Reading in the Digital Age: Young Children’s Experiences with E-books (eBook)

Contents 6
Contributors 8
Introduction to the Edited Volume 11
1 The Prevalence of e-Books 12
2 The Conflicting Evidence 12
3 How This Book Captures These Issues 13
4 Book Overview 13
4.1 e-Book Features and Literacy Development 13
4.2 e-Books and Literacy Practices at Home 14
4.3 e-Books and Literacy Practices in Schools 15
4.4 e-Books and Special Populations 16
5 Summary and Future Directions 16
References 17
Part I: e-Book Features and Literacy Development 19
The Four Pillars of Learning: e-Books Past, Present, and Future 20
1 The Four Pillars and Book Reading 22
1.1 Dialogic Reading 22
1.2 Research with e-Books: A Moving Target? 27
2 Conclusion 27
References 28
From Print to Digital: The Medium Is Only Part of the Message 31
1 The Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning: An Integrative Perspective 33
2 Predicting the Learning Potential of e-Books and Learning Apps 34
2.1 The Individual Child 35
2.2 The Content of e-Books and Digital Screen Media 37
2.3 The Viewing and Reading Contexts 41
3 Conclusion 45
References 46
The Promise of Multimedia Enhancement in Children’s Digital Storybooks 52
1 How Multimedia Support Learning 53
2 How Digital Storytelling May Help Synchronize Picture and Narration 55
3 Efficacy of Enhanced Multimedia 56
4 Effects of Music and Sound 57
5 Efficacy of Playful Enhancements 58
6 Towards Literary Interactivity 60
7 Conclusion 62
References 62
Digital Books Mentioned in This Chapter 64
e-Book Design and Young Children’s Behaviour: The Case of Alphabet Books 65
1 Alphabet e-Books 66
2 The Present Study 68
3 Method 69
3.1 e-Book Materials 69
3.2 Participants 74
3.3 Procedure 74
3.4 Behaviour Coding 75
3.5 Data Preparation and Analytic Approach 76
4 Results 77
4.1 Children’s Book Behaviours by e-Book 78
5 Discussion 84
5.1 The Double Face of Animations 85
5.2 Enhancing the Alphabet Aspect of Alphabet e-Books 86
6 Conclusion 87
References 88
Part II: e-Books and Literacy Practices at Home 92
Parent Preferences: e-Books Versus Print Books 93
1 Introduction 93
1.1 Mobile Screen Media Prevalence for Preschool-Aged Children 94
1.2 The Importance of Reading 94
1.3 Parent Attitudes Toward Media 95
1.4 Overview of the Current Study 96
2 Methods 96
2.1 Participants and Design 96
3 Results 98
3.1 Reported Usage of e-Books and Print Books 98
3.2 Beliefs About Book Purposes 99
3.3 Preferred Book Features 100
3.4 Pressures and Perceptions 100
4 Discussion 101
4.1 Limitations and Future Directions 103
5 Conclusion 104
References 104
Technology Support for Adults and Children Reading Together: Questions Answered and Questions Raised 106
1 Introduction 107
1.1 Book-Reading Language 107
1.2 Parent Training 108
1.3 Technology Support for Parents 109
1.4 Technology Support for Children 109
1.5 Summary 110
2 Designing Technology Support for Adult-Child Joint Reading 111
2.1 Family Story Play and StoryVisit 111
2.2 Read with Me, Talk with Me 112
2.3 iRead With 114
2.4 Dialogic Actress 115
2.5 Summary: Designs 115
3 Research on Technology Supports for Adult-Child Reading Behaviors 117
3.1 Family Story Play 117
3.2 StoryVisit 117
3.3 Read with Me, Talk with Me 118
3.4 iRead With 119
3.5 Dialogic Actress 119
3.6 Summary: Methods 120
4 Research Findings 120
4.1 Family Story Play 121
4.2 StoryVisit 121
4.3 Read with Me, Talk with Me 122
4.4 iRead With 123
4.5 Dialogic Actress 125
4.6 Summary: Results 125
5 Discussion 126
5.1 Parent Training in Dialogic Strategies 126
5.2 Print Referencing 126
5.3 Parasocial Relationships 126
5.4 Control of Character Scaffolding 127
5.5 Research Conducted in Lab Versus Home 128
6 Next Steps: Generalization of Strategies Learned 128
7 Technology Support for Adult-Child Reading: Questions Raised 129
References 131
Part III: e-Books and Literacy Practices in Schools 136
Digital Reading Programs: Definitions, Analytic Tools and Practice Examples 137
1 Digital Reading Platforms Defined 138
2 Digital Reading Platforms Under the Lens 141
3 Best Practice Examples of Digital Reading Platforms in Action 148
4 Where to Go From Here 152
Appendix: e-Book Quality Rating Tool 153
References 156
The Power of a Story: Reading Live and Electronic Storybooks to Young Children 159
1 The Importance of Stories 160
2 The Potential for Media 161
