A score on the Title Recognition Test, of course,
is not an absolute measure of children’s reading
volume and previous literacy experiences, but it
does provide us with an index of the relative differences
in reading volume. This index enables
us to ask what effects reading volume (rather
than general reading comprehension and word
decoding ability) has on intelligence, vocabulary,
spelling, and children’s general knowledge. In
short, it enables us to ask the question, does
reading—in and of itself—shape the quality of
our mind?