Review of an Article Integrating Multimedia Technology in a High School EFL program By Carlos A. Mayora
Summarized by Maqsood Ahmad.

In the beginning of this article the author told the situation of English language teaching as a foreign language. His focused point is that EFL is taught under unfavorable conditions. So for this reason high school graduates are not always competent users of English. Teachers of around the world can share this problem and can improve their teaching with the help of different alternatives.
As an alternative he described a Technological Enhanced Language Learning (TELL) program. In this program nothing was changed but multimedia technology was implemented in the traditional English learning class room. It did not mean that they changed teacher, classroom or textbook. It was only a supplement for teacher to achieve the program objectives and to develop student’s mastery of reading, writing, listening and speaking, as well as the sub skills of vocabulary and grammar. Some specific objectives of this program were
To increase student’s awareness and understanding of their own learning.
To develop an attitude in student’s towards language learning.
To help student’s recognize strategies that help them learn on their own.
To encourage student’s to think critically and express themselves effectively.
For this purpose they developed an English language center (ELC). There they provided 18 computer and 18 video stations. They divided the class of 40 students into two groups. During the session one group of 20 students attended the traditional class of language learning, while other group of 20 students attended the ELC to work individually for 90 minutes. This 90 minutes session allow every student to work 45 minutes at computer to focus on grammar listening and reading activities while other 45 minutes were consumed in video station to develop listening comprehension through audio and video cassettes.
In my view this was the best way to teach English as a foreign language and the teacher’s status was not affected. Teacher is the main body of teaching and learning process. In this program they allow students to work on computer on their own pace. It was more helpful for teacher to deal more effectively with a large group of students. Teacher can make introduction and presentation more attractive for students. With the help of attractive activities teacher can increase the students’ motivation and can promote a task based approach of learning. Task based approach will help and train students for self assess and monitor their progress. When these students will use the audios and videos for listening and computer for reading and grammar, they will experience real life, meaningful language situation and context.
Again I want to say that teacher is the great part of this teaching and learning process. Whatever a teacher uses for teaching by computer in the classroom, computer is not able to do a job as a teacher. Teacher will still have a great responsibility as a material developer and advisor to develop the multimedia activities and to train students in their proper use.
I think computer’s use in language teaching must be based on sound principles and computer and teacher are both interrelated part of this teaching methodology.

Maqsood Ahmad

RESEARCH
EDUCATE
 and AWARE
                                                      



                                                       Reading Skills

                                                       By Kenneth Beare

Ask yourself this question: Do I read every word in your own language when I am reading a schedule, summary, or other outlining document?
The answer is most definitely: No! Reading in English is like reading in your native language. This means that it is not always necessary to read and understand each and every word in English. Remember that reading skills in your native language and English are basically the same.
Here is a quick overview of the four types of reading skills used in every language:
Skimming - used to understand the "gist" or main idea Scanning - used to find a particular piece of information Extensive reading - used for pleasure and general understanding Intensive reading - accurate reading for detailed understanding
Skimming
Skimming is used to quickly gather the most important information, or 'gist'. Run your eyes over the text, noting important information. Use skimming to quickly get up to speed on a current business situation. It's not essential to understand each word when skimming.
Examples of Skimming:

• The Newspaper (quickly to get the general news of the day)
• Magazines (quickly to discover which articles you would like to read in more detail)
• Business and Travel Brochures (quickly to get informed)

Scanning
Scanning is used to find a particular piece of information. Run your eyes over the text looking for the specific piece of information you need. Use scanning on schedules, meeting plans, etc. in order to find the specific details you require. If you see words or phrases that you don't understand, don't worry when scanning.
Examples of Scanning

• The "What's on TV" section of your newspaper.
• A train / airplane schedule
• A conference guide

Extensive reading
Extensive reading is used to obtain a general understanding of a subject and includes reading longer texts for pleasure, as well as business books. Use extensive reading skills to improve your general knowledge of business procedures. Do not worry if you understand each word.
Examples of Extensive Reading

• The latest marketing strategy book
• A novel you read before going to bed
• Magazine articles that interest you

Intensive reading
Intensive reading is used on shorter texts in order to extract specific information. It includes very close accurate reading for detail. Use intensive reading skills to grasp the details of a specific situation. In this case, it is important that you understand each word, number or fact.
Examples of Intensive Reading

• A bookkeeping report
• An insurance claim
• A contract

Now that you've reviewed the four reading skills, take this reading skills quiz to help you improve reading skills through understanding of these basic reading types