A study by the British independent charity National Literacy Trust revealed that ebooks can encourage more boys to read as they perceive the technology to be “cool.”
The national charity advocates literacy and conducts research on related issues in the UK.
The study surveyed 468 pupils from 40 UK schools that participated in an e-reading project across the country. Interestingly, the results showed that boys show preference for ebooks than girls do.
Moreover, project participants showed a boost in their reading skills by an average of 8.4 months for boys and 7.2 months for girls. After the project launch, children who saw reading as “cool” rose from 51.8% to 65.9%. Boys who developed better interest in reading almost doubled from 34.4% to 66.5%, and boys who deemed reading challenging dropped from 28% to 15.9%.
The study also showed an 11-% increase in the number of boys who have started to enjoy reading ebooks and another 22-% increase in those who bury their noses in ebooks for longer hours. Overall, the percentage of children who discovered more books that interest them climbed from 19.7% to 31.3%.
National Literacy Trust research manager Irene Picton stressed the importance of reading among youngsters.
“Children who enjoy reading are more likely to do better at school and beyond, so finding ways to help children enjoy reading and to do so more often is vital to increase their literacy,” she said. ” She also emphasized that students should be taught to customize ebook settings, say adjusting the font size, so they can make the most of the technology and better enjoy reading.
A spokesperson for the National Literacy Trust suggested that “boys feel more comfortable with technology, and it’s an image thing because they prefer to be seen reading an e-book.”