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Proving Game Efficacy: Your Most Important Next Step - Ben Grimley, CEO, Speak Agent, Inc.

Whether you work at a non-profit or for-profit, creating games/sims with positive learning outcomes is your mission. It’s also critical to your success. This session will share perspectives from a principal investigator and edtech co-founder who has led studies for the US Department of Education, NSF, school systems, and media companies. It will include a robust, audience-driven discussion on these topics: – What “effective” means to K-12 stakeholders – Study designs, partners, and populations – Fidelity of implementation – Funding and budgeting – Risks

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Proving Game Efficacy: Your Most Important Next Step - Ben Grimley, CEO, Speak Agent, Inc.

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  1. © Speak Agent, Inc. Proving Game Efficacy: Your Most Important Next Step Ben Grimley, CEO ben@speakagent.com (301) 956-9229

  2. Speak Agent = 1stresearch-based academic language learning platform Academic language is the #1 predictor of K-12 success. Gee, J.P. (2008). Getting Over the Slump: Innovation Strategies to Promote Children’s Learning. New York: The Joan Ganz Cooney Center at Sesame Workshop.

  3. Why are you doing research? Lesson #1: Research is a strategy, not a tactic.

  4. Research impacts everything! Product Design Marketing Partnerships Funding Your Mission Research is a continuous, iterative cycle.

  5. Research begets more research. And more funding, if you do it right!

  6. What is efficacy? Lesson #2: The answer is based on your perspective.

  7. Who are your stakeholders? Educators Students Feasibility + Outcomes Playability + Outcomes Technologists Administrators Marketability + Outcomes Each may have a different threshold for evidence. Measurability + Outcomes

  8. Yay, it works! We’re done here, right? Gains in science concepts: 11% 8% 6% 10.3% 3% 3.3% 0% Treatment Control Li, Julia (2018). Speak Agent in the Classroom Summary Report. Bloomington: Rockman et al, June 2018. Funded by National Science Foundation award no. 1632488.

  9. Sorry to rain on your parade, but...

  10. There’s levels to your research. Lesson #3: There is always another level to beat.

  11. Choose a level, Knight. Institute of Education Services, U.S. Department of Education, and the National Science Foundation. (2013). Common guidelines for education research and development: A joint report. Washington, DC.

  12. Did you prove cause and effect? Pre-post gains reproduced the NSF study: 40% 30% 20% 31% 10% 15% 8% 0% Reading Watch out for confounds and avoid selection bias. Science Social Studies

  13. Research requires partners.

  14. Research requires funding. Research design PD and support Data collection & analysis Send honoraria

  15. Choose good sidekicks. Lesson #4: So much can go wrong if you pick the wrong partners.

  16. Risk: Do they have the right stuff? Sample Population Data Tech Size + composition Type + accessibility Collection + availability Instruction Time Staff Time Commitment Content + tech time Planning + training time Incentive + leadership Line up partners before you shop for funding.

  17. Risk: Usability If users can’t figure it out, you won’t get efficacy.

  18. Risk: Feasibility Yeah, but can that work in a real environment?

  19. Risk: Fidelity Are users using the usable, feasible intervention as you intended? Lesson #5: Do not underestimate this risk.

  20. A commonly missed ingredient... I need training. Seriously.

  21. Risk: Scalability Lesson #6: Your intervention must be able to succeed without you.

  22. Let’s discuss!

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