The School That Got Teens Reading

Something troubling is happening in schools all over Britain.

Teenagers are falling

out of love with reading.

-I hate reading.

-I don't see the point in doing it.

-It's boring, really.

-It's not really a thing that I like.

I don't do reading.

Studies have proved that teenagers who read for the joy of it are much

more likely to get better jobs as adults.

Yet there's been a steady decline in teenage reading rates

over the last 30 years.

Nobody reads because they want to.

We just do it because we're forced to by teachers.

Now, one of Britain's rising stars wants to do something about it.

Actor and comedian Javone Prince...

What?!

..is going into the biggest state school in Lancashire

to tackle a problem that used to affect him.

When I was at school, I hated reading, cos I thought reading was just boring.

It was getting in the way of what I wanted to do.

And I wanted to become an actor.

We're all here, so we're going to be a team.

Javone believes that discovering books changed his life.

And then I picked up my first book,

and it was Kite Runner - the most amazing book I read.

And then literally just getting lost in the world of the novel.

He's got just three weeks to convert the school's most reluctant readers

to his passion for literature.

Start forgetting about what the words are and start imagining what the thing is.

-Let Leon do it. I don't want to read.

-OK, OK.

Now, for someone who hates reading, you read pretty well.

I just can't deal with it.

He'll call on children's author and television presenter Helen Skelton...

-Don't stress.

-I AM stressing.

..to help him face his toughest audience yet.

I reckon I can do it.

And I reckon I can show them that words are important,

reading is, like, the most amazing thing in the world.

-Did you read the book?

-No.

-No, I didn't.

-No.

What did you do last night?

Facebook, I think.

It's Monday morning at Ripley St Thomas in Lancaster,

one of the top comprehensives in the country.

Ripley gets impressive academic results

but it still suffers from the same problem affecting schools across the UK.

A lot of pupils don't like reading.

We've done everything we possibly can.

We've been to national conferences.

We've built a brand-new library to complement our other library.

We've introduced reading on the timetable.

We have guided reading.

We have people coming into school.

We are doing everything possible.

Ripley has taken a bold step by seeking help from the most unlikely of sources -

comedian Javone Prince.

But he hasn't been near a school since he left at 16.

Kids, children, teenagers, young people.

I'm scared. I think they are the hardest audience.

Why should a teenager give me a chance?

Wow!

School.

-Ah!

-Good morning, Javone.

-Good morning.

-Welcome to Ripley. Lovely to see you.

-Lovely to see you.

-Have you always been a reader or did you...?

-No, no, I was never a reader.

I was terrible at school.

I didn't do well in exams.

And then going to drama school, sort of, it just kind of grew with me,

so that's why I'm here because I want to sort of like say,

"Look, come on, guys.

-"These words are so amazing if you just let them speak to you."

-Yes.

Javone is taking on the school's 14 and 15-year-olds,

an age when reading rates decline dramatically.

Well, good morning, Year Ten.

It's lovely to see you.

I'm very delighted this morning to be able to welcome a special guest.

This is Javone Prince.

You may have seen him on the television,

so I hope you'll give him a really good Lancashire welcome.

So, over to you, Javone.

Hi.

How are you? Are we good?

-STUDENTS:

-Yeah.

-Yeah!

Can everyone stand up for a second? Everyone stand up.

He's hoping his own rocky relationship with literature might just help him

relate to the teenagers.

Sit down if you've read a book this week.

Sit down if you've read a book in the last two weeks.

Three months. Eight months?

Nine. A year.

Two years.

OK, the ones left standing...

I would love it if you lot could give me a chance...

..to try...

..and inspire you to love reading like I love reading.

Everybody's staring at you. You're just proper, like...

You want to sit back down and just say, "Oh, I've read a book last week."

But you haven't, so I didn't lie about it.

I've chosen a book that I love, that I am confident

that you will love and have the same passion as I do.

When he started introducing the book, I was like,

"Oh, God, we're going to have to read."

It's called One. It's about acceptance,

you know, about identity.

He seems like a nice guy. I think I could connect with him.

But at the moment, I don't think he's going to persuade me very well.

I don't think he's going to make me read, no.

You lot still don't look convinced.

But it's fine.

So let's do it.

Javone's challenge is simple -

his new class must read an award-winning novel by Sarah Crossan.

One is a gripping tale about teenage conjoined twins Grace and Tippi.

This book's amazing. It's from the perspective of Grace.

And she's telling... You know,

she's letting you know what it's like to be a conjoined twin

and what they have to go through. And they start being home-school.

They can't afford it - Dad's lost a job,

Mum's got to take on a bit more work.

So they've decided to go to the local school,

and they know they'll get looked at or they're being...

They're different.

Hopefully this will open up their minds,

cos this is a book you can pick up and just get lost in,

without it being work.

If I can fall in love with this character, I'm sure they will.

Let's see how it goes.

If it's weird, I probably wouldn't read it.

It makes you think, but it's not necessarily like I went,

"Oh, yes, I'll start reading today because...

"..a guy came into my assembly telling me I should," you know?

I'm not a reader. And no famous actor

is ever going to get me to read.

And the pupils of Ripley are not alone.

Reading has fallen out of fashion

with youngsters all over the country.

In one recent year,

the number of 11 to 17-year-olds who don't read at all more than doubled

from 13 to 27%.

It's the next morning, and Javone's arrived to take his first-ever lesson.

