ALL App Literacy Program for Children

Age: < 18

Sex: Any

Trial Phase: Academic

Sponsor: Penn State University

Disqualifiers: Severe speech disorders, English language, others

No Placebo Group All trial participants will receive the active study treatment (no placebo)

Compensation: Varies

Number of Visits: Unknown

Duration: 8 months

50 Participants Needed

Trial Summary

Do I need to stop my current medications to join the trial?

The trial protocol does not specify whether you need to stop taking your current medications.

What data supports the effectiveness of the ALL Phonics Instruction and ALL Sight Word Instruction treatment?

Research shows that phonics instruction can improve reading skills, such as word accuracy and letter-sound knowledge, especially in children with reading difficulties. Additionally, sight word interventions have been effective in increasing the number of words children can recognize quickly, which can help improve reading fluency. ^{1 2 3 4 5}

How does the ALL App Literacy Program for Children treatment differ from other treatments for literacy development?

The ALL App Literacy Program for Children is unique because it combines phonics and sight word instruction through interactive apps, which can engage children in a self-motivated and independent learning process. This approach is different from traditional methods that may not utilize technology or interactive elements to the same extent, potentially making it more engaging and effective for young learners. ^{6 7 8 9 10}

What is the purpose of this trial?

The goal of this clinical trial is to test a phonics-based literacy program for children with limited or no speech who use augmentative and alternative communication. More specifically, this study aims to: 1. Understand if using a literacy app (Accessible Literacy Learning) created to support individuals with limited or no speech, with instruction provided by a service provider, will increase their literacy skills 2. Understand how many trials/how much time it takes to acquire each of the 6 early literacy skill assessed 3. Understand if service providers think the Accessible Literacy Learning app is appropriate for this population that needs many literacy adaptions due to challenges with speech. 4. Understand if any characteristics lead to more learning of the skills, for example, diagnosis or age Participants will be asked to complete 100 lessons using the app. The lessons will be phonics-based for the intervention group. The comparison group with use the same app and complete 100 lessons, but will only complete lessons in sight word (no phonics).

Research Team

Jessica Caron, Ph.D.

Principal Investigator

The Pennsylvania State University

Eligibility Criteria

This trial is for English-speaking and reading school support personnel working with children aged 3-8 who use AAC due to speech challenges. The children should have limited literacy skills, not be receiving consistent phonics-based instruction, and must have access to an iPad.

Inclusion Criteria

My speech and communication do not fully meet my daily needs.

Symbolic communicators with use of at least 50 words/signs/picture icons expressively

Access to an iPad

Exclusion Criteria

Do not have access to an iPad to use the ALL app

Present with severe speech disorders whereby they could use or benefit from AAC

Able to read at the connected text level

Timeline

Screening

Participants are screened for eligibility to participate in the trial

2-4 weeks

Treatment

Participants complete 100 lessons using the ALL app, with systematic instruction in phonics or sight words

8 months

Regular sessions with a service provider

Follow-up

Participants are monitored for changes in literacy skills and app acceptability

8 months

Treatment Details

Interventions

• ALL Phonics Instruction
• ALL Sight Word Instruction

Trial Overview The study tests a literacy app called Accessible Literacy Learning (ALL). It compares the effectiveness of ALL Sight Word Instruction versus ALL Phonics Instruction on improving literacy in children using AAC over 100 lessons.

Participant Groups

Group I: ALL Phonics Instruction Experimental Treatment 1 Intervention

Lessons for the treatment group will be 30-min. long using the ALL app with a known service provider. Lessons will include systematic instruction with four subskills per session (e.g., letter-sounds, sound blending, typing, and sight words). The words and subskills with rotate based on the data collected and the machine learning within the technology. The child will complete 100 lessons. The systematic instruction with subksills (e.g., sound blending, decoding) includes 10 trials per word and an instructional sequence that introduces the skill, two models, six trials of guided practice, and two trials of independent practice with corrective feedback.

Group II: ALL Sight Word Active Control 1 Intervention

Lessons for the comparison group will be 30-min. long using the ALL app with a known service provider. Lessons will include systematic instruction with sight words. The child will also complete 100 lessons.No phonics instruction will be provided to this group through the ALL app.

Who Is Running the Clinical Trial?

Penn State University

Lead Sponsor

Trials

380

Recruited

131,000+

Findings from Research

Dynamic computerized visuo-attentional interventions have been shown to effectively improve reading skills in dyslexic children, with 18 studies involving 620 participants indicating benefits in reading fluency, accuracy, and comprehension.

Different types of interventions, such as visual perceptual training and action video games, were found to enhance reading abilities, suggesting that these methods may be as effective or even more effective than traditional phonological interventions.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Efficacy of dynamic visuo-attentional interventions for reading in dyslexic and neurotypical children: A systematic review. Peters, JL., De Losa, L., Bavin, EL., et al.[2019]

In a study involving 87 children aged 6 to 16 with reading and spelling difficulties, a new training program called Phono-Graphix(TM) led to significant improvements in reading skills after just 12 hours of one-on-one instruction.

On average, children improved by 13.7 standard score points in word recognition and 19.34 points in nonsense word decoding, indicating the program's effectiveness in enhancing phoneme awareness and decoding abilities.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Phono-Graphix(TM): A new method for remediating reading difficulties. McGuinness, C., McGuinness, D., McGuinness, G.[2021]

References

1. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Multiple-component remediation for developmental reading disabilities: IQ, socioeconomic status, and race as factors in remedial outcome. [2023]

2. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Efficacy of dynamic visuo-attentional interventions for reading in dyslexic and neurotypical children: A systematic review. [2019]

3. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Computer-assisted remedial reading intervention for school beginners at risk for reading disability. [2011]

4. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Implications of a Sight Word Intervention for Deaf Students. [2021]

5. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Visual phonics: an English code buster? [2019]

6. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Deaf Children's Engagement with American Sign Language-English Bilingual Storybook Apps. [2023]

7. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Teaching the reading of connected text through sight-word instruction to students with moderate intellectual disabilities. [2022]

8. England pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Can an app a day keep illiteracy away? Piloting the efficacy of Reading Doctor apps for preschoolers with developmental language disorder. [2021]

9. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Phono-Graphix(TM): A new method for remediating reading difficulties. [2021]

10. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Review of research on sight word instruction. [2022]