Research on Technology and Literacy Educational researchers and practitioners alike assert that the potential of new technologies for learning is likely to be found not in the technologies themselves but in the way in which these technologies are used as tools for learning (Means & Olson, 1995; Owston, 1997; Valdez et al., 1999). In literacy instruction, technology has both traditional and authentic uses (see Singh & Means, 1994). A traditional use of technology is skills reinforcement; for example, students who need additional practice in reading might work individually on computers equipped with reading-comprehension software. An authentic use of technology is using it as a tool to accomplish a complex task; for example, students who are creating a written report might use the Internet for research, word-processing software to write and format the text, and hypermedia software to add images. Therefore, it makes sense to consider the variety of uses as they illustrate best practices.