He has only three weeks to convince the school's least enthusiastic

readers that they're missing out.

First, he's meeting Ripley's head of English.

-Hello. I'm Javone.

-Hi, I'm Rebecca. I'm head of English.

So have you got any tips for me?

Cos I've never taken a class before.

You'll need a lot of luck. No...

-Are they scary? Are they scary?

-No, they're not.

But they are teenagers.

Do you want me to show you where the classroom is?

Please take me to the classroom.

I'm really scared. I'm really scared.

This school... We can't deny

that this school is doing really well academically.

It does feel great on results day when you know you've got the child from A to B

and they can go on to the next destination.

But the whole point for me is actually making them want to,

when they leave school, pick up a book.

Thank you.

-This is the classroom you'll be using.

-Ah. OK. Cool.

'I think the idea he thinks he's going to get all those students'

loving reading the same way he feels about it

is questionable at this stage.

I think he needs to be aware that not everybody feels the way he feels about reading.

Javone is starting to appreciate the difficulties ahead.

He's not convinced anyone will turn up.

Literally, there is no-one.

There is no-one outside.

They're not obliged to come to this lesson. Er...

But I thought I convinced them enough to come to this lesson,

to want to read, to want to pick a book, to read for pleasure,

not just part of the curriculum.

Not just because the Government says you have to,

but just to, sort of, you know, expand your mind.

So...we'll see.

Please, come in, come in.

Yes. Come and take a seat, please.

-What's your names?

-Olivia.

-Olivia.

-Emily.

-Emily.

-Alex.

-Alex.

-Hi.

-Hello.

-Hi, Charlie.

-Hi.

-I'm Javone.

Sit next to Leon.

-Alex.

-Alex.

Hello. I met you, Oscar, from yesterday, from assembly.

-And you were...?

-Header.

-Header.

-Like a football.

-Like a...

-Football.

-Header!

-Yeah.

THEY CHUCKLE

We're all here, so we're going to be a team

for the next couple of weeks.

So, you've had the book for 24 hours.

How much have you read of the book?

I read the first two pages.

And why didn't you read on?

I got distracted, I think.

-What was you doing? What distracted you?

-Er...

-Facebook, I think.

-OK.

-Hi.

-Hi.

-I'm Megan. I just read the blurb.

-You just read the...

Yeah, the back of it.

So you didn't read any of the book at all?

No, cos I didn't have time.

What did you do last night that was important, that you didn't read the book?

I just kind of watched Netflix.

OK. So, did you read the book?

-Er, I read a bit of it.

-Yes!

OK, so what is the name of the sister?

I can't remember.

What was the name of the brother?

-I forgot.

-They didn't have a brother.

They didn't have a brother.

-Did you read the book?

-No.

-No, I didn't.

-Did you read any of the pages, Olivia?

No, I didn't get a chance.

I read the first few pages of the book.

-No.

-Did you read the book?

-No.

-What did you do last night?

-I was at t'gym.

-No, I didn't.

-Not at all?

-No.

And you haven't read anything?

This is sad...

that only a few of you read the book.

Most youngsters today prefer screens to books.

But researchers have shown that teenagers who spend

just an hour a day playing on their screens

can drop the equivalent of two GCSEs.

And it's not just technology that's distracting them.

-Tell me your name.

-My name's Alex.

-Hi, Alex.

-All right.

-Tell us about yourself.

I milk cows.

Do you?

Do you milk cows?

-Oh, wow!

-And I read the first page of the book.

And you read the first page of the book.

-That's good, that's good. Just one page?

-Yeah.

Alex already knows what he wants to do when he leaves school -

and it's got nothing to do with books.

Don't get me wrong - I like school.

But if a lesson's dragging on a bit,

I get distracted and I start thinking, "Oh...

"I wonder if we're mowing grass today for silage," or...

I just sit there. You know.

If I've put a cow out into the paddock that's going to calf,

"I wonder if that cow's calved."

"I wonder if it's had another little heifer."

All these things just run through my mind.

I suppose it's because I love this farm,

and it's always going through my mind.

But you can't read a book and learn how to be a good farmer -

it comes to you.

I mean, there's things books can't tell you.

And that definite... You know, a book can't describe

what farming's actually like.

No, it can't.

And did you read the book?

Well, yesterday, I read to page... five.

-And then?

-I went to bed.

And then you went to bed. Did you visualise anything in the book?

No.

Not really.

Like Alex, Charlie doesn't think that books are relevant to his life.

I would never think of reading.

It's never really anything I'd ever want to do.

I find it really boring and I never imagine anything.

Whereas in other film... Things like films and...

TV shows and that, it's pretty much given for you -

you just have to watch it.

Charlie's mum wishes he would change his mind.

It was a battle I just chose not to have.

But I could have done, being somebody who can think of nothing better than reading a book.

I do think he's missing a massive part of his life,

so I think I'm disappointed for him.

He would very quickly improve his spelling,

his vocabulary would have a wider range, he'd have longer sentences -

all the things I can see he's probably missing.

I always say, "You're never bored if you've got a book."

And you never are bored, are you, in life, if you've got a book?

Parents play an important role in helping their kids love literature.

Children at primary school who are read to each night by their parents

tend to be the biggest readers as adults.

Javone thinks reading out loud could be the secret to getting the class hooked on his chosen book, One.

So...

