E-Learning for Mastering Literacy

The Process

In order to provide students with a stand-alone learning experience, we designed four modules that diagnose and strengthen areas where their reading skills are suffering. 

Decoding Module

The foundational program in ReadingWise, the Decoding Module is designed to improve reading skills for students with a reading age below their physical age. 

The module assesses the student’s reading age and assigns the appropriate curriculum, which contains 30 chapters with 20-30 individual lessons. 

‍

These lessons take place in 20 minute sessions where students learn through animated, multi-sensory activities that combine word sounds with images and other quizzes to improve literacy. 

Lessons are capped with learner progress reports so children can see how they scored and what rewards they achieved. 

Comprehension Module 

Built to help students develop and understand the meaning behind a story’s narrative, the Comprehension Module combines independent learning with group discussion and teacher oversight. 

Each student works independently through the module’s adventure narrative, “The Red Stone of Calcutta” while completing mega-skills and mini-skills. These comprehension activities challenge students to identify keywords, dig deeper into the text, describe word pairs, teach synonyms and build summarization skills. 

The activities are facilitated through interactive technology and allow students to receive instant feedback on their performance, further developing their understanding of the English language. 

‍

After completing the module, students hold a group meeting with a Teacher’s Assistant to discuss the story and review the new skills they have learned. Each TA is trained by ReadingWise in effective comprehension skills to best reinforce student learning. 

ZIP Module

The ZIP module teaches children letters and sounds to support them while learning phonics. 

In combination with word sounds and written words, the module encourages adaptive learning using a smart algorithm that detects when students have mastered sounds and reading.

ZIP uses three levels of programs, each containing a different set of words and sounds, to maximize student learning. 

It also features fonts specifically to assist students with dyslexia, as well as localized audio with various accents for children learning in different parts of the world. 

‍

Vocab Module 

Based on an algorithm using Bayesian Knowledge Tracing (BKT), the vocab module teaches students new words by pairing them with descriptors like images, definitions, and synonyms. 

‍

When a student matches the word with the correct descriptor, he receives +1. If he chooses the incorrect descriptor, he is given -1. 

Once the student correctly associates the word with the right descriptor three times (+3) the word is considered “secure” and the student is allowed to progress to new vocabulary. 

The Solution

By combining key literacy lessons with an assessment system that helps students understand how they are graded, covers subjects fully, and provides a clear review of student skills, we helped ReadingWise create a program that can teach struggling readers in greater numbers than ever before.  With teachers dashboard it's easy to monitor each student's progress.

The Result 

When using ReadingWise for just 20 hours, the average student improves their reading age by 9 months. Schools in Britain, Spain, Switzerland, Australia and New Zealand rely on the course as their main literacy intervention tool.