Abstract:

As information and communication technologies (ICT) gradually occupy many areas of our social, personal and professional lives, many researchers, neuroscientists, psychologists and educators, among others, are now questioning the nature of the impact these technological tools have on the human brain. For example, some researchers believe that when individuals are given a reading task on screen they fall behind when compared to subjects who perform the same task on paper. Other researchers also note that the use of computers may negatively impact the cognitive and physical aspects of the brain (Computer Vision Syndrome). In several other studies, however, researchers debate the validity of these findings and report that reading on screen actually has many advantages.

We recognize that boomers or the “sandwich generation” (today’s individuals positioned between pre- and post-ICT) face certain obstacles when they read texts online, but there is no doubt that today’s “screenagers” will be lodged in their natural digital habitat, and will have already adopted new “reading circuits” well before 2025.

Our paper offers a brief survey of recent literature in this new and emerging field of research, and highlights the fact that comparative studies undertaken by most of these researchers are not based on the same evaluation parameters. As we review well known and established theories on the act of reading in foreign languages, we also assess the applicability of these theories during the on-screen reading process. Our study looks at two particular domains of e-reading: the degree of comprehensible input when reading for pleasure, and the teaching and learning of reading in foreign language acquisition.

Keywords:

Reading theories and foreign language acquisition, e-reading, comprehensible input, Information and communication technologies.