We're going to read some of the book together.

Together, we're going to read, we're going to listen

and we're going to say what we think. Yeah?

As a child, Javone didn't read,

but he loved being read to by his sister.

My sister would read beautifully.

She would actually read and you would get lost

in the world of what it is.

She was a great reader - she would make you imagine these things,

or creating this world.

-Would you like to read a little bit?

-Go on.

-Yeah?

" 'We're out of milk,' Grammie says.

" 'Well, go and get some,' Tippi says.

" 'You know I have a problem with my hip,' she says,

"and I laugh out loud.

"Grammie is the only person on the planet

"who ever pulls the disability card on us."

That was fantastic.

What did you feel?

-Are they speaking about them as two different people?

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

See, that's what... But you imagined it. So that's what you created -

that was the power of your reading, what you did.

OK, Olivia.

-What?

-Would you mind reading page 40?

-Just a little bit.

-No.

-Please.

I don't want to read. Just that little tiny little bit.

Go on. Doesn't matter.

"I never usually rush her, but we can't be late.

"Not on our first day of school.

"So I quietly cleared my throat, hoping..."

"HOPPING it will stir her from her daydreams.

"It's...what happens when you're bound like we are

"by a body too stub-BORN

"to peel itself apart at conception."

Sick! Sick! What was you thinking about when you was reading the book?

Was you thinking about the words, was you thinking about the picture,

-the imagery?

-I was more concentrating on what the words were, like, on the page,

-rather than trying to picture it in my head.

-Thinking about...

I find it quite hard to read.

Olivia finds reading difficult.

It's a problem that Javone knows only too well.

She really struggled with that.

She really struggled.

I felt bad for her cos I could feel her stressing and getting hot and

just, sort of, like... Cos she looked like she was fine.

But I know she was crumbling inside,

really badly. Cos I've been there

and I know what it's like.

Like Javone, Olivia has dyslexia.

It's a reading disorder which slows down the connections in the brain

between letters and sounds.

It's not rare, and one in ten suffer from dyslexia in the UK.

I just can't deal with it.

They start staring. It's just the fact that...

And I hate school - that's why I don't try in class,

because if I ask a silly question, they'll go,

"Why have you just asked that?" and all that.

I'm so scared about my GCSEs,

because I feel like I'm never going to get anywhere in life.

You will, you will.

Cos I feel like if I come out and I've not done very well

and I put everything into it, then that's the end.

It's not, man. It's not.

You can't beat yourself up when your mind does...shut down.

You can't blame yourself. All you've got to remember is,

"You know what? I do know this, I just need a couple of minutes."

Take a couple of minutes and then start again.

Is it easy to go to your parents and kind of confide in them and sort of

say, you know, "I need help, Mum, Dad?"

Mum, so easy.

-What about your dad?

-No, he makes me feel a bit stupid.

-Why is that?

-Because he found school really easy,

and I don't find school easy.

So you never read to him?

No. I feel like I have to live up to something,

cos he does so well in life.

And I know I'll never get there.

So I'm always trying to, you know, impress them, little things.

-Of course.

-Like grades or something.

It is really hard for other people to understand, who are not dyslexic,

or who find it really easy to just sort of, "Right, I can read that,

"that information's there."

They look at you like, "Why can't you do it?"

And it's sort of convincing her that

you're not that different from everyone else -

it's just that your brain works in a different way.

That's all it is. Your brain works in a different way.

And it's getting her to celebrate that,

rather than punishing herself for that.

There's another pupil who Javone identifies with -

Charlie, an aspiring actor.

I don't usually leave the asylum in the middle of the night,

but this fellow said you'd make it worth my while.

Charlie's story reminds Javone of his own journey to books.

When he was at drama college, he was introduced to Shakespeare.

From there my love of reading began because in our first year, we did Romeo And Juliet.

These two people are in love but their families are at bitter war,

no matter what, ready to kill each other, death.

But they're in love. And I was like, "Wow, how has he'd done this?"

And that's when

the love of reading came.

-Charlie!

-Hello.

-Hello.

You going to put your stuff on there?

Javone wants to use drama to hook Charlie into reading.

So you want to be an actor?

-I do, yeah.

-And one big thing about being an actor is reading -

learning scripts. You know, characters.

Because if you want to be an actor, that's the whole point.

You can't be an actor and not read anything.

-Where's your Swiss Army knife? You lost it?

-In my pocket.

-Where?

-Here.

-I'm worried about you.

-You're lying.

You killed Wellington.

Hey.

Now, for someone who hates reading, you read pretty well.

So what is it about books that you don't like, then?

As an actor, yeah. I only really need to read the script and once I've learned my lines,

-I can put the book down and I don't have to look at it.

-Yeah, OK.

What is it about it that you just find...?

-I just don't like it.

-Really? You just...

I'm just the opposite, pretty much, of people who do like reading.

As an actor, you have to use your imagination so much.

I don't understand the point in it at all.

You read a book, yeah...

Yeah, great, you've learnt something about something that's not real.

BELL RINGS

I just want him to realise it now before it's too late -

before he throws...

..his dream of maybe being an actor away.

Because being an actor is not easy and there's, like,

a thousand actors who look like him, who sound like him, who probably put more work...

..into it and he will lose out.

I think that's a bad attitude to have, cos I would never...

I wouldn't jeopardise this for nothing, for no-one.

