The most cut-and-dry positive effect of the Harry Potter books is increasing literacy among young people. The novels have the uncanny ability to keep kids and adults alike turning the thousands of pages that make up the series. In its 2006 Kids and Family Reading Report, Scholastic looked to collect quantitative data on the effect that the series was having on young readers. According to the study, 51 percent of children who read the Harry Potter series said that they did not read for fun before reading the books. The same study indicates that 65 percent of children said that they were doing better in school in general as a result of their exposure to the Harry Potter series.
A study in the Journal of Moral Education in 2002 suggested that the Harry Potter series provides children valuable lessons in morality and friendship. Early in the series, the study notes, morality is often painted in black and white. Distinctions between good and evil are simple and clear. As the series progresses, the stories become more morally ambiguous, encouraging children to put more thought into the differences between right and wrong. Throughout the books, Harry's survival and success is often owed to the friendships he has cultivated and his ethical decision making.
As they progress through their studies, the young wizards can produce spells only by focus and faith in their abilities. In the third installment of the Harry Potter series, "Harry Potter and the Prizoner of Azkaban," the young wizards face a mythical creature called a boggart in their defense-against-the-dark-arts class. The boggart is both a pest and a shape shifter, turning itself into what the person facing it most fears. The boggart itself feeds on fear and anger; therefore, the only way to defeat a boggart is to control your emotions and think of something happy. Repeatedly throughout the stories, the young wizards face something scary and find the power within themselves to overcome it.
At Hogwarts, students are separated into four houses: Gryffindor, Slytherin, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw. Throughout the year, the houses compete for the honor of the House Cup. Individually, students can earn and lose points for their houses, building a sense of communal responsibility. Each student feels pride and responsibility for their respective house. In addition, the headmaster of Hogwarts, Albus Dumbledore, serves as a moral compass for the students, emphasizing that the power to make the right choices when faced with adversity is one of great importance.