“2008 Kids & Family Reading Report”
They may sometimes seem permanently attached to their cellphones and Internet connections, but most children and teenagers say they won’t part with printed books for their pleasure reading, according to a new survey.
Three-fourths of more than 500 students surveyed, ages 5-17, said they wanted to read the paper versions of books, and more than six in 10 preferred the traditional text to reading online, even though most expect that electronic devices will be the dominant method for cracking open a book a decade from now.
The survey by the publisher Scholastic Inc., based in New York City, found that children who use the Internet frequently are more likely to read for pleasure each day.
The 2008 Kids & Family Reading report, a follow-up to a similar national survey in 2006, also found that most children favor books they pick out themselves, and that interest in reading declines steadily after age 8 and through the teenage years.
