The Influence of Digital Game-based Learning with a Mathematical Game on Calculation Abilities of Grade 3-4 Students: a Case Study

Calculation abilities are crucial in elementary school mathematics and consistent practise is necessary to improve them. Even though digital game-based learning (DGBL) has been shown to have a positive impact on students’ calculation abilities at the elementary level, such an effect is inconclusive in some cases. Meanwhile, it seems that a lot of elementary school mathematics teachers generally lack experience in how to effectively make use a mathematical game to develop students’ calculation abilities. However, few studies have explored the underlying factors that influence calculation abilities. By using the Cornoldi and Lucangeli’s theoretical framework of calculation abilities, the first phase of this research project adopted a quantitative approach and found that DGBL with a mathematical game really can improve students’ calculation abilities especially in terms of calculation speed and calculation accuracy [51]. As the second phase of this research project, this study used a qualitative approach that went deeper, aiming to illustrate the participants’ experiences of whether and how mathematical games affect calculation abilities. Therefore, this study used a purposive sampling method to involve 6 students in grades 3-4 and 2 mathematics teachers who had conducted a one-month-long intervention with a mathematical game called "Oral Math Hero". After the intervention, the participants were invited to participate in a semi-structured interview to investigate whether and how the game influenced students’ calculation abilities, and the collected data were analyzed through thematic analysis. Based on the findings, this study revealed that the "Oral Math Hero" game did improve the calculation abilities of grade 3 and 4 students, especially in terms of calculation speed and calculation accuracy, and it improved students’ calculation abilities by (1) gamification elements increasing students’ interest in practicing calculations and thus improving accuracy; (2) providing options, auto-correction, and task feedback which reduced calculation errors; (3) imposing time limitations on topics and breakthrough rewards which increased the calculation speed; and (4) supporting calculation opportunities in a more accessible way which indirectly influenced numerical knowledge. These findings provide valuable insights for mathematics educators and teachers, highlighting the potential of digital games as an effective tool for improving students’ calculation abilities. However, there were some limitations in this study, like its short duration of intervention, a limited number of participants, lack of advanced features games, such as teamwork and integrated missions, and absence of data from multiple sources. Therefore, future research on how DGBL affects students’ calculation abilities based on mathematical knowledge and game elements combined with more advanced and collaboratively supportive mathematical games could be conducted on a larger scale from various perspectives to provide a more extensive representation.