Academy President - alarm signal regarding the decline in reading among young people

The President of the Romanian Academy, Ioan-Aurel Pop, sounded an alarm signal regarding the decline in reading among young people, during an anniversary session dedicated to the 130th anniversary of the establishment of the "Carol I" University Foundation. "Reading has unfortunately become a rare sight in Romanian schools," the historian said. According to him, students no longer view books as a source of knowledge, nor as a form of escape from everyday life or entertainment. "There are teenagers who enter their first year of college and admit that they have never read a novel from cover to cover, that they do not love poetry, that they do not know what dramaturgy is," Pop said. Digital technology and habits contribute massively to this rupture: "Videos have replaced the book page. We have the impression that we know everything, but it is an illusion."

• Deep reading versus superficial reading

The academician emphasized that the problem is not the dispute between the printed and digital book, but the difference between thorough reading and superficial reading or, even worse, the complete lack of reading. "Without reading we become deaf and blind. We lose our human essence. In order to remain human, we must read as much as possible and go to libraries," he pointed out, paraphrasing Heliade Rădulescu: "Read, boys, only read!"

• School, less and less interested in developing critical thinking

The President of the Academy also criticized the current tendency of the education system to marginalize learning by memorization, considering that this affects the ability of students to think independently. "A student who has nothing in his head, relying only on external data, becomes a docile tool. Such young people cannot understand social and political complexity and are easy to manipulate."

• Key disciplines of history, ignored by universities

Ioan-Aurel Pop also drew attention to the disappearance of some essential disciplines from the curriculum of the Faculties of History. Epigraphy, paleography, numismatics, sigilography or diplomatics - all necessary for understanding historical sources - are increasingly neglected. "It does not mean that these treasures no longer exist, but that we refuse to know them anymore", said the historian, highlighting the importance of training in ancient languages and writings, especially for researching the Romanian Middle Ages.

Pop gave as an example the case of Latin sources about Transylvania, showing that only 10% of the over one million documents in Latin are known, deciphered and valued. "From the 11th century to 1842, Transylvania's official documents were written in Latin. If we do not train specialists in these fields, we risk leaving a large part of our past buried."

The event in which the president of the Academy spoke took place in the Aula of the Central University Library "Carol I" and was moderated by conf. univ. dr. Mireille Rădoi, general director of the institution. The event was also attended by academicians, university professors, representatives of the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Education, marking not only the anniversary of a prestigious institution, but also the commitment to the cultural, educational and scientific future of Romania.