More than 2000 schools join hands to improve literacy at Malaysia’s largest reading event.
Scholastic’s READ campaign which is Malaysia’s largest reading event recorded its largest ever participation this year (its fifth year). Around 1,032,352 students from 2,278 schools were recorded to have read together, across Malaysia to advocate better reading habits. The number surpassed last year’s participation by 56%!
“One million students reading together is a remarkable feat that bodes well for improving literacy in Malaysia,” said Deputy Director, Ministry of Education, Tuan Haji Sufa'at bin Tumin. “Education is undoubtedly a priority focus as we progress toward a high income nation by 2020. Even as the Education Blueprint was unveiled recently to chart the direction, it is important for projects such as the 1Malaysia Reading Camp and Scholastic’s READ campaign to inculcate these values at the grassroots.”
READ2012 seeks to promote and foster appreciation for books and information, and encourages school students to set aside 2,012 seconds or 33.5 minutes to read together. In conjunction with READ2012, Scholastic has donated 50 books to each school totalling 113,900 books.
“Reading is more than just acquiring knowledge. It expands our ability to communicate and our capacity for imagination. It expands our vocabulary, improves our spelling, and helps us to understand different experiences of life”, said Linda H. Warfel, Scholastic’s Vice President for Education and Trade, Asia-Pacific and Ambassador for the International Reading Association
Several popular personalities and notable thespians contributed to the cause with Joanna Bessey, Colin Kirton, Sheahnee Iman Lee, Wardina Saffiyah, Jojo Struys, Sharifah Amani and mother Fatimah Abu Bakar as well as Azura Zainal taking time off their busy schedules to facilitate a 30-minute dramatized reading workshop to get students interacting and experience how reading with expression brings a story alive.
Scholastic’s mission for more than 90 years has been to help children learn to read so they can read to learn and become lifelong lovers of reading.
The Company’s global literacy campaign, Read Every Day. Lead a Better Life encourages everyone to support a child’s right to read so that all children can be successful in school and in life.
Scholastic Malaysia is a subsidiary of Scholastic Inc., the world's largest publisher and distributor of children's books and a leader in educational technology.
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