Cultivating Math Confidence with the Right Tools
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The headset makes me feel like a gamer which helps me focus.
- 2ND GRADE STUDENT
Overview
Medford Area Elementary is a public school with approximately 640 students in grades PreK-4th. Somerset Academy St. Lucie is an accredited tuition-free charter school, serving over 600 learners in grades K-5.
During fall 2024, a 2nd grade classroom from Somerset Academy and a 3rd grade classroom from Medford Elementary participated in an 8-week study to measure the impact of headset and mice technology on student focus,
confidence and performance in Prodigy Math, an online learning platform that helps students master math standards with an exciting gameplay experience.
For the first 4 weeks of the study, students played Prodigy Math without a headset and mouse. For the second half, students utilized Zone Learn, an adjustable headset designed for young learners, and the M325S Wireless Mouse.
SCHOOLS M
EDFORD AREA ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
SOMERSET ACADEMY ST. LUCIE
INDUSTRY EDUCATION
LOCATION MEDFORD, WI AND PORT ST. LUCIE, FL
SOLUTION ZONE LEARN HEADSET
M325S WIRELESS MOUSE
Challenge
Classrooms are busy places - and oftentimes filled with noise and other interruptions that have the potential to distract even the most focused of students. When it comes to math, focused learning and practice time is especially important.
To support this need, educators Scott Woller (Medford Elementary) and Chloe
CancioBello-Pena (Somerset Academy) sought to further immerse students during independent math practice by addressing two critical areas: 1) Classroom Distractions and Noise and 2) Navigation and Usability Challenges.
Classrooms are naturally dynamic spaces, but without headsets, managing background noise became a persistent struggle. Research shows that poor audio quality has a direct negative impact on student engagement.1 They tend to talk and get distracted by each other a lot, said Chloe CancioBello-Pena. Students often found it difficult to concentrate with classmates talking, moving around, or engaging in off-task behaviors.
Students also experienced frustration when using laptop trackpads for navigation with learning apps.
The trackpad can be a beast for some students, said Scott Woller. Young learners who are still developing their fine motor skills can be slow and make more errors with the trackpad than with a mouse.2 This can break the flow of learning, and affect overall motivation.
[Students] love it and I love the language of
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