When students are told to read, they are either going to scoff with an occasional eye roll or say, “who has the time for that?”. The words “I just don’t have the time” and “I don’t feel like reading” are spoken throughout school halls way more than they should be. Reading is crucial for mental development, vocabulary expansion, stress reduction, and obtainment of stronger analytical thinking skills.

Yes, the students are assigned reading material in their classes, but is that really enough? Psychologically speaking, one has to want to read and understand the content in order to retain information. Failure to pay attention will result in encoding failure. The information taught won’t be processed or stored in the memory and therefore, information doesn’t stick. It is a matter of motivation and ambition–care for one’s future in the real world.

Sarahy Zamudio, an Oakdale junior, shares some of the obstacles she is facing relating to this particular topic. “I barely read anymore. Yes, I do enjoy reading, but I have all AP classes this year. I just don’t have the time [to read] nowadays and it sucks.”

Fluency in the English language has been in a gradual declination over the most recent years as most young adults don’t use proper grammar. Language is the key to success. Society functions better when humans can communicate well with each other. It’s easy for a person to judge another person based on their fluency in English, especially in the workplace or going in for an interview. Books provide lengths of extended knowledge, opening the imagination of the learner. A well-functioning society needs both knowledge and imagination to prosper.

Makenzie Kramer, an Oakdale junior, shares how she thinks reading has helped her in everyday life: “I read all the time, even though I find myself with a lot of homework, I find the time. I believe anybody can find the time to read if they really want to. I read a lot of higher-level books and I have definitely seen a difference in my writing and speech.”

Reading is crucial. In order to pass a test, one must read a textbook to retain the information. If one already enjoys reading, then they conclude that studying for a test will be easier compared to someone who loathes reading. The mind is like a faceted crystal; there are multiple perspectives and there are always many angles–even angles that we ourselves are unaware of. By reading and absorbing the rich words of books, we become more open-minded and aware of people. This will help everyone in the long run, whether one is going about handling a situation or simply using that knowledge to help them get their MBA. Books are the past, present and future. Without them, we would all fail in life. That’s why it is good to start reading at an early age. Otherwise, we won’t have the motivation to study at the university and we wouldn’t be able to progress into the real world.

Next time you are offered to go to the library or have the opportunity, take it into your own hands to get the knowledge you need, because there is always something that a person is curious to know. Knowledge in books expands far greater than that of the internet. Knowledge in books come from genuine, world renown authors who speak their personal perspectives and combine them with facts. On the internet, you never know how reliable people are or how truly valid the information they post is. Make sure you get the genuine hand copy of a book, sit down at a table in the library’s calm and sedate environment, and take the time to tranquilize your mind by reading. As they say, kick back with a good book and relax.