The Advantages and Disadvantages of E-Dictionary to Enhance Reading Comprehension of ESL Learners

Abstract

Due to the advent of Internet, tertiary students prefer to read hypermedia materials in comparison to printed materials. One of the common tools used by ESL learners to enhance reading comprehension is e-dictionary. Nowadays, there are various types of e-dictionaries. This case study involved ten Teaching English as Second Language (TESL) undergraduates. The three research tools employed were semi-structured interviews, reflective journals and open ended questionnaire. The purpose of this research is to explore the views of ESL students toward e-dictionaries. This article also highlighted the criteria of the participants' e-dictionary selection. The main criteria are portability, availability and accessibility. This study also looked into the participants' challenges in using e-dictionaries. Among the limitations are lack of access to use e-dictionaries, incomplete definitions provided, distraction in the classroom and difficulty in choosing appropriate e-dictionaries. Another research question is to obtain the participants' view towards the e-dictionaries' advantages and disadvantages. The main advantages are ease of use, the participants are able to obtain the words' definitions, pictures, pronunciation, and how the words are used in context. One of the major disadvantages is lack of credibility. It is hoped that these findings could facilitate educators in training their students to use e-dictionary more effectively.

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Author Information
Maslawati Mohamad, National University of Malaysia, Malaysia
Nuraidawany Rashid, National University of Malaysia, Malaysia
Wan Nurashiqin Wan Mohamad, National University of Malaysia, Malaysia

• Category: ACEID2017, Oral Presentation
• Tag: Languages education and applied linguistics (ESL/TESL/TEFL)

Posted by James Alexander Gordon

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