INTRODUCTION

Reading comprehension is one of the most difficult cognitive activities for humans to teach,
measure, and research. The ability to understand written words is referred to as
comprehension. It is not the same as the ability to recognize words. Recognizing words on a
page but not understanding what they mean falls short of the purpose or goal of reading, which
is comprehension. Reading comprehension is one of the most complicated human behaviors.
Reading theorists have struggled with how to depict reading comprehension comprehensively
and meaningfully, and many different theoretical models have been proposed in recent
decades (McNamara & Magliano, 2009; Perfetti & Stafura, 2014). Reading comprehension in
English is a key to achievement in academic studies in many countries around the world
(Hellerstein-Yehezkel, 2017). Thus, difficulty with reading comprehension can pose a challenge
in an EFL (English as a Foreign Language) classroom.

Children with learning disabilities (LD) and special educational needs who struggle with text
comprehension, sometimes in conjunction with other issues, may be at a higher risk of death
and school failure (Woolley, 2011). Reading comprehension is a complex cognitive ability that
includes not only linguistic (e.g., vocabulary, grammatical knowledge), but also cognitive (such
as working memory, De Beni and Palladino, 2000), and metacognitive skills (both for knowledge
and control, Channa et al., 2015), and, more specifically, higher order comprehension skills such
as inference generation (Oakhill et al., 2003).

Informative tools are programs that provide a large amount of information in a variety of
formats (e.g., text, sound, graphics or video). Multimedia encyclopedias and Internet resources
are examples of informative tools. Situating tools are systems that place students in situations
where they can ‘experience’ the context and events. Simulation, games, and virtual reality are
examples of such systems. Constructive tools are all-purpose tools that can be used to
manipulate information, build one’s own knowledge, or visualize one’s understanding. Web
page editing software, for example, enables students to create their own web pages and
communicate their ideas to the rest of the world. Communicative tools are systems that allow
easy communication between the teacher and the students or among students outside of the
classroom's physical barrier (either by space, time, or both). Email, electronic bulletin boards,
chat, teleconferencing, and electronic whiteboards are examples of communicative tools.

There is a need to do a thorough examination of what actually occurs in the ICT-based

learning environment, as well as the activities that encourage learner autonomy in such a
setting, given that ICT is intertwined with the other instruments and participants in the learning
environment. ICT tools can serve as informational, contextual, constructive, or communicative
aids in the instructional process, depending on the activities being taught (Chen, Hsu & Hung,
2000).
 Text comprehension at school, at home during homework, and at work has recently been
based on an increasing number of digital reading devices (computers and laptops, e-books, and
tablet devices) that can become a fundamental support to improve traditional reading
comprehension and learning skills as a result of the diffusion of technology in many fields of
daily life (e.g., inference generation).

Some authors compared the effects of technological interfaces on reading comprehension in

children with typical development to printed texts (Kerr and Symons, 2006; Rideout et al., 2010;
Mangen et al., 2013; Singer and Alexander, 2017; Delgado et al., 2018). The results were
consistent and showed a lower comprehension performance in screen texts compared to
printed texts for children (Mangen et al., 2013; Delgado et al., 2018) and adolescents who still
preferred digital texts over printed texts (Singer and Alexander, 2017). Only a few studies
examined the differences between printed texts and digital devices in children with learning
disabilities (Chen, 2009; Gonzalez, 2014; Krieger, 2017), finding no significant differences,
implying that the use of compensatory digital tools for children with learning disabilities could
be a valid alternative to traditional written texts in facilitating their academic and work
performance. This conclusion is also supported by the results of a meta-analysis (Moran et al.,
2008), regarding the use of digital tools and learning environments for enhancing literacy
acquisition in middle school students, which demonstrates that technology can improve reading
comprehension.

As a result, the researchers conducted a study entitled “ICT Based Activities: Effects on
Reading Comprehension Level in 21st Century Literature of Grade 12 ICT Students in
FABINHS”.

The purpose of this study is to identify the level of the reading comprehension of the ICT
students in FABINHS

The study aims to improve the reading proficiency of the students and to promote learning by
providing many different paths for the students to construct knowledge about reading.

Thus, the study was chosen upon realizing the importance of reading comprehension in every
students. It helps students learn to make sense not only of the world around them but also
people, building social-emotional skills and of course, imagination.