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Cellphones spur reading revolution

Bonnie Tubbs
By Bonnie Tubbs, ITWeb telecoms editor.
Johannesburg, 24 Apr 2014
Mobile phones are more plentiful than physical books in many developing countries.
Mobile phones are more plentiful than physical books in many developing countries.

Mobile phones could help to enhance literacy rates in emerging markets, where physical books are in many cases outnumbered by cellphones.

This is according to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), which yesterday released a study, Reading in the Mobile Era. The 70-page study is the result of a partnership with cellphone manufacturer Nokia, and Worldreader, a California-based non-profit organisation, that aims to eradicate illiteracy in low-income countries by providing e-books on e-readers, Java-enabled and Android phones and tablets.

The study found that often, where physical books are scarce, mobile phones are actually abundant. While mobile phones are still used primarily for basic communication, both smart and feature phones are a gateway to long-form text, says the report.

Recent UN data indicates that, of the estimated seven billion people on Earth, over six billion now have access to a working mobile phone. To put this number in perspective, only 4.5 billion people have access to a toilet (UN, 2013).

UNESCO notes that for a fraction of the cost of a physical book, it is often possible to access the same book via a mobile device. "Across developing countries, there is evidence of [people] reading multiple books and stories on mobile phones that can be purchased for less than $30 (about R320).

"Mobile reading is not a future phenomenon, but a right here, right now reality."

Reading revolution

According to the report, females read up to six times more than males. It also found that parents in developing countries regularly read to their children using cellphones, and that mobile reading changes negative attitudes towards reading.

A case in point, the report cites "Charles" - a teacher and mobile reader who lives in SA's neighbour Zimbabwe. Charles reads to his class from his mobile phone and says a lack of available printed content is the main reason he reads on his cellphone.

"We live in a remote area where there are no libraries, and the books I have in my own small library are the ones which I have already read. So this is now giving me a chance to choose from a variety of fiction titles," says Charles.

Mark West, co-author of the report, says a key conclusion from the study is that mobile devices can help people develop, sustain and enhance their literacy skills. "This is important because literacy opens the door to life-changing opportunities and benefits."

Another key conclusion from this publication is that mobile devices constitute one tool - in a repertoire of other tools - that can help people develop, sustain and enhance their literacy skills. "[Cellphones] can help people find good books and, gradually, cultivate a love of reading along with the myriad advantages that portends - educationally, socially and economically."

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