READING
Digital stories
years has revealed another advantage of and just focus on actions in the video, thus because computers were in separate rooms.
living books. The extra features in animated not learning new vocabulary. However, our To prevent the children “reading” only two
picture storybooks work as scaffolds research has not supported the hypothesis or three different books out of the fi ve
for learning the many words that are that video distracts children or overloads their available, the site was programmed to allow
unknown to children suffering from word memory. By contrast, our fi ndings corroborate a maximum number of repetitions. This
poverty. Book sharing was shown to affect Allan Paivio’s cognitive theory that language experiment demonstrated that the children,
vocabulary knowledge especially when learning builds on the foundation of nonverbal after about 2.5 hours of “reading” and
reading was combined with clarifi cation representation, and that cementing language “re-reading” living books on the computer,
about the meanings of words, by pointing at sets up effective memory traces resulting in had made signifi cantly more progress on
pictures and highlighting details mentioned heightened scores on vocabulary tests. the Peabody Vocabulary Test (PPVT) than
in the text. Animations in living books seem equally poorly performing control pupils
to be an alternative, promising way to clarify
Texts can be ‘read’ without
from the same classrooms who did not use
unknown words in a book, especially when the living books. However, we noticed that
vocabulary is lacking.
adult support because an
when pupils’ vocabulary substantially lagged
How do living books bolster learning
oral rendition is available
they benefi ted less from exposure to the
new vocabulary? In traditional printed
picture storybooks illustrations cement
instead of, or in addition to,
digital library, probably because the selected
books were rather complex to this group. We
language, and thus support learning. the printed word have, therefore, begun to experiment with
However, it is often hard for children to a digital library that adapts the selection of
connect illustrations to the story text, While the virtue of storybooks is widely available books to children’s comprehension
unless they receive ongoing support from accepted for expanding vocabulary, reading levels, by including questions about the
an adult in shared book reading sessions. routines that include video storybooks text and creating a feedback loop from their
Take, for instance, a static illustration in tend not to be acknowledged as a further score to the book menu.
Winnie the Witch, depicting the witch with opportunity for young children suffering In conclusion, new routines with living
her wand and her green cat. Facets of the from word poverty. Our fi ndings, so books may not only enhance children’s
scene described in the text are shown in the far, indicate that children’s expressive enjoyment of reading, but also help them to
picture, but it is hard to connect the image vocabulary may expand by more than 300 comprehend storybooks and prepare them
with the narration that explains how the cat words per year when they watch video to become competent and avid readers later
was turned from black to green by waving the storybooks for 20 minutes a week (therefore in life. Furthermore, the internet sites open
magic wand and reciting the magic spell. In by about six words per week), provided all up new possibilities for teachers in terms of
the video version, by contrast, the process is relevant conditions are fulfi lled: monitoring young children’s reading activities.
made visible and we see how Winnie picks up
●
Children are attentive even without an
her wand, waves it, uses the spell, and turns adult sitting next to them, as happened in About the authors
the cat from black to green, thus illustrating our experiments; Adriana Bus (email: bus@fsw.leidenuniv.nl),
the successive sentences in the narration.
●
The stimulus books include a large Marian Verhallen, and Verna van der Kooy-
In fact, in living books visual elements diversity of words thus enabling Hofl and are based at Leiden University in
that are normally compressed into just one vocabulary growth; and the Netherlands. Adriana Bus, professor
static illustration are instead split into several
●
Digital libraries include a suffi cient of education and child studies, has written
smaller portions, each representing one number of books to expose children during about storybook reading among parents
element of the narration. By synchronising a longer period to a variety of stories. and children and the impact of multimedia
phrases in the narration with portions of With two book reading sessions per pupil, storybooks on children’s reading skills.
the picture there is a higher probability that per week, we would expect an increase in Marian Verhallen and Verna van der Kooy-
connections will be made between words and vocabulary to be twice as large, and amount Hofl and are completing their PhD research
non-verbal information. to 600 words. As most living books do not on the effi cacy of computer programs for
From a series of randomised experiments take more than fi ve minutes, we would young children at risk.
with children aged fi ve and six with a limited- recommend that children “read” two or more
Dutch background, it appears that living books books per session. This is comparable to the Further reading
promote vocabulary growth more than books format of children’s television shows, and a
Bus AG, & Neuman SB, (Editors) (2009).
with just static illustrations. We found that, practical possibility for Reception and Key
Multimedia and Literacy Development:
after 20 minutes, the time it takes to “re-read” Stage 1 curricula.
Improving Achievement for Young
one living book about four times, children’s A longitudinal experiment tested the
Learners. New York: Taylor & Francis
vocabulary gained six out of the 42 complex predicted effects in a group of 135 Dutch
Group.
words in the focal book. Pupils’ word knowledge pupils. Over a three-month period, fi ve-
did also improve as a result of spending the year-old Dutch children struggling with early
Bus AG, Van IJzendoorn MH, & Pellegrini
same time reading a static version of the same literacy skills were logged on to a digital
AD, (1995), Storybook Reading Makes for
book, but growth was less substantial. library once a week. During sessions of
Success in Learning to Read. A Meta-
Similarly, video outperforms exposure to 15 minutes children “read” and “re-read”
analysis on Intergenerational Transmission
adult-led whole class readings that include two different storybooks without any help
of Literacy, Review of Educational
reading intonation, facial expressions, and an from the teacher or researcher. In some
Research, 65, 1–21.
adult who corrects disruptive behaviour. Critics cases children were sitting in their regular
Nation K, (2008), Learning to Read Words.
have argued that video and other multimedia classroom using earphones in order not to
The Quarterly Journal of Experimental
additions to storybooks are so overwhelming disturb their peers, and in other schools the
Psychology, 61, 1121–33.
that children forget to listen to the story text sessions took place outside the classroom
spring 2009 Better: Evidence-based Education 17
Better Spr09 pp16-17 Digital.indd 17 20/4/09 09:18:35
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