Why Children Are Reading Less | Intermediate Japanese Listening

Japanese script with English translation

1. 1.

   懐かしい。もう一度読んでみようって。

   It brings back memories. It makes me want to read it again.

2. 2.

   トレジャーハンティング。トレジャーハンレジャーハンティングみたい。

   Treasure hunting. It feels like treasure hunting.

3. 3.

   世界有数の故書店街として知られる東京神田人房町。読書の秋の高齢行事田フル本祭りが行われていて多くの人で賑わっています。

   Tokyo's Kanda-Jimbocho is known as one of the world's leading secondhand-book districts. The annual Kanda Used Book Festival, an autumn reading tradition, is under way and drawing large crowds.

4. 4.

   映像だとそのまま流しちゃうけど本だとやっぱ何度もじっくり戻ったりしてで自分で想像したり考えたりやっぱこの時期になると本みたいなって

   With video, you tend to just let it play, but with a book you can go back and reread things carefully, imagine them and think for yourself. When this season comes around, I feel like reading books.

5. 5.

   昨日から始まった読書館れた人たちはおよそ

   At the reading event that began yesterday, visitors searched among approximately...

6. 6.

   100

   one million

7. 7.

   万の中から自分好みの本を探していました。

   books to find ones that suited their tastes.

8. 8.

   こちらの男性が選んだのは時代小説。中になる。集中できるから。

   This man chose a historical novel. “I get absorbed in it because I can concentrate.”

9. 9.

   大人が本を楽しむ一方子供の読書時間が減っているという調査も。

   While adults enjoy books, a survey shows that children's reading time is declining.

10. 10.

    確かに。

    That's true.

11. 11.

    そこで話を聞いてみると

    So we asked people about it.

12. 12.

    本読みますか?

    Do you read books?

13. 13.

    読みます。

    Yes, I do.

14. 14.

    大好き方

    I love them.

15. 15.

    あんま読ませてなかったんですよ。小さい頃先生とかに読みかけした方がいいよみたいに言われてそれからなんかちゃんと始めたって感じですね。

    I hadn't really been reading to my child. When they were little, teachers told me it would be good to read aloud to them, so that's when I started doing it properly.

16. 16.

    ヶ月

    months old

17. 17.

    こちら11ヶ月の子供を持つ女性も

    This woman, who has an 11-month-old child, also said...

18. 18.

    自分で文章をかけなくなっちゃうのとかも

    I'm also concerned that they might become unable to write for themselves.

19. 19.

    AI

    AI

20. 20.

    とかに任せて書けなくなっちゃうのも嫌なので文章でたくさん読んであと人の気持ちとか分かるような子供になってほしいなと思うのでそうそうそう

    I don't want my child to leave everything to AI and become unable to write, so I want them to read lots of text and grow into someone who can understand other people's feelings. Yes, exactly.

21. 21.

    幼い子供への本の読み聞かせを頑張る人は多い一方子供が成長すると

    Many parents make an effort to read aloud to young children, but as the children grow...

22. 22.

    ほとんどる読んでる

    Hardly any reading.

23. 23.

    方見ない。やることが多すぎてその夜の時間に読っていうのが難しい感じがします。

    I don't really see them reading. There's so much to do that it seems difficult to make time to read at night.

24. 24.

    さらにこちらの親子中さの娘さんに読書事情について聞くと

    We also asked this mother and her junior-high-school-aged daughter about her reading habits.

25. 25.

    全くないですね。読書を好きにさせようと思って小さい頃は絵本とかいっぱい買い与えた。全然読まない。

    Not at all. I wanted her to like reading, so when she was little I bought her lots of picture books, but she doesn't read at all.

26. 26.

    だんだん飽きてきてちゃうよ。なんかずっと文字呼んでる。

    I gradually get bored. It's like you're just reading words the whole time.

27. 27.

    小学生までは本をよく読んでいたそうですが、今ではスマホに夢中になっていると言います。

    She apparently read often through elementary school, but now she is absorbed in her smartphone.

28. 28.

