Stephen Downes

Knowledge, Learning, Community

Way back in the 1990s there was a prevailing opinion that the internet would result in the end of reasing. This was (I guess) because most people thought of it as another sort of TV. But there was a minority opinion to the effect that the internet would increase reading, because so much communication (from email to discussion boards to blogs) was in text (you can probably find this discussion somewhere in the annals of OLDaily). So, who was right? The long term results are still to come, but as of 2014, the short term results are encouraging. An old (2005) Gallup survey shows rates of reading climbing to the highest levels in half a century. And a new (this week) Pew survey shows readings rates (especially of e-books) continuing to climb. So if you're still in the group that thinks internet use decreases reading, check your assumptions.

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Stephen Downes Stephen Downes, Casselman, Canada
stephen@downes.ca

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Last Updated: Mar 28, 2024 9:02 p.m.

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