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Serious Games and Mathematical Fluency: A Study from the Gender Perspective in Primary Education

Author

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  • Fernando Fraga-Varela

    (Department of Pedagogy and Didactics, Faculty of Educational Sciences, University of Santiago de Compostela, 15705 Santiago de Compostela, Spain)

  • Esther Vila-Couñago

    (Department of Pedagogy and Didactics, Faculty of Educational Sciences, University of Santiago de Compostela, 15705 Santiago de Compostela, Spain)

  • Ana Rodríguez-Groba

    (Department of Pedagogy and Didactics, Faculty of Educational Sciences, University of Santiago de Compostela, 15705 Santiago de Compostela, Spain)

Abstract

In recent years, serious games offer great opportunities for learning processes at schools. However, it is unclear whether this type of proposals can offer differentiated answers among the students according to their gender. In this context, the aim of this paper is to know the possible differences that occur in primary school classrooms according to gender, with serious games designed for the development of mathematical fluency, and to examine to what extent these games contribute to the overall school performance. We carried out a quasi-experimental study, including pretest and posttest, without control group and with several experimental groups, and the participation of 284 students from first to fourth grade. The results show that the software benefits boys and girls equally, compared to the previously followed methodology that benefited boys. A clear relation between the results achieved and the performance in the overall students’ grades has also been observed. The conclusions show the potential of serious games in school settings, and the opportunity to approach performance differences based on the gender.

Suggested Citation

  • Fernando Fraga-Varela & Esther Vila-Couñago & Ana Rodríguez-Groba, 2021. "Serious Games and Mathematical Fluency: A Study from the Gender Perspective in Primary Education," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(12), pages 1-13, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:12:p:6586-:d:571874
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Muriel Niederle & Lise Vesterlund, 2010. "Explaining the Gender Gap in Math Test Scores: The Role of Competition," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 24(2), pages 129-144, Spring.
    2. Liu, Chuang-Chun, 2016. "Understanding player behavior in online games: The role of gender," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 111(C), pages 265-274.
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    Cited by:

    1. Jason D. Johnson & Linda Smail & Darryl Corey & Adeeb M. Jarrah, 2022. "Using Bayesian Networks to Provide Educational Implications: Mobile Learning and Ethnomathematics to Improve Sustainability in Mathematics Education," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(10), pages 1-20, May.

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