    勝離れの影響でしょうか?国語の受験勉強では思わぬく戦も。

    Could this be the effect of moving away from reading? She is also facing unexpected difficulties while studying Japanese for entrance exams.

29. 29.

    今あの受験でなんか勉強とかしてるんですけどすごいなんか難しい。

    I'm studying for entrance exams now, and it's really difficult.

30. 30.

    元々本が好きだったらそういうのって作者が何を言っているのかっていうのは本当は掴みやすいんでしょうけどやってこなかったので結構苦労してます。

    If I'd always liked books, it would probably be easier to grasp what the author is saying, but I haven't done much reading, so I'm struggling quite a bit.

31. 31.

    いやもうこの次回いろんなコンテンツがありますからね。なかなか本に没頭するっていうのは子供だけじゃなくて大人もね減っていると思います。さてこんな調査結果があります。

    There is so much content around these days. I think not only children but adults too are less likely to become absorbed in a book. Now, here are some survey results.

32. 32.

    1週間の読書時間について対象が小学校4

    Regarding weekly reading time, the survey covered students from the fourth grade of elementary school...

33. 33.

    年生から中学3年生なんですが、ま、全く

    through the third year of junior high school, and those who do not read at all...

34. 34.

    読まないという方も17.4%

    account for 17.4%.

35. 35.

    そして1時間未満という方が、ま、合計

    And those who read for less than one hour total...

36. 36.

    72.6%

    72.6%.

37. 37.

    ということなんですよね。やはり多くの方

    That's what the results show. Indeed, many respondents...

38. 38.

    が

    said that

39. 39.

    本を読むより動画やゲームの方が楽しいと

    videos and games are more fun than reading books.

40. 40.

    ね、多くの方が答えているということなん

    That is how many people responded,

41. 41.

    ですよね。で、ちなみにこの調査での本と

    you see. Incidentally, in this survey, the definition of books...

42. 42.

    は、ま、絵本や小説だけではなく電子書籍

    includes not only picture books and novels but also e-books...

43. 43.

    でしたり漫画オーディオブックも含まれて

    as well as manga and audiobooks.

44. 44.

    いるということなんですよね。ですから皆

    Those are included too. So this shows that people's...

45. 45.

    さんの勝じ離れ

    move away from the written word

46. 46.

    がね進んでいるというのもわかります。

    is continuing to accelerate.

47. 47.

    この活離れ、やはり環境もね、大きく影響

    This move away from the written word is also strongly influenced by people's environment.

48. 48.

    しているということで3個まで見ていき

    With that in mind, let's look at three factors.

49. 49.

    ましょう。

    Let's do that.

50. 50.

    北里大学一般教育部の井原準教授に伺い

    We spoke with Associate Professor Ihara of Kitasato University's College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

51. 51.

    ました読書離れ加速のま、小中学校の読書

    about the accelerating decline in reading. Reading in elementary and junior high schools

52. 52.

    時間が減るのはプログラミングや英語など

    time is decreasing because more time is being devoted to programming, English, and other subjects.

53. 53.

    の時間が増えてしまっている。そこに時間

    Those activities now take up more time,

54. 54.

    を取られてしまって読書から離れていると

    leaving less time for reading and causing children to drift away from it.

55. 55.

    いうことなんですよね。それだけではあり

    That's what's happening. But that isn't the only reason.

56. 56.

    ません。やはりテレビ、そしてパソコン、

    There is also television, as well as computers

57. 57.

    スマスマートフォンなど時間の消費先が

    and smartphones—the ways people can spend their time

58. 58.

    多様化してしまっている。ま、これは本当

    have become much more diverse. This really

59. 59.

    に大人も言えますよね。さらにドーパミを

    applies to adults too, doesn't it? Furthermore, children who

60. 60.

    刺激するSNSのショート動画などに依存

    become dependent on short social-media videos and other content that stimulates dopamine

61. 61.

    する子供たち。

    are becoming increasingly common.

62. 62.

    ドーパミン中毒のガキ略してドパ書き

    “Dopamine-addicted brats,” shortened to “dopa-brats”—

63. 63.

