Online Graded Reader

High cost of purchasing printed book, especially English story books, and hard access, Internet technology has become an alternative. It provides a variety of reading resources for information, knowledge and excitement. Besides, multimedia, with interesting display setting, increases students’ motivation. Silva (2006) proposes an idea of web based extensive reading program (w-ERP) which underpinned on using online resource such as on-line journal, on-line magazine and stories. In the application of extensive reading through internet strengthen students’ learning on various and updated materials, gain their opportunity to explore, and decide what to read. This support the role of graded reader based extensive reading. Web-based ER may lead students and also teachers to entertain a new teaching strategy that opens the choice of different learning styles.

Mikulecky (2007) suggests teachers to easily use free and inexpensive Internet resources of children’s and young adult literature. They provide a various kinds of materials, topics, difficulty levels and sophisticated illustrations--sometimes accompanied by oral readings and also animations. Other features of the sites are reading exercises, listening practice and also many kinds of attractive games. This facilitates teachers and learners to gain the benefits of extensive L2 reading. Further, internet has helps teachers to solve the problems of access and expense. It is also possible for teachers to download and print out materials for student use, if the school has limited facilities for internet access.

There are some web-sites that are rich in extensive and accessible children's and young adult literature and has fulfilled criteria of graded readers;

a.       Magic Keys ( http://www.magickeys.com/books) contains more than thirty illustrated stories for young children, older children and young adult. Some of them are presented with illustration and sounds.

b.      Children’s Digital Library (http://www.childrenslibrary.org/icdl/SearchWorld) provide more than a thousand stories in different level of difficulty based on the length of words, continents, ages of reader and the topics. There also provides stories in other language.

These two are of four web sites as described by Mikulecky (2007) are currently active.

c.       Learn English Kids (http://www.learnenglishkids.britishcouncil.org/) presents short English stories with exercises and game. Other available features are songs, puzzles, and listening practice.

d.      Oxford University Press (Student Sites) (http://www.oup.com/elt/students?cc=global) provides more challenges activities and exercises for students in which they must firstly search and read information in given link to finish their work. In this site, students may get other general information (nonfiction) rather than stories.

e.       100 Free Short English Stories for ESL Learners (http://www.rong.chang.com/qa2) has similar features as learn English Kids. Every short story is completed with listening to help pronunciation practice correctly, exercises to help comprehension and puzzles. The short stories presented in one page are appropriate for the beginners.

Teachers may use the web addresses above to enrich the graded readers’ collection. However, it needs more follow up activities to improve students’ effort in developing their language skills.

Benefits of Web-Based Graded Readers for Extensive Reading Program

Silva (2006) reports the benefits of web-based extensive reading program from the answer of questionnaires given to students in the research; most of students confirm that extensive reading through the Internet helps them to learn vocabulary, learn to read for main ideas, acquire speed and/or fluency in reading a text; develop skills that remain over time. Besides, this is interesting method though some of them get their doubt, however it show that a transition period needed by students to make the necessary adjustments in formulating their affective. It seems that over time, students may well develop positive attitudes towards reading online and Web-ER. Meanwhile, the bad effect shows that online education makes an isolation of students from the teachers.

In language learning practice, especially for extensive reading, it gives input to teachers without neglecting the need of face-to face activities and contact. Internet is still being a tool to reach the goal. The core of the internet is well usage in learning process because of four aspects; variety-a wide range of materials consistent with ability and interest, interest-informative, entertaining and engaging formats and writing styles, relevance-connections made to students’ life experience and prior knowledge, and comprehensibility-a focus on the development of concepts and relationships among the concepts (Vacca & Vacca, 1999).