Do You Have Game?

Recently, I decided to integrate MORE interactive games into my curriculum in order to keep students engaged and motivated to learn test specific vocabulary and reading applications. As a result, the two weeks prior to the high stakes reading exam were much less stressful for myself and for my students and we had some fun.

For rewards, I used Mardi Gras beads (I bought them at Walmart for $3.00 a bag), Twizzlers, and Peppermints to keep students alert and motivated to push forward with instruction and gave students large, gold stars with their name and score (70% or higher) written on it that I posted around the classroom. I also made large progress charts. ( I will post pictures of my classroom shortly. Due to testing, I haven't been able to use my room most of this week.).

I'd like to continue making games and posting them on this blog for future reference and plan to include games for BOTH EDGE A-C and REWARDS Plus (Lessons 1 -15). Throughout the summer, I would like to start developing games to accompany novels I plan to use in class and possibly some to go along with the IMPACT books.

We didn't have a lot of computer lab time so the verdict is still out as to how effective these games were in raising student's scores. Also, in a recent meeting with my administrator, I was asked how I tracked student progress and how I knew whether or not students were getting it. For the most part, the response to this was easy, if students were given a pretest, I administered a post test to monitor student mastery of the skills. I also used short passages and gave students multiple choice tests and quizzes to evaluate whether or not students "got it".

I haven't figured out how to copy and paste the progress charts onto my blog yet but I will make some charts and graphs to show you how students did. I think it is also important to be able to share how I tracked student progress and how I calculated growth/progress.

The bottom line, for me, was that students felt confident and had the endurance to read and answer the multiple choice questions for two consecutive, 70 minute periods.

Confidence in one's own ability to perform increases the probability of success on high stakes exams, whereas stress and anxiety lowers scores up to approximately 15 points!

Quantifying "confidence" is not an easy undertaking so I had to rely heavily on student remarks and or commentary. For example, several students reported to me that the questions I gave them in class were actually more difficult and challenging than the ones they encountered on the test. Some stated that they recalled that we covered certain skills and vocabulary, such as "personification" but that they had difficulty remembering what it meant. The good news is that they remembered that we had covered it and chances are that if they trusted their first response, many of them may have answered the questions correctly.

One student even reported that he stayed awake throughout the test and he read every word in each of the stories with time left to spare! The look on his face, and the confidence he exuded, gave me the impression that this was a great personal accomplishment on his part and that he walked away feeling that he did well-- He believed that he may have even raised his score high enough to be promoted into a higher reading class or out of intensive reading altogether.

IF I was successful in reducing or vanquishing the DEEPLY held misconceptions that students bring with them to the testing environment (and intensive reading), via the use of interactive games, then I will recommend that teachers incorporate them more into their instruction. In the meantime, I am NOT making any recommendations here. I am merely sharing what I have researched and designed for students that I work with and my successes and failures. It will be up to you to decide what works and what doesn't.

However, it is my firm belief that when students KNOW that you are giving them the inside scoop and 24/7 access to tools that will help them to do better on exams, they believe you care more about them and that they CAN do something about their predicament. Knowing that you are in their corner, rooting them on, believing that they CAN do well, is DEEPLY important to student success. It goes beyond just "thinking" they can. They "know" they can because you have given them tools to do so. THIS is the difference.

And, if you are like me, teaching in a classroom void of computers (we go to a lab two days a week for 51 minutes a day), and only armed with an Elmo and LCD projector, then the games I have posted here should, in theory, help you to keep students engaged and learning in a fun, stress free environment, conducive to learning. (I am not suggesting you play games all day, every day, but you can use them to introduce, review, re-teach and to reward students, as needed).

Do you have game? YES! You do now!