Digital Game-Based Learning Activities in Primary Grade Mathematics Achievement

The research paper has gathered and analyzed research from online databases to find how digital game-based learning activities were used in mathematics and how it influences the affective domains of academic engagement, motivation, and academic self-perception. The paper aims to inform primary educators of the benefits and limitations of digital game-based activities in primary mathematics. Digital game-based learning has positively influenced students\u27 academic engagement through interaction, play, and effort, which had a positive effect on their mathematical achievement. Increased motivation felt by students when doing digital game-based activities resulted in higher mathematical achievement and an increase in learning more mathematics based on intrinsic and extrinsic factors. Digital game-based learning activities have also promoted students’ academic self-perception such as confidence and judgment of their ability. Drawbacks include the below-average percentage of high mathematical improvement as educators may want an activity with full confidence. Another drawback is that the rise in mathematical achievement may not be immediate. Some studies have acknowledged that students would eventually exceed their paper assessment scores if given more time to play. In conclusion, digital game-based learning activities in mathematics may increase student learning factors but remain inconsistent in learning gains. The research found in this paper will provide educators with the benefits and drawbacks of digital game-based activities in primary mathematics and allow educators to decide if this approach is right for their classroom

Promoting Computational Thinking to Impact the Implementation of Computer Science

The researchers drove this action research project to integrate Computer Science into the classroom and the effect it can have on computational thinking. The researcher, a fifth-grade teacher in her third year of teaching, utilized Computer Science activities in a science class of 24 students for two weeks while monitoring their progress through Code.org. The study analyzed the correlation between Computer Science and computational thinking. The findings revealed no correlation between the two variables among students with or without a Computer Science background. This project conducted this research to impact the future classroom practices that may implement Computer Science into the everyday classroom

Computer-Based Assessment and Enhancement of Inductive Reasoning Skills: A Case Study of the Education System Development in Palestine

The present research aims to assess and enhance Palestinian primary school pupils’ inductive reasoning thinking skills in their early school age by means of technology. We intended to explore the possibility of applying online tests that already have established psychometric characteristics to assess pupils in regular Palestinian educational practice at the early stages of schooling. First, we explored the feasibility and the applicability of computer-based assessment among young pupils by testing their basic mouse skills. Second, we moved forward by the adaptation and piloting of a computer-based inductive reasoning test, developed in Hungary to find out its applicability in Palestinian educational context. Finally, we adapted and developed an online training program for inductive reasoning further based on the Palestinian school curriculum and run the intervention study. The present empirical research connects important developing areas of educational research and places them in the context of the development of the Palestinian education system: (a) improving the quality of thinking skills in the Palestinian educational context especially when it comes to early age school children, (b) giving more attention to educational assessment in research and practice, which can open the doors to evidence-based educational developments, (c) using the advantages of computer-based testing, e.g. reducing the timeframe and costs of assessment. In the main part of this study, we investigated the effectiveness of an online intervention programme on different samples, that is, on different groups of pupils having different levels of inductive reasoning, having different socio-economic factors, and gender. Due to the pioneering nature of the present research study in the Palestinian educational context, at the end of the dissertation we provide a multitude of recommendations and suggestions for further researches

Research on ICT in K-12 schools e A review of experimental and survey-based studies in computers & education 2011 to 2015

International audienceWhat is the role of a journal? Is it to follow the research or lead it? For the former, it is to serve as an archival record of the scholarship in a field. It can serve to permit the research community to engage with each other via the written record. But, for the latter, it can serve the research community by pointing out gaps in the research based on the archival record. This review is intended to do just that

Virtuaaliluokkaretki : virtuaalitodellisuusteknologian koulukäytön mahdollisuudet ja kokemukset

