CCT|EDC has joined FableVision Studios and Reading is Fundamental as research partner to explore the affordances of augmented reality (AR) technology for literacy learning. With funding from the Small Business Innovation Research program of the U.S. Department of Education’s Institute for Education Sciences, the team is creating and testing an AR mobile literacy app (“Mix Libris”), designed to support and motivate struggling readers. 

Can AR—a technology that overlays digital objects and information onto the real world to enhance interaction—help struggling young readers better engage with and enjoy age-appropriate books? Or could AR features distract readers, or serve to lessen their engagement with the text? CCT|EDC is conducting several small studies to inform the development of the Mix Libris prototype, and to assess its promise as a medium for literacy development. We are play-testing an early version of the prototype with third-graders, and summarizing child behaviors as well as the app’s appeal, comprehensibility, and effectiveness. We also are convening an educator focus group to understand how the technology may fit into afterschool, library, and school settings where adults work with struggling readers. And we are conducting a short pilot test of the prototype app with third- and fourth-graders to probe whether sustained use of the app is associated with more, and deeper, engagement with an age-appropriate book, and whether it shows promise in reducing the well-documented “summer slide” in reading ability.