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The literature indicates a disadvantage of reading comprehension in digital mode compared to reading comprehension in print mode. The shallowing hypothesis explains this disadvantage by suggesting that on digital, readers adopt a superficial reading mode that is not conducive to deep comprehension of what they read. At the same time, the cognitive load theory argues that digital carries a greater cognitive load than paper, which affects the effectiveness of understanding what is read. Existing studies showing the disadvantage of digital over paper focus mainly on adults, neglecting school-age, a crucial period for the development of reading comprehension. Executive Functions, crucial for reading comprehension, reach a peak in development during school age, influencing the effect of the medium (paper or screen) on performance on reading comprehension tasks. This contribution aims to fill some of the gaps in the literature by exploring the differences in digital and paper-based reading comprehension in school-age children and investigating the role of Executive Functions in supporting reading comprehension in both modalities.

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