THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN DIGITAL LITERACY AND STUDENTS’ INTEREST IN READING ENGLISH TEXTS IN THE DIGITAL ERA

Vollständiger Abstract

Worum geht es in dieser Arbeit?

This study examined the relationship between digital literacy and university students’ interest in reading English texts at Universitas PGRI Palembang. A quantitative correlational design was employed involving 35 university students selected through purposive sampling. Data were collected using two five-point Likert-scale questionnaires measuring digital literacy and interest in reading English texts. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, the Shapiro-Wilk normality test, and Pearson Product-Moment Correlation. The findings showed that students demonstrated relatively high levels of digital literacy (M = 4.02, SD = 0.43) and interest in reading English texts (M = 3.78, SD = 0.46). The correlation analysis revealed a significant positive relationship between digital literacy and interest in reading English texts (r = 0.624, p < 0.001). This finding indicates that students with higher levels of digital literacy tended to demonstrate greater interest in reading English texts. The study implies that integrating digital literacy into English reading activities may provide opportunities to encourage students’ engagement with English-language materials. Future research should involve larger samples, different educational contexts, and longitudinal or experimental designs to further examine the relationship and potential causal effects.