Utilizing Electronic Reading Device （Kindle） in English as Foreign Language Reading Class

With the evolutionary change in information and communication technologies （ICT）, the definition of literacy has undergone substantial change to include the skills and strategies required to successfully adapt to the rapidly changing ICT contexts. This new definition presents an urgent need to acknowledge the gap between the types of reading experiences students come across at school and those they regularly practice outside the school. One way to bridge such gap is to expand the reading instruction to incorporate electronic reading device, like Kindle, to engage students in electronic reading. Many e-books feature multimodal functionalities, including audio, video, hyperlinks, and interactive tools. Research on this form of reading is still in its infancy in spite of some positive prospects for fostering literacy development and reading comprehension. Therefore, adopting a mixed method approach with 36 college freshmen in central Taiwan, the current study intended to fill in the void by investigating any difference in readers＇ reading comprehension and reading motivation, between the Kindle group and the print-based group. The results indicate that embedding aspects of technology into a traditional reading instruction boosted the participants＇ motivation to read. Nevertheless, the novelty-driven enthusiasm for electronic reading might not sustain students＇ reading motivation long enough to cultivate long-lasting reading habits. The results indicate that there was no significant difference in reading comprehension between two groups. Implications for utilizing electronic readers in EFL classes are also provided.

Extracurricular Reading for Children from Primary School Course in Bulgaria: Results of a Survey

The aim of the research is to obtain information about the current state of children’s extracurricular reading in Bulgaria—basis for further development of information skills and competencies. The study refers to the reading practices and interests of primary school students (7 - 11 years). It was implemented in the period March-June 2020 through electronic questionnaires filled out by the parents of 1169 students. The obtained data were processed with the software product SPSS, v19. A comparative analysis between the reading habits and preferences of children of different ages has been prepared. The followings are established: the thematic scope, the types of preferred readings, the motives for independent choice of reading, as well the preferred format, as the influence of the adults in the formation of the young reader. Particular attention is paid to reading in electronic format (e-books or other readings on the Internet).

Interactive English Reading Community Based on Social Network Sites

One of the major trends in the reform of English language teaching is the application of network technologies. This paper discusses the application of social network sites in building an interactive English reading community under the guidance of the constructivist learning theory and its influence on the learners＇ English reading. This SNS-aided reading community puts the students as the center and the teacher the guide, embodying students＇ subjectivity, equality, and interactivity. The study shows that the interactive English reading community can motivate students to read, improve their reading skills, and thus develop a new SNS-aided English reading model for English learners.

Research on the Influence of Perceived Value of Social Reading on Teenagers'Reading Ability

Adolescence is the golden stage for developing reading ability.Reading ability is an important factor in promoting teenagers'know-how and cognitive structure.For teenagers who are at the stage of forming views on the world,life,and values,reading is a key part of understanding the external world.This study is an empirical analysis conducted on 210 teenagers through questionnaires to explore the influence of perceived value of social reading on teenagers'reading ability by using the structural equation model.The results show that first,the perceived value of social reading affects teenagers'reading ability;second,social reading motivation is the mediator of the above relationship;third,the perceived value of social reading affects teenagers'reading ability through reading motivation.In regard to that,it is proposed that the characteristics of perceived value should be made use to stimulate students'learning motivation and improve teenagers'reading ability in the process of policy formulation of governmental departments and the teaching in schools.