A study has found that the only out-of-school activity that will really enhance a teenager’s career prospects is reading.

Oxford University academics have found that 16-year-olds who read books at least once in a month were significantly more likely to be in a managerial or professional job at 33 than those who did not read books at all.

No other activity, from sport to socialising with friends, going to museums and concerts, or doing practical activities such as cooking or sewing, affected their careers, unless they were also reading.

Education experts said that the findings are proof of the importance of reading.

“Reading makes children more empathetic and helps them socialise,” the Daily Mail quoted Sue Palmer, child development expert and author of Toxic Childhood, as saying.

“It actually changes the architecture of their brain.

“Not only are they more academically able. But they are also better at relating to other people and therefore more capable of holding managerial positions in the workplace,” added Palmer.

Speaking to delegates at the British Sociological Association annual conference, lead author Mark Taylor, of Oxford, said: “According to our results there is something special about reading for pleasure.” (ANI)

Similar Posts:

• Brain regions can briefly go ‘off-line’ even while awake, causing errors
• Boy, 6, needs help to fight rare disease
• Coming soon: Wireless nappies and 3G slippers!
• 10 yrs in a desk job can double bowel cancer risk even if you go to the gym!
• Sick soldiers: Understanding how wartime explosions cause concussions