[Book. Photo Credit: Pixabay]

Concerns are mounting across North America as literacy rates among the younger generation continue to decline.

Recent data suggests that the shift toward digital-first environments is fundamentally changing how children engage with information, impacting everything from physical health to essential life skills and classroom pedagogy.

 Emily Andre stated in an article addressing technology overuse that children born between 2012-2024 are growing up in environments ‘dominated with technology.’

Due to technology-prone environments, children are becoming less likely to critically absorb useful information such as classic literature or long-form essays. 

Similarly, a statistic organized in January 2023 by Common Sense Media about the average time spent on technology showed that “teens aged 3 to 17 spend about 7 hours and 22 minutes per day” on digital devices. 

This is a consequence of social media using short videos that keep us hooked, causing excessive consumption of online content.

This long-term use of technology on a daily basis by many children has resulted in less time for academic studies, including literature. 

During September 2025, the Nation’s report card showed that the “average reading scores for high school seniors fell to their lowest level since 1992.”

This shows the impact technology has had on children’s literacy, setting them up for a difficult road ahead in future careers and day-to-day life.  

Over the past year, schools and parents have begun implementing new teaching strategies. 

Tutoring is one of the many strategies used to improve children’s literature.

While improving their literacy, it also fosters human interactions that create time away from technology. 

The opportunities for feedback and support via tutors allows students to get individualized focus. 

Tutoring has been shown to be beneficial for children, leading “many states in the US” to approve legislation for the development of proficient reading through tutors. 

However, these educational opportunities may not be available for many families across North America due to financial constraints.

Leading to “inequalities in access to quality” resources being shown to low income communities.

This loss of opportunity may create a disadvantage in future employment for the new generation and could be detrimental to their mental health and well-being.

Literacy “enables [people] to articulate their thoughts and feelings effectively.”

Serving as a skill that can reduce stress and promote “psychological well being.”

It also allows for people to communicate concisely, a skill that is important for employment. 

Furthermore, people gain the ability to understand social queues in human interactions that allow them to perform their best in their fields of interest. 

Currently, plans to improve literacy rates other than tutoring are being rapidly developed. 

Some methods include reading to children when they are young. 

“Hundreds of studies [show] the benefits of reading to your children when they are young.”

It introduces them to literature when they are prone to learning new things and when their brains are in the early stages of development. 

Secondly, talking with them also introduces human interactions that allow their brains to process information.

Even if they aren’t able to form replies, they are exposed to the language and a variety of different words at a young age. 

By exposing children of the new generation to the language that is spoken and involving them in human interactions, literacy rates in North America are bound to increase and create more possibilities for their future.