Title:	DEVELOPMENT AND USE OF AN EFL READING PRACTICE APPLICATION FOR AN ANDROID TABLET COMPUTER
Author(s):	Yasushige Ishikawa, Craig Smith, Mutsumi Kondo, Ichiro Akano, Kate Maher, Norihisa Wada
ISBN:	978-972-8939-81-6
Editors:	Inmaculada Arnedillo Sánchez and Pedro Isaías
Year:	2013
Edition:	Single
Keywords:	Tablet computer, Vocabulary learning, Reading practice application, English for specific purposes (ESP), the study of international affairs
Type:	Full Paper
First Page:	91
Last Page:	100
Language:	English
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Paper Abstract:	This paper reports on the use of an English-language reading practice application for an android tablet computer operating system with students who are not native speakers of English. The application materials for vocabulary learning in reading-passage contexts were created to include words from a database of low-frequency and technical noun-verb collocations which occurred frequently in certain documents related to the study of international affairs: thirty English-language annual reports of United Nations organizations found on official websites; and English-language annual reports and other articles from the websites of twenty international non-governmental organizations. The learning materials were used in an English for specific purposes course intended to support the reading skill development of students studying international affairs at a university in Japan. Research showed that use of the learning materials had three positive influences on students’ study behavior: the students’ reading speed increased without a loss in comprehension; the students reported that they enjoyed the reading practice with the mobile tablet computer; and they appreciated that it had some merits that differed from reading practice in hard copy formats that may help improve reading skills.
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