Internasioanl Journal

IJEAL (International Journal of English and Applied Linguistics)
Volume : 99 | Number 99 | Month Year | E-ISSN : 9999-999x | DOI: doi.org/ijeal.v1n1.2021
THE ADVANCEMENT OF DIGITAL TEXT READING

PERCEIVED BY INDONESIAN EFL STUDENTS AMID THE
PANDEMIC COVID-19
Received: 15/03/2022
Accepted: ... (Filled in by editor): dd/mm/aaaa
Publication: (Filled in by editor): dd/mm/aaaa
Abstract
Reading is one of important English skills to understand written information in all available
sources. In recent days, reading is not merely found in printed forms, but also can be accessed in
electronic reading. All along the pandemic COVID-19 era, the digital text reading is highly
required rather than the printed matters. In the Indonesian contexts, digital reading is truly
needed as the replacement of physical learning activities to cut the COVID-19 spreads.
However, there have been a lot of views in regards to the use of digital text to promote English
reading comprehension instruction. Thus, the current literature review emphasizes on discussing
several issues related to the enhancement of digital text reading perceived by Indonesian EFL
students during the pandemic COVID-19 that concerns with online reading culture of
Indonesian EFL students, online reading difficulties of Indonesian EFL learners, teachers’ and
students’ perception on online reading, digital reading strategies in ELT, the impact of digital
strategies on English reading activities and comprehension.
Keywords— Printed Reading, Digital Text Reading, Online Reading Strategies, English
Reading Instruction, English Reading Comprehension
Introduction
Reading, one of the English skills, is significantly required by every person to grasp
ideas of any passage or written information. According to Tang et al. (2019), reading activity
does not merely about speaking the text loudly but rather understanding the words, sentences,
and the interconnectedness of viewpoints among paragraphs. In the educational scope, teachers
should be able to develop students’ reading comprehension to achieve one of the teaching-
learning goals. Besides, how good students’ comprehension in reading would also highly
depend on how frequently they practice or read every day.
In this modern era, the availability of reading materials is abundant which can be found
both in printed and online forms. Printed reading materials refer to physical books, magazines,
or any resource of information that can be handed or held. Some students still choose this form
of the reading medium since it provides a tactile sensation, ease of reading, and sensory
enjoyment, as well as reduced availability of copies and a slower rate of material update (Melo,
Sanches, Sá, Cruz, & Novo, 2021). Meanwhile, online reading materials are available merely in
electronic media which provide the students with current and updated information. They can be
in the forms of electronic books, newspapers, journals, etc., which are swiftly accessed
wherever and whenever. Finally, the modes of reading, printed or online, are highly influenced
by the purpose of reading (Putro & Lee, 2017).
This is an Creative Commons License This work is licensed under a Creative 1

Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, any physical resources of information are difficult to get
for people are required to stay home as one of the efforts to reduce the spread of the virus. That
is the fundamental reason why recently students have preferred finding out reading materials
online to printed ones. More importantly, this transformation, from printed reading resources to
digital ones, is simultaneously supported by the development of information, communication,
and technology (ICT). Electronic devices, for example, have become indispensable for students
to complete class exercises, read online versions of textbooks and novels, and connect with their
teachers (Toor, Ashfaq, & Ilyas, 2021).
Furthermore, utilizing the internet as the fastest medium to look for information or
knowledge would result in the decreasing job of the teachers since it could lead the students to
be autonomous learners and readers. Finding out materials independently, therefore, train the
students not to fully rely on their teachers transferring the knowledge since this realm of the web
in turn leads them to explore quickly the literature provided worldwide (Liaw, 2017). Last but
not least, reading in a computerized environment is considered more effective to understand the
materials since it provides a rich illustration, handouts, videos, clues, with the capability to
move between pages easily (Alhaija & Mahamid, 2019).
Research Method
This study aims at describing the advancement of the digital text reading among
Indonesian EFL students during the pandemic COVID-19. Methodologically, this research is a
library research that requires the writer to assemble the data referring to previous studies
discovering the use of digital text reading in enriching English reading comprehension among
EFL learners, especially in the middle of COVID-19 era. According to Connaway & Powell
(2010), library research is characterized with more current trends of research, including
qualitative, interdisciplinary, and technology based research. Indeed, this research generally
concerns with digital text reading among Indonesian EFL learners, teachers’ and students’
perception on online reading, digital reading strategies, and the impact of digital strategies on
the reading comprehension.
Results and Discussion