Tavoitteet. Tämän tutkimuksen tavoitteena on tutkia virtuaalitodellisuusteknologian (VR) soveltamista osana ympäristöopin projektia kompleksisessa koulutodellisuudessa ja raportoida niin oppilaiden kuin opettajienkin kokemuksia ja havaintoja sen käytöstä. Tutkimuksen keskiössä ovat VR teknologian havaitut toiminnan mahdollisuudet ja käyttäjien kokemukset. Vastaavaa on tutkittu aiemmin lähinnä kliinisissä olosuhteissa. Menetelmät. Tutkimukseen osallistui kolme opettajaa ja 59 5.-6. luokkalaista oppilasta kahdesta eri koulusta. Osanottajat olivat vapaaehtoisia VISIOT-hankkeeseen osallistujia. Hanke on valtakunnallinen ponnistus kokeilla ja kehittää virtuaalitodellisuuteen-, lisättyyn todellisuuteen ja esineiden Internettiin liittyvien teknologioiden opetuskäyttöä. Hanketta koordinoi valtakunnallinen Innokas-verkosto. Tutkija ja kaksi opettajaa suunnittelivat yhteistyössä ja designtutkimuksen periaatteita noudattaen VR-teknologiaa soveltavan oppimisprojektin. Opettajat ottivat käyttöön VR-järjestelmän, joka koostui HTC Vive -laitteesta ja Google Earth VR -sovelluksesta. Aineiston keruu tapahtui pääasiassa verkkokyselyin projektin alussa, sen aikana ja projektin päätyttyä. Lisäksi tutkimuksessa mitattiin oppilaiden avaruudellista hahmotuskykyä, ja kuultiin opettajien havaintoja innovatiivisten verkkohaastatteluiden avulla. Pääsääntöisesti laadullista aineistoa analysoitiin sisällönanalyysin varassa teemoitellen aineistoa, ja analysoiden eroja ja yhtäläisyyksiä osanottajien kirjallisesti kuvaamissa kokemuksissa. Tutkimuksessa seurattiin kuinka opettajat keksivät soveltaa VR-järjestelmää osana ympäristöopin projektia. Projekti alkoi joulukuussa 2017 ja päättyi huhtikuussa 2018. Oppilaat arvioivat VR-järjestelmän käyttöä ja siihen liittyviä omia kokemuksiaan niin projektin aikana kuin sen päätyttyäkin. Tulokset ja johtopäätökset. Opettajat kohtasivat vaihtelevasti oppimisen orkestroinnin haasteita, teknisiä vaikeuksia, sekä tilallisen - ja ajallisen ulottuvuuden rajoitteita projektin aikana. Vaikutti siltä, että sovelletun VR järjestelmän sujuva käyttöönotto vaatisi olemassa olevien skriptien purkamista, sekä toisenlaisia ja jouhevia tilallisia, ajallisia ja pedagogisia ratkaisuja, kuin mihin kouluissa oltiin totuttu. Tästä huolimatta oppilaat omaksuivat VR teknologian käytön varsin nopeasti ja kokivat sen erittäin myönteisesti. VR järjestelmää käytettiin projektissa lähinnä motivoivana lisänä. Roolileikkien ja maapallon visuaalisesti tehostetun tutkimisen lisäksi VR järjestelmän havaitut toiminnan mahdollisuudet sisälsivät oppilaiden mielenkiinnon heräämistä, teknologian käytöstä nauttimista, todentuntuisuuden ja mielen uppoutumisen kokemuksia, sekä onnistumisen kokemuksia. Oppilaat pitivät VR laitetta erittäin mukavana ja VR ohjelmaa käyttäjäystävällisenä. Näytti siltä, että sovellettu VR järjestelmä ja sen käyttötavat projektin aikana vaikuttivat oppilaiden käsityksiin virtuaalitodellisuudesta. Tästä huolimatta oppilaat kykenivät kuvittelemaan monenlaisia virtuaalisia maailmoja, joissa haluaisivat vierailla ja opiskella. Tyypillisten kategorioiden lisäksi he kuvittelivat korkean fantasian maailmoja ja aikamatkustusta tulevaisuuteen. Yleisesti ottaen oppilaat vaikuttivat halukkailta jatkamaan VR teknologian käyttöä tulevissa opinnoissaan. Projektin jälkimittauksissa heidän itseraportoimansa minäpystyvyys ja osallistumisen into olivat korkeat. Poikien raportoima pystyvyys oli tilastollisesti merkittävästi tyttöjä korkeampi. Oppilaat pitivät VR ohjelman maailmaa luotettavana lähteenä lähinnä kokemusperäisesti; joko järjestelmän tuottaman todentuntuisuuden takia tai koska virtuaalimaailma vaikutti vastaavan täsmällisesti heidän kokemuksiaan fyysisestä maailmasta. Kaiken kaikkiaan vaikuttaisi siltä, että tutkimukseen osallistuneet 11-12 vuotiaat oppilaat ottaisivat VR teknologian mieluusti osaksi omaa oppimisympäristöään, toisaalta opettajat oikeutetustikin kokivat, että sovellettu VR järjestelmä olisi siihen vielä liian monimutkainen ja vaativa.The purpose of this study is to implement immersive virtual reality (VR) technology as part of an environmental studies project in the actual complex school reality and analyze both the students’ and their teachers’ experiences and observations on the use of VR in learning and teaching. This study focuses on the user experiences and affordances that the appliance of VR technology brings forth in education. There are but few earlier studies on similar topics, most of which have been conducted in clinical settings. Three teachers and 59 students, 5-6th graders, from two different Finnish elementary schools participated in this study. The participants were all volunteers and took part in a nationwide VISIOT-project, coordinated by a nationwide Innokas Network. Its main purpose was to provide opportunities for trying out and developing virtual reality, augmented reality and Internet of things -technologies in education. The three teachers in this study applied a VR system that consisted of HTC Vive -device and Google Earth VR -program. The different ways in which the teachers ended up implementing the VR system turned out to be an important research topic in this study. The project went on for over three months, spanning from December 2017 to April 2018. The students assessed the use of the VR system during and after the project. Their experiences became another key research area in this study. Data was gathered with online questionnaires, pre and post-surveys for students, a test of the students’ spatial reasoning abilities, and with a pre-survey and innovative post interviews for the teachers. This mostly qualitative data was analyzed with clustering content analysis, where I would find similarities and differences in the participants’ answers and place them in schematized categories. The teacher’s encountered technical, spatial and temporal challenges, as well as challenges in orchestrating the implementation of the VR system. It appeared that VR’s implementation in education demanded more innovative scripts and different spatial, temporal and pedagogical arrangements than the two studied schools were used to. Albeit, the students adapted to the use of VR technology rather quickly and had a very positive emotional experience with it. The VR system was mostly used as a motivational addition to learning. Besides the visually enhanced exploration of the Earth and tourist role-play, the VR system’s actualized affordances included enjoyment and interest, realism and mental immersion, and mastery experiences. Students found the device as very comfortable and the program as user-friendly. Their conception of virtual reality was evidently affected by the applied VR system and its uses during the virtual field trip project. Despite of this, the students were able to imagine diverse learning worlds for VR. In addition to typical categories, they imagined high fantasy worlds and time travelling to the future. By and large, the students appeared willing to use VR technology again in the future. Their post-survey measures for self-efficacy and interest to engage with the technology were relatively high. The self-reported self-efficacy of boys was statistically significantly higher than the girls corresponding. The students found the VR program to be a credible source mostly due to the virtual world’s realism or resemblance with their experiences of the real world. Altogether, VR technology appears to be something that these 11-12-year-old students would gladly include in their learning environment, on the other hand, the teachers rightfully felt that the implemented VR system was too complex and demanding for permanent inclusion

