To think that kids being great readers isn't so much better than being gamers?

[Utterbunkum]

I write this as a prolific reader. It was the family joke that I could be found with a book at all times. I loved reading, it was my greatest pleasure. I read from a young age.

But I wasn't a clever child. In every other respect, I was average, apart from maths, at which I was an unmitigated dunce (still am). This was later diagnosed as dyscalculia, unheard of in my childhood. A bit of a digression, but I think my maths teacher at secondary school, who was also the dyslexia assessor, knew something was off. He offended my mum once by asking her how I did in English and being surprised when she told him, 'very well, it's her best subject'.

To cut a long story short, my only skill (reading quickly and easily) has been of very little practical use. I got a degree in Eng Lit as a mature student, which did little to get me out of the minimum wage earning potential.

I find it interesting the importance people place on reading as an activity over gaming. My reading was just as antisocial (more so, since you can't chat with your mates whilst doing it) and the young gamers I know seem to be far more analytical and have higher earning potential than I ever did. My husband barely picked up a book. He is an IT whizz with a very high IQ. My nephew is not dissimilar.

I still love reading. And I do think kids who don't are missing out, but I suspect that's because my life has been so enhanced by it from an enjoyment perspective. But kids who game probably feel the same. I don't think reading is quite the superior form of entertainment some think it is.

Totally agree.

My eldest is 11 and making money on YouTube and now TikTok.

He has online friends from all over the world, but very close to a few in America.

He is now developing his first game with one of these friends.

My husband and I both love gaming too so we were never super strict about it tbh. I personally don't see any issues with gaming.

I am hopeful that my son can achieve a career in an industry that he has a real passion and talent for.

I don't see the difference with me encouraging gaming and another mother encouraging football. Both would have started as hobbies. But only one has the bad reputation.

Haven’t read the full thread but I think this is spot on. Empathy, creativity, understanding - so true.

FWIW I believe having a wide range of interest is good, eg. I was a massive reader but also played on various sports teams and enjoyed playing computer games and games like chess! My mum didn’t mind me doing any these things to be fair, but she did encourage the reading more which I’m grateful for.

In the end all that reading did make a very clear and identifiable difference to my future. A few years ago, I achieved my childhood /lifelong dream of being an author which has enhanced my life in so many ways.

But I don’t think you need such a “tangible” outcome for reading to have been worthwhile! My life was enriched by all that reading anyway in a way that I don’t think gaming alone would have achieved.

@HarpyRampant” Reading showed me a bigger world.” This too! We never travelled outside the UK when I was a kid but I knew so much about various cultures and customs and different periods of history etc through reading.

I did learn a bit from computer games (I had a 90s Amiga 😅) but not as much and it was more blatant when a computer game was trying to teach me something compared to a book where the learning seemed more effortless!

Well to be fair, we are talking about reading in general, and not purely reading fiction - scrolling back through your posts, your original comments didn’t mention fiction specifically. Though I did have several colleagues who were not only avid readers of fiction but fiction authors in their spare time. I no longer work in STEM, but I also now write for a living. It’s something that’s likely to vary between STEM fields though, it’s a very broad sector.

I also think you need to make sure you’re not comparing apples and oranges. I’m not sure there are many people who would consider a 15 year old reading a Blyton novel to be superior to a 10 year old playing a quality historical strategy game or an educational game.

Your last sentence is tautological but I think you’re suggesting that because some games might be superior to some books, in some circumstances, your point is valid. I think most people commenting on the thread have made it clear that it’s more nuanced than that.

"However, books can be discussed after reading, and the experience of reading them can be shared with other readers in a way games cannot."

Honestly, this is complete nonsense and couldn't be further from the truth. There are literally hundreds of sites on the net where people discuss games, gaming narratives, discuss their shared experiences of the narrative and how they interpret games. People create fan fiction that builds on characters, artwork and encyclopedias. Others modify games to bring new narratives and features. People make costumes and go to conferences dressed as gaming characters. Many people discuss forthcoming games, what they hope to see and how the characters will develop.

This is the problem I have with a lot of people who are critical of gaming. They simply have zero experience of it and everything that surrounds it. I wouldn't say I am an avid gamer, nor do I take that much interest in this additional culture of games beyond playing the odd one here or there, but even I know it exists and gaming has a very rich and expansive culture behind it.

Ah pants, this is what I feared, as ds age 6 is reading at age 9 level but behind at maths and finds writing difficult. I just said to friend today that reading doesn't get you anywhere as everyone gets there in the end! However hopefully he'll always love books, like I do. One of lifes pleasures.

The research around reading is extremely robust. If you look at happy, successful people, the number one common denominator is reading for pleasure. It doesn’t have to be huge literary tomes. Just enjoying reading. People who read for pleasure are more likely to have higher level positions at work. They’re more likely to get better grades in all levels of education. They’re more likely to be happy and content. Gaming and coding are entirely different things. I can see that coding is probably beneficial (but I can’t believe it’s better than reading - it just doesn’t tap into the array of skills that reading does. Doesn’t mean it’s not a valuable skill. It absolutely is. But it’s not reading.)

I read a lot.

I think its been key in developing my ability to write well. I work in a technical/analytical role and get a lot of praise for producing clear, written reports and communications that are (others words) "eloquent". I also read and digest information very, very fast and comprehend subtleties in the language to a far better degree than others.

DH was more the gamey type. I have to help him write his own cv and performance reviews, how he writes it sounds shit and doesn’t do justice to his work

I think games in a wide variety of contexts are good.

But detailed board games are much better for children. All the planning, analysis, strategy, without addictive/hyper stimulating screens.

Also:

Reading is a skill required for life in the modern world.

Gaming isnt.

If you leave school with low reading ability (interest or lack thereof is irrelevant), you will struggle in life.

If you leave school unable to beat an 8 year old at mariocart it does not matter a jot. There are lots of different ways to develop the skills you can get from playing games, they are not unique to games.

I think I'm describing my personal experience of gaming vs reading here - I have conversations in every day life about the books I've read, but never about the games I play. I'm not interested in the fandom side of either hobby, I would never read or write fanfic and I'm just as likely to dress up for Dickens Week as i am to cosplay - as in, not at all. But each to their own, others will get different things out of different games and books than I do.

Gaming is another form of escapism, just like reading a book. You'll have bad books and bad games but on the whole both pursuits are very enjoyable. There are so many games with fantastic story telling.

@FourLeggedBuckers whilst 'most people on this thread' might have noted the nuance, more in the wider world don't. Upthread some way, a pp comment about how smug her parents were in re: her reading, but she wasn't sure reading stories about ponies was so much better.

I started this thread in part because of reading a few threads related to kids gaming in which the standard 'my ds/DD reads' was trotted out with that sort of smugness, in addition to others saying, 'I would prefer mine to be reading'. There IS a blanket assumption about it. And yes, there are people who think a 15 year old reading EB is better than a 10 year old playing an educational or historic game. There are a lot of people who are anti-gaming to that degree.

I would like to thank you all for contributing. On the whole, as discussions go on MN, this has been interesting and filled with thoughtful and politely expressed genuine responses from both sides. The poll currently stands at a 60/30 split against, which is positive in many ways for the art of reading, which I do love, but on a personal level negative because it indicates I am perhaps in more of a minority of readers for whom it hasn't translated into wider abilities.
It's been interesting to hear from those of in both the gaming community and STEM fields, as well as those who have found reading a joy.
It's been refreshingly free from personal attacks.