Setting up a Reading Motivator in the Digital Age: Introducing New Approaches of Reading for Pleasure Pedagogy in Primary School (MORE)

Project Outline
In many European countries, research (PISA, PIRLS) has shown a significant decline in reading motivation in the 10+ age group. Low motivation for reading leads to unsatisfactory levels of reading literacy but also to low academic achievement, and lack of social and cultural participation.

By focusing on students 9 – 11 years of age, the project addresses the worrying trends by

1. acknowledging diversity (a variety of school and family settings, curricular specifics, reading experiences, a wide range of genres and formats in print and e-version etc),
2. studying the ways of introducing more possibilities for reading for pleasure in schools (which is an effective strategy to ascertain academic success),
3. proposing innovative approaches to encourage reading for pleasure and expanding the possibilities of good reading experiences in the digital age.

The research will be based on Reading for Pleasure Pedagogy (RfP). While taking into account different reading profiles, thorough research will be carried out to design a balanced theory and practice, and to create pedagogy for enhancing the reading of diverse readers.

Reading motivators will be introduced as a novelty, bridging the curricular and extracurricular programmes and activities. By organising workshops and offering individual consultations, they will encourage primary school students to read, and will cooperate with their teachers, school librarians and any other interested party, with the aim of introducing and implementing the newly designed Reading for Pleasure Pedagogy.

Implementation
First, a typology of reading profiles of elementary school students will be created based on an e-questionnaire.
Selected librarians, specialized in children's and YA literature, will be trained to act as reading motivators.
Reading profiles will serve as a key reference for creating various ‘reading pathways’ for encouraging students into reading according to their interests, abilities and motivations.
Then, a series of workshops for students aged 9 – 11 will be offered, and seminars for teachers and/or interested school staff.
The key evaluation phase will round up the project.
Project findings and materials will be disseminated throughout.

Expected Impacts

The project aims to empower each student with a good reading experience.

• A better understanding of the importance of Reading for Pleasure in the digital age, and its impact on the students' social and academic life will help pave a path to books and reading according to the students’ reading profiles, their wishes and needs.
• The full potential of reading motivators as drivers of reading for pleasure motivation will be realised through stronger, formal and possibly permanent links between educational institutions and reading motivators.
• The knowledge generated through research and practical workshops will inform the design of (e-)materials (handbooks and guidelines for the practitioners), and the publication of academic articles to enable further research.

Deliveries

• typology of reading profiles (for 9 to 11 year olds) and accompanying reading pathways
• materials and guidelines for educating the reading motivators
• handbook of good practices in reading for pleasure pedagogy for primary school students

Project coordinator
Assoc. Prof. Ana Vogrinčič Čepič (University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Arts, Department of Sociology, Department of Library and Information Science and Book Studies, Slovenia)

Slovenian Team

Project leader
Assoc. Prof. Ana Vogrinčič Čepič (University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Arts, Department of Sociology, Department of Library and Information Science and Book Studies)

Project members
Assistant Veronika Rot Gabrovec (University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Arts, Department of English)
Prof. Sonja Pečjak (University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Arts, Department of Psychology)
Assist. Prof. Tina Pirc (University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Arts, Department of Psychology)
Senior Bibl. Mojca Žaberl (University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Arts, Department of Sociology)
and
Senior Bibl. Mateja Lesar (City Library Ljubljana, Professional associate for education)

Finish team

Project leader
Adjunct Prof./Senior Lect. Juli-Anna Aerila (University of Turku, Faculty of Educational Sciences, Department Teacher Education)

Project members
Service Manager Sanna Hernelahti (Turku City Library)

Italian team

Project leader
Adjunct Prof./Senior Lect. Tiziana Mascia (Associazione Literacy Italia)

Project members
Adjunct Prof./Senior Ugo Guidolin (Associazione Literacy Italia)
Senior Bibl. Francesco Grande (Associazione Literacy Italia)
Senior Bibl. Valentina Bondesan (CSBNO)