Javone has been at Ripley St Thomas for a week now

and he's still struggling to get his class to engage with One.

So far, all of his 15 pupils have read just a few pages.

Javone is a great guy - I have to give him kudos for that -

but he's not going to get me to read, in the end.

I was engaged but I'm not really sure that it's encouraged me to read yet.

He's like a teacher - he's forcing you to do it. I don't think that's what we're here for.

I need a plan. I need another plan, cos I thought my plan was working

but I need another plan. So I need to think about that.

Javone fears he'll never get through to the class on his own...

..so he's calling in some backup -

children's author and former Blue Peter presenter Helen Skelton.

He's hoping her years of working with young people could give him some ideas.

I may be naive but I actually don't think it's going to be difficult.

I think once you start reading,

once you find a book that captures your imagination

and whets your appetite for reading other books,

you're really opening up a whole new part of your life.

For me, reading kind of excites your heart and your soul.

I feel like this could be a journey for these kids and I think it would

be really nice to be on that journey

and kind of help open some doors for them.

-Helen!

-Here he is!

What's wrong?

Thank you so much for coming down.

-Right, what's happening?

-OK, well, I've worked with many audiences,

but 14-year-old kids ain't my thing.

They just don't... They don't want to read.

-Don't stress.

-I AM stressing.

-They've got you on the run, you know?

-I know, I know.

They smell the fear, OK?

-Show no fear!

-Don't let them scare you.

-Hi.

-Oh, hi!

-Hello.

-Hiya.

Hiya.

I have come along because my good friend here tells me that he's

asked you to read a book and he suspects you're not really into it.

He could be on to something there.

THEY CHUCKLE

Would it be fair to say that some of you are struggling with the book

because you've got no idea what it'd be like to be a conjoined twin?

I never thought about it.

-Right.

-It's never gone through my mind.

-But we've got the other surprise for you today, haven't we?

-Yeah.

STUDENTS GROAN

Helen is about to bring the book to life in a most unexpected way.

-OK, go, go, go.

-OK.

So, first up, Emily.

Emily and Olivia.

Dominic and Alex.

Charlie is with Ike.

Oh, God!

'The kids are not getting the book but I think Helen has got a really smart idea here,'

where she can make the book come to life. I think that what we need.

Helen's idea is to split the class into pairs,

bind them together and send them out into the world as conjoined twins.

Megan...

-Lois.

-Pardon?

-You can't have that.

-Is that everyone?

Those are your pairs.

You cannot change.

What if you had a fight with your twin, a bit of a scrap?

-Twins.

-STUDENT:

-It was quite a good fight, to be honest.

We are not going to be fighting.

For two of the class, the idea of being joined at the hip doesn't appeal.

Megan and Lois aren't exactly the best of friends.

So the plan is for you two to be a conjoined twin.

How do you feel about that?

-Are you two friends?

-No.

What happened? We had a fight.

-A proper fight.

-I'm sorry that I pulled your names out of the hat,

but we're going to have to do this task.

And I'm pretty sure there are days that the twins hate each other

but they cannot get away from each other.

Exactly. This task is about understanding what these two twins went through

and being a team and working together, being one.

So you lot are going to be in this.

We appreciate it's difficult to empathise with the characters in the book

but hopefully these can give you an idea of what it's like to be

literally tied to someone.

Reading is one of the best ways to strengthen our empathy.

American psychologists report that reading literary fiction helps us

recognise other people's emotions and understand how they feel.

And that sleeve. There you go.

-Right.

-Go on, put your leg in.

You're in.

I'm just a bit uncomfortable.

The last time I touched Megan, I was on the floor.

It was really hard.

Like, the Year Sevens and Eights, who wouldn't really look at you - they would be scared of you -

were actually laughing and looking at you, like as if we're monsters.

It's very embarrassing but I guess that's how they feel so, in a way,

it's good cos you can visualise how they're feeling.

Next leg.

The most things I've had to overcome is maybe the odd thing at school but

I've never had to overcome being joined to my sister or my brother.

It's...sort of my worst nightmare.

-I'm going to go in. You go that way, I'll go this way.

-Yeah, yeah.

Budge up.

Right, pour some more Coke in.

-You hold it.

-Oh, teamwork.

I'm not like everyone else and not a lot of people look like me

and because I'm from different ethnicity as well,

so it's kind of hard to fit in and so I guess the twins

I can relate to a bit, being the odd ones out in society, I guess.

There you go. It's good.

INDISTINCT CHATTER

Because they are conjoined, the twins in the book need to compromise on everything -

something Lois and Megan are having to learn, too.

So you're doing this task -

do you feel like you're getting in the world of these two...

The characters in the book?

Yeah. When Tippi and Grace would fall out, it's kind of...

You can't fall out for longer than, like, a short time...

-Because you're joined.

-You're just going... Yeah, you've got to get on with it.

It helps you face things.

Would you say that you need each other?

In this situation, yeah.

Yes. It feels nice to be, like, with, like, a team. Like...

A partner, like, to help you out.

It's really interesting to try and, like,

understand from their point of view because as soon as I saw the book,

I was like, "How would this work?

"There's two of them and they're together."

It's, like, different than twins because you're actually like one person.

Like, you're together but you're separate.

I think the reason they were so close and why I felt that closeness

with Megan was because you're literally touching and it's weird -

you just feel more similar when you're that close to someone.

