International Journal of Economy, Management and Social Sciences, 2(8) August 2013, Pages: 558-564

TI Journals

International Journal of Economy, Management and Social Sciences

ISSN
2306-7276

www.tijournals.com

Technology Use and Reading Comprehension among

Australian Indigenous Adolescents
Genevieve Marie Johnson *
Curtin University, Perth, Australia
AR TIC LE INF O

AB S TR AC T

Keywords:

Recent advances in broadband and mobile phone access have resulted in increased use of information,
communication and entertainment technologies by Indigenous Australians in remote regions of
Australia. Twenty-three Indigenous adolescents (mean age 16.4 years,) residing in remote regions of
Western Australia participated in individual structured interviews which queried age of first use and
current frequency of use of television, computers, the internet, video games and mobile phones. A cloze
deletion procedure was also individually administered to measure reading comprehension. Although age
of first use of devices evidenced considerable variability, there were no significant relationships to
reading comprehension. However, as frequency of current mobile phone use increased, reading
comprehension tended to increase and as frequency of current computer use increased, reading
comprehension tended to decrease. Mobile phones, commonly used to text message, may facilitate
reading achievement among adolescents characterized by limited literacy skills in Standard English.

Indigenous
Aboriginal
Adolescent
Literacy
Reading
Mobile phone

2013 Int. j. econ. manag. soc. sci. All rights reserved for TI Journals.

1.

Introduction

In all digitalized nations, adolescents commonly use a range of information, communication and entertainment technologies, most notably,
television, video games, computers, the internet and mobile phones [1, 2]. In 2009, young Americans aged eight to 18 years spent an
average of seven hours and 38 minutes per day consuming media, an increase of one hour and 17 minutes since 2004. The increase is
attributed to widespread use of mobile phones [3]. In 2010, more than 90% of Australians 15 to 17 years of age accessed the internet from
home [4]. Although seasonable variation is apparent, Canadian adolescents currently spend an average of 22 hours each week watching
television [5]. Almost half of British teenagers (47%) own a smartphone; 59% acquired their smartphone during the past year [6]. On
average, adolescents in Singapore report playing video games for approximately 20 hours each week [7]. Given such pervasive patterns of
use, a considerable volume of research has explored the impact of information, communication and entertainment technologies on child and
adolescent school achievement, particularly, literacy skills [8, 9, 10].

2.

Reading Ability and Information, Communication and Entertainment Technology

Although a large body of empirical research has addressed the developmental and educational consequences of television viewing during
childhood, findings are collectively complex and subject to interpretation [11, 12]. For example, Moses reviewed the research on the effect
of television on childrens literacy and concluded that: 1) moderate amounts of television viewing were beneficial for reading, 2) the
content of programs viewed by children was important, 3) programs that aim to promote literacy in children positively impacted literacy
skills, and 4) there were limitations to the existing literature [13]. Based on review of 50 years of research, Schmidt and Anderson noted
that there was no relationship between television viewing and reading achievement after third grade [14]. Research that takes into account
program content generally finds that educational programming is associated with positive academic outcomes while entertainment
programs are negatively associated, although most of that research has focused on young children rather than adolescents [1]. Gentzkow
and Shapiro used heterogeneity in the timing of televisions introduction to different local markets to identify the effect of preschool
television exposure on standardized test scores during adolescence [15]. Their findings suggested that an additional year of preschool
television exposure raised average adolescent test scores by about 0.02 standard deviations. For reading and general knowledge scores, the
positive effects were largest for adolescents from households where English was not the primary language, whose mothers had less than a
high school education and for nonwhite children.
As with research on the effect of television on children, the educational and developmental consequences of playing video games are
collectively complex and subject to interpretation [16]. Van Deventer and White observed proficient 10- and 11-year-old video gamers and
noted extremely high levels of self-monitoring, pattern recognition and visual memory [17]. DeBell and Chapman concluded that internet
use promotes cognitive development in children, specifically in the area of visual intelligence, where certain computer activities -particularly games -- may enhance the ability to monitor several visual stimuli at once, to read diagrams, recognize icons, and visualize
spatial relationships [18]. Depending on the type of game, video games can also increase scores on measures of memory, critical thinking
and problem solving [19]. For a sample of children with an average age of 12 years, Jackson, von Eye, Witt, Zhao and Fitzgerald reported a
* Corresponding author.
Email address: g.johnson@curtin.edu.au