The effect of game-based learning on middle school students\u27 academic achievement

The purpose of this literature review is to explore the connections of paratexts and multiple literacies in game-based learning to traditional literacies and examine the effectiveness of game-based learning on middle school students\u27 academic performance in STEM subjects. Thirty peer-reviewed journal articles with a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods as well as literature reviews were surveyed. Research shows game-based learning is a viable instructional method that offers close connections to traditional literacies in the classroom and an opportunity for improving student academic achievement when implemented purposefully in STEM content areas. Recommendations for teachers\u27 effective implementation and the future directions for the research are discussed

An Investigation of the Relationship Between Amount and Type of Reading of 5th Grade Students and their Reading Achievement

This study examined the relationship between amount and type of reading of 5th grade students and their reading achievement. To generate answers to the research questions, four variables were investigated: students' gender, students' self-concept as a reader, students' value of reading, and students' reading achievement. The type of reading and amount of reading were then related to these variables. Fifty students completed a Daily Out-of-School Time Activity Log for a one-week period. They completed the Motivation to Read Profile (MRP) (Gambrell, et al., 1996) and a questionnaire about topics of interest to 5th grade students. The Stanford Achievement Test (SAT10) was used to determine students' reading level. The five most frequently selected materials were: novels, directions, Internet sites, electronic games, and something that the student wrote. The reading logs were analyzed to determine how many hours each student read during the 7 day time period. Approximately 36% of the students read at least one hour per day or more during this study. Thirty-eight (76%) of the fifty students read from 0 to 2 hours during the weekend and 15 (30%) students read from 0 to 2 hours during the weekday time period. There were no significant correlations found between amount of reading and any of the variables of self-concept, value of reading, total score on MRP, or SAT10. Above average readers had a tendency to score higher on value of reading and self-concept as a reader. There were no significant differences found between boys and girls between amount of reading and any of the aforementioned variables. There was a tendency for girls to value reading more than boys. Boys identified the reading of electronic games significantly more often than did girls. Type of reading was not significantly related to any of the variables. There was not much difference between girls and boys in relation to total hours reading and any of the variables. A total of 14 boys and 17 girls read something from the public library during their 7-day period. The participants chose to read as their favorite topics: fantasy characters, sports, and characters who do amazing things. This study revealed the important place that technology has in the reading lives of adolescents