Decline of Reading Culture among Students in Higher Education Institutions: A Survey of Juja and Thika Towns, Kenya

Abstract

Primary school education is intended to inculcate in the learner basic literacy skills of reading, writing and simple arithmetic. The next level which is secondary education is aimed at identifying the career path the learner should pursue based on his/her ability and endowment. This ability is what informs the course the learner will pursue at the tertiary level of education. Higher education as contextualized in this paper is synonymous with tertiary education and refers to learning undertaken after secondary school be it in a college, TVET institution or university. The Study adopted the descriptive survey design. The location of the Study was Juja and Thika towns and their environs in Kenya for having a higher concentration of colleges and universities in Kenya when compared with other regions in the country. Triangulation of sampling techniques was used. The Study found out that less than 50% of students did not visit a library outside their institution to study or buy a personal book for the course they were undertaking. Further, over 50% of the students accessed the internet for non-academic content and went to the library only to study for examinations and not gain wide knowledge. The Study established causes for the decline of the reading culture that included poor foundation in high school and misuse of A.I. Finally, the Study recommended measures to redress the poor reading culture e.g policy changes on evaluation and regulating the use of A.I.