Lynn W Zimmerman, PhD

ICT and Reading Skills

A treasure trove Authentic materialLeveled texts and activities

provides interactivity can link to

dictionariesrelated sitesvideo audio

The Internet and Reading

Pay attention to the level of the language

Carefully plan how you are going to use it.

Vary the difficulty of the task. Relevant illustrationsPictures Graphics

Authentic Material

ScanningTo look over the text quickly 

Reading for gist To understand the general meaning of

the text SkimmingReading quickly to get general ideas of

details that are in the textReading for details

To find and process some details present in the text.

Types of Reading

Students read a text, then do something with it.

They can read the content of a site and complete a

quizread instructions on a site then complete

the tasklook for information and complete a chartlook at 2 websites compare and contrast

them read several film reviews then report on

the film they’d like to see and whycompare the same news article in

different online newspapers

Some Online Reading Activities

What is the purpose of pre-reading activities?To activate schemata and provide

background knowledgeUse a website with visuals to help prepare

them  Use the Virtual Thesaurus (

www.virtualthesaurus.com) to explore related words to pre-teach or brainstorm vocabulary

Scavenger hunts

Pre-Reading Activities

Keep a balance between reading comprehension, web searching, and website evaluation

SkimmingScanningReading for gist Reading for details

During-Reading Activities

Students use the vocabulary, grammar, and/or knowledge acquired in an oral or written response.

WebQuests a kind of research activity; students

gather information about a topic, analyze and synthesize their data and then engage in a discussion, debate or negotiation. 

Blogs similar to journals, but designed to be

interactive and collaborative.

Post-Reading Activities

Create tasks in which students have to depend on each other for their information. They have to interact to complete

the task. 

The Communicative Approach

Krajka, J. (2007). English language teaching in the Internet-assisted environment. Lublin, Poland: Maria Curie-Sklodowska Univeristy Press.

Reference