For generations, story-telling has preserved narratives whose currency comes alive each time a tale is read or related. They are our weapons against boredom and ignorance but, in a world shaped by technology and Artificial Intelligence, will stories stand the test of time?
As Stephen King says, “books are a uniquely portable magic”, a repository of memories, emotions and experiences bound together through an author’s expertise. Judging by the creative output in recent years, the enforced social distancing of the pandemic has reiterated the power of reading, especially for children.
Stories have also become tools to promote knowledge acquisition in schools worldwide. In India, the National Initiative for Proficiency in Reading with Understanding and Numeracy (NIPUN) Mission aims to achieve universal aptitude in literacy and numeracy for every child by Grade 3 by 2026-27. Aiding NIPUN is the Ghosticha Shanivaar (Saturday’s Story) programme, a brainchild of UNICEF’s Maharashtra chapter, which saw the circulation of e-books in Marathi, Urdu and English by UNICEF’s partner Pratham Books, through its StoryWeaver digital library, to children of government schools across the state. “We found students were as eager to receive the books as teachers were to participate in reading the stories to them,” says Rajeshwari Chandrasekhar, former chief of UNICEF Maharashtra. Chandrasekhar says the project reached over 3.1 million children in Maharashtra alone. “Children, no matter where they come from, should have the access and opportunity to read, so that later on, they can read to learn.”
In the classroom
But keeping alive the joy of reading is not easy; more so, in a classroom setting. The tendency of parents and teachers to be judgmental about children’s reading choices can be problematic. “If young people are not reading, it is the fault of the adults in their lives. You’re not just giving them the right things to read. Also, the ‘right’ things don’t just constitute what you like the most. Parents may have grown up admiring Mark Twain or Alexandre Dumas, but it’s not necessary that the current generation comes to reading like that,” says Vidya Mani, founder of Benguluru-based Funky Rainbow bookshop and consultancy that promotes Indian children’s literature.
Unlike earlier, children have many alternative approaches to reading. “Sometimes watching a movie can inspire children to seek books on the same topic. Whether as movies, games or podcasts, various things vie for their attention, which means that the books that you bring out must be part of that as well. It’s not true that children are not reading. There are those who do and those who don’t. We shouldn’t make a virtue or vice out of reading,” says Mani.
Clockwise from top left: Vidya Mani, Paro Anand, Bijal Vachchrajani and Shreekumar Varma | Photo Credit: The Hindu Archives
Reading can shape the psyche and behaviour of children, as the contemplative habit can lead to a more well-rounded individual. “As a teacher I can almost always tell which students are readers and which are not. It is the cognition, empathy, emotional maturity, critical thinking that a child shows when they read for pleasure. Beyond that are the obvious benefits of being a reader: vocabulary, language skills, listening, comprehension and retaining information,” says Paro Anand, award-winning author and former head of National Centre for Children’s Literature (National Book Trust, India).
Connecting the dots
Reading is foundational to any learning, so connecting the dots between reading for pleasure and reading for learning is to get parents see its benefits. For this, it is essential to make it a part of the Indian school system, feels Bijal Vachchrajani, author and commissioning editor of Pratham Books. “We need to celebrate how reading develops imagination, which is critical to making decisions and life skills. The most crucial thing you need to ensure is that reading is not a chore. In a school community, libraries are going to be the most important part of the system,” she says.
The tendency to restrict children’s literary consumption to the folk tales and fables has to change, says Anand. “Folk tales have persisted down the ages simply because they have something to them. But no matter how well-told or illustrated, these stories are the same and how many times must we make children read those? This is a major reason why young people in India turn so easily to books from the West; they are more relatable. We need contemporary stories that deal with issues around children’s lives today.”
While authors today are more likely to come up with a vast spectrum of stories that span issues like climate change, gender relationships, sexual identity, familial dysfunction, digitisation will ensure the longevity of older content. “Every age accommodates its own stories. They may be ancient or orally transmitted, but (like the Ramayana, which has versions and interpretations depending on who or where it comes from) they keep finding their setting. In the digital age, we already see old stories being tailored to suit big, small, deep, restless or irreverent attention spans,” concludes novelist, playwright and columnist Shreekumar Varma.
