It is weird to think back on my time as a high school student and realize how little I read. Now as an adult I spend most of my free time reading novels, either fiction or nonfiction. My love for reading did not take off until my second year of undergrad when I began to read political philosophy and classical literature. This led to a love for other types of books and today I read a large variety that includes fantasy, classics, science fiction, and historical fiction. Looking back, I wish that I would have realized how enjoyable and beneficial reading can be. My lack of interest in books during those years can be attributed to many things but I think that a big reason is the fact that the curriculum at the time only allowed for a few of the same books to be taught year after year. I think that teachers can become complacent in what they teach which leads to students being required to read novels that are no longer relevant or interesting to contemporary students. As a future humanities teacher, I am excited to be able to introduce students to books that they are interested in and provide them with choice and opportunities to explore what they like and do not like in terms of novels. Reading not only builds reading comprehension but can help students develop empathy and open their minds to new worldviews and levels of inquiry that they might not have been introduced to prior. Reading can be used a form of escapism but can also be used to improve creativity and imagination. My favourite books often times are those that get me to think about when and where they were written and the social and cultural environment that allowed them to be created. Classics that have themes students can connect to still to this day are also of great merit and should be introduced to students. Forcing students to read books that do not interest them can only have negative impacts on their future willingness to read.