Assoc. Prof. Ana Vogrinčič Čepič

VOGRINČIČ ČEPIČ, Ana. Kako lahko zapeljujemo v branje skozi pogovor in poučevanje. Otrok in knjiga : revija za vprašanja mladinske književnosti, književne vzgoje in s knjigo povezanih medijev. 2021, letn. 48, št. 112, str. 95-107. ISSN 0351-5141. [COBISS.SI-ID 96440835] 

VOGRINČIČ ČEPIČ, Ana. Branje kot prostorska praksa : odnos bralcev do neposrednega fizičnega prostora branja. V: SAMIDE, Irena (ur.), VIRANT, Špela (ur.). Prostor = Space. Ljubljana: Znanstvena založba Filozofske fakultete: = University Press, Faculty of Arts, 2019. 13, [št.] 2, str. 163-183. Ars & humanitas, 13, 2. ISBN 978-961-06-0283-5. ISSN 1854-9632. https://revije.ff.uni-lj.si/arshumanitas/article/view/8982/8828, DOI: 10.4312/ars.13.2.163-183. [COBISS.SI-ID 70932322]

VOGRINČIČ ČEPIČ, Ana, KOTRLA TOPIĆ, Marina. If you read at home, it's more relaxed, there are no limits : insights into domestic reading practices of Croatian and Slovenian university students. Literacy. 2021, vol. 55, no. 3, str. 181-190. ISSN 1741-4350. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/lit.12251, DOI: 10.1111/lit.12251. [COBISS.SI-ID 62495491], [JCR, SNIP]

VOGRINČIČ ČEPIČ, Ana, KUZMIČOVÁ, Anežka, DIAS, Patrícia. Vpliv fizičnega prostora in družbenega okolja na bralno izkušnjo : izsledki študije šestih fokusnih skupin = Reading experience and the impact of physical and social environment : a study of six focus groups. Knjižnica : revija za področje bibliotekarstva in informacijske znanosti. [Tiskana izd.]. okt. 2018, 62, [št.] 3, str. 51-67. ISSN 0023-2424. https://knjiznica.zbds-zveza.si/knjiznica/article/view/7140. [COBISS.SI-ID 68560738]

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Assistant Veronika Rot Gabrovec

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Prof. Sonja Pečjak

PEČJAK, Sonja, BUCIK, Nataša, GRADIŠAR, Ana, PEKLAJ, Cirila (2006). Bralna motivacija v šoli : merjenje in razvijanje [Reading motivation in school: measurement and development]. 1.izdaja. Ljubljana: Zavod Republike Slovenije za šolstvo. ISBN 961-234-578-3, ISBN 978-961-234-578-5. [COBISS.SI-ID 229401344]

PEČJAK, Sonja (2012). Psihološki vidiki bralne pismenosti : od teorije k praksi  [Psychological aspects of reading literacy: from theory to practice]. 1. izd. Ljubljana: Znanstvena založba Filozofske fakultete,  Zbirka Razprave FF. ISBN 978-961-237-401-3. [COBISS.SI-ID 261427456]

PEČJAK, Sonja, KOLIĆ-VEHOVEC, Svjetlana, PODLESEK, Anja (2014). Models of reading comprehension for primary school students. V: GALMONTE, Alessandra (ur.), ACTIS-GROSSO, Rossana (ur.). Different psychological perspectives on cognitive processes : current research trends in Alps-Adria region. Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, ISBN 978-1-4438-5628-7, ISBN 1-4438-5628-2. [COBISS.SI-ID 56792418]

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Assist. Prof. Tina Pirc

PEČJAK, Sonja, PODLESEK, Anja, PIRC, Tina. Model of reading comprehension for 5th grade students. Studia psychologica. 2011, vol. 53, no. 1, str. 53-67, ilustr. ISSN 0039-3320. [COBISS.SI-ID 45449314]

PEČJAK, Sonja, PIRC, Tina. Ali se oblikuje bralno razumevanje pri dekletih drugače kot pri fantih?. Pedagoška obzorja : časopis za didaktiko in metodiko. 2010, letn. 25, št. 2, str. 51-66. ISSN 0353-1392. [COBISS.SI-ID 42951010]

