I was fascinated by a School Library Monthly blog that discussed the results of an exploratory study pairing parents and young children for “co-reading” experiences with print books, regular eBooks, and interactive or “enhanced” eBooks. The blog discussed the results of a Joan Ganz Cooney Center study that examined co-reading between parents and their 3-6 year-old children comparing three book formats, print books, e-books, and enhanced e-books. The result of the study was that print, e-books, and enhanced books do not support reading and literarcy in the same ways. Three findings of the study were: (1) enhanced e-books can distract the readers and change the conversations between the parent and the child, (2) enhanced e-books negatively affects the children’s ability to recall details of the story, and (3) print books were more advantageous for literacy building while enhance e-books were more engaging to the child. It was facinating for me to read that "The basic e-book elicited similar levels of content related actions (e.g., labeling, pointing, and verbal elaboration of story features) from the children and parents as its print counterpart, whereas the enhanced e-book drew out fewer content related actions than its print counterpart" (School Library Monthly, 2012).
It seems, librarians and parents should consider these studies when considering the format selection of reading material for children. Reluctant readers can benefit by enhanced e-books because they may be more engaging than a printed book. However, reading comprehension and literacy skills are better developed through print and e-books. Additionally, parents should consider that studies are showing using print resources for co-reading may be best.
For more information consider further examining the School Library Monthly Blog at http://blog.schoollibrarymedia.com/index.php/2012/06/, the summary of the Joan Ganz Cooney Center study at http://www.joanganzcooneycenter.org/upload_kits/jgcc_ebooks_quickreport.pdf, and reading an article about e-books by Samantha Roslund--Roslund, S. (2012). Sharpening the digital nose: Evaluating estorybooks. School Library Monthly, 28(7).
Reference: School Library Monthly. (2012, June 29). [Web log message]. Retrieved from http://blog.schoollibrarymedia.com/index.php/2012/06/
It seems, librarians and parents should consider these studies when considering the format selection of reading material for children. Reluctant readers can benefit by enhanced e-books because they may be more engaging than a printed book. However, reading comprehension and literacy skills are better developed through print and e-books. Additionally, parents should consider that studies are showing using print resources for co-reading may be best.
For more information consider further examining the School Library Monthly Blog at http://blog.schoollibrarymedia.com/index.php/2012/06/, the summary of the Joan Ganz Cooney Center study at http://www.joanganzcooneycenter.org/upload_kits/jgcc_ebooks_quickreport.pdf, and reading an article about e-books by Samantha Roslund--Roslund, S. (2012). Sharpening the digital nose: Evaluating estorybooks. School Library Monthly, 28(7).
Reference: School Library Monthly. (2012, June 29). [Web log message]. Retrieved from http://blog.schoollibrarymedia.com/index.php/2012/06/