Students and actors celebrated the National Reading Day at the UPT Library

Students and actors celebrated the National Reading Day at the UPT Library

Starting this year, February 15th was declared the National Reading Day, and Politehnica University Timisoara was one of the institutions celebrating it. On Tuesday, February 15, 2021, the UPT Library organized a reading recital by the actors at Mihai Eminescu National Theater in Timisoara in the main lobby of the building. The event was attended by Politehnica staff and fifth-grade students from “David Voniga” High School in Giroc.

Actors Ana Maria Cojocaru and Cristian Szekeres interpreted the play “Bubico” by I.L. Caragiale and Raul Bastean read a fragment from “S-a întâmplat într-o joi” (“It happened on a Tuesday”), by Elise Wilk. The reading session was broadcast live on the library’s Facebook page.

Vice-rector prof. dr. eng. Daniel Dan, Ph.D. attended the event and emphasized that reading brings people from all walks of life together, and dr. eng. Agneta Lovasz, Ph.D., the director of the UPT Library brought up the cultural role the institution she manages has taken in the society.

The recently adopted law for the National Reading Day is a good start for promoting reading as a driving force for an educated and developed society. A national reading day will provide a context for organizing events that encourage reading at the national level, while, at the same time, celebrating two great, Romanian personalities born on February 15th: Titu Maiorescu and Spiru Haret.

Legea pentru Ziua Naţională a Lecturii, recent adoptată, este un început bun pentru promovarea lecturii drept catalizator pentru o societate dezvoltată şi educată. O zi naţională a lecturii va crea cadrul necesar pentru derularea de activităţi de încurajare a cititului la nivel naţional, sărbătorind, în acelaşi timp, două mari personalităţi născute pe data de 15 februarie, cu un rol fundamental în dezvoltarea şcolii româneşti şi în promovarea lecturii în România, atât prin operele lor literare, cât şi prin activitatea politică şi socială: Titu Maiorescu şi Spiru Haret. The two thinkers played a fundamental role in the development of the Romanian school through their literary and political careers.

Expert studies show that reading is a habit that improves health beside helping people relax or become more knowledgeable on various topics. Studies show that reading as little as six minutes per day can reduce stress levels by up to 68%. Other research shows that reading improves empathy, general knowledge and vocabulary. For example, by reading 20 minutes per day, one can read up to 1.8 million words per year. Thus, just through reading, children can learn between 4,000 and 12,000 new words every year.