Presenter: Sydney Brooks
Authors: Sydney Brooks
Faculty Advisor: Florence Bacabac
Institution: Dixie State University
Reading is a pastime that many enjoy with different genres to be explored, different voices to be shared, and different mediums to be used. The debate between the different mediums and which is better has gone on for many years (Bartram, 2014). Studies have been focused on the effect the medium has on readers’ perceptions and comprehension, as well as on how the rise of digital reading has affected the economy for publishers and provided evidence on the benefits of digital reading. This paper proposes a research study to determine which of the two mediums, digital or print, would leave a bigger impact on university students and their comprehension. An English class from Dixie State University whose professor uses both physical and online textbooks to accomplish learning objectives will be surveyed. After having taken a comprehension test on a reading subject, students will rank on a 5-point Likert Scale the preferred medium and how the medium affected their understanding, as well as answer some open-ended questions to explain their response in detail. The results of the survey anticipate a higher score in reading comprehension from the physical medium, with a preference for electronic books for non-educational reasons. My findings will illustrate how universities and professors could improve their teaching processes and ultimately help their students succeed.