Tag: education

Which Writers Impressed You At School?

When I grew up my reading was heavily influenced by my teachers. Luckily some of my primary teachers rather liked Roald Dahl and the rest also made brilliant literary choices. I wonder if this is typical of English schools and what writers stand out in the memories of those of you who grew up abroad?

When my infant teacher initially read the BFG, with incredible accents for each giant, I was totally sucked in. The following year another wonderful teacher read us George’s Marvellous Medicine and then The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. C S Lewis then became a firm favourite of mine and I started consuming the other Narnia stories, such as The Silver Chair.

Being Read To Matters

I do wonder if my love for reading would have been less evident if I hadn’t had teachers who really read with passion. The reading bug needs to start somewhere and Roald and Lewis definitely triggered the obsession for me.

My mum also read to me daily and as time moved on I started to read to her. I would read Enid Blyton books and those involving Professor Brainstorm. I’d also try poems and fact books. Mum bought me a whole set of illustrated Charles Dickens books (children’s editions).

As I got older, teachers introduced me to Michael Morpurgo (Why the Whales Came) and Shakespeare (starting with Macbeth). One thing was certain, the more books I sampled, the stronger my passion for reading became. At the same time some fiction turned me off and helped me fine tune my taste or reluctance for certain genres. For instance, ‘To Kill A Mockingbird’ was taught by an uninteresting teacher and was dragged out over months.

Inspiring Tales

So yes, my brilliant teachers brought amazing narratives into my life and I am forever grateful. I will never lose my love of Roald Dahl books, no matter how many times I come across them. Similarly, I have a place in my heart for Narnia and Hogwarts. Admittedly Harry Potter was first read by me as an adult but I bet J K Rowling’s books have a massive impact on today’s young people and encourage many to read more often.

For another article about Roald Dahl have a read of this. If you enjoyed this post perhaps consider following my blog.

Support Environmental Education

After writing my article about the importance of teaching about Climate Change in schools, I have now started a petition to parliament. With COP26 currently going ahead, it seems vital that everyone is talking about the environment and pushing to make changes. If we can stoke up a debate in parliament to encourage basic environmental education in all schools, then we will surely be moving in the right direction.

My recommendation is for Environmental Education to be compulsory in all schools. I also think that it should be a distinct subject rather than covered in dribs and drabs under the guise of Science and Geography. If it is given a highlight as a subject of its own, young people will recognise how important and impactful this matter is.

I would really appreciate it if anyone can help to get the ball rolling by signing the parliamentary petition below.

https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/597233

Thank you for taking time to consider this. I feel so passionately about young people being fully educated in the scope and scale of this international problem. For a related post about climate change, click here.

Exploring the Benefits of Reading: Why Is It So Vital?

Reading matters. It makes sense, doesn’t it?

Literacy is something we measure. Governments talk about certain communities having lower levels of literacy and it is something we use to compare wealth, and conversely, poverty. In my opinion, being literate should not be something you have to fight for. it should be an entitlement. The benefits of reading are striking and obvious.

Now that is all very well to say but some people are not so bothered. People have different value systems and many believe it is more important for their kids to explore and be outside, to have fun and play. There is a place for that too.

However, if we don’t focus time and energy on reading skills at a young age then people suffer later on. If you grow up being unable to read, then you are disadvantaged in so many ways. You have a limited choice of careers, you will struggle to engage with daily tasks and manage you own affairs and you will find it much harder to pick up reading skills as you age.

Poorer countries don’t always have the money or skilled staff to provide schooling for everyone. in a modern world it seems ridiculous that this is the case. To me, the right to read is no different to the right to eat, be clothed and have shelter.

Let’s take a look at why reading matters.

1) Those who are learning to read do not always know how valuable this skill is. It is schools and parents who need to impart this fact. Being able to learn to read is in fact, wrongly, a privelage after all.

2) Most studying involves reading wisely. By this I mean scanning, remembering facts from books, understanding labelled diagrams and knowing how to be sceptical about documents.

3) Reading is fun. Just like most things, you need to practise using the skills to start enjoying it properly. Therefore one of the biggest benefits of reading is getting to enjoy good stories.

People don’t always value reading, even when they are lucky enough to have the opportunities to learn. Many do not even get the chance to learn to read.

4) Reading opens doors. Not just to work opportunities but also to other worlds. If you live in a small village in the mountains, you may know nothing about the Amazon but books can allow you to gain some understanding about such places.

5) Reading keeps your brain alert. It focuses your mind and prevents you from deskilling. Whether flicking through a newspaper, glancing at a blog or reading a recipe, these useful skills also help your brain stay well.

So, why is reading so important?

I wrote this article in response to hearing some people discussing how little reading mattered. They were saying as long as their kids were happy and had fun, it didn’t matter. As you can tell, I disagree. Reading is important, it is an entitlement and we should promote it as much as we can. The benefits of reading outshine any doubt. Without being able to read, you are more likely to suffer as the world revolves around language and text.

If you have any thoughts on this, please comment below. If you enjoyed the post and want to read more of the same in future please consider following my blog and making my day. Also, for another article about bookish things, check out Are you getting the most out of reading?