Too Cool For School And Reading? How to Motivate Your Teens to Read

By Taylor Decuir

    Whether you’re a parent or a teacher, getting your teens to read can be a challenge.  Helping them to develop intrinsic reading motivation, the desire or interest to read, is even harder. The good news is that you play a role in this process by encouraging teens to expand their reading beyond predetermined curriculums. This fosters a sense of independence and reading motivation.  

    A study involving 1781 rural eighth and ninth graders explored the relationship between reading attitudes and reading behaviors. Participants completed a survey measuring time spent reading for school, entertainment, or information. Time spent reading increased, but the personal significance of reading decreased for students. Cantrell et al. (2018) discovered that the perception of reading as unimportant has lifelong effects on the educational or career choices students make. However, you can encourage students to explore their interests through reading. This may help establish relevant, personal connections that spark reading motivation. 
 
    A study of sixty ninth-graders explored how teachers can help motivate students while enhancing performance. Before a standardized test, teachers gave positive feedback to one group of students in the hopes that praise would increase motivation, performance on a standardized test, and reading comprehension. However, the results did not establish a link between praise and motivation since “feedback did not specifically target interest” (Wolters et al., 2017). Both groups demonstrated similar performance and reading comprehension levels. While praise and support build trust between students and teachers, feedback alone does not stimulate internal motivation.

    One of the best ways teachers can help foster reading motivation in students is by incorporating more student-based activities in the classroom (Neugebauer and Gilmour, 2020). This helps to personalize the reading experience while ensuring teens have the autonomy they need to find excitement in reading. For example, teachers can use small groups, one-on-one instruction with students, or encourage students to swap books. 

    One study looked at the role teachers play that can boost motivation in middle schoolers during a time when students’ academic motivation declines and reading becomes a chore. One hundred and sixty-one urban middle students with lower reading scores participated in a study that measured autonomy, competence, positive teacher feedback, and student collaboration. Neugebauer and Gilmour (2020) found that reading motivations varied depending on the environment. 

    The type of reading material also influenced students’ attitudes and reading motivation. For example,  students showed less reading motivation when given textbooks or worksheets. Instead, students preferred “texts that allow[ed] them to make self-to text connections including connected with characters and ideas and cultivating their personal interest” (Neugebauer and Gilmour, 2020). While eighty percent of teachers rely on textbooks, students’ preference should be factored into curriculum selections, and teens should be encouraged to choose to content that they can see themselves in. 

    All three studies reveal gaps in literacy that school is supposed to be addressing. Traditional classroom lectures and textbooks, while important, aren’t enough. In order for our teens to feel motivated to read, they need options that make them want to read.  

References

Cantrell, S. C., Rintamaa, M., Anderman, E. M., & Anderman, L. H. (2018). Rural adolescents’ reading motivation, achievement and behavior across transition to high school. Journal of Educational Research, 111(4), 417–428. https:/doi.org/10.1080/00220671.2017.1284737

Neugebauer, S. R. & Gilmour, A.F. (2020). The ups and downs of reading across content areas: The association between instruction and fluctuations in reading motivation. Journal of Educational Psychology, 112(2), 344-363. https://doi.org/10.1037/edu0000373

Piko, K. (2021). Vector illustration of a girl and boy reading a book on an abstract geometric background in a trendy style. [Photograph]. Shutterstock. https://www.shutterstock.com/image-vector/vector-illustration-girl-boy-reading-book-1421434031

Wolters, C. A., Barnes, M. A., Kulesz, P. A., York, M., & Francis, D. J. (2017). Examining a motivational treatment and its impact on adolescents’ reading comprehension and fluency. Journal of Educational Research, 110(1), 98–109. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220671.2015.1048503