Reading for success: the day of reflection on reading

Although Quebec has a very dynamic book industry, it cannot yet claim an authentic reading culture.

More than 50 % of adult Quebecers cannot read a dense or long text that requires interpreting several pieces of information and giving it meaning *. This underdevelopment compromises the education, access to culture, health care and participation in the labor market for a large part of our fellow citizens, which has tragic consequences for our democratic institutions, our economy, public health, and so many others.

The book remains associated with a school chore, or the preserve of an elite. And according to a received idea, men are allergic to the pleasure of reading. 

The Read to Succeed Day will mobilize professionals from culture, the community sector, health and education networks, the business world - not to mention the general public - to deconstruct myths and stereotypes about the practice of reading. Workshops-meetings and round tables will examine the place of reading in our daily lives, in the light of our busy and connected society. 

The Day will end with a plenary session with the essayist and philosopher Normand Baillargeon followed by a performance of Queen KA, artist of spoken word (oral poetry), accompanied by the musician Stéphane Leclerc.

Our November 25, 2019, from 1 p.m., at the Grande Bibliothèque de BAnQ (475, boul. de Maisonneuve Est, Montreal H2L 5C4), as part of the professional activities of the Montreal Book Fair.

• Full program
• Registration

The workshops and round tables of the Day will bring together:

• Égide Royer, psychologist and academic success specialist
• Eric Simard, bookseller-owner and president of the Association des libraires du Québec
• Noemie Larouche, editor-in-chief of the magazine CURIUM
• Melanie Jannard, author
• Olivier Hamel, librarian "biblioboxer"
• Nicholas aumai and Anne-Marie Fortin of Communication-Youth
• Mathieu-Lauzon Dicso, Coordinator of the Imaginary Horizons Prize
• Dominique lemieux, director of the House of Literature and of Quebec in full letters
• Jonathan Belisle, founder of calmr.io, co-founder of This Space, co-founder of the Ensemble Ensemble collective
• Katy roy, "Librarian-writer"
• Camillo Zacchia, psychologist
• Véronique Fontaine, president of Éditions Fonfon
• Clement Laberge, independent consultant - education, culture and technologies
• Nathalie Lacelle, professor of media literacy (UQAM)
• Nicolas langelier, journalist, author, editor (Atelier 10)

* According to the Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies, PIAAC, of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, in 2012 and 2015.