Purpose

The purpose of this questionnaire is to assess the reading attitudes of elementary school children (Grades 1 to 6). Through a brief but structured self-reporting process, students express their feelings and attitudes toward reading, both in out-of-school and school contexts. The tool is used for educational diagnosis, research purposes, and pedagogical planning.

Brief Description

This is a self-report questionnaire consisting of 20 items that evaluate students’ reading attitudes. The creators of the tool distinguish between two dimensions of the reading experience: the first pertains to out-of-school or recreational reading, with the first 10 items focusing on how the child feels when reading in their free time (e.g., “Do you like or dislike spending your free time reading?”), while the second dimension refers to school-related reading and includes the remaining 10 items, which explore how the child experiences reading in a school context (e.g., “Do you like or dislike doing exercises from the Language subject?”). Students respond by selecting one of four Garfield character images showing different facial expressions: very happy (score 4), slightly happy (score 3), slightly sad (score 2), and very sad (score 1), depending on how they feel in each situation.

Sample

The Greek adaptation of the questionnaire was based on a representative sample of 1,068 students from public and private elementary schools in the wider Athens area. The average age of the participants was 11.6 years. Of the total sample, 543 students (50.8%) were boys and 525 (49.2%) were girls. The mean total reading attitude score was 57.70 with a standard deviation of 10.68, while the average per item was 2.88 with a standard deviation of 0.53. The range of total scores was 57, with values ranging from 23 to 80.

Scoring Method

Scoring is carried out by summing the scores of all responses. From the 20 total items, two separate scores are derived: one for out-of-school/recreational reading (items 1 to 10) and one for school reading (items 11 to 20). In addition, a total score is calculated by summing all 20 responses. The higher the final score, the more positive the student’s attitude toward reading is considered.

Validity

Construct validity is supported by factor analysis, using the maximum likelihood method and Varimax orthogonal rotation. The analysis identified two factors: the first consists of six items and relates to internal motivation for reading, such as usefulness, enjoyment, and personal interest. The second factor includes nine items and reflects external motivation, such as obligation, compliance, or the need for performance. Three items did not clearly load on either factor, while one item loaded equally on both. Together, the two factors explain 33.3% of the total variance in responses. The Pearson correlation coefficient between the two factors is 0.53, indicating that the dimensions are distinct but related. Special interest is noted in the sixth grade, where the relationships between factors and external variables are stronger. Validity is further supported by comparing the child’s self-reported reading attitude with the teacher’s assessment of the child’s reading attitude, which showed a satisfactory level of convergence between the two.

Reliability

The internal consistency reliability (Cronbach’s alpha) of the Greek adaptation for the entire questionnaire is 0.86, indicating a high degree of coherence among the items. For the first factor (internal motivation), the alpha value is 0.83, and for the second factor (external motivation), it is 0.81, confirming the tool’s reliable construction and performance.

Key Bibliographic Sources

McKenna, M. C., & Kear, D. J. (1990). Measuring attitude toward reading: A new tool for teachers. The Reading Teacher, 43, 626–639.
McKenna, M. C., Kear, D. J., & Ellsworth, R. A. (1995). Children’s attitudes toward reading: A national survey. Reading Research Quarterly, 30, 934–956.
Malafantis, K. D. (2005). The child and reading: Attitudes, preferences, habits. Athens: Grigoris.