The use of technology has now become an integral part of higher education in Malaysia because of its positive outcomes in teaching and learning. Despite its use, students are not able to fully benefit from its full potential. This study investigated the use of digital annotation tools in Interactive Reading for Academic Disciplines to facilitate…

Extracting information through online reading has become second nature to ESL students in higher institutions. Although online reading is indispensable among ESL university students, they lack the ability to read effectively. The present study examines students' metacognitive online reading strategies and how those strategies reflect understanding…

Purpose: This study explored ESL learners' utilization of Online Discussion Forums (ODFs) in Interactive Reading for Academic Disciplines (iREAD) to assist reading of online scientific texts within an English for Specific Purposes course at a public university. Method: This qualitative research employed two data collection methods during lessons…

This study applied Edmodo as a supplementary environment for additional language practice in a semi-technical English course in an EFL context, with a quasi-experimental between-subjects (control versus experimental group) design. In addition to conventional classroom instruction and practice, the experimental group practiced additional language…

The integration of e-learning within a distance learning program helps to foster greater interaction among learners who are geographically distant from one another. Various ways have been implemented to achieve this aim, one of which is the use of online forum. Research shows that the use of online forum is capable of fostering a sense of learning…

The current study examined differential effects of two pre-modification types, syntactic elaboration and syntactic simplification (at the level of syntax and irrespective of problematic lexis), on EST students' reading comprehension. The purpose was to see whether a priori syntactic elaborative adjustment, given its advantages over simplification,…

The purpose of the present study was twofold. Firstly, it tried to investigate the relationship between the technical English proficiency of the students of Mechanical Engineering in the universities of Iran and their technical translation proficiency in translating technical texts of Mechanics. Secondly, it attempted to evaluate the effectiveness…

The aim of this work is to analyse how Spanish readers react to English discourse markers in a text. We carry out an empirical study in which we ask three research question: (a) if there is any relationship between presence of discourse markers or absence of discourse markers and reading comprehension in English as a foreign language, (b) if there…

Responds to criticism concerning a proposed model of evaluation for a Reading English for Science and Technology program. (seven references) (JL)

Discusses a proposed "context adaptive" model for English-as-a-Second-Language program evaluation and suggests that the boundaries are set too narrowly within this model between phenomena and contexts and that the model of the Reading English for Science and Technology program in Guadalajara (Mexico) suffers from this constriction.…

The use of the cognate recognition strategy to enhance reading comprehension in a Latin American English-for-Special-Purposes context is considered. Focus is on the subtechnical vocabulary found in 40 texts from English engineering magazines, first describing vocabulary identification techniques and then assessing whether the items have Spanish…

Reports on an English-for-special-purposes (ESP) reading project that emphasizes the role of content comprehension. The project results suggest that the content comprehension approach can improve reading comprehension as well as knowledge of reading grammar and general reading ability. (45 references) (GLR)

Determines that the complexity of syntax does not significantly affect reading comprehension of native and non-native English speakers when reading technical writing. Finds no significant differences between subgroups reading an authentic computer science text and those reading a syntactically adapted text, either in comprehension or in speed. (MG)

Examined the effect of background knowledge and second language proficiency in relation to two sets of specific reading materials. One came from an IELTS reading module related to science and technology; the other was from a highly-specific popular science text. Results showed that both language proficiency and background knowledge predicted…

Describes a study into what happens when academics who learned English for Special Purposes broadened their goals and attempted reading geared to those with a knowledge of "general" English. Results showed that participant comprehension increased significantly, but reading speed did not consistently increase. (Author/SED)