Comparing EFL Learners' Reading Comprehension Between Hypertext and Printed Text

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of reading printed text and hypertext on the EFL learners' reading comprehension. Text on the web pages changed the way people read, and the computer and electronic texts made reading an experience that was less linear or consecutive and more spatial (Bolter, 1998). Therefore, how did computers change the way EFL learners read? Forty-six Taiwanese students joined this study, and they were equally divided into two groups: the Experimental Group and the Control Group. Students in the Experimental Group read the hypertext through the computer screens while the Control Group read the printed text on paper. The research procedures were (1) to give students some related vocabulary, and pictures to predict the articles, (2) to give them four articles to read, and (3) to test their skimming skill, scanning skill, and vocabulary knowledge through reading comprehension questions. The results show that students in the Experimental Group achieved lower scores in questions requiring skimming and scanning skills, but they scored higher in vocabulary questions that they had to guess the unknown words from the context. The elements that influenced students the most when reading hypertext were the uncomfortable physical responses such as eyestrain and headaches.