In an era marked by rapid technological change and shifting learning habits, educators worldwide face an escalating concern: the decline in pupil reading proficiency.

Digital distractions and the dominance of visual media have all contributed to a decline in pupils’ engagement with written texts. This challenge extends beyond the number of books pupils read; it reflects a reduction in their ability to comprehend, analyse and critically evaluate complex content.

This is why we at Globeducate have made literacy a strategic priority across our international network of schools. The aim is not simply to raise literacy levels, but to cultivate informed, critically minded global citizens.

Here are seven ways we are doing that, through a mix of initiatives that combine curriculum design, professional collaboration and rigorous assessment:

1. Integrating literacy across the curriculum

Literacy is deliberately embedded in all subjects to emphasise the relevance of reading, and support academic progress across every discipline by helping pupils to develop strong critical reading skills regardless of subject.

For example, a history unit titled “Exploration and Discovery” involves reading biographies of explorers, historical journals and maps, while pupils apply their new understanding and knowledge by conducting interviews and writing diary entries written from the perspective of an explorer or scientist. Presenting findings on a famous voyage or discovery allows pupils to showcase their oracy and formal speaking skills.

Elsewhere, “Innovations and Inventions”, a science, technology, engineering and maths unit, allows pupils to focus on technical writing, persuasive communication and data literacy to compose a proposal or user manual for a product that they design.

2. Leveraging digital literacy

Rather than viewing technology solely as a distraction, schools adopt a hybrid model that blends traditional print with carefully curated digital resources.

For example, E-readers are used by pupils who may be more reluctant readers. The customisable text (eg, font size, spacing), embedded tools (dictionaries, text-to-speech) and user-friendly digital format motivate pupils to read, as they feel this is a more modern experience than that of “traditional” reading.

Another cost-effective initiative to broaden the range of available texts to pupils is to use online libraries. The vast, on-demand collection makes it easier for readers to find high-interest, age-appropriate books, and fostering self-selection builds confidence and engagement without having to wait for physical books to be purchased.

3. Engaging families

Because parents play a crucial role in nurturing a child’s love of reading, schools organise parent workshops to share practical strategies for supporting literacy at home.

Workshops include how to support their child with phonics, modelling ways to ask questions to facilitate comprehension skills, creating a reading space in the home and the importance of providing access to a variety of reading texts, such as comics, magazines, cookbooks, biographies, journals and audiobooks.

Parents are also encouraged to read with their children in any language they speak at home, not just English, to support and celebrate multilingualism wherever possible.

4. Building peer support

Reading buddy programmes pair older pupils with younger peers, and are used to strengthen both confidence and community.

These partnerships foster mentorship, improve fluency and comprehension, and help pupils of all ages develop empathy and leadership skills through shared reading experiences.

5. Promoting reading for pleasure

We also work hard to foster a culture in which reading is an enjoyable and self-directed activity. Book fairs, author visits and pupil reading clubs encourage young people to explore literature for academic growth and personal interests.

We also hold an annual Globeducate Reads initiative, which started in 2020, to unite pupils, teachers, parents and leaders in celebration of literature and reading. This includes author interviews, interactive storytelling and reading challenges. In 2025, 15,000 learners engaged with the event, and plans for 2026 are underway.

6. Professional collaboration

Through global professional learning communities, teachers and school leaders exchange evidence-based strategies and develop innovative practices.

As a key component of the Globeducate British International School (GBIS) cluster initiative, the GBIS Literacy Meet is a professional learning community that allows educators to engage in a termly forum to share research findings, showcase effective classroom approaches and refine their use of practical strategies.

This professional exchange strengthens collective expertise and ensures that best practice is disseminated across the network.

7. Monitoring progress

Finally, to ensure literacy initiatives are both effective and evidence-based, we use standardised and comparative assessment tools from GL Education, including the New Group Reading Test and the Progress Test in English.

This provides us with data-driven insights into pupils’ reading accuracy, comprehension and vocabulary development and measures broader English skills, including grammar, spelling and extended reading comprehension.

Teachers can track individual and cohort progress over time, identify areas requiring targeted support and benchmark performance.

Ultimately, we hope that, through all of this work, we can help pupils understand the value in reading books - for their own intellectual development but also simply the joy that reading provides, now and throughout their lives.

Oanh Crouch is education director for Globeducate

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