Development of digital learning activities for EFL vocabulary acquisition among fifth graders at a private school in the city of Santo Domingo de los Tsáchilas in the scholastic year 2025 - 2026.

Abstract

Vocabulary acquisition and retention are fundamental to the successful development of English as a foreign language (EFL) in young learners, but there are various ways of presenting and consolidating vocabulary in the classroom. This is a descriptive case study that investigates vocabulary teaching approaches and the pedagogical design of digital learning activities used to facilitate vocabulary learning in a fifth-grade EFL setting. Teaching approaches, activity sequences, student participation, and the role played by online resources were recorded through classroom observations and teacher interviews. The results show that vocabulary teaching integrates traditional methodologies with tasks that use new technologies, although the use of digital tools is not always based on pedagogical reasons. Digital activities that include games and interactivity were positively associated with student participation and more repeated exposure to vocabulary, while discrepancies in activity design could hinder long-term retention. This study demonstrates that digitally supported vocabulary activities that are well designed and closely aligned with learning objectives, as well as including recycling, generate better learning outcomes with young learners of English as a foreign language.