Fifth Basic Plan Concerning the Promotion of Reading Activities by Children

【2023-E003】

The Fifth Basic Plan Concerning the Promotion of Reading Activities by Children was approved by the Cabinet on March 28, 2023, and stipulates basic principles and concrete policies for the promotion of reading activities for children during the five-year period from 2023 to 2027, in accordance with the provisions of the Law on the Promotion of Reading Activities for Children, enacted in December 2001.

The Fifth Basic Plan contains a review of the Fourth Basic Plan, according to which several improvements have been made over the past five years, including increases in the number of libraries, the rate of introduction of OPAC (Online Public Access Catalog) and the percentage of schools with school librarians. The review also mentions that the average numbers of books read per month at elementary, junior high and high schools is higher in 2023 than it was in 2001, and the average comprehension score of Japanese children is in a higher-scoring group than the OECD average. However, the number of children’s books loaned by public libraries and the percentage of schools which have school-wide reading activities are on the decline. The percentage of non-readers, students who do not read any books in a month, is still high. This review postulates that children’s reading activities have been affected by the temporary closure of schools and libraries during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Based on this analysis, key points of the Fifth Basic Plan are as follows. Detailed policies, mainly related to libraries, are indicated in parentheses.

・ Reducing the percentage of non-readers
(Initiating reading activities such as story hour for pre-school age children; promoting the use of libraries in research activities for high school students, etc.)

・ Ensuring reading opportunities for children in a wide variety of contexts
(Providing accessible materials such as digital books and braille books; providing information to users in multiple languages/easy Japanese, etc.)

・ Equipping libraries with reading environments appropriate to a digital society
(Improving tablet-friendly environments; enhancing digital archives and e-book loan services, etc.)

・ Promoting reading activities while listening to children
(Accepting children’s requests about materials and equipment; encouraging active participation of children in the management of school libraries, etc.)

Ref:

(2023.8.6 update)
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