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210 chapter 6: teachers and reading instruction
On average internationally, about half the students (49%) were asked to
read descriptions and explanations at least weekly, while fewer were asked
to read instructions or manuals (19%) or charts, diagrams, or graphs (26%).
Most of the students (82 to 85%) in Austria, Germany, Hungary, and Italy
were asked to read descriptions and explanations about things, people, or
events at least weekly.
The percentage of students whose teachers asked them to read
informational texts at least once a week was less than those asked to read
literary texts (58% vs. 84%). Interestingly, the six countries and two provinces
with the highest percentage of students (between 80 and 90%) who were
asked to read nonfiction at least once a week were among those with the
smallest relative differences between informational and literary achievement
scores (less than 5 points, though nonsignificant only in Austria in Italy).
The average achievement across countries of those students asked to read
nonfiction at least weekly differed only slightly from the achievement of
those asked to read nonfiction less than weekly.
Exhibit 6.9 shows changes from 2001 in the percentage of students
whose teachers asked them to read literary and informational texts at least
once a week. Although, on average internationally, there was no change over
the 5-year period in the percentage of students asked to read fiction, there
were changes for a number of participants. Increases occurred in France,
the Netherlands, Singapore, Sweden, and the Canadian province of Quebec,
while decreases occurred in Latvia, Morocco, New Zealand, and Romania.
There were more increases across participants in weekly nonfiction reading
assignments, including Bulgaria, Germany, Hungary, Israel, Italy, Moldova,
the Russian Federation, Slovenia, Sweden, and the Canadian province of
Quebec. Only in Iceland was there a significant decrease in the percentage
of students asked to read nonfiction at least weekly. An increase in the
percentage of students asked to read both fiction and nonfiction took place
in Sweden and the Canadian province of Quebec.