Research Projects.
Reading Futures Study (2024 - 2029)
In this longitudinal study, we investigate how secondary school students engage with print and digital reading materials over four years, using various research methods to inform policies and support secondary school English language and library curriculum development.
Reading Together: The Role of Book Clubs as Cultural and Community Resources
With PIAAC findings revealing a decline in adult literacy in Singapore, this project led by A/P Loh Chin Ee asks what brings adults together around books. Using mixed methods, it examines the organisers and participants of book clubs to understand how these reading communities contribute to literacy development, cultural participation, and social connection.
Bilingual Readers, Evolving Preferences: A Follow-Up Study of Leisure Reading Habits among Primary School Students in Singapore
Building on an earlier baseline study, this project led by Dr Sun Baoqi tracks trends in bilingual leisure reading among Singaporean primary students from 2020 to 2027. It investigates how reading habits in English and Mother Tongue languages relate to reading proficiency and informs current efforts to foster joyful, lifelong bilingual readers.
Reading with MOLLY (2023 - 2024)
In this ethnographically-oriented study, we examine the reading resources of families living in two rental blocks in one neighbourhood. We also invited children aged 5-9 to take part in a MOLLY bus intervention and study the impact of their participation on their reading gain.
Designing School Libraries of the Future
In this design-based study, we work with three schools to envision their future-ready school libraries, and create resources to support schools’ capacity for encouraging reading and learning through the school library.
Leisure Reading in Two Languages
In this research study led by research scientist, Dr Sun Baoqi, we examine how primary school children read in English and their Mother Tongue languages of Chinese, Malay, Tamil and Hindi and provide suggestions for how to support students’ leisure reading.
Building a Reading Culture
In this mixed-methods study conducted between 2016 to 2020, we conduct the first baseline study of Singapore adolescents’ reading habits and learn how school libraries and their book collections can be made more central for students’ reading and knowledge acquisition.