DreamBox Learning®» Learning Research

Seriously Interesting at Serious Play

Tiffany Y — Tue, 30 Aug 2011 22:51:30 +0000

Hello! This is Tiffany, the Creative Director at DreamBox Learning. Last week, myself and two other DreamBox employees attended a local conference called "Serious Play." The conference included a 3-day track of presentations and speakers devoted entirely to games for learning, so that was our focus.

At DreamBox, we don't think of ourselves as making games. We deliver effective, "just in time" curriculum: The right lessons at the right moments, constantly adapting to keep kids in their optimal learning zone. But we pay close attention to gaming because we realize there is much to learn about keeping kids engaged and focused.

Did you know the average kid will spend 10,000 hours playing games by the age of 21? This is the same number of hours kids will spend in school from 5th grade through high school graduation if they have PERFECT ATTENDANCE. 10,000 hours is also the magic number of hours of practice required to reach mastery, as detailed in Malcolm Gladwell's book "Outliers" and Daniel Levitin's "This is Your Brain on Music." All told, gamers spend 3 billion hours a week on collaborative problem solving. Imagine if kids spent just a fraction of that time learning math! Here at DreamBox Learning, as we work to expand our product to include math for older grades, we are incorporating some of the best practices from the gaming world to help make our product relevant and engaging for older kids. A 4th grader is very different from a kindergartener, and we want to make a product that feels right for a wide age range. Good games give us great examples of intuitive usability, task-based goal progression, high engagement, good reward systems and more. Plus, they're fun to play. We believe that math is inherently fun, and that giving kids the chance to interact with math in new ways will help them become thoughtful, successful young mathematicians. Serious Play gave us some great new ideas on how to apply good gaming standards to rigorous math curriculum to deliver highly effective, highly engaging math to kids through DreamBox Learning.

New! Common Core State Standards Report From DreamBox

Casey — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 20:50:55 +0000

DreamBox Learning is excited to announce the release of a new Common Core State Standards report which allows educators a real-time view of individual student progress against the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics (CCSSM). As students complete lessons in DreamBox, teachers can now access the Common Core State Standards Report directly from the DreamBox Learning Dashboard. Are you an educator in one of the 44 states, the District of Columbia or the U.S. Virgin Islands who is beginning your Common Core State Standards Math Implementation? Share your feedback on the new CCSSM report from DreamBox and your experience transitioning to the new standards. Remember you can join DreamBox a free 60-minute webinar designed for K–5 educators preparing to support teachers in implementing the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics (CCSSM) in the 2011–2012 school year on Wednesday, August 24, 2011 at 11:00 AM PDT to 12:00 PM PDT. Register today!

SRI Study: Changing the education landscape with intelligent adaptive learning

Jessie W — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 15:49:03 +0000

Our customers can attest to how DreamBox Learning’s math program has changed the lives of their students. Our intelligent adaptive learning program supports a broad range of learners, both struggling to advanced. And the greatest satisfaction comes from students feeling empowered and more confident in their math ability. With the latest study released by SRI International, we now have confirmation backing our customers' voices. The SRI International study, Evaluation of Rocketship Education’s Use of DreamBox Learning Online Mathematics Program, was commissioned by Rocketship Education to measure the impact of online math learning on its students’ academic growth. “Intelligent adaptive learning is a game changer” To measure learning progress, students were administered the NWEA MAP mathematics test at the beginning and conclusion of the study. The study found that Rocketship students who received additional online math instruction through the DreamBox Learning program scored an average of 2.3 points higher on the NWEA mathematics test than similar students who did not receive the added online instruction time. For the average student, these gains would be equivalent to progressing 5.5 points in percentile ranking (e.g., from the 50th percentile to the 55.5th percentile) in just 16 weeks. This SRI study validates DreamBox Learning’s core value proposition – that intelligent adaptive learning is a game changer in education. Rocketship is a showcase example of how the platform has significantly impacted math score gains across a diverse landscape of students. I encourage you to read the SRI International study if you haven’t already. Together, we can be a part of the change in education, and empower our young children with the foundation they need to succeed. - Jessie Woolley-Wilson, CEO

DreamBox Webinar with Dr. Margaret Jorgensen on Formative Instruction

Tracy H — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 16:39:33 +0000

The need to learn from the practices of highly effective teachers to help more students excel is one of the great challenges elementary educators face. Research has shown the effectiveness of formative assessment and formative instructional practices - it's through this research that providing differentiated instruction has become the expectation in classrooms.