Online Reading
Online Reading Culture of Indonesian EFL Learners
All along the pandemic Covid-19 periods, the Indonesian students are encouraged to
acquire materials through virtual classes. The pandemic circumstance knock all the students
whether they enjoy or not to pick up their knowledge via applicable online platforms. Dewi and
Sahiruddin (2020) cohere that during the Covid-19 existence, the EFL students are requested to
visit their materials separately from their own places through several online reading sources
such as online journals, electronic books, and etc. As a result, in regard to pandemic
complication, the understanding of online English reading ability is highly demanded. During
the Covid-19 phase, reading through screen is a vital point of academic activities (Dewi &
Sahiruddin, 2020).
In the Indonesia area, in promoting the acquisition of online English reading materials,
the EFL students rely on the linguistic skills in terms of vocabulary knowledge and grammatical
usage (Sahiruddin, 2019). The integration of these formal schemata, between grammatical and
vocabulary, and background knowledge, is a common approach utilized by the students to
comprehend virtual L2 readings. Hamid, et al (2020) define that when the students cope with
difficulties in understanding the English texts using their text-structure knowledge, they can rely
on their vocabulary knowledge to decode the meanings. On the contrary, when the students do
not apply the linguistic skills, they can lean their prior knowledge to comprehend the readings.

However, in our regional context, the habit of the digital reading activities for the needs
of school administration among EFL students is still not optimally achieved since the reading
fulfillment is not students’ priority in mind (Sumekto, Taufiqulloh, & Aryani, 2022). The
students are competent in operating the internet to access their online reading. Regrettably, they
do not perform high interest in reading their English materials. According to Satriani (2019),
there are about 80% of the students showing deficient habits of virtual reading. This trouble is
determined by misusage of the students in heading the media to buy their knowledge. Satriani
(2019) records that the lacking reading habits of the students are influenced by several
entertainment media such as cell phones, television, computer games, videos, and many others.
Online Reading Difficulties of Indonesian EFL Learners

The use of technology during the pandemic era is inevitably needed for the continuity of
education programs. Therefore, the teachers and students should be able to adapt to the new
situation which requires them to operate online-based educational platforms when teaching.
According to Manalu et al. (2021), the ability to utilize computers, the internet, and other online
media is known as having digital literacy. However, since implementing digital classrooms is a
new method for schools, some challenges are frequently linked to the teachers and students
which crippled the instructional process.
Despite becoming one of the alternative reading resources, the schools, on the other
hand, oftentimes still face obstacles, particularly when trying to move from hard form to the soft
medium of reading materials delivered to the students. Consequently, some schools cannot
implement online-formed reading curricula for some factors including limited infrastructures,
etc. Besides, the inability of students in operating media such as laptops, computers, and other
supporting media would result in the ineffectiveness of the teaching-learning process
(Simamora, 2020).
Furthermore, students' concerns with online learning during the COVID 19 epidemic
included a lack of willingness to complete homework, a lack of enthusiasm to learn, a lack of
technological abilities, and a lack of face-to-face interpersonal engagement with teachers. These
elements have a substantial impact on pupils' comprehension of the reading material (Asri,
Cahyono, & Trisnani, 2021). Therefore, the failure of students in achieving their good learning
achievement requires the teachers to find any solution about how to get them accustomed to the
technology during online learning activities.
Teachers’ and Students’ Perception on Online L2 Reading

Teachers’ Perception on Online L2 Reading
While online reading instruction in the middle of the COVID-19 phase, teachers
distribute varied media platforms to smooth the teaching-learning process. In regards to the
utilization of the digital texts in facilitating students’ English reading instruction activities, the
teachers of Indonesian contribute several views on its application.
Some English teachers deliver positive perception on the use of online reading as their
English reading instruction media with the students. The English teachers consensually agree
with the digital text reading facilitates their students’ English reading comprehension
(Handayani, Youlia, Febriani, & Syafryadin, 2020). The teachers also feel that the digital text
does not merely ease the students’ English reading comprehension, but also makes the students
more enjoyable and more active in the instruction. According to Handayani et al. (2020), the
English teachers convey that the digital reading exposes students to feel enjoyable and more
active in the class.
Some English teachers notify deficient agreement on the use of the digital texts to
expose English reading class. Diannisa et al. (2021) clarify that the implementation of online

