For years, educators were primarily concerned about declining reading rates. Today, however, the problem has evolved from reading less to being unable to read complex texts. A new report by the educational technology company Renaissance, covering the UK and Ireland, paints a troubling picture of today's adolescents. It shows that a significant share of teenagers, particularly boys, are still reading elementary-level books even in the later years of secondary school, while avoiding more challenging material.
Based on more than 23 million reading assessments involving nearly 1.1 million students during the 2024–2025 academic year, the study found that most boys aged 11 to 14 continue to favor simple, illustrated series such as Diary of a Wimpy Kid, which are intended for younger readers. Even among students aged 13 to 16, many of the most popular books remain below the expected reading level for their age group. Girls perform relatively better and choose a broader range of novels, but they also face significant limitations in the diversity of genres and authors they read.
These findings extend beyond literature; they reflect a broader shift in how the younger generation learns and processes information. Reading lengthy and complex works is not merely about acquiring information, it also develops concentration, reasoning, imagination, empathy, and analytical thinking. As teenagers become accustomed primarily to simple texts, their ability to comprehend advanced academic material, analyze social issues, and make reasoned decisions gradually weakens. The report identifies three main factors behind this trend.
The first is the dominance of digital media and social networks. Today's teenagers spend much of their free time on smartphones, short-form videos, and an endless stream of online content. This environment conditions the brain to expect rapid information, constant visual stimulation, and brief messages, whereas reading books requires patience, sustained attention, and persistence. The more the brain adapts to short-form content, the less tolerant it becomes of long-form reading.
The second factor is the declining role of schools in fostering a reading culture. According to research cited in the report, only about one-quarter of UK secondary schools set aside at least 15 minutes a day for independent reading, compared with nearly two-thirds of primary schools. In other words, support for reading declines precisely when teenagers face the greatest competition from digital media.
Perhaps the most significant development in recent years, however, is the emergence of artificial intelligence. While the report's author discusses AI alongside social media, its impact extends far beyond that of another digital tool. A teenager who can obtain a summary of any book, answers to assignments, or an analysis of any text from an AI chatbot within seconds may have less incentive to undertake the demanding process of reading. AI can dramatically shorten the path to an answer, but if used without educational guidance, it may also bypass the learning process itself.
This is the paradox confronting education systems worldwide. AI has the potential to become one of the greatest personal tutors in history, explaining difficult texts, teaching new vocabulary, and encouraging students to read more. Yet if it is used merely as a tool for summarizing texts and generating answers, it may gradually erode the ability to read deeply. The difference lies not in the technology itself, but in how it is used.
Researchers also stress that the problem is not teenagers' favorite books. Series such as Diary of a Wimpy Kid and Harry Potter can serve as valuable gateways to reading. The concern is that many students never move beyond that stage. Readers who remain at the same level indefinitely eventually limit their linguistic and cognitive development.
From this perspective, today's challenge is not simply declining reading, it is a crisis in reading development. The new generation engages less with long-form texts, multilayered narratives, and intellectually demanding works, placing critical thinking, analytical reasoning, and the ability to understand a complex world at risk.
The report also carries an important message for countries such as Iran. Although cultural and educational conditions differ, Iranian teenagers live within the same global digital environment, exposed to the same social media platforms, short-form videos, and now the same AI tools. As a result, reading is no longer solely a cultural issue but has become one of the most important educational policy challenges of the AI era.
The key question is no longer whether AI will replace books, but whether education systems can turn AI into a bridge that leads students to books, or allow books to become casualties of AI. The future of literacy will depend less on the power of technology than on how that technology is managed in schools, families, and society.
NOURNEWS