Imagine Learning

Language acquisition and literacy program fosters English language skills in Pre-K and up

Overview

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Imagine Learning is an adaptive literacy program for Pre K through sixth grade students. Through playing games and completing short lessons, students improve foundational skills, and teachers and administrators receive reports on student progress. Schools or districts can purchase a per-student or per-site license for the tool.

APPROACH

Imagine Learning Product Overview

Imagine Learning uses games and interactive lessons to develop language and literacy scores for Pre K through sixth grade students, The program offers content in English but also provides support for students in fifteen languages.

Imagine Learning aligns to Common Core and TEKS (Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills) standards, with a specific focus on Foundational Skills, Literature and Language. Schools need a dedicated computer lab or set of electronic devices on which the Imagine Learning Server can be installed. Students and teachers can access the program from any device with a modern browser, however, the program will not work without the Imagine Learning Server installation. Therefore students cannot use the program on a personal device.

Imagine Learning’s most recent edition launched in 2015 and features Lexile measures and real-world content including Associated Press articles and international folk tales. Schools and districts can also take advantage of beginning, middle and end-of-year assessments.

Imagine Learning for Students

The Imagine Learning program begins with an assessment that identifies each student’s weakness as well as strengths. Based on the initial assessment, students are individually assigned by the program to specific interactive games and activities based on their performance on the assessment. Imagine Learning recommends that Pre-K and kindergarten students use the product at least 20 minutes each school day and that students in first grade and above at least 30 minutes per school day.

Imagine learning also offers activities with ample room for self-expression to keep students engaged. Students earn virtual currency by completing lessons, games and activities and use this currency to purchase accessories for the "Imagine Learning Museum." The program incorporates art, music, sports and multi-disciplinary subject matter while focused on literacy skills.

Assessment and instruction focus on five core areas of literacy:

• Comprehension
• Phonics
• Vocabulary
• Fluency
• Phonemic Awareness

Games and instruction are centered on the following areas:

• Letter recognition
• Reading comprehension
• Idiom comprehension
• Vocabulary development
• Phonic rules
• Spelling
• Rhyming
• Phoneme segmentation

Imagine Learning uses a variety of assessment questions and personalized feedback to teach students. Games and activities include multiple choice, fill in the blank, and written response activities. Students can record and listen to themselves reading aloud. All activities take grade level into account. For example, an older, beginning ESL student learns the alphabet in an age-appropriate activity. If students have trouble selecting the right answer, the program provides feedback on strategies for identifying the right answer.

Imagine Learning for English Language Learners

Imagine Learning places a big emphasis on catering to the needs of ELLs. Students who are learning English have the ability to use native language support, which provides scaffolding in the student’s native language. This scaffolding decreases and eventually disappears as the student progresses in English. Certain skills, such as rhyming, are initially taught in the student’s language and later in English. As the student’s English skills improve, native language instruction will reduce over time. Currently, Imagine Learning offers native language support in 15 languages including Spanish, Haitian Creole, Marshallese, Hmong and Somali.

Imagine Learning for Teachers

Teachers, districts and schools use Imagine Learning to create reports and analyze student progress in the “Action Area Tools” center. Teachers can find suggested activities, print worksheets for homework and create progress reports for parents. Teachers can analyze individual and class reports to compare student growth over time and examine each student’s progress towards a specific standard or skill. The program provides reports for Individualized Education Plans (IEP).

Administrators and school district professionals have access to additional tools including the weekly and yearly usage reports to inform which students, classes and grades are meeting their targets for time spent on the program. The progress tool provides proficiency levels by curriculum area and student performance in relation to the target goal.

PRICING

District packages include onsite installation for electronic devices and 2 training sessions for up to 12 individuals.

Pricing for Imagine Learning varies per district. Imagine Learning offers discounts for volume (1,000; 2,000; 3,000 or 4,000 students), multi-year contracts and to schools that choose to be a research partner.

RESEARCH

Several states and districts have conducted independent studies to determine the effectiveness of Imagine Learning in their schools. An independent study by the Utah State Office of Education found that ELLs, students with disabilities and low-income students experienced more growth than other student groups on the Imagine Learning program. The study also found that students who used the program regularly demonstrated growth on Imagine Learning assessments.

An independent study of 45 schools using the program by the New York City Department of Education found that students enrolled in the program for 20- 26 weeks experienced growth in Vocabulary, Letter Knowledge, Phonemic Awareness and Oral Production. Students enrolled in the program for 27 weeks or more, experienced a higher percentage of growth in three of the aforementioned areas — Vocabulary, Letter Knowledge and Oral Production.