e-Reading and e-Responding

Larson, Lotta C. 2009. e-Reading and e-Responding: New Tools for the Next Generation of Readers. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy 53, no. 3: 255-58.

The many features and tools of eBooks, multimodal as well as interactive, help to "foster literacy development and reading comprehension" (256). These tools include video, audio, and hyperlinks; inserting, deleting, and replacing text; highlighting and underlining words; formatting text size and screen layout; inserting notes and adding comments; and searching for words and looking them up. This tools make it possible to help increase literacy in teenagers.

Summary:

Larson observed ten fifth-graders using digital readers. although none of the students had experience using digital readers, eight were in favor, one was ambivalent, and the other was against it. The students used the features on the digital readers, which included highlighting material and using the notes feature. These notes revealed several things:

1. Students didn't worry about grammar and spelling.
   
2. It showed perceptions about events.
3. Conveyed lack of information or desire for more information.
4. Reflected students' spontaneity and impulsiveness.

According to Larson, the students "engaged in new literacy practices by envisioning new ways to access their thought processes" (256). Afterwards, all the students reported a preference for eBooks. Through this tool, students could respond to text and show their interpretation of the literature.

My Reflections:

When I first envisioned my research topic—how digital readers positively influence teenage literacy—I was thinking more along the lines of how literacy is improved by teenagers being more likely to read eBooks than regular books. However, Larson's article makes me think that literacy can be improved through the tools of digital readers. Students' spontaneous notes certainly make it easy for teachers to explore the way and what students are learning.

References:

• Evans, J. (2005). The changing nature of literacy in the twenty- first century. In J. Evans (Ed.), Literacy moves on: Popular culture, new technologies, and critical literacy in the elementary classroom (pp. 1-12). Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
• Hancock, M.R. (2008). The status of reader response research: Sustaining the reader's voice in challenging times. In S. Lehr (Ed.), Shattering the looking glass: Challenge, risk, and con- troversy in children's literature (pp. 97-116). Norwood, MA: Christopher-Gordon.
• Kress, G.R. (2003). Literacy in the new media age. London, UK: Routledge.
• Larson, L.C. (2007). A case study exploring the "new literacies" during a fifth-grade electronic reading workshop. Doctoral dissertation, Kansas State University. Retrieved April 15, 2008, from krex .ksu.edu/dspace/handle/2097/352
• Larson, L.C. (2008). Electronic reading workshop: Beyond books with new literacies and instructional technologies. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 52(2), 121-131. doi:10.1598/ JAAL.52.2.3
• Larson, L.C. (2009). Reader response meets new literacies: Empowering readers in online learning communities. The Reading Teacher, 62(S), 638-648. doi:10.1598/RT.62.8.2
• Rosenblatt, L.M. (1995). Literature as exploration (5th ed.). New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts Modern Language Association. (Original work published 1938)
• Shamir, A., & Korat, O. (2006). How to select CD-ROM storybooks for young children: The teacher's role. The Reading Teacher, 59(6), 532-543. doi:10.1598/RT.59.6.3
• Curtis, C.R (1996). The Watsons go to Birmingham—1963. [Adobe Reader version].Retrieved from www.ebooks.com
• Curtis, CP. (1999). Bud, not Buddy. [Adobe Reader version]. Retrieved from www.ebooks.com