Topic: The Nature of Reading Today

Title: “Independent Reading of CD-Rom Storybooks: Measuring Comprehension with Oral Reading.” Cathy J. Pearlman. The Reading Teacher (May 2008), 594-602. A publication of the International Reading Association.

Comment: The following quote in this article seems to summarize the changing state of reading today. The authors say that literacy today goes beyond the ability to read and write because of emerging technology. Just how is reading different today when technology is involved? This question is worth thinking about. I need to think about it. RayS.

Quote: “Our society’s definition of literacy changes as new technologies for acquiring information are developed. We once thought people were literate if they could read a little and write their names. As accessibility to public schools increased, it became the societal standard in the United States that the majority of people could read. Today, new communication technologies are being developed at an almost overwhelming pace, and these changes affect not only literacy instruction but also our definition of literacy itself. ‘The reason for these changes lies in the transition now in progress from traditional, print-based literacy to electronic representations of text’ (McKenna, et al. 1999). We may believe there are no fundamental differences in the reading of electronic text because processes such as word recognition, prior knowledge connections and meaning construction are present regardless of the medium; however, there may be differences between print and electronic text that change the nature of reading” (McKenna et al., 1999).

The purpose of this blog is to share interesting ideas I have found in recent American professional publications dealing with the teaching of English at all levels, elementary, secondary and college.