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Related Experiment Videos

How big does a coloured overlay have to be?

Michelle Waldie1, Arnold Wilkins

  • 1Department of Psychology, University of Essex, Colchester CO4 3SQ, UK.

Ophthalmic & Physiological Optics : the Journal of the British College of Ophthalmic Opticians (Optometrists)
|December 23, 2003
PubMed
Summary

Colored overlays can improve reading speed for children who benefit from them. The key is covering the text, not necessarily the entire page, suggesting smaller overlays may suffice.

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Area of Science:

  • Visual perception
  • Reading comprehension
  • Educational psychology

Background:

  • Coloured overlays and lenses can enhance reading speed.
  • The effectiveness may depend on the visual field area affected by the colour.
  • Previous research suggests a link between coloured filters and improved reading performance.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the effect of coloured overlay size and surround colour on reading speed.
  • To determine if the entire page needs to be covered by the overlay for maximum benefit.
  • To assess the impact of margin colour on reading speed in children.

Main Methods:

  • Children read a passage of words under four conditions: no overlay, full page overlay, text-only overlay, and text overlay with a complementary coloured margin.

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  • Reading speed was measured for each condition.
  • Overlay size and margin colour were systematically varied.

    • Main Results:

    • Children who used a coloured overlay read faster with it.
    • Reading speed did not significantly differ when the margin colour was changed or when the overlay only covered the text.
    • The presence of the overlay covering the text was the primary factor influencing reading speed.

    Conclusions:

    • Coloured overlays improve reading speed when they cover the text itself.
    • The colour and nature of the page margins do not significantly impact reading speed improvement.
    • Smaller coloured overlays that cover only the text may be sufficient to enhance reading speed.