While substitute teaching at various elementary schools in the San Marcos District, I came across a computer program which a lot of different schools used, called, Lexia. Lexia proclaims itself as student-driven, or intrinsic, learning (which is supposed to be the best kind). From what I observed, there is some truth in its claim, as students DO seem to be engaged in this program for 20-30 minutes at a time.
Lexia is a computer program designed to improve reading and phonics. According to the US Department of Education’s review of Lexia in June of 2009, the areas in which Lexia is proven to improve are: alphabetics, fluency, comprehension, and general reading achievement. It is a Rosetta Stone Company program which implements many of the same tactics used by Rosetta Stone, such as two-way student interaction. This means students have both headphones, and a microphone in which they speak into, and then are able to hear the correct pronunciations. In addition, a large selling point of Lexia is that there are no formal assessments. It proves to be a true Web 2.0 program in the sense that it analyzes data continuously through the student's’ progress, and thus, adapts to the student’s level without stopping to have the student take a test. This seems to help with the fluidity of learning.
Just like most programs, Lexia is not meant to completely replace classroom learning, but to supplement it. Personally, I believe the main draw of it, along with most other educational programs used individually in the classroom, is that it replicates a teacher’s job so that there is one teacher for every student. It also lessons the teacher’s load by analyzing the data on its own. This gives a more objective view on student progress rather than a subjective teacher’s opinion.
So far, I have not come across any major pitfalls of Lexia. The students seem to enjoy their alone time with the program, and it seems to be used across the US these days, after mostly positive reviews, including directly from the US Department of Education. However, most reviews are based on pilot data. Its actual use in the classroom is still in its early stage so the next 5-10 years will be crucial in determining its actual effectiveness. One other concern I have is that teachers may not know, yet, how to optimize use of the program. It could be just because I’m a sub, but I have ready many sub plans that say, “make sure students get in their Lexia minutes.” With this sort of approach, are there any real goals in sight, or are teachers just using it as a time killer? Although it analyzes data on it’s own, it may prove difficult for teachers to keep track of each of their student’s progress since they could all, theoretically, be at a different level.
Lexia Website: http://lexialearning.com/product/core5