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negative correlation between amount of time spend playing video games and grade point average [20]. Similarly, for a sample of
undergraduate students, Ip, Watkins and Jacobs (2008) reported that examination marks negatively correlated with video gaming frequency,
that is, frequent gamers generally achieved lower marks than less frequent gamers. However, there is some evidence that adolescents who
previously appeared unmotivated to read are acquiring literacy skills through text-based communication required in online video games [22].
Using the internet involves a complex collection of behaviours which often includes organized (e.g., search) and unorganized (e.g.,
browse) interactions with both human (e.g., chat) and nonhuman (e.g., database) elements in online environments [23]. The internet
provides opportunities for repeated exposure to activities that facilitate the development of culturally-valued skills such as literacy and
problem solving [24]. Baron reviewed the research and concluded that general use of web-based technologies improves childrens
capacity to read and write [8]. Simply stated, the more a child uses the internet, the more he/she reads [9]. Jackson and colleagues
provided low income children with home-based internet access and continuously recorded time online [25]. Reportedly, children who used
the internet more had higher scores on standardized tests of reading achievement and higher grade point averages 6 months, 1 year, and 16
months later than did children who used the internet less (p. 429). In a subsequent longitudinal investigation, Jackson and colleagues
concluded that greater internet use was associated with better reading skills but only for youth initially low in reading skills [20]. While
research relating home computer and internet access to academic performance shows a clear, positive statistical relationship, few studies
have controlled for background factors which may be driving the relationship [1].
For adolescents, the most common use of mobile phones is text messaging (TM) [1]. Used in chat rooms and on mobile phones, textese or
digitalk includes initials for common phrases (e.g., lol for laughing out loud), homophones (e.g., gr8 for great), abbreviations (cuz for
because), symbols for emotions and the omission of words, vowels, punctuation and capitalization [26]. Anecdotes from teachers, widely
reported in the media, describe textisms as having an adverse effect on childrens written language production [27]. Wood, Jackson, Hart
and Wilde studied 9- and 10- year-olds who had not previously owned a mobile phone [28]. Students were randomly assigned to a control
condition (i.e., not given a mobile phone) or a treatment condition (i.e., given a mobile phone only enabled for text messaging). Their
results demonstrated that text messaging does not adversely affect the development of literacy skills within this age group, and that the
students use of textisms when text messaging is positively related to improvement in literacy skills, especially spelling (p. 28). Durkin,
Conti-Ramsdent and Walker also found positive relationships between extent of TM and measures of adolescent Standard English literacy
[29]. Further, Coe and Oakhill noted that 10- and 11-year-olds who were good readers used more TM than those who were poor readers
[30]. Kemp and Bushnell reported that better literacy skills were associated with greater textese reading speed and accuracy among 10 to 12
year old children and concluded that there was growing evidence for a positive relationship between texting proficiency and traditional
literacy skills [31]. Similarly, Plester, Wood and Joshi discovered positive relationships between preadolescent knowledge of textisms and
measures of literacy including tests of phonological awareness, vocabulary and short-term memory [32]. Reportedly, texting explained
differences in reading ability that were not accounted for by any other measured variables. This suggests that exposure to textisms
independently contributes to reading ability. Relative to other technologies, the cost of mobile phones has made them accessible to
adolescents of a wide range of socioeconomic backgrounds [33]. But whether or not mobile phone ownership mitigates the relationship
between socioeconomic status and reading achievement remains to be seen.

3.

Closing the Digital Divide in Remote Regions of Western Australia

The relationship between adolescent use of information, communication and entertainment technologies and reading achievement appears
to be mediated by socioeconomic factors, at least to some extent [15, 20]. Further, individuals living in remote regions are typically among
the last to access new technologies [34]. Remote regions of Australia are inhabited primarily by Indigenous people. The 2009 National
Assessment Program-Literacy and Numeracy results for grade 9 students indicate that only 67% of Indigenous adolescents who sat the
reading test achieved minimum standard levels (compared with 93.5% of non-Indigenous adolescents). In Western Australia, only 56.4% of
Indigenous adolescents attained minimum standards (compared to 92.4% non-Indigenous adolescents) for the reading test [35]. Moreover,
scores are likely to be optimistic because of low Indigenous participation rates in national testing, particularly by low-achieving students
[36]. Causative factors include low levels of school attendance, retention and completion; limited access to quality education; limited
parental educational support; poor health and low social and emotional well-being; as well as other problems associated with socioeconomic disadvantage and social exclusion [37].
In Australia, a range of government policies have attempted to address inequalities in access to information, communication and
entertainment technologies, but despite these attempts the key determinants of access such as age, income, educational attainment and
Indigenous status are proving to be persistent [38]. Australia recently introduced educational television programming directed at Indigenous
preschool children [39].Additionally, increased connectivity is being addressed by the National Broadband Network and improved mobile
phone technology, especially the rise of smartphones, is serving to overcome problems with hardware. Further, the high cost of fixed-line
services and their absence in many remote communities, combined with the deregulation of telecommunications, has fuelled exponential
growth in mobile phone use in isolated regions of Australia. Mobile devices are increasingly environmentally robust and can withstand
heat, dust and rain to suit the conditions where Indigenous people often reside [40]. In many rural and remote Indigenous communities,
mobile phone technology is encouraging writing among those previously disenfranchised by traditional forms of literacy [41].

