Teaching reading literacy through inquiry and information problem solving using the Internet: effects on teaching and learning

Abstract

ABSTRACT Despite the growing use of the Internet as a source of information for learning, few studies have focused on developing strategies to teach the skills of reflecting on and evaluating the contents and structure of the texts found online. In response to this, we designed and tested a method for teaching reading literacy based on an adaptation of the Concept-Oriented Reading Instruction (CORI) method, using inquiry-based teaching and information problem-solving on the Internet. The method was evaluated using a pre-experimental design with two experimental groups involving four teachers and 180 seventh-grade students in Chile. The data were collected using a class observation protocol and a set of tests to evaluate the students’ knowledge. The results show that the method is effective in enabling students to develop the skills of evaluating and reflecting on the contents and in improving the quality of teaching.