Starting the habit of learning
ast November, The Manila Bulletin launched its advocacy campaign dubbed as “Read for 20” at the National Bookstore in Makati to celebrate National Reading Month.
This advocacy campaign encourages people, especially the young, to develop a love for books by reading at least 20 minutes a day.
Study conducted by a neuroscientist revealed that reading 20 minutes a day will expose readers to about 1,800,000 words a year, and enable them to get a 90 percent score in a standardized test.
Just as food nourishes our body, and eating a meal typically takes about 20 minutes, spending 20 minutes a day reading nourishes our brain through information and experiences acquired from the book.
The Manila Bulletin believes that reading will continue to be the prime element in creating generations of fully informed Filipinos. A 2012 survey conducted by SWS showed that the habit of reading books, newspapers and magazines had dropped, from 94 percent in 2003 to only 88 percent.
In his speech during the launch, Dr. Sonny Coloma, Executive Vice President of The Manila Bulletin said that while the habit of reading printed publications may have declined nationwide, and many Filipinos have shifted to using digital devices for accessing news and information, reading books, newspapers and magazines is still the superior experience to reading from smart tech tools on the run.
Victor Villanueva, President of Reading Association of the Philippines, who supports the campaign, when asked why they are promoting books instead of e-books, replied: “It’s more affordable, second, it is more durable.”
Villanueva also said that the retention of information tends to be less when it is read in digital format rather than from “real” pages.
“Reading is a skill. It is something that you need to perform on a regular basis so that you will become good at it. It is simple human psychology that you are only good at things that you do often. And if you don’t read often, you will not be good at it. So, getting children and adults to become good at reading is to make them like reading,” Villanueva explained.
As part of the advocacy, The Manila Bulletin will be holding a series of book drives to encourage donation of books which will be given to a community. The Manila Bulletin will deploy its wing van, turned into mobile library, in different locations such as universities, parks, malls and other public areas. Visitors can borrow and read books inside the van and listen to scheduled activities. Aside from these, they can also donate their pre-loved books. The first stop for the year will be on Feb. 4 and 5 in Quezon Memorial Circle.
Aside from the mobile library, drop boxes will be placed inside partner restaurants, schools and bookstores.
In November 2017, all books donated will be exhibited in a “Wonders of Reading” library that will feature iconic destination landmarks such as the Eiffel Tower, the Roman Coliseum, Rizal Park and the Pyramids of Giza that will double as bookshelves. These destination landmarks emphasize how reading can take the readers partner through their imagination to different places.
After the exhibit, books will be donated to organizations and communities. This year, beneficiaries will be Barangay Carangcang in Magarao, Camarines Sur and Barangay Tanza in Navotas City. These barangays were endorsed by partner organization, MovEd, a nongovernment organization that aims to bring care and programs to children and their families.
The Read for 20 campaign is supported by the Department of Education, Philippine Institute for Development Studies, and Teach for the Philippines. Several students from De La Salle University and Centro Escolar University also attended the launch.
Recently, the Manila Bulletin and WTA Architecture and Design Studio, who are known for their Book Stop project, entered into partnership to further strengthen the “Read for 20” campaign.