By Tabatha Booth

Electronic Books & Student Learning

Goal of the ProjectThe goal was to answer two questions:

Does the use of e-readers promote reading?

Does the use of e-readers improve student achievement?

Abstract This study was developed to determine if the use of e-

readers promoted reading and/or improved student achievement.

The study was comprised of approximately twenty-five fifth-grade students, enrolled in a Science Magnet elementary school in Alabama.

Two data collecting instruments were used to evaluate the effects of e-readers: a survey and a STAR testing.

The conclusion of the study determined that the use of e-readers did encourage students to read. However, there was no significant data indicating that electronic devices improved student achievement.

Does the use of e-reading devices promote reading?

An Illinois media specialist placed 117 Kindle e-readers into the hands of middle schoolers. The students were positive about using them and were quick to learn how they functioned.

A New Hampshire high school purchased 20 e-readers for an e-book club. Students reported they were reading more, and were impressed on the speed of adding a new book to the device.

A 13-year-old middle school student has read 54 Kindle books in less than 6 months since his school introduced e-books

Does the use of e-reading devices promote reading?

A Hong Kong study investigated 12 student’s use of eBook over 2.5 years

Multiple evaluation strategies were used, including questionnaires, researchers’ observation records, video recordings, surveys, weblogs, and interviews.

Advantages reported were considered positive as the convenience, portability, and literacy being more easily accessible, were all mentioned.

Does the use of e-reading devices promote reading?

Two Canadian High School alternative classrooms with 22 at-risk youth implemented e-readers.

There were students with high functioning autism, moderate and intensive behavior, mental illness, and learning disabilities.

The students had access to170 literary pieces for e-reading.

Students enjoyed the merging of school with their virtual world, despite some of the technological glitches.

Does the use of e-reading devices promote reading?

Whelan (2011) reports forty-four of our nation’s school libraries are offering digital circulations. Her research was conducted by interviewing 905 librarians in the United States.

She reports that 71 percent of high school libraries, 55 percent of middle schools, and 35 percent of elementary schools are currently offering eBook circulation.

Librarians say their reasoning for buying eBooks are usage, multiple users allowed, and requests by faculty and staff.

In 2011, thirty-three percent of librarians have seen new faces walking into the media centers directly because of offering eBooks.

Does the use of e-reading devices improve student achievement?

Some evidence that Ray Doiron reflects on is how eBooks engage children and helps readers understand the texts due to the multimedia features.

Ebooks support the reading of text and help readers visualize meaning and comprehend more easily.

Comprehension is improving since e-reader devices have multiple tools and text features such as text-to-speech options, dictionaries, and note-taking capabilities.

Does the use of e-reading devices improve student achievement?

Lisa Guernsey researched to see if digital books help young kids learn to read or if they were mostly for fun and games. She wanted to test her personal theory that narration and animation helped struggling readers.

She tested two randomized groups to get a baseline of their reading abilities.

Once assessed, one group used Tumblebooks while the other used traditional intervention methods.

Students using Tumblebooks achieved fluency to the point that they were “exited” from the pullout session and integrated back into their regular classrooms.

Does the use of e-reading devices improve student achievement?

Collier and Berg’s research shows that phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension are supported by the use of e-devices.

E-books that highlight the text as it’s being read, aid in the connection between oral and print language

Students who read more have larger vocabularies.E-books are so engaging that students are exposed to

words multiple times, in multiple settings, in various ways.

Readers interact with the text more which leads to decoding, summarizing, and problem solving.

Does the use of e-reading devices improve student achievement?

Michelle Chau found that using eBooks with young children prove to be effective in early literacy development, reading comprehension, and language development for young children.

EBooks have features that help children decode new words. Sound and animation help illustrate meaning. Voice narration aids children in pronunciation of particular words.

She concludes that electronic books support literacy and further language development. Comprehension levels were increased when children were using them in their classrooms.

Does the use of e-reading devices improve student achievement?

Jamie Davis explored the effects that e-readers have on reading comprehension, reading behaviors, and attitudes toward reading with low-income third graders.

She compared the reading comprehension and reading attitudes of low-income students who read on the ipad with the students who read traditional print books.

Pre and post data results showed e-readers created proficient readers through increased motivation and a positive attitude towards reading.

Subjects and Setting for the Project

The school where this project took place has a population of nearly 1,100 students.

It is an elementary school that has the grades Kindergarten thru fifth grade.

It is the only school in the district that does not receive any Title I or other special funds.

The chosen class has 25 learners, (52% boys, 48% girls) with only one student with an IEP.

Racially, there are 16 Caucasian students, 6 African Americans, 1 Asian American, 1 Indian (not Native American) and 1 Latino child.

Implementation of the Project

Collaborating with a fifth grade teacher with a passion for technology, utilizing chapter books through iBooks during small group time was decided on.