4.

Research Focus and Questions

Research on the effect of information, communication and entertainment technologies on reading achievement collectively suggests both
positive and negative influences with socioeconomic factors, in some cases, mediating the impact. Recent advances in broadband and
mobile phone access have resulted in increased use of information, communication and entertainment technologies by Indigenous

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Int ernational Journal of Ec onomy, Mana ge me nt and Soci al Sc iences , 2(8) Au gust 2013

Australians in remote regions. What are the patterns of computer use, television viewing, internet use, video gaming and mobile phone use
among Indigenous Australian adolescents residing in remote location? Are such patterns related to reading ability?

5.

Research Methods

Collecting data from Indigenous Australian adolescents is difficult because the population is transient and obtaining parental permission for
children to participate in research is extremely difficult. Approximately 60 Indigenous adolescents regularly attend a boarding school
located in a remote region of Western Australia. The school principal, acting in loco parentis, provided consent for a research assistant to
ask adolescents to voluntarily participate in a structured individual interview which included a brief written measure of reading
comprehension. The Indigenous adolescents, in every case, spoke English as a second language and, in general, were shy, non-verbal and
reluctant to engage in literacy activities. The research assistant was known to the Indigenous adolescents from previous data collection and
community service. Despite established rapport with the research assistant, the adolescents frequently responded to interview questions by
nodding their head, shrugging their shoulders or providing a single word or phrase. The research assistant was culturally-sensitive but
prodding in attempting to obtain accurate answers to questions posed, although responses were not always forthcoming. Each interview
occurred in the school during regular school hours during a time approved by the classroom teacher. Although limited data was collected,
establishing rapport and provided ample time for participants to provide responses resulted in interview sessions taking approximately 20
minutes to complete.
5.1 The Indigenous Adolescents
Twenty-three Indigenous adolescents (14 males and 9 females) participated in the individual structured interviews. Four participants
reported their age as 15 years, nine as 16 years, seven as 17 years and three as 18 years (mean 16.39 years, standard deviation 0.941).
Adolescents resided at the boarding school for up to nine months each year and lived with their families the remainder of the year in even
more remote regions of Western Australia. Adolescents can commence at the school in Grade 10 (i.e., at approximately 15 years of age),
though many enter during the equivalent of Grade 11 or 12. Some stay a short time (e.g., one semester); others stay longer - up to three
years. Upon graduation, it is hoped that the youth will transition into work or some form of workplace learning, but a number return to
their communities and to unemployment. For example, approximately 9% of non-aboriginal youth (aged 15-24 years) are unemployed or
not enrolled in educational/training programs while 39.5% of Indigenous youth living in remote regions of Australia are unemployed or not
enrolled in educational/training [42].
5.2 The Interview Measures
During the individual interview session, two measures were administered: 1) patterns of information, communication and entertainment
technology use and 2) reading comprehension. The research assistant queried Indigenous participants with respect to their use, age of first
use and current frequency of use for each of five devices: computer, television, internet, mobile phone and video games. For example, the
research assistant queried each adolescent individually: Youve used a computer, right? How old were you the first time you used a
computer? How often do you now use a computer? The research assistant wrote each response on an interview record sheet and codes were
subsequently assigned, for example, with respect to frequency of use: 1 = once a week; 2 = 2-3 times a week; 3 = 4-5 times a week; 4 = 6-7
times a week; 5 = more than once a day. If response to the age query included a range (e.g., 5 or 6 years old), the oldest age was
consistently recorded.
A culturally-sensitive reading comprehension measure was developed based on the cloze deletion procedure where the participant was
asked to replace missing words. Cloze tests require the ability to understand context and vocabulary in order to identify the word that best
completes a sentence [43]. Participating adolescents were instructed to complete each of nine sentences by writing a word/s in the space/s
provided (one sentence contained two missing words for a total of ten words required). A time limit of five minutes was imposed although
the mean time used was 3.52 minutes; one participant completed the task in one minute. Responses were scored zero for no response, an
illegible response or an inaccurate response; one for a marginal response (e.g., misspelled by more than two letters or barely legible but
accurate) and two for a response which was legible, two or less inaccurate letters and appropriate to the sentence. Table 1 provides the list
of sentences in the reading comprehension test and the proportion of adolescents receiving each possible score. As expected, because
sentences progressively increased in reading difficulty, a pattern of reduced scores occurred across items. Scores on each of the ten inserted
words were summed for a total reading comprehension score. The lowest possible score was zero and the highest possible score was 20.
For the sample of participating Indigenous adolescents, the mean total reading score was 15.7, the lowest score was 1.0 (it appeared that the
participant was motived) and the highest score was 20.0 (standard deviation 4.95).
Table 1. Frequency of Reading Comprehension Test Item Scores

