A Comparison of Children’s Reading on Paper Versus Screen: A Meta-Analysis

Resource type
Journal Article
Authors/contributors
Title
A Comparison of Children’s Reading on Paper Versus Screen: A Meta-Analysis
Abstract
This meta-analysis examines the inconsistent findings across experimental studies that compared children’s learning outcomes with digital and paper books. We quantitatively reviewed 39 studies reported in 30 articles (n = 1,812 children) and compared children’s story comprehension and vocabulary learning in relation to medium (reading on paper versus on-screen), design enhancements in digital books, the presence of a dictionary, and adult support for children aged between 1 and 8 years. The comparison of digital versus paper books that only differed by digitization showed lower comprehension scores for digital books. Adults’ mediation during print books’ reading was more effective than the enhancements in digital books read by children independently. However, with story-congruent enhancements, digital books outperformed paper books. An embedded dictionary had no or negative effect on children’s story comprehension but positively affected children’s vocabulary learning. Findings are discussed in relation to the cognitive load theory and practical design implications.
Publication
Review of Educational Research
Volume
91
Issue
4
Pages
483-517
Date
08/2021
Journal Abbr
Review of Educational Research
Language
en
ISSN
0034-6543, 1935-1046
Short Title
A Comparison of Children’s Reading on Paper Versus Screen
Accessed
27/09/2022, 11:47
Library Catalogue
DOI.org (Crossref)
Citation
Furenes, M. I., Kucirkova, N., & Bus, A. G. (2021). A Comparison of Children’s Reading on Paper Versus Screen: A Meta-Analysis. Review of Educational Research, 91(4), 483–517. https://doi.org/10.3102/0034654321998074
Outcome measure
Education Level and Type
Tech Software
Effect size/ heterogeneity
Quality of research
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