IMPACT OF DIGITAL TOOLS ON THE LITERACY PROCESS OF SECOND-GRADE STUDENTS IN BASIC GENERAL EDUCATION

Abstract

In daily school routines, it is common to notice that many second-grade students still lack the fluency necessary to confidently tackle reading and writing tasks. Given this reality, the Digital Didactic Guide (DDG) is proposed. This tool is structured in five progressive phases: prewriting, guided writing, self-assessment, correction, and self-regulation, and incorporates practical exercises using digital resources such as Genially and Liveworksheets. Over an eight-week period, 25 students from the Aristóteles Educational Unit in Quito participated in gamified activities and multimedia content, while teachers administered diagnostic and final assessments, surveys, and expert-reviewed rubrics.

The results showed progress of over 60% in areas such as phonemic awareness, spelling, and reading fluency. Furthermore, the students' writing reflects a notable improvement in their motivation and autonomy to review and improve their own texts. These findings highlight the importance of having a clear framework in which information and communication technologies (ICTs) play a leading role as mediators of literacy learning.

In addition to the progress observed in academic performance, it is important that the implementation of the Digital Teaching Guide encouraged the creation of a more comprehensive and playful learning environment. The students demonstrated that they can work with greater interest and participation and enthusiasm during classes, thanks to the interactivity and dynamics offered by the digital resources used. This experience could provide evidence that working with the pedagogical integration of ICT not only strengthens linguistic skills, but also enhances the development of socio-emotional competencies such as collaboration, perseverance and self-confidence. “Therefore, it is necessary to transform traditional teaching–learning practices through proposals and activities that are innovative and responsive to the needs and learning styles of 21st-century students.”

Keywords: literacy; digital teaching guide; gamification; ICTs; instructional framework