Abstract
This intervention study was conducted to document conditions under which a computer based literacy game (GraphoGame™) could enhance literacy skills of first grade students in an African city. The participants were first grade students from Government schools (N = 573). These students were randomly sampled into control (N = 314) and various intervention groups (N = 259). GraphoGame™ was administered on cellphones to students at their schools under supervision. Each student in the study was assessed using a battery of locally developed cognitive tests that measured emergent literacy skills (Orthography test), decoding competence (Spelling test), vocabulary (Picture Vocabulary Test—PVT) and arithmetic (Zambia Achievement Test—ZAT). There was a positive effect of the game for the Spelling test—which closely targeted the skill GraphoGame™ is designed to promote. The most effective intervention combined exposure of both the teachers and the students to the game. Initial letter knowledge was a good predictor of final letter knowledge on GraphoGame™.
Highlights
Literacy is a major cultural resource for effective communication and an essential skill for individuals to prosper in a modern society
We examined whether playing the game makes a significant impact on initial literacy acquisition of students enrolled in Lusaka public schools, within the wider contextual constraints of their classroom environments, curriculum, teaching practices and family backgrounds
Our analysis found that initial letter knowledge was a good predictor of performance in predicting final letter knowledge in GraphoGameTM
Summary
Literacy is a major cultural resource for effective communication and an essential skill for individuals to prosper in a modern society. The proportion of school students achieving even the minimal expected standard of literacy by Grades 5 and 6 is exceptionally low, with only 32.3 % of students attaining minimal acceptable mastery of skills and knowledge (Ministry of Education 2010). In an attempt to improve reading levels, the Government of Zambia introduced a new educational policy (Ministry of Education 1996). This led to the introduction of the Primary Reading Programme (PRP). The policy emphasized that students should be taught to read and write in a familiar language. This meant that the seven Zambian official languages were to be used for teaching initial literacy, depending on the geographical location
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