text reading, particularly among EFL learners, is approximately ineffective due to time limits,
ineffective time, and rare students’ engagement in the instruction. Besides, the English teacher
perceive that online reading class is troublesome as they deal with inadequate facilities to
support the instruction, in terms of weak internet access, lack of non-paid learning platforms,
and poor technological devices (Diannisa et al., 2021).
Students’ Perception on Online L2 Reading

In the COVID-19 epidemic periods, there have been a lot of emerging tools
accommodating all online instructional activities, particularly enriching digital texts as
prominent knowledge sources. In relation to the use of the digital texts reading as the central
gate of knowledge attainment, the EFL students perform various points of view on the digital
texts in English.
According to B. H. Manalu (2019), during online text reading, several students show
great responses on the online text reading utilization. The students perceive that they are
satisfied with the digital text efficacy and prefer its texts to printed ones. Reading online texts is
effectual means of enlarging comprehension and evolving academic outcomes (B. H. Manalu,
2019). Nonetheless, some students cannot actively engage in online reading class as due
technical problems such as low internet access, inadequate technology devices, and many
others.
Digital Reading Strategies in ELT

In activating digital text comprehensions, the EFL students require to renew precise
reading strategies. Pardede (2019) advises that in the digital reading activities, the students need
new methods of learning and teaching as the digital use transforms the reading acts and
behaviors. In Indonesian contexts, the EFL students still play on cognitive and metacognitive
reading strategies. According to Marzuki (2018), cognitive and metacognitive strategies are the
most frequently employed in reading to date. These two popular strategies still promote their
English reading comprehension. Therefore, up to now, the common reading strategies utilized
by the English language student teachers in Indonesia covering both cognitive and
metacognitive reading strategies, including in pre-reading, during reading, and post reading
stages (Nazurty et al., 2019).
In the pre-reading phase, the students attempt to identify main ideas of the passage to
understand the topic of the reading. Nazurty et al (2019) justify that before reading, the students
apply cognitive reading strategy to grasp English texts, particularly in maintaining the topic of
the passage. In verifying general information of the passage in pre-reading stage, the students
underline the first paragraph of the texts and decode the meanings using their background
knowledge (Nazurty et al., 2019).
During reading, the students try to understand overall points in the readings. In this
phase, commonly, the students look through word by word and attempt to guess its meanings to
catch the message of the texts. According to Nazurty et al (2019), in while-reading, the EFL
students still rely on the cognitive strategy, especially predicting word meanings in each
sentences to figure out main ideas of every passage. Indeed, the students struggle to find out the
meanings of some unfamiliar words by predicting the words, interpreting the texts and drawing
a conclusion. Nazurty et al (2019) notify that when the students cope with difficult words, they
reach its meaning using clues of the words such as noun, adjective, adverb, surrounding words,
synonym, and antonym.
In the post-reading, the students review their understanding of reading. After reading,
the students go back to the texts and check the details of the reading to confirm their
understanding (Nazurty et al., 2019). Therefore, in this stage, the students involve in cognitive

processes; evaluating their reading comprehension to verify the message of texts and make an
inference.
The Impact of Digital Reading Strategies

