Andrew Ettinger, Director of Education at the National Literacy Trust explores the relationship between video games and literacy, especially within the context of our Future of Literacy project.
Is there a way that children and young people can access vital literacy skills through gaming? What are the benefits of playing video games in relation to a child’s literacy skills? Andrew reflects on his own experiences of engaging with video games and considers how this can provide an appealing gateway into reading for pleasure, especially for those who are more reluctant readers. We need to consider how we legitimise the next generations’ experiences, hobbies and culturally relevant formats to help them access the literacy skills that are vital to thrive both in their social, and future lives but also within their education and potential career paths.
The varied use of text to build and understand story and narrative within video games
If you haven’t played Fortnite you may be slightly perplexed by the title of this blog (or just impressed by my manners on my morning commute). If you have played Fortnite, and 600 million people have, you will recognise this line.
For those of you who haven’t, the game involves a battle royale between 100 players who all sky-dive onto the island from a battle-bus. As they jump, it is the in-game norm for each player to press a button to thank the bus driver.
The reason I mention this, is that the action of thanking the bus driver exists within the game as text – not an animation, or sound-effect, or badge - but as words on the screen. Fortnite, like many games, conveys much information through text as an inherent part of the gaming experience, alongside visuals, audio and haptics.
In another example, and to reference my favourite game of the last few years, Elden Ring is sparing with its use of text through the main storyline. The responsibility, therefore, falls to the player to construct the narrative - or certainly their own version of a narrative - through other text found in notes, item descriptions and even messages from other players.
By contrast, anyone who has played FC25 (formerly Fifa), and nearly 3 million copies of it were sold in this country alone, will appreciate the huge amount of text onscreen. Menus, dialogue, statistics and information are conveyed through-out the experience of FC25. The use of text, and therefore the ability to read and digest what is being shared, is essential to the game experience and essential to enjoying and succeeding in it.
Expanding our definition of reading for pleasure by embracing different formats
Our latest Annual Literacy Survey, which reached nearly 115,000 children and young people aged between 5 and 18, has revealed that the percentage of young people who say they enjoy reading is at its lowest for 20 years. This is despite the fact that the questions within the survey were posed to include a wider understanding of reading materials and include more than just books (for example on-screen reading engagement and song lyrics were also included).
This decline in reading enjoyment levels is particularly prominent among young people in teenage years and worse among boys than girls. Yet if we asked these same young people if they enjoyed gaming (or online communication, or songs, or reading match reports) it would be absolutely no surprise if a far higher proportion of them said they did.
The idea of reading has now become distinct from the contemporary experience of literacy. Reading, and literacy in its wider sense, is inherently an integral part of the experiences of young people but the identification of self as a reader has become removed from that.
Meeting children where they are at: Are video games a key part of the future of literacy?
Part of our work at the National Literacy Trust, and a core ambition of the Future of Literacy project, is to legitimise the contemporary experience of literacy.
If we recognise that literacy in gaming, in sports, in music, is valid in and of itself and as a pathway through to more formal literary experiences, then I believe more young people will recognise themselves as readers (and as literate). In turn, they are more likely to rediscover the joy that reading, writing and communicating can give. This isn’t to diminish the central importance of books in literacy development and understanding. However, especially in relation to children and young people who identify as disengaged or reluctant readers, it is important that we broaden the spectrum of what is considered ‘reading for enjoyment’. By keeping the act of reading as a more niche hobby involving a book, it creates a conceptual barrier to children’s reader identity.
Writing within a digital-first world
The same could be held true of the other essential, and connected facets of literacy: writing and speaking and listening. Whilst only those who have been gamers as long as I have will remember typing, “Say to Gandalf “Carry me””, writing in a digital-first world is still an essential skill. From writing prompts for AI, to social media posts, comments under YouTube videos or the use of in-game emojis; text communication is also inherent. Moreover, the sophisticated level of spoken communication and oracy skills needed to work within a team playing Fortnite or FC25 will be recognised by all players (and indeed many parents listening to their children play with their friends online).
Marrying digital literacy and traditional literacy
Validating online literacy will not only encourage young people to develop their literacy skills in both the online and ‘IRL’ worlds, but re-build that pathway between digital literacy and what we might call traditional literacy. By tapping into young people’s interest and meeting them where they are at, we can re-establish reading, writing, speaking and listening as something valid, valuable and enjoyable for all our young people.
This is something we explore as part of our broader research around literacy in the digital age. As part of a project exploring critical digital literacy and wellbeing, we found that many young people, especially boys, told us that they enjoyed reading online materials relating to video game playing in their free time. This finding inspired a series of independent surveys looking at video games and literacy, and work with a wide range of partners, including UKIE and PRH.
What does our research show?
Our first survey, focusing on the relationship between video game playing and literacy amongst young people aged 11 to 16, found that video games could:
- provide a route into reading – 4 in 5 (79%) of young people who played video games read materials relating to video games regularly
- encourage creativity through writing – 3 in 5 (63%) of young people who played video games wrote something relating to video games regularly
- Offer potential benefits for empathy – 2 in 3 (65%) of young people said that playing video games helped them imagine being someone else.
In addition, almost 3 in 4 (73.1%) young people who didn’t enjoy reading said playing video games helped them feel more part of a story than reading a book-based text.
For my own son, this has proved true as the games that he plays, and the literacy at the heart of them, has now moved him to explore with me how the content of those games he loves can be opened up further through great books on similar themes.
If you like these video games – here’s the booklist for you
As a starting point, here are some great books that might be the next step to encourage children who enjoy playing certain video games to grow a love of reading:
- For enthusiasts of Red Dead Redemption 2, why not try Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy. However this is a very mature book and as a caveat, I couldn’t recommend to teenagers other than my own, so please tread wisely based on the age of your young person.
- For Fortnite fans – The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins is a must-read.
- For Elden Ring lovers – I would recommend the work of N.K. Jemisin, or, not everyone's cup of tea, but explore George R R Martin's range of books.
- For those that enjoy Grand Theft Auto – discover the works of Elmore Leonard, James Ellroy or Chester Hines.
You can discover more titles in our book list for video game fans curated in 2020 with the help of Penguin Random House.
Explore Video games to support literacy created with Andy Robertson from Taming Gaming.
We’d love to hear from you
Whether you're a teacher working with digital forms of literacy in the classroom, an employer concerned about the literacy skills of your future workforce, or a parent concerned about your children’s ability to find their way in a digital-first world (like I am), then we want to hear from you. We'd love to hear your thoughts more broadly on the future of literacy but also what we have discussed in this blog on video games.
If you’d like to get in touch to arrange a conversation please email futureofliteracy@literacytrust.org.uk.