Prompt: Some people believe online reading materials should only be used for a child to learn to read whereas others believe only printed material should be used.  Discuss both views and give your opinion.

Teaching methodologies are one of the most discussed topics these days. There are some who advocate the exclusive use of the material available on the net to teach reading to a child, whereas there are others who choose to dissent and consider traditional methods of using printed material to be the best. I personally believe that, both the methods of teaching are equally important and should be used side by side to give great teaching and learning experience for students. Ċ On one hand, there are some who want to go with the traditional printed materials like books or newspaper to enhance a child’s reading skills. One of the cogent reasons could be the proven history of this method. Except for some dyslexic students, almost nobody so far has cited books as the reason for their learning disabilities. Physical materials like books do not have the side effects such as eye strain caused by the electronic gadgets. Also, given the negative effects, it is justified for parents and teachers to be apprehensive about introducing technology to students earlier than it is absolutely necessary. For instance, reading from books has never caused sore eyes or neck stiffness, but reading from a PC or a mobile phone can certainly cause these health hazards. Ċ On the other hand, I believe online modality is preferred by some because of the ease of access. One can conveniently choose online material based on the child’s capabilities and also make the experience exceedingly challenging as the student makes progress. Online materials are created by software experts keeping in mind all the possible contingencies that may arise during the reading sessions. For example, if a young student is learning to read English as a second language, there are websites which offer pages with links to dictionaries so that they can look up the meaning in their native language. Such functionalities make the learning process more convenient for both the student and the teacher. Ċ In conclusion, in my personal opinion, a pragmatic rather than a hard-nosed approach is the most efficient approach.