The Impact of Digital Strategies toward the Students’ English Reading Activities
No one can imagine how learning can take place without texts (modules, textbooks,
articles, handouts, etc.) In conventional learning, texts are one of the major sources of
information, guides and instructions for learning. In foreign language learning, in particular,
texts are one of the major language input. Different from children who receive massive
extensive input from their surrounding environment while learning their mother tongue, foreign
language learners need to maximize texts as one of the major language input. They provide
materials for developing receptive skills and offer activities, such as discussion and role-play, to
promote productive skills.
Technological advancement, however, has increased the use of online information.
Many academic activities have been using the internet to get digital sources for getting
information, and this has caused fundamental changes in the use of texts. Most learning
institutions have increasingly adopted digital texts as a medium of teaching and learning (Wu &
Chen, 2017).Digital text explosion has also found its way into many classroom activities,
including in EFL learning. Digital texts are now used to facilitate online learning and blended
learning. Even the traditional face-to-face learning classes have also employed digital texts.
Unlike printed texts, digital texts have a different view, color, feature, font, etc., which
makes the readers more interested in reading digital texts. What is more, digital texts also offer
flexibility and convenience because they can be accessed anytime and anywhere by using
smartphones or tablets. These features make digital texts very potential to motivate students to
learn independently, without waiting for their lecturers to give them materials.
The Impact of Digital Strategies toward the Students’ English Reading Comprehension
Technology developments provide a wider range of resources for utilizing such
facilities in teaching and learning. Many studies found out that using digit al technologies are
useful in language learning and teaching. Such conclusions are found out not only by help of
surveys and questionnaires but also the students; and teachers' perceptions and observations
show the same results. Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL) mainly aims to utilize
computers for the purpose of language teaching and learning. CALL leads to the belief that the
interactive and lively nature of digital reading that basically contains multimedia elements as
well as animated content is not possible to be shown on print (Ebrahimi, 2016). Research shows
that it can evoke better reading comprehension than print reading.
Since the emergence of computers in the field of language learning and teaching, it was
recognized that computers could improve reading comprehension in at least three ways by;
controlling what and how long readers saw something digitally to develop reading strategies,
providing comprehension exercises, and offering comprehension aids. However, more research
has to be done on digital reading since reading has got shift s from the paper form to digital
form because of the widespread usage of digital facilities day by day.
Digital reading is reading the texts from the technological apparatus such as the screen
of smart phones, tablets, or computers either online or offline. Digital reading helps reading
comprehension of literature because of the vast exposure to interesting readings (Hashimoto &
Okazaki, 2012). For example, showed that using digital reading is a powerful tool in teaching of
reading to EFL/ESL students. It has also been shown that digital reading helps learning the
language and literature by reading more actively for pleasure.
In recent research some models of reading comprehension with the main role of digital

reading is suggested. Although there are some very similarities in the process of reading in both
methods of digital and print reading, digital instruments change the dynamic relationship
between reader, text, and factors influencing the reading process and hence the comprehension.
Therefore, digital reading program is useful for literacy, language and literature
teaching or learning. The emphatic effect of digital reading on language and literature EFL/ESL
learners has also been proven. For instance, examined the effect of using alternative learning
strategy on improving students' reading.
Conclusion
In the Indonesia contexts, English reading is essential to acquire written information.
During the emersion of technological devices, reading activities transformed in printed papers to
the digital texts. Particularly, amid the pandemic COVID-19, all instructional activities are
carried out online, especially in reading class. As a result, in our regional sites, digital text
reading is higly demanded to close the COVID-19 spreads. To date, the culture of Indonesian
EFL students, in understanding the digital texts, still rely on the linguistic skill and background
knowledge. Unfortunately, the habits of the digital text reading perceived by the students is still
low due to the external influencing factors such as computers, videos, games, and many more.
However, the English teachers and students perform great points of view on the use of the
digital text reading to facilitate English reading comprehension. They perceive that the digital
text reading is beneficial to promote English reading class to be easier and more enjoyable.
Some teachers disagree with the digital reading as it is difficult to conduct due to limited time
and inadequate facilities to accommodate the activities. More importantly, in the Indonesia area,
the students mostly apply cognitive and metacognitive strategies to deal with the digital text
reading up to now. These schemata process perceived can influence students’ English reading
activities as well as enrich their English reading comprehension.
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IJEAL (International Journal of English and Applied Linguistics)

Volume : 99 | Number 99 | Month Year | E-ISSN : 9999-999x | DOI: doi.org/ijeal.v1n1.2021

THE ADVANCEMENT OF DIGITAL TEXT READING

This is an Creative Commons License This work is licensed under a Creative 1

Results and Discussion

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Online Reading Difficulties of Indonesian EFL Learners

Teachers’ and Students’ Perception on Online L2 Reading

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Students’ Perception on Online L2 Reading

Digital Reading Strategies in ELT

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The Impact of Digital Reading Strategies

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This is an Creative Commons License This work is licensed under a Creative 6

Literature (JETALL), 3(2), 65–74.

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