0000000000467439
AUTHOR
Christopher Yalukanda
The effect of using a mobile literacy game to improve literacy levels of grade one students in Zambian schools
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 ar…
Mobile solution for better reading instruction in rural Africa
GraphoGame Teacher Training Service is a mobile-based solution for providing teachers with scientifically validated pedagogical training in literacy instruction. In many African countries teachers currently have insufficient knowledge to teach literacy in local languages and learning materials are scarce, especially for children with learning difficulties. As part of the GraphoWorld network, CAPOLSA/University of Zambia is developing new mobile-based method for providing in-service training for teachers in literacy instruction and assisting children with learning difficulties. GraphoGame Teacher Training Service was piloted in October 2014 in rural Zambia. An orientative workshop was given …
Challenges Associated with Reading Acquisition in Sub-Saharan Africa : Promotion of Literacy in Multilingual Contexts
Heikki Lyytinen and his co-authors note the problems of poorly trained teachers and large class sizes in Africa. Drawing on experience in Zambia, they present a case study of a digital game that can help overcome these problems and lead to more effective literacy instruction, particularly for students facing barriers to learning how to read. peerReviewed
Ensuring Sufficient Literacy Practice with Tablet Technology in Zambian Schools
Tablets are a promising mobile device for disseminating e-Learning materials at schools in Africa. E-learning materials can be especially useful for the practice of early literacy skills. Introducing mobile devices to schools can be challenging as teachers are required to make changes to their daily routines and the use of technology can be problematic in overcrowded classrooms. This study aimed to find out the most optimal way of providing GraphoGame literacy intervention via tablets for grade one learners in an urban school environment. The study tested whether GraphoGame mounted on tablets increases initial literacy skills among grade one learners. Three different conditions for providin…
A Culturally Sensitive Approach to Promoting Initial Literacy Development in Africa : Ongoing and Planned Research and Development at the University of Zambia’s Centre for Promotion of Literacy in Sub-Saharan Africa (CAPOLSA)
A four-year research and development program at CAPOLSA (the Centre for the Promotion of Literacy in Sub-Saharan Africa) was inspired by widespread dissatisfaction with poor literacy outcomes of mass basic schooling in Zambia and sought to test the generalizability of a scientifically grounded, computer-mediated instructional resource developed in Finland, for effective intervention in an African society where different linguistic and educational conditions obtain. Specific challenges and opportunities posed by the local sociocultural context included the prevalence of multilingualism, the relatively transparent orthographies of local languages, and poor infrastructure of the public school …