Reading: The Bridge to a world of learning

Reading and writing are the lifelong foundations of learning. The ability to read and write is more than just a skill — it’s the cornerstone of lifelong learning.

Through reading, children unlock doors to creativity, imagination, and a wide array of other essential skills. This makes promoting reading habits from an early age not just important, but vital. A nurturing environment that encourages reading, alongside access to quality books and learning materials, can significantly influence a child’s development.

However, the 2022 Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) conducted by the National Statistical Office and UNICEF revealed that 53 per cent of students in grades 2-3 lack basic reading skills, notably in literal comprehension, word recognition, and interpretation. This highlights a pressing need for action.

Every Child Can Read – Inspiring a Love for Reading and Building Bridges to Learning

The determination to provide every Thai child with effective language and literacy skills at each stage of their development, enabling them to pursue their dream careers in the future, led to the inception of the ‘Every Child Can Read” initiative.

This initiative, a collaboration between Unicef Thailand and Tops, a food business under Central Retail, aims to create an enriching environment that supports the learning and development journey of every child.

This will ultimately yield significant benefits for their basic living and future career opportunities, while also working to reduce language disparities among children of different ethnicities living in Thailand.

Continuing the Collaboration: Advancing Educational Opportunities

Under the umbrella of the ‘Every Child Can Read’ initiative, Unicef and various partners including Tops have been at the forefront of promoting reading through various activities implemented by the Mobile Library Project, ‘A Book A Week’ campaign, alongside training programmes aimed at empowering parents and educators.

Tops has seen tremendous support from Tops customers nationwide, raising over 6.9 million baht last year. Recently, executives from Tops and Unicef took the opportunity to visit Wat Tanodtia School in Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya province, one of the participating schools.

They were warmly welcomed by the students and staff. During the visit, both parties also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to continue their partnership with Unicef Thailand, thus entering the fifth year of partnership and furthering their shared commitment to enhancing education and literacy.

The goal is to reach over 100,000 children through a network of 203 schools across 19 provinces nationwide, ensuring that as many Thai students as possible develop strong reading and writing skills.

Stephane Coum, Chief Executive Officer of Food Group, Central Retail, said, “At Tops, we believe in the power of sustainability in all aspects of our business, which is why we launched the ‘Small Acts Together’ initiative — a movement towards a more sustainable world through collective action. Our ongoing partnership with Unicef Thailand is a testament to our commitment to enhancing the quality of life in the country. We are confident that this collaboration will play a key role in creating societal value because a solid educational foundation is crucial for the development of children living in Thailand. Tops is proud to be a small part of this by providing opportunities and inviting our customers to join us in spreading positive energy and helping to build a better world. This aligns with Central Retail’s ‘CRC Care’ philosophy, particularly in ‘Care for the Community,’ which focuses on improving the quality of life for Thais and reducing social inequalities.”

Kyungsun Kim, Unicef Representative for Thailand, added, “Reading is the foundation of lifelong learning. It helps children organise their thoughts, expand their curiosity and overall, understand the world better. It also nurtures other essential self-learning skills. However, a lack of reading skills often begins at home, especially for children from disadvantaged backgrounds who often do not have access to books. The ‘Every Child Can Read’ project is focused on bridging this gap by distributing children’s books to those in remote and underserved areas and supporting teacher training to help young children develop reading skills from an early age.”

Jate Charoensuk, Director of Wat Tanodtia School in Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya province, one of the participating schools, shared his insights, “Our school places great emphasis on the reading and writing skills of our students. We’ve developed specific teaching methods to strengthen these fundamental skills among our 1st and 2nd graders, allowing them to build on these foundations in other subjects as they progress. After implementing the ‘A Book A Week’ activity, which included setting up reading corners and allowing students to borrow books to take home and accumulate reading points, we’ve noticed a significant increase in students’ love for reading. They are also using their free time more productively. Moreover, our 1st and 3rd graders have scored above the national average in both the National Test (NT) and the Reading Test (RT).”

Tops invite our valued customers to be part of this impactful journey in creating educational opportunities for children across Thailand.

Donation boxes are available at 156 branches nationwide. Additionally, limited edition shopping bags are available for purchase: size M for 7 baht and size L for 9 baht, with 2 baht from each purchase going towards the project.

These bags are available at all Tops, Tops Food Hall, and Tops Daily branches across the country.

This is just one of many activities we’ve planned over the next three years (2024-2026) to support this project, with funds raised going directly towards enhancing the literacy skills of children in Thailand.