Listening isn’t reading
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Reading words on a paper and truly comprehending them is a skill I have found a lot of people lack. If, as an adult, you want to count an audiobook as part of your reading because you are truly paying attention to the audio, go right ahead. This is partly why I can't do audiobooks, I'm not engaged and fully paying attention. But you can't tell me that a child is listening and comprehending the book being read to them. You reading a book to your child is engaging them with you and the story unlike the disembodied voice coming from a speaker. That's my thoughts at least.
My daughter is in 5th grade and started using audio books and when she tests on them gets such low scores I banned audiobooks for her I told her to go to the library and get the actual book! It’s so different listening to something and actually seeing the words on a page and reading them!
As an adult yes it is still reading, but for kids no it should not count. Reading is a skill you have to learn before you get to cut corners just like many other things in life.
Audiobooks are great BUT it shouldn’t replace reading books
Not only did we have a whole post like this already that got oddly controversial, this is a dumb worry lol. As if all the audio books are somehow making the children forget how to read every other thing that requires reading in school
As an adult I love Audio books for long drives but I don't think they should replace reading for kids. Seeing the letters and words on the page and matching it up to what they are hearing is how they learn to read and write surely? If you never read a book you'd never learn to actually read.
🤷♀️ I grew up with accommodations that allowed me free access to books we were reading in school as audio books; because I’d read the physical copy of the book while listening to the audiobook, said accommodations helped me learn how to read & spell better than when I’d be told to just try harder or sound it out by myself.
@Monét this is like saying because kids go to school they shouldn’t have homework. Do you think they’ll forget all they learned? Maybe not but it helps regardless. Reading is essential and not fostering that skill is stupid.
I love an audio book. Being a mom doesn’t give me a lot of time to read anymore but it is listening not reading. And it’s just interesting that just because we have tools that allow us to replace reading it’s becoming an accepted alternative in the school system.
Also I’d just like to say I didn’t say it was being used as a read along sort of thing. It’s being used as replacement which is the concern.
I think my point was saying your child utilizes audiobooks does not immediately mean there is never physical reading of text involved.
@Parker 又 I feel listening to the audiobook while following along reading the physical book is entirely different than just listening to the audiobook. I remember many times in school we would listen to the audiobook while following along with the book or take turns reading aloud. I do think it's beneficial to read along while listening to someone read to you as a child, wether that accomodation is needed or not. You're fostering good reading and listening comprehension at the same time. If listening to the audiobook is counting towards the reading minutes in the school incognito is posting about, it's safe to assume the child is likely not reading along with the physical copy. Listening does not equal reading.
Well I don't believe homework necessarily improves skill. There are other ways to improve your reading. There are also children that don't read outside of school or assignments and still do well. I mean a substantial amount of reading is required in school anyway lol
@Monét do/will you encourage your child to replace books with audio books?
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Actually reading a book is important for those learning to read. An adult or teenager listening to an audiobook for entertainment is fine, though. And if you can't find time to sit with a book, then at least putting on an audiobook is better than not reading!
Listening to a story is still good for learning words & helping with vocabulary. When using an audiobook, if you have the storybook as well & follow the words as they are spoken. That could be a form of reading along. Just to add, this post is quite dismissive to partially sighted & blind children. They would still class an audiobook as 'reading'. I am aware that they have books in braille however, audiobooks do seem to be a lot easier to come by.
This is such a lazy approach to education. This is why I’m teaching my kids myself how to read bc you can’t trust the schools to.
Yes! I was just talking to my husband about this the other day how Audible is NOT reading 😂
https://www.storypod.com/blogs/what-comes-next/why-listening-is-an-essential-part-of-learning-how-to-read https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/power-listening-why-stories-matters-wahstory https://www.assistiveware.com/blog/listening-to-stories-is-real-reading#:~:text=When%20kids%20listen%20to%20stories,and%20decode%20them%20in%20print.
Audio books are definitely good for learning various things, but it is absolutely not reading. Reading requires much different areas of the brain than audio books do
It's cause they can't read. My friend is teaching first grade and most of her students cannot read at all. So they listen to stories cause at least it's something I guess.