Paper versus screen: The impact of annotation tools on reading strategies among university students

Previous research has shown that many students still prefer reading and annotating academic material in print form rather than on a screen, despite the increasing availability of digital reading material provided by instructors. This study aims to investigate the mediating effect of an Annotation Tool on digital reading as notetaking and underlining can enhance the capacity to understand and memorize digital written material by reducing cognitive load and facilitates comprehension. It involved 112 first-year students of a Master's Degree Course on Educational Technologies. The results confirmed that most students prefer academic texts on paper and that the use of a social annotation tool with digital academic texts can positively change perceptions of digital reading and comprehension. A significant correlation exists between reading others’ annotations to summarize concepts, clearer content understanding, and satisfaction with digital academic texts, suggesting improvements for academic teaching practices in digital material provision.