to you my reasons:
1. Reading has been proven to reduce stress even more than music. It turns out that reading is remarkable for your mental health as in 2009, the University of Sussex did a study, demonstrating that half an hour of dedicated reading reduces stress levels up to 68%. Scientist believe that a portion of this could be for the for the fact that when you immerse yourself into a book, your body is less focused on its tense muscles and relaxes.
2. You would recall more. Although it takes longer to read a book than watch a movie but it has been proven that reading a physical book can will retain in your memory for longer. So, I guess we should turn off the televisions and pick up a Harry Potter book, maybe we’ll remember more from the book than the movies. Every time you read, you create a new memory. So, the process of reading will flex your memory reflexes over time. "Parts of the brain that have evolved for other functions - such as vision, language, and associative learning - connect in a specific neural circuit for reading, which is very challenging," says Ken Pugh, PhD, director of research of Haskins Laboratories. "Typically, when you read, you have more time to think. Reading gives you a unique pause button for comprehension and insight."
3. Reading can advance your vocabulary. It’s not really a secret that reading increases your vocabulary and spelling. Reading improves your vocabulary more than talking or direct teaching, no matter how much you pay attention to your surroundings.
4. And for the most obvious reason yet, reading does in fact enhance your intelligence. Well, it turns out that reading helps in almost every area of smarts. Those who read, generally have higher intelligence levels and general knowledge than those who don’t read. In Dr. Anne E. Cunningham’s paper, “What Reading Does for the Mind,” she found that reading, in general, makes you smarter. That’s right ladies and gentlemen, you become smarter. Cunningham’s studies found that analytical thinking is boosted by reading. Readers can spot patterns quicker. Dr. Anne Cunningham concludes that reading is a learned "coding" process and once you reach a certain level of reading ability, its benefits become reciprocal. Reading helps your brain to retain information over time, which in turn means you read better, which goes full circle to make you sharper and smarter. "Reading is a very rich and complex and cognitive act," she says.
No matter what you want to do or become, you can’t do it without more knowledge so just pick up a book and read for a short while.
Saima Ali
The Sydney Russell School.
