Using ebooks in the classroom is another Web 2.0 option which teachers can utilize. Ebooks have features not found in regular printed texts. These include audio and animation features, word and sentence recall, built in highlighting and word definition. It is possible to also insert electronic sticky notes to make notes as you read. One of the key aspects to note about ebooks is that they are interactive and can leveled for the appropriate reading audience.
In “Using Electronic books to Promote Vocabulary Development, the authors (Higgins & Hess, 2000) suggest that it is a great tool for teaching vocabulary. They point out that vocabulary learning is supported by the animation features which students can use to make inferences about the text they are reading. While some studies they presented revealed that students improved in vocabulary knowledge with the easier texts, other studies determined that overall comprehension with more difficult texts was not as easy for students. With the more difficult texts, teacher instruction and guidance was necessary. The overall finding (Higgins & Hess, 2000) with respect to vocabulary development was that supplemental vocabulary instruction in conjunction with the animations in an electronic book is needed in order for significant improvements in students’ vocabulary to be seen. They point out further, “that the person providing the supplementary instruction must be familiar with the animation features of the target vocabulary words in the electronic book, must know synonyms for the target words, and must be able to generate questions that require the children to relate the target words to their world.” (Higgins & Hess, 2000, p.429) With struggling readers in particular, one on one reading activities (teacher and child) is recommended.
Hi Alicia,
ReplyDeleteI totally believe that using Ebooks is an excellent technological for teaching Vocabulary. Most children especially boys are digital natives and they will be totally engrossed in designing their own Vocabulary Ebooks as well as learning Vocabulary. Vocabulary would no longer be boring. Remember our days of learning Vocabulary or Words and Meaning. How difficult and boring it used to be! Using Ebooks to teach or learn Vocabulary will be exciting and fun and as teachers we want our students to have fun while learning. Do you know how exhilarating it feels when a student says, "Miss, I had fun today in class." No one can take away that feeling because we know it was not only fun but it was educational as well. Let us as teachers use some of the technology we have learnt about in ICT class in our class when school re-opens in September.
E-books are indeed excellent for teaching vocabulary and comprehension but I also think that it can help the struggling reader improve his fluency. Fluency according to Allington (2009) as cited in Tompkins (2010) stated that it is the ability to read efficiently and it bridges the gap to comprehension. When students are exposed to e-books they not only view the reading material but they also hear the reading of the text as the slides are shown. When students hear the expressive way that the piece is read with correct pronunciation and intonation then they themselves will try to read like this and so improve their prosody in reading texts and so fluency also improves. Students learn to chunk sentences and develop appropriate phrasing for the reading material.
ReplyDeleteWhen teachers model reading it is an excellent strategy to develop fluency and by using e-books reading is modelled for students. students therefore cannot only use e-books for improved vocabulary and comprehension but it can be used to improve fluency to a large extent.