International Literacy Day was on September 8th and we wanted to highlight a reading enhancement initiative ‘Time to Read’ managed by Business in the Community Ireland (BITCI). In 2013 BITCI launched Ireland’s first nationwide business to schools reading initiative, ‘Time to Read’. The programme, twins primary schools with local businesses across Ireland to give valuable reading support to 2nd class primary school children, with participant teachers already reporting a significant impact on the children’s comprehension and fluency when reading. The community based programme is part of BITC’s ongoing work to help businesses have a more positive impact on the communities in which they do business.
The Government fully supports the model and its supports and Minister Ruairi Quinn launched the initiative in the National Library. However, they receive no government funding and rely on sponsorship support to extend the programme to more schools. A generous and impactful private donor at The Community Foundation for Ireland wishing to fund projects in the education area and in support of young people decided to fund the programme. Through their Donor Advised Fund they have support Time to Read with €90,000 over the past three years in order for them to be able to carry out the programme.
646 primary schools are designated as DEIS status by the Department of Education and Skills. ‘Time to Read’ aims to focus on addressing and prioritising the educational needs of these children and young people from disadvantaged communities. The benefits of funding a programme such as this is being able to measure the impact and see the reach of it. The programme is one of tackling disadvantage; engaging with children and schools located in disadvantaged communities. There are schools that are missing out when it comes to literacy, often due to lack of resources and teacher time but with private funding these resources can be extended to more DEIS primary schools and children so they can avail of the one to one support. BITC currently has over 35 businesses and 50 schools involved in the programme and their objective is to reach many more 7 and 8 year old children in schools around the country so that they can have a great impact on literacy levels in Ireland.
The four key objectives of the programme are; to increase the enjoyment of reading, to increase the confidence in reading, to improve and encourage self-discovery, and to improve fluency and comprehension. In recent feedback from a business and its partnering school each of these objectives were exceeded with confidence and enjoyment surrounding reading reaching 100% satisfaction.
From the company perspective some of the benefits were listed as ‘being able to make a difference in child's life’ and ‘improved employees’ motivation/job satisfaction’. The partnership with the school was seen as very positive also with one comment being “Excellent, all the staff are lovely and very caring towards the children and this has created a great atmosphere which is palpable in the school, we were always made to feel very welcome and that they appreciated our time.”
The responses from the schools have been equally complimentary with 100% of school principals stating they would recommend it to another school. Feedback from one principal described the overall impact as “Very positive. The Time to Read programme is an established part of school life now. It promotes reading, it promotes workplace connections and it enables us to provide support to children who need it. It is a core part of our planning for literacy.” 97% of teachers said it increased childrens confidence in reading. One of the teachers involved recognises the importance of the programme and sees the impact it has through increased awareness of the importance of reading and that it has enhanced the school's dialogue with family as well as improved, attendance, engagement and self confidence.
If we want to ensure Ireland’s future success as a fair and equitable society, then we must start by taking care of our children and young people. Time to Read is a fantastic example of a strategic and impactful programme that makes a noticable long term difference to the lives of children and young people in Ireland. If you are interested in learning more about how you could get involved in ‘Time to Read’ visit www.bitc.ie or visit our Giving section to explore how you can strategically fund the rights of children and young people in Ireland.