Who's the winner? Children's math learning in competitive and collaborative scenarios

Area of Science:

• Educational Psychology
• Cognitive Science
• Developmental Psychology

Background:

• Educational games are popular for math learning.
• Game contexts (competitive, collaborative, solo) may influence learning and gender dynamics.
• Proportion is a challenging mathematical concept for young learners.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the impact of game context on math learning and perseverance in young children.
• To examine potential gender differences in attention within different game contexts.
• To assess the effectiveness of games in teaching the concept of proportion.

Main Methods:

• 274 first and second graders (ages 5-8) played math games focused on proportion.
• Participants were assigned to competitive, collaborative, or solo game conditions.
• Measures included perseverance, task attitudes, and attention to proportion cues.

Main Results:

• Both competitive and collaborative game contexts improved perseverance and attitudes towards math.
• Gender differences emerged in the competitive condition regarding attention to proportion.
• Older boys showed underperformance in attention within the competitive game setting.

Conclusions:

• Game-based learning can enhance math engagement, but context matters.
• Competitive game environments may create gender-specific challenges in attention.
• Further research is needed to optimize game design for equitable math education.