Reading Comprehension Test Item

When I am tired, I____ in my bed.
At night, there are many ___ in the sky.
I put on a ___ to keep me warm outside.
A car has four rubber ___ with air inside each one.
I like to ___ television at night.
I enjoy ___ to music but not dancing.
The ___ left tracks in the sand and hid under some rocks.
It is important to ___ our Elders.
My __9_ food is pizza with ___.
My ___ food is pizza with 10 .

Zero
1
1
2
4
3
1
6
5
8
7

One
3
2
2
8
0
3
2
0
3
0

Two
19
20
19
11
20
19
15
18
12
16

Note. Zero = no response, an illegible response or an inaccurate response: One = marginal response (e.g., misspelled by more than two letters or barely legible but accurate): two
= a response which was legible, two or less inaccurate letters and appropriate to the sentence.

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5.3 Data Analysis

Indigenous adolescent age of first use and current frequency of use of the five devices was described (i.e., mean, standard deviation,
minimum and maximum). To determine patterns of association, age of first use and frequency of use for each of the five devices and total
reading comprehension scores were subject to Spearmans rho nonparametric correlational analysis, appropriate with small sample size.

6.

Research Findings

Table 2 provides a description of the responses given by Indigenous adolescents when queried about their use, age of first use and current
frequency of use for each of five devices: computer, television, internet, mobile phone and video games. In all 23 cases, the adolescents
affirmed that they had used each of the five devices, although age of first used varied considerably as did frequency of current use. All
adolescents indicated that they had used each of the devices; one or two adolescents were unable to provide a response to current use of
three of the devices (i.e., computer, internet and mobile phone). All adolescents indicated that they currently watched television but only ten
responded to the query regarding the frequency of their current use of video games (i.e., 13 adolescents shrugged their shoulders or stated
that they did not know despite gentle prodding by the research assistant).
Table 2. Description of Indigenous Adolescents Self-Reported Use of Technologies

Device
Computer
Television
Internet
Mobile Phone
Video Game
a

N
23
23
23
23
23

Years of Age at First Use

Mean
Min
Max
9.0
5
16
3.8
3
7
11.4
8
15
11.0
4
14
8.6
4
15

SD
2.8
1.2
2.2
2.3
2.8

N
21
23
21
22
10

Frequency of Current Usea

Mean
Min
Max
1.8
1
4
3.0
1
5
2.9
1
5
4.7
2
5
1.3
1
2

SD
0.8
1.4
1.6
0.8
0.5

1 = once a week; 2 = 2-3 times a week; 3 = 4-5 times a week; 4 = 6-7 times a week; 5 = more than once a day

Two of the ten correlations between age of first use and frequency of current use for the five devices and reading comprehension scores
reached significance. As frequency of current mobile phone use increased, reading comprehension tended to increase (r = .50, p < 0.01). As
frequency of current computer use increased, reading comprehension tended to decrease (r = -.62, p < 0.01).

7.

Discussion of Research Findings

There are severe cultural, ethical and logistic challenges to collecting data from Indigenous Australian adolescents residing in remote
communities. This may explain the paucity of research on this population. And yet, the very populations which are least researched may be
those most in need of effective interventions and realistic solutions. With respect to the current investigation, the adolescents who provided
data attended a residential high school and thus may represent the best readers and most digitally connected Indigenous youth in remote
regions of Australia. While sample size was small (n = 23) and, consequently, generalization of findings suspect, tentative and preliminary
conclusions may be warranted. As illustrated in Figure 1, among this sample of youth, most started viewing television before 4 years of age
and all were viewing television by 7 years of age. The first wave of digital technology, computers and video games, was first used by the
adolescents when they were, on average, 8 to 9 years of age. The second wave of digital technology, the internet and mobile phones, was
first used by the adolescents when they were, on average, 11 years of age.

