A recent finding confirmed my longtime suspicion that the Internet is changing our reading habit, and, alarmingly, affecting the ability of comprehension.
It is no secret that our eyes scan screens of our computers or handheld devices for fleeting seconds to glean bits and pieces of information that arouse our interest. We scroll down or flip to the next page if the area of our vision does not tickle our brain enough to read on.
This leads to eyes scanning for words and sentences, trying to connect and make sense while the limited area of vision and flickering objects on screen create a false sense that you are wasting time, prompting you to move on.
That’s the reason you find sentences written for the Web, be it the social media or attention-grabbing ads, short. Sentences with multiple clauses are not only out of fashion, they simply are incomprehensible to Gen Z. No wonder the classics lie on shelves of bookstores unsold and you can download them for free from the Net.
The Internet is also changing the English language faster than anytime in the past. Time will tell whether for the better or worse. But that’s another subject.
What we are concerned here is whether reading on the Internet has affected our ability to comprehend written text. Of course, I am not talking about short sentences on Twitter or Facebook. It is the “serious and boring stuff” that we come across in daily life that matter. A wrong inference of winding sentences commonly found in such papers as investment brochures, insurance disclaimers or forms may cost you dearly.
Textbooks are now written in a more lucid style than in the past, but there is no denying the fact that there is a limit to presenting a complex issue in an interesting, attention-grabbing way without straying from the subject matter.
With people spending more hours reading material on the Internet than on paper, our span of attention to focus on written stuff has shortened, making us skip the boring (read important) parts.
It’s essential for youngsters, who make up the bulk of netizens, to understand the “complex and boring stuff” preserved in writing by past generations.
The Internet has come to stay. If anything, its reach will only widen in the years to come. So it’s time experts come up with ways to make it more reader friendly.
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