We Have A
Literacy Problem
- U.S.
students’ reading scores plummeted to the lowest levels in 34 years
- Less
than 40% of students in public and non-public schools read at or
above their grade level
- Two-thirds
of students who do not have proficient reading skills by the end of fourth
grade end up in jail or on welfare
- Low
literacy costs the U.S. an estimated $225 billion in lost
workforce productivity, crime, and lost tax revenue due to
unemployment
The
“Know”-Brainer Solution… Turn on the Subtitles
Studies show
that turning on the subtitles when children watch TV can dramatically improve
their literacy — doubling their chances of becoming proficient readers. The
best part… subtitles are completely free and proven to improve vocabulary,
boost comprehension skills and increase reading fluency.
“This 10-second action can double the chance
of your child becoming good at reading!”
— Jack Black, Celebrity Ambassador
Why It’s a
“Know”-Brainer
- In
the U.S., 61% of children in low socioeconomic areas are growing up in homes without
books.
- However,
96% of households own at least one TV — making turning
on the subtitles an equitable and actionable way to overcome the literacy
crisis.
“We know that
children watch an average 3 to 4 hours of TV a day and by simply turning on
subtitles in the ‘same’ language, we can help them become better readers,” said
Dr. Brij Kothari, founder of PlanetRead.org and BookBox.com, and leader of the
Same Language Subtitling movement on mainstream TV for mass literacy in India.
“Research shows that children read captions when they’re available and achieve
significantly better literacy outcomes — especially for those struggling with
reading. It’s so significant that India just passed a law that requires 50% of
television content to have subtitles on by 2025.”
READ MORE: Squiggles to words: The emergent writer
Think about
it…. by just turning on the subtitles it’s equivalent to reading the same
number of words that are in all of the Harry Potter books, all of the Earthsea
Books, all of His Dark Materials, all of the Narnia saga and
all of The Lord of the Rings — in a year! What’s more, a single kid's
movie can have up to 20,000 words — that’s about the same as the average
chapter book for 5- to 10-year-olds.
"We are
absolutely delighted that Jack Black, actor, comedian, musician and all-round
awesome guy, is helping Turn On The Subtitles spread their simple literacy
message to all,” said Leib Lurie, literacy champion and founder of Kids ReadNow. “Watch and share the short video he created for the campaign at www.turnonthesubtitles.org."
Turn on the
Subtitles is a global movement made up of like-minded education leaders,
entrepreneurs, celebrities and parents who have come together to share one
simple message: Turn on the Subtitles!
“So far we’ve
helped more than 400 million children read — and we are just getting started,”
said Henry Warren, Co-Founder of Turn on the Subtitles. “As a father to young
kids, I have seen the impact of this simple act and want to get the word out
that with just one click we can help billions of children learn to read.
Learn more
about Turn on the Subtitles and get simple ‘how to’ instructions to turn
on the subtitles for all streaming services and main devices here.
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