THE IMPACT: THE HOME LIBRARY IMPERATIVE In an international study of more than 70,000 participants in 27 nations, Evans et al. (2010) revealed that after controlling for economic status, father’s occupation, and parental education, the effect of home access to books had about the same impact as parental education on student achievement. The impact was double the impact of the father’s occupation and outpaced family economic status. What’s more, students with the biggest gains from home libraries are those who came from a lower economic status. These findings are game-changing. Schools and communities don't have control over parental education, occupation, or economics, but institutions can put books in children’s homes and close the achievement gap. Studies from around the globe show that access to print resources—ranging from board books to read-aloud books to magazines—and shared reading experiences with caregivers in early childhood before formal schooling begins have both an immediate and long-term effect on children’s vocabulary, background knowledge, and comprehension skills (Neuman & Moland, 2019). The academic impact of home access to books and reading materials continues long after these early experiences. We know that when books are part of a home environment, children are more likely to read for pleasure and have a better vocabulary. Studies show they also have increased access to information and a more comprehensive “cultural toolkit” that positively impacts educational achievement (Evans et al., 2010). Reading volume and exposure to books outside of school have a positive effect on students’ reading achievement and are powerful contributors to a variety of academic skills.
• Students with more books at home have higher educational attainment (Evans et al., 2010).
• Children growing up in homes with many books go on to receive, on average, three years more schooling than children from bookless homes, regardless of their parents’ education, occupation, and economic status (Evans et al., 2010).
8
HOME LIBRARIES TOPIC PAPER
Made with FlippingBook - Online catalogs