Make reading a gift to the young

It is heartening that Primary 4 pupils in Singapore have emerged as the top readers in the world in an international test. The recently released

results of the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (Pirls)

show that pupils here are stronger in both foundational and higher-order reading skills compared with their international peers. The Ministry of Education (MOE) notes that Primary 4 marks an important point of transition in children’s development as readers, “when they would have learnt how to read, and are starting to read to learn”.

Held every five years, Pirls evaluates fourth-grade pupils’ reading and comprehension skills, such as interpreting and drawing connections between texts. Commendably, more than a third – 35 per cent – of Singapore pupils achieved the highest “advanced” level in the study, which refers to high competency in reading difficult texts and showing higher-order thinking skills. The international median was 7 per cent. These results help to corroborate the value of a Singapore school education, which is proved by students’ high scores in international tests such as the Programme for International Student Assessment (Pisa) that measures the competencies of 15-year-olds in reading, mathematics and science.