    というね、言葉もよく聞きますよね。

    you hear that expression quite often, don't you?

64. 64.

    確かに。

    That's true.

65. 65.

    そんな時代に小学校の図書室に電気ってありましたよね。偉人の電気でもかなり分厚くて皆さんどうですか?読むのちょっと大変だった。漫画とありましたけど漫画読んでたな。

    In this day and age, remember those biographies in the elementary-school library? Even biographies of famous people were quite thick. How about you? They were a bit daunting to read. There were manga versions too—I used to read those.

66. 66.

    これが今なんと偉人の話が

    But now, amazingly, the story of a famous person

67. 67.

    1

    in one

68. 68.

    分で分かるというね、

    can be understood in just one minute.

69. 69.

    本が出ているということなんですよね。実際に実物用意しました。

    Books like that are now being published. We have an actual copy here.

70. 70.

    うん。1

    Yes. In a single

71. 71.

    冊で10人のね、10

    volume, the lives of ten—ten

72. 72.

    偉人の人生がまとめられているということなんです。じゃ、例えば中見ていきますと、じゃん。

    famous people are summarized. Let's take a look inside, for example. Ta-da!

73. 73.

    ナイチンゲールのね、人生がまずこのように

    Nightingale's life is presented like this,

74. 74.

    1

    on one

75. 75.

    ページ見開きでまとめられているんですよね。看護の基礎を気づいた強い天使とあります。

    two-page spread. It says, “The strong angel who laid the foundations of nursing.”

76. 76.

    うん。

    Right.

77. 77.

    中身も家族に大反対されて看護師になったんですが、ま、その後戦地の病院を大改革し結果的に

    It explains that her family strongly opposed her becoming a nurse, but she later thoroughly reformed a hospital on the battlefield and, as a result,

78. 78.

    ああ、なるほど。

    Ah, I see.

79. 79.

    兵士の死亡率が半分になったんだよと

    the soldiers' mortality rate was cut in half.

80. 80.

    内ちげるのでこのような、

    So, Nightingale's

81. 81.

    ま、人生、どのようなことを行ってきたかっていうのをこのように絵もつけながら

    life and what she accomplished are presented with illustrations

82. 82.

    簡単にまとめられているということなんですよね。めさんの手元にもありますがいかがですか?

    and summarized in a simple way. You all have a copy in front of you—what do you think?

83. 83.

    いや、私もやっぱり減りましたよね。正直言ってあの記事とかはね、結構読みますけど

    Well, I definitely read less too. Honestly, I read quite a lot of articles and things like that,

84. 84.

    本をじゃあ最近読んだのかって言うとやっぱ減りましたね。でもそれはある意味あの先ほどの

    but if you ask whether I've read any books recently, that has certainly decreased. Still, in a sense, as we saw earlier

85. 85.

    Vにもありました。ようにやっぱり読ませ

    in the video, I understand the idea that we need to make children read

86. 86.

    なきゃとかやった方がいいっていうのは私

    and that it would be better for them to do so.

87. 87.

    もよくわかるけれども、ま、我々の値代も

    I understand that very well. Our generation, too,

88. 88.

    もうそういう、ま、ある意味、え、ま、

    went through that sort of thing—in a sense, well,

89. 89.

    教育っていうか、そういうあのステージを

    that kind of education or stage, you might call it—

90. 90.

    得て今日に至ってるわけなので、ま、そう

    before arriving where we are today, so

91. 91.

    いうあの本を読むあの意味っていうのが

    we understand very clearly the value

92. 92.

    非常に分かるんですけども、その旅をして

    of reading books. But children who haven't gone through that journey

93. 93.

    こなかった子供たちはやっぱり

    really do need

94. 94.

    やるべきだってのは私もそれ非常に感じ

    to experience it themselves—that's something I feel very strongly.

95. 95.

    ます。

    That's how I feel.

96. 96.

    なのでこういう手、あの、こういう本みたいな、ま、まずは

    So books like this could serve, well, as a first step.

97. 97.

    1

    One...

98. 98.

