STAFF REPORT
Glasgow News 1
Glasgow High School is changing how it encourages students to read, using a digital platform called Beanstack to make reading more like a game.
Librarian Morgan Cossell described Beanstack as a reading engagement platform used by schools and libraries to motivate students by tracking what they read.
Cossell said the high school shifted away from relying solely on traditional quiz-based reading programs. She noted that while programs like Accelerated Reader were useful for many students in the past, the school wanted a different approach for the 2020s that focuses more on free-choice reading and student enjoyment.
Cossell said district efforts to limit student screen time have led to a noticeable increase in library use. In the first month of the current school year, she said the library recorded almost double the number of book checkouts compared with the same period last year.
Beanstack’s features are designed to tap into students’ competitive instincts. Students can connect with friends on the platform and compare their reading progress, much like they would on social media, according to Cossell. Some students, she said, are “neck and neck” trying to out-read one another each week.
Readers can earn badges by participating in monthly challenges, and consistent readers can receive a blue check mark on their profiles.
The school has been using Beanstack for a little over a year and continues to explore new ways to use the platform to support reading.
Key Facts
– Glasgow High School is using the Beanstack reading platform to encourage pleasure reading
– Librarian Morgan Cossell says book checkouts nearly doubled in the first month of school compared with last year
– Students and staff log reading minutes, set goals and earn incentives through challenges
– The school set a 150,000-minute community reading goal and has logged about 120,000 minutes so far
– Beanstack emphasizes free-choice reading instead of quiz-based programs
– Friendly competition, badges and social-style features appear to motivate students
