Huang, Hsin-chou (2014). “Online Versus Paper-based Instruction: Comparing Two Strategy Training Modules for Improving Comprehension.” RELC Journal. 45(2)165-180. http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0033688214534797
Huang studied fifty-seven English as a Foreign Language students in a reading strategy instruction setting in order to assess the comparative impact of online instruction and paper-based instruction, during a single-session, four-hour contact. Participants were randomly divided between the two instructional types, presented with strategies for before, during, and after reading, then were given a text selection. A comprehension test followed. A subset of eight volunteers was interviewed after the event to learn about their perceptions. Results (18.04 to 11.40) dramatically favored online instruction. The direction of the results was echoed by the interviewees.
This investigation was presented well, with considerable detail given to equivalence of the materials provided to each group, to avoid any underlying advantage of one set over the other. Included in the selection was a “Read-for-me” feature in the digital group and an audio CD for the paper-based group, though clearly the CD is not paper. The study does not detail how many students chose to use these items from each group. A weakness of the design was the disproportionate number of male students (38 to 19) over female students and the unexplained imbalance of the two groups (32 online; 25 paper).
This study came to light after last week’s review of “Reading in a digital age”, which suggested online reading is not analogous to paper-based text because of different levels of facility in contact. The emphasis on strategies presented by Huang underscore this assessment. While equivalent resources were made available to both sets, such as dictionaries and translating options, the truth is that the online resources improved facility, providing the participants more time to learn the text instead of mount obstacles. While ‘curling up with a good book’ is lovely, having quick and easy online options, including highlighting, archiving, and referencing are empowering and essential for greater success with the text.
EmpowerED 