The impact of a virtual reading tutor towards English language learning in Ghana

• In Event: Empowering communities and future advocates to read using digital tools

Proposal

Mother Tongue (MT) based education programs are now common across the world. Governments and stakeholders are piloting or scaling up programs built upon contextualized evidence, using local languages to promote student learning.
However, we are seeing that, despite improved student learning in MT, there are challenges when it comes to the transition to the national language. This was also the case in the Strategic Approaches to Girl’s Education program (STAGE) in Ghana, funded by FCDO from 2018-2023. With all the emphasis on learning in the MT, there is a risk of overlooking the fact that it is often the capacity of learning to read and write in the national language that is being assessed at the end of the primary school cycle. We argue that oftentimes, parents/caregivers are unable to support their children in learning in the national language as they themselves are also not fluent (enough). Through a collaboration with an EdTech company, we piloted the Read Along app to explore the impact on English language proficiency of students in primary school.

STAGE built upon the Complementary Basic Education (CBE) policy, developed by the Ministry of Education in Ghana to identify out of school children, enroll them in an Accelerated Learning Program (ALP) and reintegrate them back into formal education. In STAGE, more than 8,000 out of school girls were supported. Despite significant student learning gains in the ALP, many students reported challenges once back in school (DT Global, 2022). CBE programs are MT based, but in schools all disciplines are taught in English from grade 4 onwards. This challenge is not new. In fact, prior evaluations also reported similar issues and a large-scale CBE program (Ghana Education Outcomes Funds) that is currently being implemented, will thus very likely face similar issues once students reintegrate into schools(Carter, E., Sabates, R., Akyeampong, K; 2018).

The Read Along pilot program was designed to address this challenge. This was driven by the increasing smartphone penetration in developing countries such as Ghana and because it offers both learners and parents/caregivers a medium to improve their English in school and at home.

A 3-month pilot was conducted to measure the impact of the ‘Read Along’ app towards English language learning. The app offers leveled stories and provides decoding and word recognition games. Utilizing text-to-speech recognition and artificial intelligence, the app offers immediate feedback. The fact that the app has an offline functionality matches well with the limited connectivity in northern Ghana.

Together with the Ghana Education Services (GES), girls in 3 schools were identified to use the app on a daily basis for 15 minutes. The presentation will discuss findings from an impact evaluation, comparing learning gains from the target group against a control group.

Based on the evidence, we discuss scenarios in which the pilot can be scaled up to other languages, regions and how parents/caregivers will be engaged in a follow-on program.

Author

• Willem van de Waal, World Education