    分から始めて、その中でもこの人やっぱすごいよね。もっと読みたくなるような

    Start with one minute, and if someone thinks, “This person really is amazing,” and wants to read more...

99. 99.

    1人でも2

    Even just one or two people...

100. 100.

     人でも出てくると、ま、いいかなとは思いますけどきっかけですよね、これは。うん。これすごくいいアイデアだと思って、私自身もあの、一般車団法人を立ち上げて本とか書店をこうどうやって残せるかっていう活動させてもらってるんですよ。

     If even one or two people emerge, I think that would be worthwhile. This is about giving them a starting point, right? Yes. I think this is a great idea. I myself have established a general incorporated association and work on finding ways to preserve books and bookstores.

101. 101.

     だ、めちゃくちゃ難しいことを実感してて、で、直き翔作家の岩村翔子さんが、彼はその幼い時からあの子は無さぼるように本を読んできた人ですごいねって声かけたことがあるんですけど

     So I’ve realized just how incredibly difficult it is. Naoki Prize-winning author Shoko Iwamura has read books voraciously since childhood, and I once told her how amazing that was, but...

102. 102.

     いやいや、それは言うけど、じゃあ歯磨きをしてる人に、毎日歯磨きしてる人にすごいねって言うか?

     “You say that, but would you tell someone who brushes their teeth every day that they’re amazing?”

103. 103.

     はい。

     Yes.

104. 104.

     そんなもんやで。

     “That’s what it’s like for me.”

105. 105.

     うん。

     Right.

106. 106.

     て言われた時にかかりに習慣化できるか。

     When she said that, I realized it comes down to how well you can turn it into a habit.

107. 107.

     うん。確かに。

     Yes, that’s true.

108. 108.

     ま、それは多分つからでも遅くないと思うんですけど、

     And I don’t think it’s ever too late to start doing that, but...

109. 109.

     これは強いなと思いました。

     I thought that was a powerful point.

110. 110.

     そうですね。

     That’s right.

111. 111.

     身につけるかというところもちょっと最後の方で見ていきたいんですが、ま、こんな調査結果もあります。

     Toward the end, we’ll also look at how to develop that habit. There are also survey results like these.

112. 112.

     2026

     2026...

113. 113.

     年度の全国学力学習状況調査によると読書好き、役に立つと答えた児童は各許可の政党率スコアが高かったということなんですよね。では東京大学の学生はどうなのか今日聞いてみました。

     According to the 2026 National Assessment of Academic Ability and Learning Conditions, children who said they liked reading and found it useful had higher percentages of correct answers in every subject. So today we asked University of Tokyo students about their experiences.

114. 114.

     東大の方ですが

     You’re a University of Tokyo student, correct?

115. 115.

     はい。歴史漫画みたいなのはオーラ的に

     Yes. I read history manga pretty comprehensively...

116. 116.

     読みましたし漫画をなんかそのでも入り口

     I read those, and manga also served as a kind of gateway...

117. 117.

     にして小説の方になんか入ってったので

     that led me into novels.

118. 118.

     なんかそっかかりとしてはすごく良かった

     So as a starting point, I think it was really good...

119. 119.

     んじゃないかなとは結構小説とか読むの

     for me. I quite liked reading novels...

120. 120.

     好きだった。例えばハリーポッターとか

     I liked it. For example, Harry Potter...

121. 121.

     なんか3週ぐらい読んだイメージ文字の

     I think I read it about three times. My ability to recognize written characters...

122. 122.

     認識能力みたいなところは確か多少

     did, I think, improve somewhat.

123. 123.

     上がってるのかなって感じはしますね。

     I feel that it probably got better.

124. 124.

     なんかに没頭できるみたいな体験をできるのが本だと思ってて、没頭することも楽しそしてじゃあ違うことに没頭してみようみたいな

     I think books let you experience becoming completely absorbed in something. Immersion itself is enjoyable, and then it can make you want to try immersing yourself in something else.

125. 125.

     やっぱり

     After all...

126. 126.

     ねをきっかけねという方もねましたよね。

     There were people who said books had been the catalyst for them, weren’t there?

