Fourth and fifth graders: females score significantly higher on digital tasks than males

The online reading, writing, and communication practices of students have

been of significant interest to literacy researchers and teachers throughout

the last several years, as insights into what students are currently doing in and

outside of school can inform what they can be expected to know and be able

to do in digital environments. Yet, little is known about the online activities,

perceptions, preferences, and skills of preadolescent students. 

The present study reports the performance of 1,262 fourth and fifth graders on 

the Survey of Internet Use and Online Reading. Results were analyzed to determine

whether there are gender differences in preadolescent students’ Internet

activities, perceptions, preferences, and skills. Findings from descriptive and

comparative analyses of students’ responses indicate that (a) preadolescent

students in this study are moderately skilled at online search, evaluation,

and communication tasks, with females scoring significantly higher on digital

tasks than males; (b) preadolescent students engage in many digital tasks

more frequently in school than outside of school; (c) despite reporting a

preference for using the Internet, preadolescent students believe that it is

more difficult to use it than to read a book, and believe that they would learn

more from a book than from the Internet; and (d) there is a significant gender 

difference in students’ skills and confidence related to digital tasks, and

students’ perceptions of their own skills may not align with their achievement

on digital skills–based tasks.