12/12/2021

3 Reasons to Use an Online Literacy Platform

From the desk of Anita Wansley, Principal & Lisa Shelly, Academic Coach, Northeast Elementary School

Literacy support and intervention is critical to support learners’ reading abilities and improve academic outcomes and test scores. For our K-4 school, utilizing an online literacy platform has been a valuable addition to regular literacy instruction, providing struggling students with the additional support they need to meet literacy goals.

In our recent featured article in eSchool News, we discussed some of the reasons we implemented an online literacy platform for our students. Lexia Core5 Reading has been a critical tool for supporting students’ literacy learning, helping improve our younger learners’ reading capabilities and test scores.

Here are three reasons we decided to use an online literacy platform:

1. Provides Teachers with a Valuable Teaching Tool

While there is a learning curve with any learning technology implementation, Core5 was well-received by teachers at our school for the value it adds to their teaching. Our online literacy platform helps us prioritize reading in our daily intervention and enrichment time. Teachers can utilize Core5 to support regular class instruction, small-group lessons, and personalized skill building.

2. Supports Data-Driven Decisions

For schools, figuring out how to best allocate IT budgets is an ongoing struggle. By tracking student literacy gains, we were able to illustrate how our online literacy platform was providing a good return on investment and helping our school achieve reading goals. This made it possible for us to find another way to fund the program after the initial funding source ran out. There are many great resources out there, but as principals and administrators, we must figure out what we have the budget for.

3. Celebrates Student Progress

An online literacy platform is a great way to incentivize students because it produces immediate signs of progress or struggle that are easy for both students and teachers to see. We can recognize progress for every student as they work through the Core5 curriculum through certificates and rewards; plus, we highlight and celebrate students’ completion of all 21 levels on the platform. Additionally, parents benefit from the reporting of student progress, which helps them understand their children’s reading levels and provide support.

Used across our entire school, Core5 goes well beyond reading intervention. It also helps advanced learners tackle tougher reading assignments without fear of failure. This adaptive blended learning program helps us reach students across all reading levels, preparing them for critical testing and supporting their literacy needs at all levels.

We're not the only school who loves Core5 - see some incredible results in Lexia's success stories.