It's really odd.

I think that this exercise has probably raised a lot of

-questions for them. Hopefully a bit of intrigue, which will make them read.

-I hope so.

Fingers crossed, when I see them again they'll have read a bit more

and then we can kind of actually discuss the book.

THEY EXCHANGE GREETINGS

Javone is halfway through the three-week experiment -

and he's hoping his class will be halfway through the book.

Is this everyone?

-What did you read?

-To 80-odd.

And then I...

And then I skipped to the part where the big thing happens.

Why did you skip?

Cos I just wanted to know what happened.

Do you not think some people might really not enjoy reading?

Do you know what you want to do?

Dancing, performing.

So any, sort of, books about...

Biographies about actors or anything like that? No?

I'm not into it like that, I'm not into knowing about...

-What people do.

-Yeah, I don't care.

OK. That's cool. You don't care.

-No.

-So you don't reckon that you will have to read up about that

to know anything about that, or it'll just come to you?

I can google it.

STUDENTS CHUCKLE

That's... I've got nothing, I've got nothing.

It seems like you haven't got time,

you just need a quick fix for something and it's...

-What about you?

-Er...

It's just effort to pick up a book and sit there and read when you've

-got other things to do.

-Was you always like that?

No. In primary, I used to read loads but I just stopped.

So it's Year Seven - cool, everything was all right?

-Yeah.

-Year Eight...

-Nah.

-Nah. Just nah. Tell me about Year Eight.

-What happened?

-I don't know.

You just grow up and you're like... You don't want to read any more.

-How was your day?

-It was all right.

-Would you like summat to eat?

-Er, no, I'm not really hungry.

-OK.

Now she's 15, Emily is much happier

glued to a screen than reading a book.

When Emily was little, the first thing she did was pick up a book.

She was great. You know, obviously, as kids grow up, I suppose, they...

There's more exciting things, maybe,

than actually a book.

Social media, friends...

She has a lot of sporting activities that she does.

Distractions such as TV,

just the internet in general.

If she had nothing else to do, she would be on it,

Snapchatting to her friends or whatever else they do. Facebook.

Hours, definitely.

Like Emily, most schoolchildren are addicted to their phones.

It's their favourite way to access the internet.

Today's teenagers spend nearly four hours a day online -

double the time of ten years ago.

Better things to do than read.

Books or phone.

I can either read or just watch YouTube, you know?

I'm going to choose phone.

They are dedicated to their passions, what they love, and reading's not one of them.

Reading is not one of them.

I just don't think I have the attention span to get into the book

enough to actually understand the character

and therefore put myself in their shoes.

Maybe authors have to get them right at the first page.

You have to kind of... You know,

as a writer you want to start at the beginning and get people lost...

Get people familiar with the world that you're in.

But they want to be, like, "Give it to me now."

We're probably of a generation that is that, now.

Facebook, now. Netflix, now.

Don't give me the beginning - get me straight in, get me hooked.

Can old-fashioned words on a page ever compete with new technology?

Helen wants to find out from head of English Rebecca.

There are loads and loads of very popular books that are read

and authors that are read by young children.

What happens at 12, 13, 14? What changes?

Well, if you think about your primary schoolchildren,

parents put them to bed and they have a little read with them when they go to sleep,

they get books as treats and things like that.

Whereas when they become older, they start being a little bit more independent,

so suddenly they get the iPads and the other bits of distractions.

How much do you think they would...

I mean, you know these kids - how much would they get out of reading?

I think they'd get a lot out of reading if they found the right texts.

But we've got 271 students in our current Year 11,

so therefore it's being able to tap into each of their interests

and being able to show them, actually, it's a bit like watching television -

you watch one programme, you don't like it, try something else.

But it's just not as cool as watching the box sets

that are out there and that's the bit of convincing that I'm trying to do.

Helen's chat with Rebecca has given her ideas about how to inspire some of the non-readers.

I don't think it's the right approach to go for one book for the whole class,

because I think young people are all different -

they have different interests, different needs,

different wants, different skills -

and I think that's what we need to recognise and address.

She wants to try her new tactic out on budding farmer Alex.

But first, she needs to know what makes him tick.

Alex. Nice to see you. You look like you've got your hands full.

-Whoa! They're feisty, aren't they?

-Yeah.

So, how clear are you in your mind about what you want to do

-when you leave school?

-In an ideal world,

I'd go straight to being probably a dairy herdsman.

That is music to my ears. I love cows. I grew up on a dairy farm.

There's nothing better than 'em, is there?

They're a lot easier than people. They give me less trouble.

You don't have to go through all these mixed emotions you get off people and girls -

it's just straightforward with cows.

But do you not feel like you're missing out on a bit of a social life?

Not really, because it doesn't really take my fancy, going out.

I'm not going to any parties - I've got to get up in the morning and milk the cows.

-Girlfriend?

-There is one girl I took tanking.

-You took what?

-I took her slurry spreading.

She's been milking a few times.

-She liked milking.

-She came back after the slurry spreading?

Oh, yeah. I didn't take her slurry spreading first. I thought,

-"Best leave that for later."

-Yeah. Is there going to be another date?

-Probably not.

-Trust me -

you will learn some lessons from certain books.

Would you be willing to start reading a book that I recommend?

-Go on, then.

-Deal?

Yeah. We shaking on that?

