Background: A large number of studies have established that reading for comprehension in South African schools is comparably poor relative to other Southern African states. Some of these studies confirm that learners' competency in reading in English is lacking when contextualised in a learning environment. Various systemic evaluations were…

Literacy is regarded as a fundamental skill for people to communicate successfully in all areas of life. In the light of the poor performance of learners, an investigation concerning reading is imperative to enhance literacy in South Africa. This study explores the use of tablets to enhance English reading among learners in Grade 5 from selected…

This paper addresses the controversial issues of improving the reading skills of young learners through technology-assisted reading programmes. On reporting the results of primary school learners from grade 2 to grade 7 who participated in a computer-based reading programme for seven months, we try to answer the critical questions of whether…

A study in two South African schools investigated the impact of encouraging free, voluntary reading on the English language skills of English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) learners. Subjects were 139 fourth- through seventh-grade students in an experimental group and 105 students in a control group. Pretests of reading comprehension were administered…