Learning Curve

Can tablets really help kids learn to read?

Ben Johnson Sep 1, 2014
HTML EMBED:
COPY
Learning Curve

Can tablets really help kids learn to read?

Ben Johnson Sep 1, 2014
HTML EMBED:
COPY

Can tablets and apps help children learn to read? It feels like a simple question, but the answer is complicated.

For starters, technology is moving fast, and there hasn’t been time for solid scientific consensus to develop on whether and how devices like tablets should be used to help children improve their reading skills.

That hasn’t stopped school systems around the country from buying in, and we heard this week about tablets in schools from Marketplace’s LearningCurve reporter Adriene Hill.

But beyond schools and teachers, what about parents who want their children to have top notch reading skills in a changing environment?

Jason Boog is the author of “Born Reading: Bringing Up Bookworms in a Digital Age.” Boog says that there is some agreement in the scientific community on a few important points.

Click the media player above to hear Jason Boog in conversation with Marketplace Tech host Ben Johnson.

One thing neuroscientists seem to agree that kids shouldn’t be playing with tablets and smartphones until they’re over two years of age. Another is that whatever apps or technology we use to try and improve our kids’ reading skills, there is no real alternative for a real human being reading with and to a child. 

 

There’s a lot happening in the world.  Through it all, Marketplace is here for you. 

You rely on Marketplace to break down the world’s events and tell you how it affects you in a fact-based, approachable way. We rely on your financial support to keep making that possible. 

Your donation today powers the independent journalism that you rely on. For just $5/month, you can help sustain Marketplace so we can keep reporting on the things that matter to you.