Immersive Learning and Linguistic Responses in Students with High Intellectual Abilities: Observations and Stakeholder Perceptions Using the Delightex Platform

Resumen

This study explored students' observed responses and adult stakeholders' perceptions regarding an immersive learning environment designed using the Delightex platform and its relationship with linguistic competences among students with high intellectual abilities at an educational institution in Guayaquil, Ecuador. A qualitative instrumental case-study design was used. Eleven sixth- and seventh-grade students were observed during six 45-minute sessions, while one school administrator and four teachers from Language and Literature and Educational Technology participated as adult interview informants. Interview data were analysed thematically, and observation findings were summarized descriptively as one participant-level classification per indicator based on the six-session record. Four themes and eleven subthemes were identified. Observation records showed that 10/11 students (90.9%) displayed enjoyment, 9/11 (81.8%) showed interest and motivation, and 8/11 (72.7%) maintained attention and completed all proposed activities. Only 3/11 (27.3%) were classified as independently managing the platform, indicating operational support needs. The combined observational and perception-based evidence suggested that Delightex may support motivation, participation, and contextualised language use within the case examined. Given the small sample, single-site design, absence of pre/post linguistic measures, and participant-level descriptive aggregation, the findings should be interpreted cautiously and examined in future comparative studies.