While Helen is making progress with Alex,

Javone is still struggling with aspiring actor Charlie.

I can find a million things better to do than actually just sit and read.

Like, I don't understand how people do it or why people do it.

What would make you want to write a book...

..about something that most people don't understand or know anything about?

Javone is looking for help from Rebecca, head of English.

I've sort of, like, hit a brick wall with Charlie.

I feel like I failed him because Charlie wants to become an actor.

I'm an actor and I thought, "You know what?

"He'll be, like, the easiest one."

But I haven't got through to him.

He's going to walk away from this having learned nothing or having

taken away nothing from this experience,

which makes me feel a little bit sad.

It's really tough. I mean, I walk out of lessons every single day

when I've thought, "I haven't engaged that student today.

"What have I not done, or what could I do differently?"

What you've got to remember is, not every child is going to

-click on to the same thing at the same time, because they're human beings.

-All right.

They're teenagers, with all different interests and all different things going on

and external things going on in their lives as well.

And for Charlie, actually, one day, hopefully,

he might look back and think, "That was a really rewarding thing

"and I didn't realise what I'd learnt at the time."

-But you don't learn every lesson at the time that you're meant to, do you?

-True, true.

Next morning, Helen thinks she's found the ideal book for Alex,

although it's got nothing to do with cows.

It's called Eleanor And Park and is about two young lovers

who don't quite fit in.

-Alex?

-Hello.

So, I've brought you a book that I hope you might find interesting,

I hope you might learn a few things from.

This book is about love - young love.

Right.

In a school. He likes her, she likes him.

-But there's more to it?

-There's more to it.

-Right.

-So I think you might find it interesting,

I think you might find some similarities,

I think you might learn a few things from this.

Put it in this one and then...

You will be a single man...

for not very much longer.

-Single man with a plan.

-Exactly.

It's the end of week two and, at last, some of the class are

getting into reading.

They've all started One, and five are past halfway.

I got quite connected to the characters when I actually sat down and just read it.

And one pupil has even finished it.

I've got to the end and I can say I have enjoyed it,

which I was surprised at because I didn't think I would enjoy it.

I felt proud of myself because I hadn't read for so long

and I realised it is a really enjoyable thing to do.

It's going to take more time for me to get convinced to read more and stuff.

I don't read a lot and he said he didn't read a lot

when he was my age, so, I mean, why not? Why not start now?

But not all of them are relishing the read.

I'm not really liking One.

It's not my kind of book.

The only reason I'm reading any of it is mostly because I'm being told,

"You really should read it."

If I wasn't being told that I should read it...

..I would stay away from that book like the plague.

And Olivia is still trying to overcome her dyslexia.

I do wish I'd read it last night, cos I wanted to.

I got home and I was like, "Yeah, I'm going to read that tonight just before I go to bed."

-And then I can't do it.

-Why?

Because I'll read it, like, you know, simple words and then, like,

a word I don't understand, like, that I can't read

but if somebody read it out loud I could say it again and know it.

Javone suspects the key to unlocking Olivia's fear of reading might lie at home.

I'm off to Olivia's house because I want to meet her parents,

but the reason why I'm going there is cos I'm really worried about...

her, because dyslexia is really affecting her

and it's not just affecting her academically - it's affecting her everyday life.

So I just want to know what it's like for them and what their experience is.

Olivia was only diagnosed as dyslexic less than a year ago.

-Hi.

-Hi, good afternoon.

-Hi, I'm Javone.

-Javone, nice to meet you. I'm Daniel, Olivia's dad.

-Hi.

Come in. This is my wife Karen.

-Hi, Karen.

-Pleased to meet you.

-I'm Javone.

So the reason why I've come to speak to you guys today is because

I really empathise with Olivia because I was diagnosed with dyslexia really late,

when I was about 19, and seeing her story and I'm like,

"Do you know what? That was me. I was you."

So I just wanted to know what it's like as parents

and how you felt when Olivia was diagnosed.

It was a very emotional time because when somebody actually sits you down

and goes, "Right, your answer is there in black and white,"

it's almost a happy moment.

-Yeah.

-You know, I'm not ashamed to say

I nearly broke down because I actually felt guilty.

And I think our relationship's got a lot better since then.

Seeing that diagnosis actually gave her a massive boost because she

understood why she was struggling at school.

Speaking to her, she says she really...

She really looks up to you.

She says, "My dad - he just gets it."

I've always been quite gifted in that area.

I found it easy to pick things up.

So I think another element of our relationship that has been very

-strained...

-Right.

Very, very strained over the last 10, 12 years...

I couldn't understand why she couldn't pick it up.

"You're not trying. Come on, put the effort in.

"You can do this." And you think... I think, as a parent, you think...

if you try you can achieve it.

-And, you know...

-But have you ever told her yourself how that made you...?

I don't think I ever told her how that made me feel,

the emotion of finding out, because, to be honest,

I wouldn't want to burden her with

-the worry that I felt as a parent.

-Course.

I think the release was understanding why for all these years I'd seen

her struggle and find it hard,

and then understanding, actually, that that was OK

and what she'd achieved was...

-beyond expectation.

-Yeah.

Thank you so much for talking to me. I really...

I really appreciate that. Thank you.

What was so thought-provoking was that they struggled as a family

before she was diagnosed with dyslexia,

and once they got told, the doctor said,

"Yes, you're dyslexic," it just...

