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Coombe Boys' School in New Malden worked with Kingston University to establish a 'Big Read', a scheme of pre-arrival shared-reading for boys transitioning from local primary schools into year 7 of the Coombe Boys' secondary school. A novel was chosen for shared-reading, and all arriving pupils were given a copy at their Induction Day (at the end of the summer term). Copies were also made available to all staff. The book was the basis of group-based activities during the school's Summer School (three weeks before of the start of the autumn term) and of cross-curricular individual and group-based activities during the early teaching weeks of the new school year. Outcomes were monitored using online surveys of pupils, staff and parents/guardians, and through face to face interviews with individuals from representative groups. Here outcomes are reported, both direct and indirect, comparisons made with similar schemes within higher education, and recommendations are made for how the scheme might be adapted for greater effectiveness in future.

Coombe Boys' School in New Malden worked with Kingston University to establish a 'Big Read', a scheme of pre-arrival shared-reading for boys transitioning from local primary schools into year 7 of the Coombe Boys' secondary school. A novel was chosen for shared-reading, and all arriving pupils were given a copy at their Induction Day (at the end of the summer term). Copies were also made available to all staff. The book was the basis of group-based activities during the school's Summer School (three weeks before of the start of the autumn term) and of cross-curricular individual and group-based activities during the early teaching weeks of the new school year. Outcomes were monitored using online surveys of pupils, staff and parents/guardians, and through face to face interviews with individuals from representative groups. Here outcomes are reported, both direct and indirect, comparisons made with similar schemes within higher education, and recommendations are made for how the scheme might be adapted for greater effectiveness in future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on research into the benefits of reading for pleasure and the operation in the US of pre-arrival shared reading schemes for those about to embark on a university education, in the context of wider research on how to engage new students in their institution, an exploration was made of the likely response to such a shared reading scheme in a London university. A representative sample of first-year undergraduates was asked about how they spent their leisure time, their attitudes towards and involvement in reading for pleasure, and their reactions to such a potential scheme. The findings were that students were reading for pleasure more than had been anticipated, that they were generally keen to read more, and that a shared reading scheme would be welcomed by the majority of students. The outcomes are discussed, along with the decisions made as a result, and recommendations are made for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]