Dear Jeyamohan,
You discussed ways to encourage our children to read. Your main idea is to be present with them and engage in reading together. However, your approach requires us to read, which is challenging given our demanding work conditions. Most working parents like us spend very little time with their children, who are often with their teachers instead. Unfortunately, many of our teachers do not read at all and often discourage reading. They cannot enforce reading as a requirement, as children tend to resist anything that feels imposed upon them. In some families, children spend most of their time with their mothers, who also do not read. They view reading as a trivial activity and may even prevent their husbands from reading. Overall, the prevailing attitudes in our environment discourage reading. Reading could become a social habit if our education system were to reorganize itself with a focus on fostering a love for reading.
Rajapandiyan