“How Formative Instruction Can Accelerate Student Learning”

No one is more qualified to speak to this issue than Dr. Margaret Jorgensen, a leading authority on assessment for K-12 education. As Managing Director at Battelle for Kids, Dr. Jorgensen oversees communications and research on value-added and growth models for effective instructional practice. She is also on the Board of the Association of Test Publishers, has authored two books on innovative assessment, and has developed hundreds of criterion-referenced, standards-based tests for K-12. In this webinar you will:

Learn what research tells us about the practices of highly effective teachers
Find out how highly effective teachers differentiate instruction
Understand how interactive learning and embedded assessments provide real time formative information to help elementary teachers effectively accelerate student learning

We hope you can join us! Register today.

The "Hole In The Wall" Project

Neal M — Thu, 28 Oct 2010 18:07:14 +0000

There is a quote from Thomas Carruthers that I had for years attached to my e-mail signature. He said, "A teacher is one who makes himself progressively unnecessary." Just as teachers need to guide and shape learning for our students, we also need to embrace a shift in our locus of control to our students. It is in this shift that we will empower students to take ownership of their learning and to take control of their individual academic journey. I find this shift essential in intermediate grades especially, as empowered students are more successful upon entering Middle School and beyond. There exists also a debate in education as to the balance between an educator-driven experience, versus the students taking ownership over their learning. I recently found particularly interesting the work of Sugata Mitra and his Hole in the Wall Project over the past nine years. In short, Hole in the Wall project began with a Learning Station consisting of a computer system setup with no instruction manual or teacher involvement. Mitra and his team found that the residents, especially the children, were able to teach themselves and one another how to use not only the computer hardware, but the basic software included as well. Mitra's team expanded this concept throughout India, with Learning Stations set up in impoverished neighborhoods as a minimally invasive academic tool. If you are interested in learning more about Sugata Mitra, I recommend these videos from TED on "How Kids Teach Themselves" and from PBS's show Frontline: World. How can we apply the findings of Hole in the Wall to our own classrooms and schools? Should we as teachers drop off learning materials, computer systems, and leave our students to handle the learning on their own? Of course not. However, there is a time and place for a teacher to know when we stop advancing learning, and are instead inhibiting academic growth. Sometimes it is appropriate and preferred to pose a question, provide materials, and take a step back to see what happens. You may be surprised at the ability of your students to self-organize and seize their learning.

Building A Classroom Community

Neal M — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 16:33:45 +0000

As a teacher myself, one of the most challenging times of year is September (or even August for some teachers!) when everything is new. Teachers need to establish classroom routines, set high expectations for students, establish rapport with families, and get started on academics as soon as possible. For myself, the most important aspect of starting a school year is establishing community. To me, community can mean school, classroom, link to families, even a community of colleagues with teachers and support staff. Here are some strategies I've used to help build community right off the bat!

Let your students dictate much of the community building. This can include student decisions on classroom guidelines, decorating their own space, setting up class libraries, creating and assigning class helper jobs, and more. Most years, I have students submit their own classroom floor plan options, and the class votes on a design best for learning. We reassess the design after a few weeks and make changes if necessary. Giving your students ownership over their learning environment has enormous benefits down the road.
Create consistent messaging to center your school year. This can be a class credo or manifesto, simple statements to drive home important aspects of your class, or quotes and sayings applicable to the school year. One year, I used the messaging from the book Fish by John Christensen, who observed the employees at Pike Place Fish Market. This had double meaning for my students, being so close to Seattle ourselves. Just this past year, our classroom message was "Professional, Powerful, Personal" and all students knew these were our three goals. Our work, our attitude, our behaviors all worked toward these three simple words.
A classroom can be a second home to both a teacher and students. Find design elements in a classroom to make it comfortable for both you as a teacher, and for your students as well. In past years, I've had shelves of toys and stuffed animals that students are free to use as a fidget or a comfort for those difficult days. Allow students to find ways to make your classroom comfortable! Research shows that any way we can lower a student's anxiety level leads to better academic performance. I noticed one year that my students performed better with soft, focused lighting. How many of our classrooms blast students with thousands of watts pouring out of commercial lighting! Try to create a themed atmosphere, one year my classroom looked similar to a classic library, with small lamps on desks and small groups of study areas.
Get rid of your "teacher space" and join your class! This is always difficult for me as a teacher. However, I've found that I do my best teaching when I'm in the same space as my students, and do not retreat to my teacher area. I have seen teachers remove any aspect of a teacher desk, and simply pull over another desk to a group of students. Try it for a week, see if you can go a whole school day staying away from a "teacher space" and really engage with your students. They will appreciate that you are on their level, and you may just prefer it as well!

This list is by no way comprehensive. What ways have you found to start your year that gets everyone started on the right track? Please share your ideas with us!

Keeping Kids Engaged and in School

Tracy H — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 16:33:02 +0000

Gonzaga University recently conducted a study that focused on dropout prevention in middle school. The study suggests this early intervention provides “an early warning system for identifying potential dropouts, a bigger variety of academic opportunities and more rigor and additional funding for community-based social support programs”. (Read the full report, “Enhancing Middle School Student Experiences”). We at DreamBox couldn’t agree more. But why wait until middle school? Why not start with elementary school? This is where a child’s foundation for learning really takes hold. As DreamBox and teachers work together to address intervention for elementary schools, we hope more and more schools incorporate prevention programs to help students succeed.

