Print books best for promoting child literacy

Reading with your child is a gift no matter what the format — but printed books remain the best way to develop literacy, research suggests.

Gerry Shiel of the Educational Research Centre at St Patrick’s College, Dublin, examined global research on the impacts of different story formats on a child’s literacy and language development.

With stories now accessible on a range of digital devices, Dr Shiel said US research found enhanced e-books elicited fewer reactions to content than print books, suggesting the enhanced e-book format was less effective than print or even unenhanced e-books at improving literacy.