It turns out paper helps us think.
A vast body of research has shown that working on paper makes us more productive, receptive and attentive to the information being transcribed. Taking notes on laptops rather than in longhand is increasingly common. Perhaps this is in order to save time, energy, and the environment*. However, many researchers have suggested that despite the recent trends, longhand note-taking is more effective for learning than laptop note-taking.
A team of researchers in Norway tested these concepts. The International Journal of Educational Research conducted a study in which 72 students were randomly assigned to read either a passage on paper or to read it on a computer screen. The main findings show that students who read texts in print scored significantly better on the reading comprehension test than students who read the texts digitally. The researchers suspected that there must be something helpful in seeing the text physically laid out on the page. Readers may remember where on a page they came across a particular piece of information. This special aspect of reading, the physicality of it — is lost on a digital device.
The processing power of paper
Handwriting notes appear to lead to more thorough cognitive processing than typing does, researchers say. While a laptop enables students and workers to take a higher quantity of notes, there is a tendency for the listener to transcribe lectures word-for-word. rather than processing and reinterpreting the information to make sense of the information in their own words. The rephrasing that is necessary while writing notes is key to the learning process. Neuroscientific experiments have shown that there is a stronger emotional connection with print and paper versus screens as well, which may contribute to better memory retention.
Tal Gross, an assistant professor at Colombia University, concludes in a column published in USA Today that “paper may be bad for trees, but it is good for people.” We should be careful not to cut back on paper where it most helps us; when we are learning, or need to pay attention.
* Research has shown that the overall effects of paper use are less harmful to the environment and energy consumption than the electronic devices we utilize today. More to come on this issue in a future blog!
Interested in learning more? Check out one of the studies on this subject:
Effects on reading comprehension