Figure 1. Indigenous Adolescents First Technology Use: Mean Age in Years

While most of the Indigenous adolescents interviewed stated that they first watched television at three to four years of age, the extent and
nature of their viewing was not queried. Since no significant correlations emerged between age of first television viewing and reading
ability, it may be that there is no relationship between television viewing and reading achievement after primary school, as reported by
Schmidt and Anderson [14]. All the participating adolescents, however, were from households where English was not the primary
language, had mothers with extremely limited education and were Indigenous. According to Gentzkow and Shapiro, increased preschool

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Int ernational Journal of Ec onomy, Mana ge me nt and Soci al Sc iences , 2(8) Au gust 2013

television exposure should have been associated with reading achievement [15]. Exposure to English language models, according to Norris,
is among the essential advantages of television viewing by Indigenous children [44]. At the same time, the primary motivation for global
efforts to establish Indigenous television networks is the desire to preserve and celebrate linguistic and cultural traditions and to provide
positive representations of Indigenous people. For the current sample, it may be that the frequency of television viewing or the nature of
programs viewed during the preschool years was insufficient to impact of adolescent reading ability. Lonsdale noted that there is evidence
to show that Indigenous children are engaged by shows specifically targeting them [39]. The effect of Indigenous preschool television
programming on adolescent reading achievement remains to be determined.
Although age of first use of digital devices (i.e., computers, video games, the internet and mobile phones) evidenced considerable
variability (i.e., standard deviations of more than two years), there was no significant relationship to reading comprehension. According to
Johnson, digital technologies provide children with opportunities to communicate, access information and engage in interactive play.
Theoretically, such uses of the internet stimulate cognitive and social development [10]. While lack of significant associations to reading
achievement may be the consequent of small sample size or restricted variability, it is also possible that age of first use of digital
technologies, in and of itself, does not sufficiently impact on the developmental precursors to reading achievement during adolescence.
Amount of initial use and the nature of that use, perhaps more important for subsequent reading achievement, were not determined in the
current investigation. Subsequent research may examine comprehensive patterns of preschool use of digital technologies and reading
achievement among Indigenous Australian adolescents residing in remote regions.
As represented in Figure 2, a distinctive pattern of current frequency of use of information, communication and entertainment devices is
apparent among the sample of participating Indigenous adolescents living in remote regions of Western Australia. The frequency of
computer use without internet connectivity was reported by participants, on average, as less than twice a week. The participating
adolescents have access to computer labs at school which they may use for tasks such as word processing but, as is commonly the case with
adolescents, computers are used primarily for internet access [1]. Current frequency of video gaming, perhaps understood as use of game
consoles, was reported by only ten of the 23 respondents. Despite repeated explanation and examples of video games, many Indigenous
adolescents were unable to provide a response to the research assistant query of current frequency of use. It may be the term video game (as
well as Nintendo, Play Station, Xbox, Gameboy, Pac-man) was not understood by participants. It seems more likely that this sample of
Indigenous adolescents, in fact, were not frequent gamers. Indeed, access to video games may be cost prohibitive and/or culturally
incompatible. Given that research suggests both positive and negative effects of video gaming [10], the developmental and learning
implications of lack of video games among Indigenous adolescents living in remote regions of Western Australia may be a benefit or a
liability. As educational video and computer games grow in popularity [45], the benefit for Indigenous adolescents requires investigation.

Figure 2. Indigenous Adolescents Current Technology Use: Mean Days per Week

Two of the five correlations between frequency of current use for the five devices and reading comprehension scores reached significance.
As frequency of current mobile phone use increased, reading comprehension tended to increase and as frequency of current computer use
increased, reading comprehension tended to decrease. It is reasonable to infer that, as is the case with Australian adolescents generally [46],
as mobile phone use increases, computer use decreases (for the current sample, -.35, p = 0.67, n = 20). Computer use was not a frequent
activity for the current sample while mobile phone use was extremely common. Indigenous adolescents who used computers may not have
access to mobile phone and, computer use without internet access is limited to available software. Details of the nature of Indigenous
adolescents use of computers and mobile phones were not determined in the current investigation. Subsequent research may explain the
inverse relationship between computer use and reading comprehension among this adolescent population.
While details of the types of mobile phones used by participating Indigenous adolescents was not queried, differences in devices is apparent
and may have implications for the development of literacy skills [27, 31] As with the evolution of personal computers (e.g., size, processing
speed and portability), mobile phones have evolved from simple communication devices to complex tools with a range of software and
internet applications [47]. For example, smartphones may constitute a particularly powerful mechanism by which to improve the reading
skills of Indigenous adolescents living in remote communities. The connectivity infrastructures, sophistication of devices and Indigenous
adolescent motivation all currently exist.

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