Providing a Spanish digital curriculum for emerging bilingual students

As New York City public districts have shuffled resources to include the influx of migrant students, the gap in English reading ability between native and those classified as “English Language Learners” has remained, and with concerns that ELLs historically fall behind the curve. In order to bridge this gap, digital education providers are leaning into products designed for ELL students – helping them build foundational reading skills in their native languages to ultimately help them acquire second languages, like English. 

Education tech firm Age of Learning on Monday announced the launch of “My Reading Academy Español,” one of the first culturally relevant Spanish literacy programs designed to accelerate Spanish reading fluency in classrooms throughout the U.S. Building on the adaptive digital gameplay model of its pilot teaching program “My Reading Academy,” the new curriculum, which will be discussed at City & State’s upcoming Education in New York Summit, will help kindergarteners through the 2nd grade master fundamental Spanish reading concepts. 

“One of the biggest things is that there's a huge need for equitable resources in the classroom. In a monolingual English speaking classroom, students and teachers have the resources they need. In a bilingual setting for Spanish speaking students and teachers, the resources are minimal. So to close the achievement gap, we need to help build the foundational reading skills for Spanish speaking students,” said Victor Raga, director of biliteracy curriculum design at Age of Learning. 

Developed by education, technology and gaming experts in Guadalajara, Mexico, and the U.S., the program centers on introducing culturally specific elements to its Spanish curriculum – from including authentic nursery rhymes and culturally appropriate landscapes to allow for an immersive educational experience. 

“The whole experience is authentic and culturally relevant, the minute you touch the screen. The scenery, the images, the gameplay, and of course, the books. I'll use an example: “My reading Academy” had expository books, which are [nonfiction] books. So … if the book had nuances that were for English speaking students, we adapted those to appeal to a Latin American group of students. We have nursery rhymes that even the parents of these students heard growing up, which have gone through generations,” Raga continued. 

Such nursery rhymes like “Pin Pon,” “Tres Pececitos,” “Naranja Dulce,” and “Un Elefante Se Balanceaba,” help students develop vocabulary, strengthen comprehension, and build fluency while honoring cultural identities. Culturally relevant settings help ELL students become more comfortable with the learning experience, leading to higher engagement levels and proficiency.

According to studies produced under the U.S. Office of Special Education Programs, English learners who learn to read and write in their first language may learn to read in English more easily, especially when the orthographic systems of the two languages are similar.  

“The research has proven that individuals who acquire a first language, or native language, have acquired all the foundational skills, are able to transfer skills to a second language much easier than trying to learn two languages at the same time. By having a bank or repertoire of skills in their native language, they are able to pull from that repertoire of skills to make those bridging pieces into a second language,” Raga told City & State. 

By catering towards a bilingual education model, My Reading Academy Español embodies a national shift in the discourse on ELLs.

“It started in Texas, where you are an English learner, you're learning English, and that's it. But being an “emergent bilingual” means that you're growing to be a bilingual person. So it's more of an additive term, rather than a subtractive term. The term has changed, and it's bound to change at the federal level,” explained Raga. 

By strengthening native language skills, students are able to maintain valuable connections with families, who often only speak one language. Ultimately, My Reading Academy Español aims to serve as a supplemental piece for the city’s under-resourced teachers who may soon face growing bilingual cohorts. 

“It's not only relevant, I think it's essential. [Bilingual] students don't have the resources that their counterparts have— when it comes to a book or a learning game, our emergent bilinguals who are coming into the U.S. don't have those readily available resources. So having this at their fingertips kind of levels the playing field a bit,” said Raga. 

Additional details of Age of Learning My Reading Academy Español program will be revealed at City and State’s Education in New York Summit, which will take place on August 15th at the Museum of Jewish Heritage.