Among the Hidden (Above Average Group), The Indian and the Cupboard (Average Group), and Tuck Everlasting (Below Average Group) were downloaded using the app iBooks.

The class was divided up in to three reading groups based on their reading ability. Each group was then split with half using the e-read. The students chosen to use the e-readers were chosen at random.

Evaluation of the ProjectThe project took roughly nine weeks for students to use

the electronic devices in their small reading group times.

To prepare for the project, a STAR reading test was given to each student to determine Grade Equivalency.

A survey was also given to determine the attitudes toward an e-reader when used for academic purposes.

Then, three reading groups were created based on reading ability. Among each group, half of the population was chosen to read a chapter book on their level using the iBooks application on the iPad, while the other half used traditional paperback books.

Data Collection and AnalysisDoes the use of e-reading devices promote reading?

To evaluate this research question, pre and post surveys were given to the students.

The Pre Survey was given to all students to identify student interest and opinions on using electronic devices.

The Post Survey was given to only students who had used the electronic devices to read the chapter books in their groups. It was given to determine whether the device was a motivator or a hindrance to their quality of reading.

Pre-Survey Results

Pre-Survey Results

Pre-Survey Results

Students were also asked what they liked about the e-reader. Answers included that e-readers were light, portable, prevented students from carrying multiple books, easy to download digital books, and provided quick access to books.

Post-Survey Results•One hundred percent of the participants answered they did enjoy reading the book on the ipad . •One hundred percent stated that they would like to read another book using an electronic reading device. •All of the participants said that they actually prefer reading on an e-reader. •Students liked the ability to change the font and brightness, the mechanical ability to swipe a page, and that the words seemed clearer on a page, making it easier to follow along. •The only negative response was that in a group setting, the digital book numbers were different than the printed copy.

Data Collection and AnalysisDoes the use of e-reading devices improve student

achievement?

Students were given the STAR test before the project was implemented.

STAR is a comprehension based test that determines student grade equivalency.

Learners were also given the STAR test after the implementation of the project to see if their reading levels increased or decreased.

STAR Results

STAR Results

Data was also considered among whether or not students gained or loss points in their grade equivalency. The following reflects electronic reading device users against traditional print patrons.

Traditional Print Readers

Students final test scores of the iPad readers were compared against the ones who read traditionally.

In the low level group, four learners participated in reading Tuck Everlasting. Two used an iPad and two used a traditional book. Shown are the average post-scores.

777879808182838485

TestScore

IpadBook

* Students were given a final test. * Scores were compared among the ones who read the book on the iPad against the ones who read the book traditionally. * In the low level group, four learners participated in reading Tuck Everlasting. * Two used an iPad and two used a traditional book. * Shown are the average post-scores.

In the on level group, 14 learners read Indian in the Cupboard.

Seven participants used iPads, and seven used books. Below are the averages post-scores

0102030405060708090

TestScore

Ipad

Book

* Students were given a final test. * Scores were compared among the ones who read the book on the iPad against the ones who read the book traditionally. * In the low level group, four learners participated in reading Tuck Everlasting. * Two used an iPad and two used a traditional book. * Shown are the average post-scores.

The above level group had seven learners that participated in reading Among the Hidden.

Three participants read using the iPad application and four used traditional chapter books.

Below are the averages post-scores.

9293949596979899100

TestScore

Ipad

Book

Conclusion

Does the use of e-readers promote reading?Based on pre and post surveys, I would definitely say that

e-reading devices do promote reading. Students seemed to be interested and eager in getting their

hands on digital copies of text. Students were more inclined to focus and follow along with

the text. It also has sparked the interest of students bringing their

nooks, kindles, and iPods to read e-books on their own time during class.

Conclusion

Does the use of e-readers improve student achievement?As I compared all the data between the usages of an

electronic device against the use of a book, I do not see a noticeable difference.

The averages for group tests seemed to be slightly higher of the patrons who read the digital copy of the chapter books.

When testing for their grade equivalency, it seemed to be that more students lost points in the iPad user group.

My conclusion is there is still work to be done, data to be conducted, and more improvement to be shown before I could positively say yes.

Unexpected Outcomes

Electronic reading devices were easily incorporated into the reading curriculum.

Students were motivated and more eager to read during class time with e-readers.

Although e-readers are not traditional, students were not reluctant to using the iBooks application, yet embraced it.

The project sparked the interest of students bringing their nooks, kindles, and iPods to read e-books on their own time during class.

RecommendationsRecommendation 1: Have students with the exact

same grade equivalency read the same text. This would enable a more accurate comparison to determine if the use of e-reading devices improve student achievement.

Recommendation 2: Have students choose their own digital text to read, rather than be assigned a text to read. This will reflect student achievement based on their own interests.

Recommendation 3: Monitor achievement more closely through the project.