Curricular and Free Reading in the Context of Three Generations: Schoolchildren, University Students, and Literature Teachers
Irina E. Bryakova, Doctor of Pedagogical Sciences, Professor
Orenburg State Pedagogical University, Orenburg, Russia, ibryakova@yandex.ru, https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6922-0197
Natalia M. Svirina, Doctor of Pedagogical Sciences, Professor
K. D. Ushinsky St. Petersburg Academy of Postgraduate Pedagogical Education, St. Petersburg, Russia, nmsvirina@mail.ru, https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7250-8650
Abstract
A large-scale experiment conducted in the 2003/04 and 2024/25 academic years revealed the relationship between curricular and free reading among schoolchildren, humanities students, and literature teachers. It has been established that readers of different generations often cite the same writers. These are primarily books by Russian authors included in the curriculum: A. S. Pushkin, M. Yu. Lermontov, F. M. Dostoevsky, I. S. Turgenev, and M. A. Bulgakov. However, outside the school curriculum, there are no texts that could be called “generational” based on their frequency of mention. School classics remain in students’ memories in a shortened form compared to the literature curriculum, but they are assimilated as important reading, contributing to intellectual, spiritual, and moral development. Among the books recommended by students to schoolchildren, genre and thematic preferences were identified: books that shape the reader’s cultural field, empathy, and contribute to the reader’s maturation; books about the historical past and the Great Patriotic War; genres such as adventure, science fiction, and fantasy were also mentioned. The lists were compiled based on the stages of literary development of schoolchildren and demonstrate the students’ civic maturity. The study identified a gap between required (curriculum) reading and free reading across generations: books in the free reading category predominate. Schoolchildren, university students, and teachers showed a very limited reading level in contemporary Russian children’s and young adult literature. Methodological advice on organizing respondents’ reading is provided.
Bryakova I. E., Svirina N. M. Curricular and Free Reading in the Context of Three Generations: Schoolchildren, University Students, and Literature Teachers. Vestnik of Orenburg State Pedagogical University. Electronic Scientific Journal, 2026, no. 2 (58), pp. 282—299. DOI: https://doi.org/10.32516/2303-9922.2026.58.18.
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