App-based learning in phonological awareness and word-reading comprehension and its specific benefits for lower achieving students

Abstract

Listen

Translate article

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether elementary school students make greater progress in phonological awareness and word-reading comprehension when using an app-based learning game in reading class in place of traditional lessons, and whether students with lower initial abilities show outsized benefit. Using an exploratory group-based cross-over design, 45 first- and second graders in four mainstream classrooms were alternately assigned to the intervention (app-based learning) and control condition (traditional reading class). Progress was compared between the two conditions and between lower and higher achieving students. App-based learning revealed potential advantages regarding phoneme synthesis competences, an effect that was even stronger among lower achievers. These results provide evidence that lower achieving students might particularly benefit from app-based learning under certain conditions. However, results indicate no general superiority of app-based learning compared to traditional teacher-directed instruction, and further research on this topic is needed.