That was a mending process, a healing process for that family.

To say, "Right, OK, well, we've done everything as parents

"and it's not us and it's not us as parents, and we're not to blame,

"and we're going to try and help our daughter and give her that confidence that she needs."

So I think that's quite a beautiful thing.

I thought they're a lovely, loving family

who went through a tough time.

It's just nice and it's just much better

and I feel a lot more confident...

..knowing he doesn't think down on me.

Yeah.

Hello!

Come in.

Come in!

It's only four days until the end of the experiment

and Javone has asked all the pupils to gather in the hall.

You're probably thinking why we're not actually in our same room.

We're in a different space.

The reason we're in a different space is because I've got a surprise for you.

-STUDENTS EXCLAIM

-Ooh!

But before we get to the surprise, language doesn't have to be boring.

Just look at me like that. Like...

"You know what? Language is boring."

But language doesn't have to be boring.

Communication is the key.

It's proven - fact -

reading helps you in your future, your future life.

If you want to have that lovely house with a nice car with the rims,

black-on-black with the tinted windows.

If you want to have that nice dress, you want that Versace suit,

if you want to have those Prada shoes, reading -

just reading maybe five, ten minutes a day - will help you get that.

It's proven - people who read more get a better job.

They earn more money. It's a fact.

Scientists recently discovered that of all a teenager's hobbies,

reading is the most important one to secure a good job.

But to help me...

convince you guys, I got someone who loves reading just as much as I do.

Loves writing jokes just as much as me, who writes comedy.

It's Russell Kane.

Stand-up comedian Russell Kane is living proof

that reading can change your life.

Hello, everyone.

-How you doing?

-If you could share with them your story,

maybe that might unlock something.

Basically, I earn my living by working one hour a night doing stand-up comedy on a stage.

I get up, go and make people laugh, come home again.

So how have I got from starting life on a council estate to there?

What happened was this -

I grew up in a house with no books, no reading.

My dad actually said, "You can't learn anything from a book,"

which is literally the opposite of the truth.

I didn't read at all. I wasn't reading by the time I was your age.

I left school, left with nothing, wasted my talent, basically.

And everyone will find their own way into literature and reading,

and mine was anger - the thought that I was about to throw my life away.

I used books as a way to climb up that mountain and overtake a lot of

the people that had private education,

and I left my uni with a first.

Whether you want to be an actor, whether you want to work in academics,

whether you want to be an accountant - whatever -

reading a book trains your mind to work faster.

Javone hopes Russell Kane has convinced his class

that it's never too late to start reading.

So now I want you to come up with stories,

something funny that you can either read in a book or it can be a personal story,

but I want you to get a pen and paper,

I want you to try and make a scenario or a situation funny.

This may seem a bit removed from reading a book,

but these guys are so consumed with Facebook, Twitter,

Instagram, Snapchat. I want to give them something more,

like a narrative, a storyline,

something with a chunk that they can sort of, you know,

grapple with rather than just read something in 140 characters

and then they're done with it.

You punched a bear in the paw?

No. It was Bradley the bear in Pontins or Haven.

Right, still good.

So if you write that story down and we can start from there.

She goes to, like, Zumba.

Your gran goes to Zumba?

Yeah.

There you go. You've got a Zumba gran.

That's a funny story. That's a great story.

This is great - it's actually working.

They're actually engaging with the story.

She told me to strip off, right? So I did.

And I'm naked and she was like, "I'll get you a towel."

So I wait in the shed and she just didn't come back.

After about 20 times,

you will be able to make that story properly hilarious.

Building in pauses, building in drama.

I mean, you just told that to me in one minute. That's a five-to-ten-minute story.

OK, guys. Can we all give a big round of applause

for Russ Kane for coming down, please?

Before they go, there's one final challenge.

Next week in assembly, we are going to be...

Well, not me, but you guys

are going to be performing these stories.

We're going to get the best bits from the stories and we're going to keep on going until it's funny.

I know you hate me right now, but that's what we're doing.

Yeah? Yeah?

Javone hopes the workshop has given them the confidence to write

and perform a script in front of the school.

Most of them are on board...

..but not all.

If you want to be an actor, this is what you have to do.

You know what I mean? That's what you have to do.

You can't go in to a director and have that attitude.

You won't get the job - you won't work.

And that's the truth.

Thank you.

I just want you to do well, man. I seriously do.

You probably think I don't but I seriously want you to do well.

I'm not trying to give you a hard time.

In a last-ditch attempt to get Charlie reading, Javone is

pressing him to connect with the book One through his own life.

Can you do it again?

-Right.

-You got a brother, you got a sister?

Yeah, I've got two brothers.

OK, say your brother, your oldest brother, and you are conjoined.

-You've just had an operation.

-Yeah.

And he's not going to make it.

And he's right next to you and you're not going to see him again.

"I blink and he speaks.

" 'Tippi is gone,' he says.

"All I can say is, 'I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry.' "

And you're in the room. The doctor's come and he's like,

"I'm sorry - I've got to give you bad news."

-Yeah.

-"Your bro didn't make it."

Use that anger and hold it, hold it, stand your ground.

Hold yourself.

Let the words touch you, let the words speak to you.

Whatever comes through that, that's what you give out.

" 'Get out,' I say,

"turning away from everyone and hating them equally.

"Tippi. Tippi.

"Tippi!"

How did you feel?