PEČJAK, Sonja, BUCIK, Nataša, PEŠTAJ, Martina, PODLESEK, Anja, PIRC, Tina. Bralna pismenost ob koncu osnovne šole : ali fantje berejo drugače kot dekleta?. Sodobna pedagogika. mar. 2010, letn. 61, št. 1, str. 86-102. ISSN 0038-0474. [COBISS.SI-ID 247712]

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Adjunct Prof./Senior Lect. Juli-Anna Aerila

Edited book (peer-reviewed)

Moran, K. J. K. & Aerila, J.-A. (2019) Story in the Lives of Children: Contributions of the Narrative Mode.  New York: Springer.

Chapters in edited peer-reviewed book

Aerila, J.-A., Lähteelä, J., Kauppinen, M., & Siipola, M. 2021. Holistic Literature Education as an Effective Tool for Social-Emotional Learning. In J. Tussey & L. Haas (Eds.), Handbook of Research on Supporting Social-Emotional Learning Through Literacy Education. Pennsylvania, USA: IGI-Global, 26–49.

Aerila, J.-A. & Kauppinen, M. (2020). StoRe – Stories make readers. Enhancing the Use of Fictional Literature with Multilingual Students. In G. Neuokleous, A. Krulatz. & R. Farelly (Eds.) Handbook of Research on Cultivating Literacy in Diverse and Multilingual Classrooms. Hersley, P.: IGI-Global.

Merisuo-Storm, T. & Aerila, J.-A. (2018). Boys’ reading skills and attitudes during the first six school years. In Baldwin, P. & García, P. O. (Eds.) Reading motivation and achievement differences between boys and girls. New York: Springer

Articles

Aerila, J.-A., Lähteelä, J., Mäkelä, T. & Kauppinen, M. (2020). Enhancing the Readership of Teacher Students with Digital Book Subscription Services. International Journal of Digital Literacy 11(2).

Aerila, J.-A. & Merisuo-Storm (2017) Emergent Readers and the Joy of Reading: A Finnish Perspective. Creative Education 8(15) 2485-2500.        

Merisuo-Storm, T. & Aerila, J.-A. (2016). Providing skills and support to primary school pupils in content-area reading. International Journal for Cross-Disciplinary Subjects in Education, 7(3).

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Adjunct Prof./Senior Lect. Tiziana Mascia

Mascia, T. (2023). MEL: Model for Literacy Education: Teacher education and professional development in literacy teaching. In P. Falzetti (Ed.), The school and its protagonists: the teachers. V Seminar “INVALSI data: a tool for teaching and scientific research” (Invalsi per la ricerca. Studi e Ricerche, pp. 41–61). Franco Angeli. Available from: https://series.francoangeli.it/index.php/oa/catalog/view/940/792/5403

Todaro L., Mascia T. (2022), Libri per ragazzi: formazione della coscienza ecologica e trasformazioni correnti negli ambiti della non-fiction, Italica Wratislaviensia, 13(2), 131–148. Available from: https://czasopisma.marszalek.com.pl/images/pliki/iw/13_2/iw13206.pdf

Mascia, T. (2021). Sviluppi della letteratura di divulgazione scientifica giovanile e prospettive attuali, in L’evoluzione della letteratura giovanile dal secondo dopoguerra a oggi, Numero monografico Pagine Giovani, 2–3 (178). Available from: https://www.morcelliana.net/img/cms/rassegna%20stampa/2021-12-NOBILE-STORIA-LETTERATURA-GIOVANILE-SCHOLE-PAGINE-GIOVANI1.pdf 

Mascia, T. (2020). Percorsi del lettore. Teorie e buone pratiche per la formazione. Avellino: Edizioni Sinestesie. ISBN: 978-88-31925-60-0 ebook. Available from: https://www.edizionisinestesie.it/libri/i-percorsi-del-lettore-teoria-e-buone-pratiche-per-la-formazione/

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• Data Privacy Notice

In February, we successfully held an introductory meeting with partner organisations. We are pleased to collaborate with the University of Turku, Italian Literacy Association, Turku City Library and Ljubljana City Library.

