Adding technology to any learning program will not immediately translate into improved student outcomes. However, technology, when used with physical educational materials, has the potential to add tremendous value to classrooms. 

At Sprig we leverage the latest technological innovations to develop holistic and inclusive early learning programs that help teachers support a classroom full of diverse learners.

Technology can assist early childhood educators gather meaningful insights through innovative assessment, or manage a classroom full of diverse learners with personalized learning systems. But the actual off-screen lessons and activities, whether in school or at home, still remain of utmost importance. 

Sprig Learning is very much aware of this fact, which is why it puts a special emphasis on physical books, print material and educational resources into its early years programs.

For example, reading a storybook remains the single most important activity in early childhood education. Reading words from a page, without distraction, builds both concentration and attention span. Children who have more books at home and who learn to read by grade 1, have increased success in school.

Having said that, technology use in classrooms has been on the rise for many years now. Only four years ago, almost 60% of K-12 teachers used educational apps in their classrooms. With the pandemic, that number has likely surged. 

It is good to be cognizant of all the latest technology advancements that are being introduced in early learning. 

With Sprig’s mission to provide every child a fair shot at success, it’s important that the playing field is leveled by ensuring all students across North America are benefiting from the latest innovations.

One of these new innovations is augmented reality (AR). Educators and students use AR apps to access media and objects that appear in three dimensions (3D) on the screen! AR presents an enhanced, interactive version of reality with added visuals that actually appear to be a part of the scene displayed on the screen.

It is more than a trend, as it is set to become very common in the future. A few years back, over 80% of public school teachers in the US saw value in using digital technologies such as AR.

This article covers AR’s place in early childhood education, its numerous benefits, and a case study from Sprig Learning. 

Augmented Reality Produces Results

Introducing AR in pre-kindergarten classrooms has been effective in the growth of motivation and rapid letter naming among kids. In a study conducted by the University of Texas, students who received an AR version fared better than those who received a two dimensional (2D) version of the same material. 

In a study from the State of Kuwait, AR apps improved the engagement rates of kindergartners in their English alphabet lesson, which had a significant correlation with their alphabet test scores.

The 3M corporation conducted research to show that human beings process visuals 60,000 times faster than text. Using AR in the classroom greatly enhances the ability of the educator to offer another learning style for students who may otherwise struggle to learn a concept. 

Of course, every student is unique. There are many learning styles, all which require differentiated instruction in the classroom. The teacher is able to customize content, process, assess and environment according to the learning needs of the student. With AR, the teacher’s toolbox for differentiation expands.

Benefits of Augmented Reality

Complements Books for Fast Learning

Books can be read with AR-based applications. The animations in the story come to life, certain words can be accompanied with sounds, and immersing into a story can be simplified. 

These AR features can enrich the young learners’ reading experience. AR applications have the potential to enhance oral language development and build the foundational skills strong and confident young readers need.  

Enhances Understanding of Concepts

Books, blackboard and screens offer a 2D screen. Only real life has three dimensions. 

Normally, it’s difficult for educators to explain certain math concepts maneuvering the 3D environment. It helps if these concepts are demonstrated in a 3D fashion on a 2D screen, which is what the AR experience is. 

Also, the multisensory experience of hearing sounds, and getting closer to an environment on a screen helps develop mental dexterity in students. It is very conducive for understanding concepts, which requires the mind to process multiple things at once. 

Provides Room For Interaction

For educators, the joy of teaching is in the interaction with students. Teachers have both physical and digital educational materials to assist in this process, but they do not replace the actual one-to-one or one-to-many interactions with students that happen in the classroom. 

Large classrooms can sometimes prevent all students from getting the attention they need. AR can help replicate those direct connections where the students can, for example, interact with certain characters using AR, alongside interacting with teachers. By listening, touching and observing, the AR experience can become more meaningful. 

Promotes Inquisitiveness

For early childhood education, inquiry-based learning is a very effective way of teaching. It is very similar to play-based learning, or experiential learning. 

Concepts taught using AR help to fuel curiosity in young children, where they have questions or want to learn more, creating a situation where they are receptive to more knowledge. Real-world experience is always the first choice, but in times when it’s not possible, AR capability can provide an effective secondary option.

Easy to Set Up and Operate

Remote learning is not an ideal, long-term solution for early childhood education. Young learners require the opportunity to be taught in an in-person setting.  

But it helps to have an effective option when and where in-person learning is not possible. In such scenarios, an AR experience can be delivered by downloading an app!

Whether in school or at home, the app, a tablet and internet are the only requirements. The tablet can be provided or subsidized by schools that want to implement a digital program. The internet is only required for downloading the app, after which it can be used without a web connection. 

Cost-Friendly

One of the primary motivations for technology in the classroom is its cost-saving potential. Technology can help educators become more efficient and can ultimately cut certain operational costs. 

