A1 Journal article (refereed)
Brain-Related Research as a Support Mechanism to Help Learners to Acquire Full Literacy (2023)

Lyytinen, H., & Louleli, N. (2023). Brain-Related Research as a Support Mechanism to Help Learners to Acquire Full Literacy. Brain Sciences, 13(6), Article 865. https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci13060865

JYU authors or editors

Publication details

All authors or editors: Lyytinen, Heikki; Louleli, Natalia

Journal or series: Brain Sciences

eISSN: 2076-3425

Publication year: 2023

Publication date: 26/05/2023

Volume: 13

Issue number: 6

Article number: 865

Publisher: MDPI AG

Publication country: Switzerland

Publication language: English

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci13060865

Publication open access: Openly available

Publication channel open access: Open Access channel

Publication is parallel published (JYX): https://jyx.jyu.fi/handle/123456789/87290

Additional information: Opinion

Abstract

Possibly some of the most important skills that one can have are those needed to become fully literate. We all wish our children to reach such a goal. Unfortunately, the focus of attention in reading research has been on acquiring readiness to sound out written language, i.e., the basic reading skills. Full literacy is the readiness to learn knowledge by reading. Thus, one has to be able to take two steps to reach full literacy. Indications related to both of these steps can be observe in the brain. This may be easiest when we observe the brain activity of a learner who faces difficulties in taking these steps. In fact, the serious difficulty of taking the first step can be observed soon after birth, shown below as a summary of relevant details from the paper published earlier in this journal. The step from a basic reading skill to reading comprehension requires that one must learn to read for the mediating meanings of the text, i.e., its morphological information, on top of the phonological one. This can also be approached using brain-related observations, as we show here, too. Taking these steps varies between orthographies. Here, we illustrate the learning of these steps in the context of transparently written alphabetic writings by choosing it as our concrete example because its readers form the majority of readers of alphabetic writings. After learning these facts, we had to be able to help those who face difficulties in these steps to overcome her/his bottlenecks. We summarize how we have tried to do that. Each step can be taken using a digital game-like training environment, which, happily, is now open to be distributed for the use of (almost) all in the world. How we have already tried that concerning the first step is illustrated below. Additionally, how we plan to do that concerning the second step, the final goal, completes our present story.

Keywords: reading; literacy; learning; cognitive processes; educational methods; computer-assisted learning; educational games

Free keywords: reading; literacy; digital learning environment; GraphoGame; comprehension game

Contributing organizations

Ministry reporting: Yes

Reporting Year: 2023

JUFO rating: 1