The “Gen Z reading crisis” is evident as college professors report that many students struggle to read and process full sentences.

At Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management, professors indicate that up to half of their students identify as “novice or reluctant” readers.

Experts attribute this decline in reading ability to a “scanning” culture fueled by social media, TikTok, and reliance on AI-generated summaries, which detracts from deep comprehension skills.

Some educators now resort to reading passages aloud in class due to students’ inability to engage with the material independently.

The shift in reading comprehension has been exacerbated by years of standardized testing focused on specific answers rather than fostering in-depth understanding of texts.

Concerns are rising over the long-term effects of these reading deficiencies, with fears that a lack of shared literacy could lead to social isolation and a decrease in empathy and community engagement.