AR adds to the cost-efficiency of technology. Certain interactions with the environment which are necessary for learning can be replicated by AR. For example, when certain field trips are canceled due to unforeseen circumstances, they can now be realistically virtualized. Or imagine being able to immerse students in faraway locations where they would otherwise not be able to visit.

Augmented Reality in Action

Sprig Learning is working on adding AR to its early learning programs. The developed app can be used by itself, acting as a 3D animated storybook for young learners. But it can also be used as a complementary resource in a learning program. 

Educators provide input in creating certain scenarios where the reality of teaching can be augmented by characters, depictions, objects on the screen. 

Early literacy is marked by high-quality learning experiences that promote speaking and listening. AR is an interactive tool that allows educators to offer a stimulating lesson to their students and support the creation of sound reading behaviours.

In the picture at the beginning of this section, Antle, a character from Sprig’s Indigenous Stories series, sees his father playing the drums. 

The simulation can be projected on any surface using an iPad. Different angles can be accessed by moving the iPad around. The images are dynamic and move in the scenery, and as one zooms in, the noise of the drums gets louder, providing a realistic multisensory experience. Students can interact with the story and the characters, learn to pronounce certain words, work on their oral language skills and, in this case, learn to speak Indigenous words.

It’s very important to state the educators’ integral role in all of this. With their expert guidance and usage of AR capabilities, students will acquire the maximum benefit from such technology.

Currently, less than 10% of schools use AR in classrooms. But that can change very quickly as AR education apps become more prevalent and available. As this innovation expands, it’s important to ensure that all children get the same opportunity to experience AR.

As the world changes, it’s important to teach young learners the foundational skills and concepts using the latest innovations at our disposal. If you have an AR idea that you want to implement in the classroom, or are interested in producing an AR educational series, please get in touch.

The core values of Sprig Learning align well with the ethos behind using the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund (ESSER) funds.

ESSER is a type of fund which is non-competitive and state-administered. Every school entitled to receive federal funding is also eligible to receive the ESSER funds. ESSER released three stimulus packages, with the allotted funding increasing in each round. 

The Every Students Succeed Act (ESSA) is the main act that governs ESSER and all public education policy in the US.

To truly understand the basis of ESSER funding, it’s important to understand the principles of ESSA.

ESSA says that all students have access to an equitable and excellent education. 

These values of inclusivity, equity and excellence are thus reflected in the allowable usage of the ESSER funds.

It is precisely Sprig’s mission, to bring high-quality and equitable early learning to all young students from every community, being responsive to any cultural or linguistic differences. 

This article recommends the best usage of ESSER funds, by briefly reviewing its allowable usages and then looking at some examples of states who are appropriating the grant money to their educational institutions. It concludes with two specific recommendations on how to best use ESSER funds.

Allowable Usage of ESSER Funding

From coordination of response efforts, to addressing the unique needs of children, to training and professional development, there are in fact multiple allowable usages of ESSER funding. 

It’s what makes a needs assessment so crucial. Several uses of the grants are permitted, but their best use depends on the particular school or school district, or the priorities of the state.

Here are some statements that describe the essence of what the funds are being used for. Each statement is followed by what Sprig is able to offer.

The ESSER funds are widely used to acquire or purchase three types of assets. Infrastructure, evidence-based programs and technology. 

Sprig Learning offers early literacy and numeracy programs that can be implemented in classrooms. These programs include classroom resources such as books and puppets, but also technology by which educators can assess students and personalize learning. It’s an example of an evidence-based program that uses technology for assessments and instructional support. 

The ESSER funds are meant to advance equity in education. Any disadvantaged or marginalized student from any community is meant to receive the same high-quality education that gives them a fair chance at succeeding. 

Equity in education is something Sprig Learning is very familiar with, as its brand promise is to provide every child a fair shot at success. Sprig’s raison d’être is to help every child succeed by implementing our holistic approach to assessment and learning to uncover and support each child’s unique learning strengths, needs, and interests. 

The ESSER funds should be prioritized towards solutions that improve outcomes for all students.

Sprig Learning programs were designed to meet all early learning milestones, the effect of which is strongly associated with achieving both academic and social outcomes in later grades. 

In fact, the National Institute of Early Education Research (NIEER) states how focus on early childhood is a great ESSER investment. It writes that “high-quality preschool programs and exposure to a rigorous and engaging curriculum from Pre-K to grade 3 reduce the achievement gap and avoid more costly interventions in later grades.”

Meeting early literacy and numeracy benchmarks are significant markers for success. Sprig allows educators to personalize learning for all students with activities that are designed to work on all relevant learning domains. 

In early literacy for example, there are several language- and print-related activities such as storytelling, answering questions, nursery rhymes and drawing.

All the learning domains overlap and are interrelated. However, there are learning milestones that must be met at each phase (i.e., infant, toddler, preschooler, kindergartner, all the way up to grade 3).

 Sprig Learning programs allow the educator to see the level of the student at each phase.