-Tell me what went...?

-That was...

Honestly, just your honest opinion.

It made me sad.

-Why?

-Because if you think about it,

you've lost your sister or brother

that you've literally been attached to,

they've gone and they're never coming back and you're never going to see them again

and after everything you've shared and learned with them, and then

-it's just gone.

-And as an actor... You want to be an actor...

-Yeah.

-Do you see how that can maybe help you in your career,

little techniques like that could help you?

Yeah, because in a way it's making me feel like I am the character,

that I've lived but they haven't, and it just... It hits you.

I'm scared to ask the question cos I don't know

how you're going to answer it, but I'm going to ask anyway.

Has it kind of, just a little bit, changed your view on reading at all?

-Yeah, in a way.

-HE SIGHS

-I wouldn't say I'm going to go home and read every book I can possibly find.

-Cool, I understand that.

If I see a book that may vaguely interest me,

just to give it a go rather than just saying,

-"No, I can do something else instead."

-I'm happy.

Hi, guys.

-STUDENTS:

-Hi.

Hi. What are we doing?

It's the second day of rehearsals...

Rehearsing what?

..and Javone is surprising his class.

You've got a sketch? Can I see it?

He wants to see if they've managed to turn their personal stories

into one big performance.

Come on, Charlie.

Let's see what you've got.

But it's not what he's expecting.

They've come up with a new script.

The arrival of comedian Javone Prince at Ripley School has led to some unusual behaviour.

And it's all about him.

-Hi, guys. Today I'm going to talk about how books are amazing.

-OTHERS JEER

The students have been seen wandering around clutching strange paper objects.

PlayStation controls and smartphones have been put down

and exchanged for...books.

-Books?

-Books.

Books set us apart from animals.

We're the only species that communicates in writing.

Books contain all.

With only two days to go before the performance, Javone lends a hand.

Stop. Can you go and say the lines again, please, Jess and Lois?

-We're starting from the top.

-Hello, good morning, and welcome.

In the news today...

I mean, what have books ever done for us?

Can we do that again?

That little section up to there.

The librarian has reported actually seeing some children

-entering her library.

-Yeah, well, don't worry - we're going now.

-Ha-ha-ha-ha. Maybe.

-I am a changed man!

-I feel...

-Sorry, we're nearly out of time here.

Hmm. Girls!

Yes, Charlie!

BELL RINGS

The reading experiment has nearly come to a close.

Alex has been reading Eleanor And Park

and has even picked up some dating tips.

The book has helped me to sort of understand that...

..boys and girls do think differently and that...

..you've sort of got to get a bit of common ground, you know, because

what are you going to talk about if you haven't got common ground?

Like, my main things are milking cows and, er,

tractors and farming, really, and...

I don't think I'm going to change. I'm not going to change much.

I'm definitely not going to change to liking sheep,

so I've just got to find somebody who likes the things that I like.

You never know - I could go into reading more books. I could...

By the end of this, I could be a die-hard bookworm.

Javone's time at Ripley is almost over.

I'm not going to lie to you - it wasn't easy.

I thought it was going to be a walk in the park but it wasn't.

I've learnt a lot and I hope they've learned something.

But before he goes, his class of reluctant readers

are about to put their new literary skills to the test.

Hello, good morning and welcome.

In the news today...

The arrival of comedian Javone Prince at Ripley School has led to some unusual behaviour.

-Hi, guys. Today I'm going to talk about...

-Boo! Shut up!

..how books are amazing.

Students have been spotted clutching strange paper objects.

PlayStation controllers and smartphones have been put down and exchanged for...books.

-Books?

-Books.

Of Javone's class of 15 die-hard non-readers,

11 are reading and enjoying One and three have got to the end.

Even if I just planted a seed of "reading is important",

just, like, picking up a book

or having a relationship with language...

If they take that away from this experience,

then I've achieved something.

How do you feel?

I feel positively ecstatic.

Reading's not just boring or the curriculum or just school -

it's a way of life, something you should enjoy.

Just, sort of, like... Just get lost...in a book.

Even Charlie is starting to see the benefit of books.

Apart from the civilisation of the human race, what do books do for us?

-Books make you clever.

-And more interesting.

And improve your vocab.

Well, books can contain beautiful poetry.

It's really helped me as an actor

because the emotion helps me with the characterisation.

-ALL:

-And some girls like poetry.

Hmm! Girls.

It's made me understand that books aren't as complicated as you think.

And for one pupil, the experiment may even have been life-changing.

Four weeks ago, I wouldn't have been brave enough

to stand up in front of the whole year.

I used to hate reading. Now I find learning lines and reading easier.

Javone has shown me that dyslexia doesn't have to hold me back.

The three-week experiment has come to an end,

and Javone has left some parting gifts.

You know what? There's a book out there.

Pick it up, have a nice summer, get reading because it's great.

Reading is amazing. So thank you.

APPLAUSE

But did anyone pick up a book after he left?

In the summer, I went to Majorca for two weeks

and I read the Twilight series.

I went on holiday to Greece and my mum grabbed a book,

so I thought I might as well get one as well seeing as, like,

everything that we've done at school.

I've read on the beach and although it's quite loud on the beach,

I couldn't really hear anybody because I was reading.

I read every single night, about at eight o'clock,

and then I read for about 20 minutes

and then I'll end up reading it for more than 20 minutes

because I enjoy it.