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Good news for anyone who believes in technology's power to increase student achievement
by Jim McDermott

Numbers don’t lie and they’re heralding good news for anyone who believes in technology’s power to increase student achievement.  The University of Florida investigated the effects of math computer games on learners’ math achievement and math course motivation and have found that educational video games can improve students’ mathematics understanding and skills and can significantly raise scores on district-wide math benchmark exams.

The focus of the study was on my favorite educational video game, Tabula Digita’s DimensionM, which remains my favorite because it’s fun (yes an educational game really can be fun), directly tied to the curriculum (with detailed standard alignments and implementation strategies), and multiplayer (teamwork, collaboration, role setting, strategizing… 21^st century skills).  We’ve been using this game in our district with much success documented by anecdotal reports from teachers, students, and administrators.  But as you know, word of mouth recommendations are great but don’t cut the cake when it’s time to prove the effectiveness of your educational strategy especially when you are trying to get funding.

So what did they find?  Students who played DimensionM scored significantly higher on the district-wide math exam.  Students in the experimental group had a mean increase of 8.07 compared to those in the control group who had a mean increase of 3.74. 

"According to the teachers, the games were effective teaching and learning tools because they (a) were experiential in nature, (b) offered an alternative way of teaching and learning, (c) gave the students reasons to learn mathematics to solve the game problems and progress in the games, (d) addressed students’ mathematics phobias and (e) increased time on task.” (from the research brief)

This report is significant because there is a lack of empirical research on the effectiveness of educational computer games.  On top of that, even fewer studies include true quantitative research incorporating control and experimental groups.  The only data that is considered valid for NCLB purposes is quantitative data.  So what does this mean for education technology?  Another study showing the effectiveness of technology integration toward increased student achievement.  What does this mean for students?  More reason for your district to fund educational gaming technologies to help you learn.