ABSTRACT
Educational software and Internet resources are increasingly being recognized for their potential to foster literacy learning in and out of the classroom. Recent studies have shown the benefits of using technology to develop skills such as phonological awareness (Wise & Olson, 1995), word recognition (Davidson, Elcock, & Noyes, 1996), comprehension (Matthew, 1997), spelling (Higgins & Raskind, 2000), writing (Rowley, Carson, & Miller, 1998), and motivation to read (Nicolson, Fawcett, & Nicolson, 2000), each of which represents an important facet of a comprehensive literacy curriculum. Furthermore, software and/or Internet technologies can improve literacy learning for typical students (Allen & Thompson, 1995) and at-risk learners (Howell, Erickson, Stanger, & Wheaton, 2000) as well as for students with learning disabilities (MacArthur & Haynes, 1995) or mixed handicaps (Heimann, Nelson, Tjus, & Gillberg, 1995). Studies also illustrate the positive effects of technology in out-of-school literacy contexts (Hull & Schultz, 2001). These benefits and the evolving role of technology have the potential to greatly influence the ways in which educators think about effective literacy instruction.