A three-day annual meeting of the program group was held between September 11 and 13, 2023. The meeting was organized by the Faculty of Arts (FF), which is also the project coordinator. The project leader, dr. Ana Vogrinčič Čepič, and the Slovenian part of the team (dr. Sonja Pečjak, dr. Tina Pirc, dr. Veronika Rot Gabrovec and Mojca Žaberl) hosted colleagues from the partner organisations, dr. Juli-Anna Aerila from the University of Turku and dr. Tiziana Mascia, director of the Italian Literacy Association.

The meeting lasted three days and took place mainly at the Faculty of Arts. The focus of the meeting was on the preparation of an online questionnaire for children that will be the basis for developing a typology of different profiles of child readers, which is one of the main goals of the project. On Tuesday, September 12, we had a working meeting with Ms. Matej Lesar from the Slovenian partner organisation Ljubljana City Library (MKL). We met with librarians from MKL who will be trained as reading motivators as part of the project and will try to get as many children as possible to read using new approaches.

Programme

Some photos from the meeting discussions

Mojca Žaberl
12. 7. 2024

The 23rd European Literacy Conference was held in Chania, Greece, from 24^th to 26^th of June 2024. The Federation of European Literacy Associations FELA, in collaboration with the Hellenic Association for Language and Literacy, organized the conference. This year's theme was Literacy for All: New Challenges, New Perspectives.

The Federation of European Literacy Associations (FELA) is a network of 28 organizations whose main goal is to bring together all the people in Europe who are dedicated to promoting literacy at all levels of education. Members support practices in literacy teaching, learning and research, and together they form a lively, active and committed learning community. FELA organizes numerous meetings, conferences, seminars, webinars, exchange programmes, supports research and produces publications with the aim of achieving universal literacy in Europe. From Slovenia, The Slovenian Reading Association and The Slovenian Reading Badge Society - ZPMS participate in this network. 

The conference addressed new challenges and new perspectives on literacy as a key part of human development. The contributions covered topics like literacy in the early years (for children aged 0-12), effective literacy teaching, digital literacy, different literacy environments, inclusive literacy practices for learners with different needs and lifelong development of literacy skills.  

The team members who attended the conference were dr. A. Vogrinčič Čepič, dr. V. Rot Gabrovec, Mojca Žaberl and dr. Tiziana Mascia. 

Dr. A. Vogrinčič Čepič in dr. V. Rot Gabrovec presented our project, its design and the results of our work so far. The presentation included the development of a long questionnaire for testing readers in primary schools, the development of a short questionnaire as a tool for profiling readers, and a course for reading motivators, which is currently running in all partner organizations. The presentation of the playing cards, which are currently being developed as a part of the project and will serve as a play-reading tool for working with young readers, proved particularly interesting to the participants. They expressed a desire for this tool to be made available online for the general public as soon as possible. 

Over three days, hundreds of conference participants listened to and discussed various aspects of literacy, all of whom agreed that literacy is facing a significant challenge (decline) and that the future focus should be on developing critical and in-depth thinking skills. At the end of the ceremony it was announced that the 24th FELA Conference on Literacy will be held in Ljubljana in 2026. By that time  we will be able to report on the project's completion and its outcomes.

Slovene section at 23rd Conference on Literacy, Crete, June, 2024

23rd Conference on Literacy, first day

Presentation of the More Project at the Conference, dr. A. Vogrinčič Čepič

Presentation of the More Project at the Conference, dr. Veronika Rot Gabrovec

Presentation of the More Project at the Conference, dr. A. Vogrinčič Čepič, dr. V. Rot Gabrovec 

A part of Slovenian project team at the Conference (dr. A. Vogrinčič Čepič, dr. V. Rot Gabrovec, M. Žaberl)