Engagement strategies don’t just serve as a pathway to a positive relationship with literacy. The engagement has larger benefits as well. Children engaged in learning have better attendance, higher college and career readiness, and better graduation rates, and they are less likely to drop out of school (Rumberger et al., 2017). Connecting children to people with diverse backgrounds, broad perspectives, and unique careers encourages them to develop a more representative worldview. When this is done in tandem with literacy engagement, as with the R.E.A.L. mentors, children also benefit from seeing how books and a positive relationship with literacy can be far-reaching and unifying—into adulthood. These experiences and interpersonal connections allow children and adults alike to associate literacy with joy and foster motivation and engagement within the context of literacy. This is especially important because, as students move into higher grades, the text becomes the backbone of how new knowledge is acquired. EQUITY AND BELONGING In her book Unearthing Joy , Gholdy Muhammad states that “Equity is teaching and learning that is centered on justice, liberation, truth, and freedom” (Muhammad, 2023, p. 33). The context and source of this quote are particularly fitting for two reasons: first, because becoming a proficient reader is considered by most to be a civil right; and second, because literature itself often serves as a platform for promoting equity. Said another way, both learning to read and the act of reading are both historically and academically tied to equity. For children, equity through literacy can be promoted in several ways. Instruction can be delivered in a way that intentionally celebrates every child’s cultural heritage, individuality, and difference. Literacy instruction also provides opportunities for students to learn about their own identity alongside the identities of others, building empathy and understanding. Research also shows that using diverse reading activities increases background knowledge and reading outcomes for students (Worthy & Roser, 2010; Guthrie, 2008).
SCHOLASTIC R.E.A.L. FOUNDATION PAPER 13
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