What Is a Great ESSER Investment?

ESSER makes it abundantly clear where the funds are to be used. Refer to the table and the paragraph that follows it in this page for a breakdown of ESSER I, II and III funds. ESSER I and II are very similar in what is covered, and ESSER III is a cumulative version of what precedes it, with a special focus on learning loss. 

A great ESSER investment fulfills a particular need of the school that falls within the allowable usages of the fund. It helps to see some examples of how the funding can be used.

Examples of ESSER Funding Usage

Recommendation from Edtech Magazine.

EdTech says data analytics programs are a great ESSER III investment. 

By data analytics, it refers to tools that can show all student data such as grades, test scores, GPA, and attendance on a dashboard. It gives educators and administrators the ability to see where learning loss occurs. 

It also acts as a great time-saving tool for educators where they don’t have to manually add data to spreadsheets.

Indeed, a dashboard is a must-have for any educational program these days. Sprig Learning has a dashboard that is accessible on both PC browsers and mobile apps where educators can interact with the learning portfolios of students in their classrooms.

Delaware

The Delaware Department of Education uses ESSER funds to provide digital books to students in all grades. It focuses on the acceleration model instead of remediation for literacy.

Monica Gant, the associate secretary of academic support for the Delaware Department of Education emphasizes unfinished teaching and learning versus learning loss.

She says “Learning loss indicates a deficit for students, where unfinished teaching and learning means that they haven’t had that opportunity yet for a variety of reasons”. 

Sprig also holds the view that rather than focusing on “learning loss”, it’s better to assess and uncover a child’s strengths and interests.  This holistic approach to assessment can be used to personalize instruction for every student. 

Louisiana Department of Education

Louisiana Dept. of Education lists the following allowable uses of ESSER II and III funds:

• Expanded classroom libraries so every child has access to books.
• Homework programming and support to assist students.
• Digital applications to improve parent, student, and educator communication.
• Professional development and support with integrating educational services into online learning environments.
• Transitional support for students (early childhood to elementary, elementary to middle, middle to high).

All of the above uses are extremely relevant to the overall learning outcome of every child. 

Some quick reflections:

It’s best if a learning platform enables a connection between school and home, ensuring supports for parents and learning in the home . Active parental engagement is preferred, of which there are 4 kinds.

Sprig Home is a standalone app that can be used by parents to educate their kids independently or in collaboration with educators. 

It’s great if libraries are expanded, even in the form of digital or animated storybooks. For example, new stories are always added to the Sprig Library app.

The use of funds to facilitate transition between grade configurations is also highly encouraged. Indeed, one unified view of the complete learning history of a student is needed, so their circle of support can best help them throughout the different phases of school life. 

Tennessee Department of Education

Reading 360 is a program that helps support early literacy development in the state of Tennessee. It helps students develop strong phonics-based reading skills by supporting districts, teachers, and families. 

Part of the program will involve administering an approved universal reading screener to all students in grades K-3 each school year, and report data to the state department.

It signifies the importance of the yearly summative assessment, apart from the ongoing formative assessments. Sprig Learning’s annual holistic assessments serve the same purpose, where it ensures that all prerequisite learning needs are met before new concepts and skills can be taught to the student.

Best Use of ESSER Funds

Close to $200 billion have been promised in the three rounds of ESSER funding. With the purchase of technology, it’s possible to give a massive boost to educators to teach large classrooms full of diverse learners. 

It is time-saving, it enhances the quality of instruction by maintaining individual learning profiles of each student, and it elicits engagement from parents if used to communicate with them.

Given the numerous benefits of a technological aspect of learning program, the ESSER funds cover the purchase of education technology, including software, that promotes and facilitates substantive education interactions between students and classroom instructors. 

Sprig conducts holistic assessment using a touch-enabled classroom puppet. It allows students to freely and comfortably answer questions. Along with these answers, the perspectives of parents, the community and the educator are also considered in what is a 360-degree view of learning. 

Such a holistic approach to learning enables us to measure learning in school, in-home and in the community. It provides a true measure of early learning outcomes for every child.

Two uses of ESSER funding stand out in particular.

Regular Assessments to Measure Learning

In the US, approximately 70% of educators do not use or have access to high-quality standards-aligned curriculum. It’s important that curriculums are aligned to a state’s academic standards and have embedded assessments to track progress.

There is a need for high-quality instructional material, but also a regular assessment process by which learning is measured for students. 

Culturally Responsive Educator Backed Learning Material

In a randomized study, it was found that improving the curriculum was 40 times more cost-effective than reducing class sizes. 

Demographic and social factors are beyond the scope of control for education leaders, but responding to students’ needs is very much doable. To this end, it’s good to implement programs that are endorsed by educators and which are adaptable to different kinds of learners from all communities.

To learn more about how Sprig Learning fits the bill to accomplish the two objectives above, please reach out to us.