The article discusses modern methods of teaching foreign languages in universities. Based on modern computer platforms for creating various types of tests, you can create special exercises for students. These exercises train the skills of reading and understanding the information contained in the text. The exercises themselves and the ways they are introduced into the lesson can have a positive effect. Especially considering the fact that modern students do not work with texts properly, electronic exercises on a repetitive constant basis can give high positive results. Educational and authentic materials in foreign languages, electronic versions of foreign newspapers and magazines, publications, video reports - all this can be effectively used both during classroom classes and for organizing independent work of students. However, the task of selecting suitable materials is extremely difficult. The article provides several examples of various ways to create and use electronic exercises during a lesson at the university level. It is shown that Modern information technologies provide a number of electronic means of teaching foreign languages. Commercial multimedia software products (educational computer programs, dictionaries and electronic translators, hypertext grammatical reference books) occupy a large share among such tools.