Effect of Screen Reading on Students’ Achievement in Reading Comprehension

Abstract

The acquisition of reading proficiency in childhood is a critical foundation for higher education achievement; however, a persistent reading inertia among Nigerian undergraduates threatens the attainment of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4, which emphasizes the need for children to acquire foundational reading skills by age ten. To investigate a potential intervention, this quasi-experimental study examined the effect of screen-based reading on reading comprehension achievement. Employing a non-equivalent, non-randomized controlled group design, 72 randomly selected undergraduates from the Department of English and Literary Studies at ESUT during the 2022/2023 session were assigned to either an experimental group, which used electronic reading materials, or a control group, which used traditional print materials. Data collected from pre-tests and post-tests were analyzed using Means, Standard Deviation, and Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA). The results indicated that while the screen-based reading group performed slightly better, the difference was not statistically significant; leading to the conclusion that screen based reading did not substantially improve comprehension. Consequently, the study recommends that to effectively address the learning poverty crisis, undergraduates should be encouraged to utilize both digital and print platforms for reading.