Reading literacy at the end of primary school: do boys and girls read differently?

Sonja Pečjak, Nataša Bucik, Martina Peštaj, Anja Podlesek and Tina Pirc

Summary:  This article presents the results of a study on the differences of reading comprehension factors by boys and girls by the end of elementary school. There were two models formed – for girls and boys, the latter being more explanatory. Results showed that regardless of gender, reading comprehension can be predicted directly by (meta)cognitive variables, especially vocabulary and metacognitive knowledge. The main difference among genders was found in motivational variables (competency, interest, and flow), which turned out to be more important for the reading comprehension of boys than of girls. The motivational variables have direct influence (especially over vocabulary) as well as indirect influence (e.g., over competence) on reading comprehension. The paper concludes with a discussion of some of the pedagogical implications of these findings.