Students appear to understand a text better when they read it on paper rather than on a screen, according to research findings that have reignited the debate over the role of technology in education.
Norway, one of the countries that adopted digital tools in schools early and with particular intensity, is now making a partial return to the “traditional book,” especially in the lower grades. Although Norwegian state spending per student is high, Norwegian students’ reading performance remains moderate, while an international 2021 study ranked them last among 65 countries in terms of enjoyment of reading.
Students in Norway, a pioneer in the use of digital technologies in schools, show moderate performance in reading.
In a recent study, lower secondary school students were asked to read short texts either on paper or on a screen while wearing eye-tracking glasses. When reading digitally, they had lower comprehension, read faster, and were more inclined toward superficial reading or “scanning” the text. At the same time, they had to return to the text more often before answering comprehension questions.
Researchers link the difference to two factors: the physical and spatial nature of paper, which helps readers remember where a piece of information is located, and the fact that reading on a screen is often associated with distractions and rapid browsing.
The difference in performance may be small in a single test, but experts warn that, cumulatively, systematic superficial reading could affect the development of deeper reading skills.
Source: Time
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