From The Digital Shift:
Middle school boys rated reading more valuable as an activity after two months of using an ereader, according to a study by researchers in Texas.
Classroom time spent using ereaders produced a positive attitude in boys in reading improvement classes at an urban middle school. However, the researchers from Southern Methodist University (SMU) in Dallas found the opposite result in girls.
“Whatever is causing them to value reading, we have to do more research, because we want to help those boys who are reluctant to read,” says Dara Williams-Rossi, co-author of “Reluctant Readers in Middle School: Successful Engagement with Test Using the E-Reader” and an assistant clinical professor in SMU’s Department of Teaching and Learning. “But while boys valued reading more, we found that girls’ reading was valued less.”
As the use of ereaders grows in K–12 schools, school librarians and other educators want to learn how best to adopt devices for student use. But many schools are still in the pilot stage, and it’s unclear how they will eventually integrate these digital tools.
Researchers worked with 199 middle school students in the Dallas-Fort Worth area over two months, specifically using Kindles. A local Rotary Club looking to support the use of ereaders in schools donated the devices, says Williams-Rossi.
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(Via The Digital Shift.)
