Human beings were never born to read. Reading is a human
invention that reflects how the brain rearranges itself to learn something new.
Reading changed the brain and changed the way we think and feel. And now we are
seeing how technology is transforming the brain and a question we are beginning
to get some answers to is cause for concern. What is happening to the reading
brain as it unavoidably changes to adapt to digital mediums.
There is a part of the brain that is responsible for deep reading, which is the active
process of thoughtful and deliberate reading
in the interest to enhance one’s comprehension, which is the opposite of
skimming or superficial reading. If you think of the brain as a muscle, the
parts that are not exercised do not develop, they atrophy. A brain
that is more and more dependent on screens affect a person’s critical thinking,
personal reflection, imagination and empathy that comprise deep reading.
A few sobering facts
• The Core Curriculum at Columbia University is a required
class with an average of 200-300 pages of reading each week and professors are
finding that many students can’t get through their assignments due to decreased
in attention span.
• In the 1990’s 3-5% of American school age children were
thought to have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, By 2013 that number
was 11%
• Sherry Turkle, an M.I.T. sociologist and psychologist in her
book “ Reclaiming Conversation” tells how
children, rather than competing with siblings for their parent’s attention, are
up against phones, iPad, Siri, and Alexa, apple watches and computer screens.
• in Shakespeare’s time, the word conversation meant two
things—verbal discourse and sex. That’s how intimate the most well-known poet
and playwright in the English language viewed the act of talking with another
person.