Little Girls, Math Anxiety, and Stereotypes

Slavi — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 17:44:34 +0000

A fascinating recent study claims that if a female elementary teacher is anxious about math, chances are that her female students’ performance would suffer. Note that it doesn’t matter if she’s actually good or bad at math—it’s all about anxiety! This is interesting not only because 90% of US elementary math teachers are women, but because it contradicts our beliefs that it’s only skill that matters—not attitude. The study reveals that you can know math, and yet if you’re anxious you’re impairing your students. I encourage everyone to read "Female teachers’ math anxiety affects girls’ math achievement"* (you can find it here – it’s just 4 pages long). In addition to the findings and to the very creative way the researchers measure kids’ “gender ability beliefs”, Figure 2 of the study really struck me. I believe that it contains powerful practical advice for parents and teachers alike. On this graph there are four bars:

Average results for boys with strong gender stereotype beliefs
Average results for boys with weak gender stereotype beliefs
Average result for girls with strong gender stereotype beliefs
Average result for girls with weak gender stereotype beliefs

“Gender stereotype beliefs” is the degree to which a child believes that “boys are good at math, girls are good at reading”. The graph shows that boys who believe this stereotype score higher than boys who don’t; and girls who believe the stereotype score significantly lower than girls who don’t! Not only is the difference significant for the observer, it is also “statistically significant”—or, put in plain English, it’s not just a pure random coincidence, it’s a scientific truth. So what’s the practical advice for parents and teachers? To me it is that we need to be extremely careful what we tell our children and what stereotypes we create in their young minds. Because, as the study scientifically proves, they may all turn into self-fulfilling prophecies. * The study was conducted by Sian L. Beilock, Elizabeth A. Gunderson, Gerardo Ramirez, and Susan C. Levine; and published by the Department of Psychology and Committee on Education, University of Chicago, IL 60607

Math in Preschool? Oh What Fun! (Really!)

Sarah — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 16:25:43 +0000

A new report from the National Research Council to Congress urges parents and teachers to help preschoolers learn more math. (Read the Education Week article, "NRC Urges Greater Focus on Preschool Math.") In preschools today, math is too often ignored. “It’s fair to say the attention is almost entirely on reading and literacy, without recognizing the importance of math,” said Christopher T. Cross, who co-edited the report and chaired the committee that produced it. Children entering kindergarten need to be “ready” in math as well as reading, and research -- and my experience watching my own preschoolers -- shows that preschoolers are as curious and interested in numbers and counting and measuring as they are with everything else.

Math learning games important at any age

Does this mean worksheets and flash cards? Of course not. Creative parents and pre-K teachers can easily incorporate math into the play activities they are already doing. Preschoolers can count how many rocks they collect, measure their feet, compare the size of two leaves, and discuss whether ladybugs are shaped more like circles or ovals. Sounds like fun to me!

Self-Discipline Predicts Math Learning and School Success

Sue — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 15:23:12 +0000

We've had a lively discussion in the DreamBox offices this week after someone circulated a recent Science Daily article "Self-regulation Game Predicts Kindergarten Achievement." The article describes early childhood development research (by Claire Ponitz from the University of Virginia and Megan McClelland of Oregon State University) that assessed the effectiveness of a game called the Head-Toes-Knees-Shoulders (HTKS) task. The researchers discovered that children who did well on this this simple, 5-minute self-regulation game in the fall achieved strong scores in reading, vocabulary, and math in the spring, compared to students who had low performance on the task. The research also showed that the children who performed well on the task scored 3.4 months better than their peers who performed at average levels on mathematics learning.

Reigniting the math learning debate

This sparked a follow-up -- someone else shared the TED conference video "Don't eat the marshmallow yet!" In it Joachim de Posada describes a well-known experiment on delayed gratification and how self-control can predict future success. It's worth a watch, even aside from the video of adorable kids trying their hardest not to eat a marshmallow! TED Conference talk: "Don't eat the marshmallow yet" With so much cultural emphasis on instant gratification -- peer pressure to have/wear the trendy thing, media exposure to a huge number of ad messages, easy credit (well, maybe it's a little less easy now) -- it's no wonder we all feel the pressure to have it all and have it now. How can parents teach self discipline, control, and patience in this environment? (Research suggests that many parents feel this is an area they haven't done well with.) Smarter folks than I have wondered this too, so I went looking for a good resource on this topic. Now it's my turn to share: here's a great article on Parenthood.com: "How to Teach Kids Self-Discipline." There's plenty of insightful, common sense advice, plus a few other good resources if you want to learn more.