Facilitating students’ active

engagement through an e-book

project during COVID-19

Ju Seong Lee
(The Education University of Hong Kong)
1. What is E-book?
“electronic forms of text that have been published in a
digital format and displayed on specialized reading devices,
portable tables (tablets, iPads, and e-book readers [e.g.,
Amazon Kindle]), and computers” (Lee, 2017, p. 1596)

Commercially available eBook Students catered eBook

2. Benefits of E-book?
1) Improve literacy performances:
– Vocabulary (De Jong & Bus, 2004; Smeets & Bus, 2012, 2015)
– Word reading (De Jong & Bus, 2002; Korat, 2010)
– Story comprehension (De Jong & Bus, 2004)
– Writing (Korat, Shamir & Arbiv, 2011)

2) Learn more word meanings when:

– Reading interactive animated e-books
– e-book story is displayed with animated video (Smeets & Bus, 2015)
– Supplemental vocabulary activities (e.g., quiz) are provided
(Higgins & Cocks, 1999)
– Build-in vocabulary dictionary provide definitions (Higgins & Cocks, 1999)
• Built-in dictionary + animated image + printed target word
+ oral word explanation (Korat et al., 2014)
3. Examples of E-book

1) Ebooks created by PowerPoint

-Stick Man
2) Ebooks created by Book Creator
-Big Bully Buffalo (adopted the existing book)
-Snake’s Lunch (100% original)
4. E-book making project

1) Creating E-book

2) Promoting E-book

3) Teaching with E-book

1) Creating E-book
Design
Thinking
• Empathize: Entering the realm of (or “becoming”) the users
(“For whom do you want to solve?)
• Define: Define the core problems based on the information
(“What do you want to solve?)
• Ideate: Generate ideas
(“Which ideas could solve the problem?”)
• Prototype: Produce inexpensive, scaled-down versions of the product
(“What exactly is the solution?)
• Test: Test the completed product
(“What does the user think about your solution?”)
 Feedback
• Are there digital features that distract from the text?
• Are the games, puzzles, etc. closely related to central meanings
in the text?
• Does it need for a special device? Extra cost?
• Ease of navigation? (e.g., arrows to click)
• Display color?
• Ebook content favored by students?
• Will learning really take place through my eBook (e.g., improved
comprehension and vocabulary)?
• Will audio, animations, dictionary, and quiz foster reading
development?
• Can it maintain students’ motivation? Or will they become
bored with it?
Criteria
Content: Substantial and very interesting content, well
supported by relevant principles and theories.
Organization: Logical, intuitive sequence of the
information. Very clear and direct.
Originality: The IT application shows significant
evidence of originality. The majority of the contents
and ideas are fresh and original.
Layout Design:Very attractive layout, very good use of
multimedia elements, elegant design.
Language: Excellent language use, no grammatical errors.
2) Promoting Ebook
• e.g., Amisha’s journey to a healthier lifestyle

– Content
– Organization
– Originality (Design)
– Layout design (Multimedia)
– Education implications
3) Teaching with E-book
Rios, J. A., Ling, G., Pugh, R., Becker, D., & Bacall, A. (2020). Identifying critical 21st-century
skills for workplace success: A content analysis of job advertisements. Educational Researcher,
49(2), 80-89.

• 142,000 job advertisements analyzed

• Communication skills: “Effectively communicate multiple types of messages
across multiple forms and varying audiences”
• Collaboration: “Build collaborative relationships with colleagues and customers;
be able to work with diverse teams, negotiate and manage conflicts”
 Task
• Individually develop a 50-minute lesson plan and
teaching/learning materials suitable for use with a
class of primary, secondary, or university English
students, utilizing the e-book and other
appropriate e-resources.