The Brookings Institution, points out that in an era of information overload and no standard answers, merely cultivating children’s basic academic abilities is clearly insufficient to meet the challenges of the times. Research shows that children who master self-learning skills (Learning to Learn) at an early age not only improve their efficiency in reading, writing, and mathematics but also maintain self-discipline when unsupervised and excel in learning compared to their peers.

At the same time, under the new curriculum guidelines, which emphasize interdisciplinary and competency-based learning, the focus has shifted to the subjectivity of reading. To help children become lifelong learners, using reading to solve problems has become a central learning objective. In the past, reading was focused on "quantity," encouraging extensive reading and fostering an interest in reading. However, simply "enjoying reading" is no longer enough to cope with the complex and ever-changing external environment. Today, reading emphasizes "quality," focusing on the process of reading, which includes decoding, information retrieval, synthesis and interpretation, reflection and evaluation, understanding, and critical thinking.

For a long time, reading ability was simply understood as "literacy" and the ability to "grasp the meaning of texts," while writing was seen as a more advanced expression skill developed based on reading ability. Lin Shu-yu, a graduate of the Graduate Institute of Educational Policy and Leadership of Tamkang University and currently a teacher at the KUMON Zhubei Shengli 2nd Road classroom, first debunks a common myth: "Many people believe that extensive reading is the foundation of writing, but it has been proven that many children, despite reading a lot, still struggle with writing. Why is this? The relationship between reading and writing is actually like the ‘chicken or egg’ dilemma—it’s not about one coming before the other. It’s a cooperative relationship. Whether it’s reading or writing, the key is whether children can internalize what they read into their own feelings. Whether they express it through writing, drawing, or speaking, that’s when it becomes their own knowledge and ability."

Building on this, Teacher Lin breaks another myth: "Many parents believe that children need to learn to recognize words before they can read and later write. However, as I shared earlier, reading and writing are just tools to guide children to think for themselves. Even young children can start with looking at pictures in storybooks. This is still reading. Later, we guide them to express it, either by talking about it or drawing it out! Writing is just one form of expression. What’s more important is whether children are willing to ‘create.’ Simply put, reading helps children become smarter and more wise, which in turn increases their willingness to self-learn. This is the true ability that reading should inspire!"

[CommonWealth Education] Reading Ability is Key to Self-directed Learning: KUMON Drives Children’s Passion for Learning!