GENDER DIFFERENCES IN READING PREFERENCE: EVIDENCE FROM A MOBILE PHONE PLATFORM
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.25159/0027-2639/376Keywords:
gender, reading preferences, enjoyment, reading content, literacy, mobile phone technologyAbstract
Two studies were conducted to investigate gender differences in a sample of young South African readers from poor communities. In the first study, the self-reported reading preferences of 2 775 readers on a mobile phone platform supplied by the FunDza Literacy Trust were surveyed. Both male and female readers indicated that they liked four genres in particular: romance, drama, non- fiction, and stories with specific South African content. There were nevertheless some differences, such as that a higher percentage of males liked stories involving sport. The second study examined the unique FunDza site visits made by readers, as a proxy measure of what they actually were reading. Four genres stood out: romance, drama, biography, and action/adventure. Again the similarity between male and female readers was noticeable, although many more females than males read content on the site.
Metrics
References
Aker, J. C. and I. Mbiti. 2010. Mobile phones and economic development in Africa. Working Paper 211. http://www.cgdev.org/content/publications/detail/1424175 (accessed July 28, 2015).
Brozo, W. G., G. Shiel and K. Topping. 2007. Engagement in reading: Lessons learned from three PISA countries. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy 51(4): 304–315.
Chiu, M. M. and C. McBride-Chang. 2006. Gender, context, and reading: A comparison of students in 43 countries. Scientific Studies of Reading 10(4): 331–362.
Clark, C. 2011. Setting the baseline. The National Literacy Trust’s first annual survey into young people’s reading – 2010. London: National Literacy Trust.
Clark, C. and A. Foster. 2005. Children’s and young people’s reading habits and preferences: The who, what, why, where and when. London: National Literacy Trust.
Dutro, E. 2002. ‘But that’s a girl’s book!’: Exploring gender boundaries in children’s reading practices. The Reading Teacher 55(4): 376–384.
FundZa Literacy Trust. 2014. http://www.fundza.co.za (accessed July 28, 2015).
Gurian, M. and P. Henley. 2001. Males and females learn differently: A guide for teachers and parents. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Krashen, S. D. 2004. The power of reading. Westport, CT: Libraries Unlimited.
Kreutzer, T. 2009. Assessing cell phone usage in a South African township school. International Journal of Education and Development using Information and Communication Technology
(5): 43–57.
Machet, M. 2002. Young people’s reading interests in South Africa. Mousaion 20(1): 44–72.
Martino, W. 2001. Boys and reading: Investigating the impact of masculinities on boys’ reading preferences and involvement in literacy. Australian Journal of Language and Literacy 24(1):
McKenna, M., D. Kear and R. Ellsworth. 1995. Children’s attitudes towards reading: A national survey. Reading Research Quarterly 30(4): 934–956.
Merisuo-Storm, T. 2006. Girls and boys like to read and write different texts. Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research 50(2): 111–125.
Millard, E. 1997. Differently literate: Gender identity and the construction of the developing reader. Gender and Education 9(1): 31–48.
Nielsen Southern Africa. 2011. Mobile phones dominate in South Africa 2011. http://www.nielsen. com/us/en/newswire/2011.html?sortbyScore=false&tag=Category%3AMobile (accessed July 28, 2015).
Pottorff, D., D. Phelps-Zientarski and M. E. Skovera. 1996. Gender perceptions of elementary and middle school students about literacy at school and home. Journal of Research and Development in Education 29(4): 203–211.
Privacy TechnicalAssistance Center. 2014. Protecting student privacy while using online educational services: Requirements and best practices. http://ptac.ed.gov/sites/default/files/Student%20 Privacy%20and%20Online%20Educational%20Services%20%28February%202014%29. pdf (accessed July 28, 2015).
Smith, M. W. and J. D. Wilhelm. 2002. Reading don’t fix no Chevys. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
Sullivan, M. 2004. Why Johnny won’t read: Schools often dismiss what males like. No wonder they’re not wild about reading. School Library Journal 50(8): 36.
Van der Berg, S. 2008. How effective are poor schools? Poverty and educational outcomes in South Africa. Studies in Educational Evaluation 34(3): 145–154.
Vosloo, S. 2010. mLearning in Africa: Lessons from the m4Lit project. http://www.slideshare.net/ uocunescochair/m4-lit-unescobarcelonaoct2010sprinkling (accessed July 28, 2015).
Walton, M. 2010. Mobile literacies and South African teens: Leisure reading, writing, and Mxit chatting for teens in Langa and Guguletu. Cape Town: Shuttleworth Foundation.
Weih, T. G. 2008. A book club sheds light on males and reading. Middle School Journal40(1): 19–25.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
Accepted 2016-03-29
Published 2016-10-26