3 Blending Reading Experiences in the Digital Age 162
4 A Tale of Two Stories: Digital and Live Platforms 164
5 Case Study 1: No Influence by Medium 167
6 Case Study 2: Stories Matter 170
7 Reading in the Digital Age: A Both-And Approach 171
8 Reaching Families Where They Are 172
References 173
The Effects of Digital Literacy Support Tools on First Grade Students’ Comprehension of Informational e-Books 176
1 Theoretical Framework 179
1.1 Stages of Reading Development 180
1.2 CCSS: An Increased Emphasis on Informational Texts in Primary Grades 180
1.3 CCSS: An Increased Emphasis on Using Technology 181
2 Methods 184
2.1 Selection of Site and Description of Participants 184
2.2 Research Design 185
2.3 Materials 185
2.4 Procedure 186
2.5 Data Analysis 186
3 Quantitative Findings 187
3.1 Investigating the Patterns Between First-Grade Students’ Use of Literacy Support Tools and their Reading Comprehension Score 187
4 Qualitative Findings 188
4.1 Rock, Paper, Scissors… Annotation? A Parallel Between Students’ Literacy Support Tool Preferences and Reading Level 188
4.2 To Write or Not to Write: The Battle of the Keyboard Versus the Sticky Note 189
4.3 First Graders Can Do It!: Making the Connection Between School and Home 190
5 Discussion 190
5.1 Investigating the Patterns Between First-Grade Students’ Use of Literacy Support Tools and Their Reading Comprehension Score While Reading e-Books 190
5.2 The Perceived Experiences of First-Grade Students’ Reading Comprehension of Informational e-Books 192
6 Implications for Practice 192
7 Limitations 193
8 Implications for Future Research 193
9 Conclusion 194
References 194
Designing Dialogs Around Picture Book Apps 198
1 Background 199
1.1 Literacy and Literature in Kindergarten 200
2 Theoretical Perspectives and Applications 201
2.1 Design 201
2.2 Affordances 202
2.3 Research on Affordances of Text and Medium 202
2.4 Designing the Dialogical Reading Situation 204
3 Methods 205
4 Discussion of Relevant Dimensions 206
4.1 Affordances of the Text 206
4.2 Affordances of the Medium 209
4.3 Designing the Reading Situation to Facilitate Dialog 209
5 A Model for Analyzing Picture Book Apps as Available Design for Dialog-Based Reading 210
6 Case Study: Yesper and Noper in the VEBB Project 211
6.1 Affordances of the Text 211
6.2 Affordances of the Medium 212
6.3 The Design of the Reading Situation 213
7 Conclusion 214
References 215
Practical Strategies for e-Book Use in Early Childhood Classrooms (K-5) 217
1 e-Book Use 218
2 Picture of e-Book Research in Classrooms 218
2.1 Student Benefits 219
2.2 Teacher Benefits 222
3 Challenges for Students and Teachers 226
4 What Teachers Should Consider When Selecting e-Books 227
5 What Populations Are Best Served by e-Books? 227
6 Conclusion 229
References 230
Part IV: e-Books and Special Populations 234
Metacognitive Intervention with e-Books to Promote Vocabulary and Story Comprehension Among Children at Risk for Learning Disabilities 235
1 Students at Risk for Learning Disabilities: Definitions and Characteristics 236
2 Metacognition and Children with Learning Disabilities 237
3 Promoting Literacy Among Children with LD: Multisensory Learning and e-Books 238
4 Metacognitive Guidance to Promote Literacy Skills: Two Studies 241
4.1 Study 1 241
4.2 Study 2 244
5 Improving Vocabulary and Story Comprehension: Does Metacognition Matter? 247
References 249
A Meta-analysis of Multimedia Applications: How Effective Are Interventions with e-Books, Computer-Assisted Instruction and TV/Video on Literacy Learning? 256
1 Becoming Literate 257
2 Individual Differences in Reading Development 258
3 Multimedia 260
4 Computer-Assisted Instruction 262
5 Purpose of the Study 264
6 Method 265
6.1 Search Criteria 265
6.2 Search Strategy 265
6.3 Selection of Relevant Studies 266
6.4 Coding 266
7 Results 275
7.1 Descriptive Statistics 275
7.2 Meta-analysis 276
7.3 Multilevel Modelling 276
8 Discussion 281
8.1 Comparisons with Other Meta-analyses: CAI 283
8.2 Implementation Variables in CAI 284
8.3 Comparisons with Other Meta-analyses: e-Books 285
8.4 Limitations 286
9 Conclusion 286
Appendices 287
Appendix 1: Principal Component Analysis of Literacy Outcomes in Two Primary Studies 287
Appendix 2: Effect Sizes for Separate Literacy Outcomes (Van Daal and Sandvik 2013) 287
References 288