Why is it that so many young people no longer enjoy reading?
Not just textbooks and syllabus content, but reading anything at all. Newspapers, articles, novels, journals, even small write ups. Reading is one of the oldest ways to learn, yet today it is slowly fading from the lives of many youngsters.
As a teacher, I notice this every day. When I ask students why they do not like to read, the answer is almost always the same.
“Ma’am, we get everything on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube. Why read?”
For them, reading feels slow. It requires time, attention and patience. Watching a video or scrolling through reels gives information quickly and effortlessly. So they choose the easier way.
But easy is not always right. The internet can give knowledge, but it can also give half knowledge. Social media spreads information fast, but it spreads false news just as fast. Books and written words carry responsibility. They are read, checked, corrected and then shared. They hold depth and truth. A reel may stay for thirty seconds but a book stays in a person for years.
I am not against videos or reels. They entertain, they teach, they help. Technology is not the enemy. The real concern is that reading is disappearing. When reading disappears, patience disappears. Thinking disappears. Imagination, vocabulary and silent reflection also disappear.
Everything today is quick, instant, fast. Even emotions come and go quickly. When a student is asked to read a newspaper or a story, many immediately feel pressure. But it is not pressure. It is unfamiliarity. When reading is not a habit, it starts to feel like a burden.
Reading is not slow. It is steady. It gives space to breathe, feel and understand. A book does not shout for attention. It waits peacefully, ready to give something meaningful the moment you open it.
The question is not why the youth do not read.
The real question is whether we want a generation that only scrolls or a generation that thinks.
Reels may entertain the mind. Reading strengthens the mind.
One gives a moment of information. The other builds a lifetime of understanding.
A screen shows us the world in seconds. A book teaches us to pause, absorb, reflect and grow. It gives us the ability to imagine beyond what is visible, to create beyond what is given.
Maybe it is time to pick up a book again, even for ten minutes a day, and remind ourselves how beautiful it feels to learn slowly, deeply and truly. Knowledge is not a race. Growth is not instant. Minds bloom one page at a time.
Think about it and comment below.
Featured captured from Pinterest@ pngtree, design delight studio
