Cable 2 Show on Reading Featured

 
Johnny Duckett, who has a show on Cable 2, is featured on the N.C. Department of Public Instruction website. Here is an excerpt from the article:

To the students, families and teachers of Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools, Johnny Duckett is a bona fide celebrity. "It can be a little embarrassing," Duckett says. "Students will see you in a restaurant and come over to talk. Parents come up to me on the street."

The reason for Duckett's recognition? His Cool Readers show, a cable program dedicated to promoting reading and literacy in WS/FC Schools. The show first aired in 2000 and has been a mainstay on cable television in the Winston-Salem area ever since.

Duckett created the show after spending time as a substitute teacher in WS/FC Schools. He was troubled that students were struggling with reading, and more, that reading was unpopular. "It's kind of a cliché, but I saw that kids thought reading was uncool," Duckett says. "I wanted to get students to like reading – to make it cool."

At the time, Duckett was also volunteering at Community Access TV and felt that a television program could help kids show more enthusiasm for reading. He worked with Gina Webster, a librarian at Walkertown Middle School, to develop the show's format. They created a show that features interviews with students about how and why they read, along with discussions of their favorite books.

The show has fans all throughout the area, and has featured a lengthy list of Winston-Salem dignitaries including Mayor Allen Joines, City Manager Lee Garrity, City Councilwoman Molly Leight, school board member Vic Johnson, N.C. State Rep. Larry Womble and Superintendent Don Martin.

For the rest of the article go to: http://www.ncpublicschools.org/celebrate/feature/