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The New York Times has a very pertinent article that all of us who are interested in the teaching of literacy should read. The article debates the merits of online reading as a means to literacy.

As teenagers’ scores on standardized reading tests have declined or stagnated, some argue that the hours spent prowling the Internet are the enemy of reading — diminishing literacy, wrecking attention spans and destroying a precious common culture that exists only through the reading of books.

But others say the Internet has created a new kind of reading, one that schools and society should not discount. The Web inspires a teenager like Nadia, who might otherwise spend most of her leisure time watching television, to read and write.

Take a look at the article then post your thoughts in the comments. Should we be teaching kids how to read effectively online as well as in print?

Image citation: Study uploaded on June 17, 2008 by Spintwig under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike license.