The document discusses a program at Commercial Township Schools that used students' interest in video games to teach literary elements through having the students play games, identify elements like theme and character, and write reviews connecting the elements to specific games, which improved their test scores on these topics more than a control group. The program showed success in using gaming to motivate learning literary elements, and the school plans to further research using gaming for other subjects and track long term test score impacts.

1. Peter J. Dolcy, Jr.
Commercial Township Schools
Technology Coordinator

2.  Students drawn from the Port Norris
Videogame club.
 School is located in Cumberland County
 Commercial Township, NJ
 Designated socioeconomic District Factor
Group A by NJ Department of Education

3.  District has failed to make
AYP in Language Arts
 Screening tests taken by
Videogame Club
 Low scores in Literary
Elements
 High interest in video
gaming.

4.  Constructivism
 Jean Piaget
 Knowledge constructed by the learner through
experiences
▪ Students independently identify literary elements through high
interest gaming
 Situated Learning
 Jean Lave and Etienne Wenger
 Learning takes place in the context that it is applied
▪ Application of topics through the creation of videogame reviews

5.  Pre/post test through
http://www.studyisland.com
 Also taken by a control group
 During five sessions:
 Instructed in the literary elements through
their relationship to videogames.
 Explored games of their choosing to identify
plot, character, theme, and setting aided by
interactive video tutorial.
 Identified literary elements of games as found
within game reviews and previews.
 Wrote their own review of a game.
▪ Reinforced and demonstrated use of literary
elements within a familiar context.

6. Videogame Club Results Control Group Scores
80 70
70 60
60 50
50
40
40 Pretest Pretest
30
30 Posttest Posttest
20 20
10 10
0 0
Theme Setting Character Plot Theme Setting Character Plot

7. Percentage of Students Who Passed
70
60
50
40
Pretest
30 Posttest
20
10
0
Club Control

8.  Additional research should be given to other
subject areas.
 Long term evaluation will analyze student
NJASK scores after results are returned by
the state.
 School administration accepts the use of
console gaming as motivational tools.