In the past few years, students’ academics have declined, specifically their reading abilities.
According to the National Center for Education Statistics, the average score for the Evidence-Based Reading and Writing (ERW) portion of the SAT has decreased from 533 points in 2017 to 520 points in 2024.
“Standardized tests for college admissions reading comprehension scores have dipped off,” Assistant Head of School for Academics Edward Billingslea said.
English department chair Carrie Niebanck noticed a similar trend among UPrep students.
“I think all of us have noticed in the department a decline in overall reading comprehension that we often correlate with just not reading as much,” Niebanck said.
According to Niebanck, there is not one specific cause for the decrease in reading comprehension.
“Maintaining that reading muscle isn’t something that students are doing beyond what’s required,” Niebanck said.
However, sophomore Abby Popchuck, who describes herself as a “math and science” person, thinks it’s not just a decline in reading that’s to blame.
“I feel like no matter how much reading I will do, I’m never really going to be an English or History person,” sophomore Abby Popchuk said.
Although many students may not read outside of school, senior Jack DiGiuseppe does. He consistently reads for about twenty minutes every night before he goes to bed.
“If you read a lot of good books, you can see how these professionals use words,” DiGiuseppe said. “It’s not like you can immediately replicate that, but you can kind of get a feel of what good writing looks like, and I think you can apply that to your writing.”
Despite the positives that may come from the activity, Niebanck, who has taught at UPrep for eight years, noticed a decline in several aspects of student reading once COVID hit.
“I feel like we had a significant drop off on two levels: One is interest in sustained reading, or the ability to sustain that interest,” Niebanck said. “The other was a comprehension that could be sustained over longer and more challenging texts.”
Librarian Aimee Miles agrees that the school does not prioritize reading, which she believes is necessary for young people.
“Kids, at all ages, need that push to read,” Miles said. “There just isn’t really a reading culture here.”
According to Niebanck, it isn’t enough to only read one assigned text from class.
“The voice and the variety of the ways that students use language is not as nimble because they haven’t seen it as often in a text that they’ve chosen to read,” Niebanck said.
Building consistent reading habits in one’s spare time can improve overall reading comprehension and understanding of a text on multiple levels, according to Niebanck. Despite the many benefits of reading, DiGiuseppe notices that the lack of reading among his fellow students is mostly caused by a lack of free time.
“Most people who I talk to who don’t read, it’s not because they just don’t like reading books,” DiGiuseppe said. “They just don’t find the time for it.”
In addition to homework, many students may participate in extracurriculars, sports and other activities, and they may struggle to find free time in their busy schedules.
“I would love to get into reading more, but I think with the amount of homework I have and the amount of reading that is assigned with that homework, I count that as my reading,” Popchuk said.
Even though it is difficult for many students to find time to read for fun, the English department is still encouraging the incorporation of reading into students’ lifestyles through summer reading lists.
“It’s our obligation to really push a culture of literacy,” Niebanck said.
DiGiuseppe agrees that many interesting books are available for students to read, and there are “so many great things that you can get out of all of them. So why not read them?”