127. 127.

     そして子供を4

     Next, a woman who got all four of her children...

128. 128.

     人東大に入れました教育評論家の佐藤さんにも話伺いました。知っている言葉が増えれば深く考えることができる。

     into the University of Tokyo—education commentator Ms. Sato—also spoke with us. She believes that the more words children know, the more deeply they can think.

129. 129.

     こういった思いで子供が

     With that belief, until her children...

130. 130.

     3歳になるまで絵本を1日10冊1

     turned three, she read them ten picture books a day, for an annual total...

131. 131.

     年間の延べ1万読み聞かせたそうです。

     of ten thousand read-aloud sessions, she says.

132. 132.

     1

     Ten...

133. 133.

     万ってね聞くとね、なかなか難しいんじゃないかと思うんですがはい。

     When you hear “ten thousand,” it sounds very hard to achieve, doesn’t it? Yes.

134. 134.

     これくらいでいいそうなんです。どんなこと意識したのか。子供が集中していなくてもいい。そういった状況でも絵本を読んであげてとにかく言葉を耳に入れるということ。

     Apparently, this level of effort is enough. What did she focus on? It was fine even if the child was not paying attention. She would still read a picture book in that situation, simply making sure the child heard the words.

135. 135.

     それから常に触れられる環境にするために本棚に入れずにもう散らばせとく。はい。

     And to create an environment where books were always within reach, she left them scattered around instead of putting them on a bookshelf. Right.

136. 136.

     そうすると本を読むことへの抵抗が減ったということなんですよね。

     That apparently made the children less resistant to reading books.

137. 137.

     さらにやはり習慣が大事ということで

     Furthermore, since habits are so important...

138. 138.

     親が本を読んでいる姿を見せないと子供も読まない。

     if parents do not let their children see them reading, the children will not read either.

139. 139.

     実際に保護者の読書時間が週

     In fact, among children in households where parents read for at least...

140. 140.

     1時間以上の家庭の子供が

     one hour per week...

141. 141.

     9

     over ninety...

142. 142.

     割以上本好きとね回答しているということなんですよね。

     more than 90 percent reportedly say that they like books.

143. 143.

     ではこの時代どうしていけばいいのか。井原さんによると

     So what should we do in this day and age? According to Ms. Ihara...

144. 144.

     AI

     AI...

145. 145.

     時代だからこそ的確に使いこなすためにも独会力や力が必要。何からすればいいのか。

     Precisely because we live in this era, we need reading comprehension and other skills to use it effectively. So where should we begin?

146. 146.

     ルールを決めましょう。1日15

     Let’s set a rule: fifteen a day—

147. 147.

     分読むとか1日10

     —minutes of reading, or ten a day—

148. 148.

     ページ読むなど感を得られる自分のレベルにあった本を選ぶところから始めるのがいいのではないかということです。

     —pages, for example. The idea is that you should begin by choosing a book suited to your level, so that you can get a sense of accomplishment.

149. 149.

     ルー化するんですね。

     So you turn it into a routine.

150. 150.

     ちに僕はキーワードはあのきっかけだと思うんですよ。私もやっぱり子供の頃はやっぱり学校でこの本読まないといけないんだっていうことでいや、あの何日後にそのレポートかけって言うと読みもた読みもあ、読みたくもないような本読まされたような経験も中にはあるのでやっぱり自分の好きなま少しでも好きなあ本とか内容とかがあればきっかけがあればまいルールね

     I think the key word here is having a trigger. When I was a child, school would tell me I had to read a certain book and write a report on it a few days later. I’ve had experiences of being made to read books I didn’t even want to read. So if there’s a book or subject you like, even just a little, and something that gets you started, then you can set a rule for yourself.

151. 151.

     1日10

     Ten a day—

152. 152.

     ページでも何でもできるんじゃないかなと思いますよ。

     —pages or whatever works—I think you’ll be able to do it.

153. 153.

     皆さんにも今からテレビ切って本読んで

     Everyone, turn off the TV now and read a book—

154. 154.

     いただこう

     —let’s have you do that.