Reading for pleasure: scrutinising the evidence base – benefits, tensions and recommendations

Teresa Cremin & Laura Scholes (2024) Reading for pleasure: scrutinising the evidence base – benefits, tensions and recommendations, Language and Education, 38:4, 537-559, https://doi.org/10.1080/09500782.2024.2324948

Compelling international evidence illustrates the potential of reading for pleasure for enhancing student reading achievement along with other learning and wellbeing outcomes. Yet profound challenges exist for nations seeking to encompass attention to students’ volitional reading. In this paper we critically review the growing research evidence in this area by drawing systematically on cognitive psychological studies of reading attainment and motivation, educational studies of classroom practice, and the work of literary scholars and medical professionals.