Game-Based Learning and Behavior at Westwood
Faculty Mentor Name
Erika Almazan
Research or Creativity Area
Social Sciences
Abstract
Behavior challenges in elementary classrooms can often take up valuable learning time, leaving teachers trying to balance keeping students on task with making lessons engaging and thorough. At Westwood Elementary, we saw this firsthand while working with around 100 students from prekindergarten to sixth grade through the University of the Pacific’s College Corps program. We wanted to observe and change, combining a behavior system with educational games to address both problems simultaneously rather than handling them separately.
One of our first projects is using Class Dojo as a behavior management tool, where students earn points for following directions such as quietly sitting down, participating, and showing effort. The idea is to gamify and positively reinforce students for good behavior, motivating them to be more engaged while also tracking those who are behind in behavior. The top-scoring students in ClassDojo would be rewarded with a treasure box and a prize of their choice. In addition, we used educational board games focused on critical thinking and problem-solving to help them stay engaged and respond more effectively to learning that did not feel like traditional instruction.
What was noticed over time is that students became more willing to listen and follow directions, which we think ties back to the consistency of a reward system. Educational board games also seemed to hold their attention better than regular lessons and homework, where students were more actively participating during those sessions.
Overall, these findings are significant, as they show how to positively support students' engagement and behavior management, reinforcing programs beyond Westwood and giving College Corps a stronger framework to support student development for the future.
Game-Based Learning and Behavior at Westwood
Behavior challenges in elementary classrooms can often take up valuable learning time, leaving teachers trying to balance keeping students on task with making lessons engaging and thorough. At Westwood Elementary, we saw this firsthand while working with around 100 students from prekindergarten to sixth grade through the University of the Pacific’s College Corps program. We wanted to observe and change, combining a behavior system with educational games to address both problems simultaneously rather than handling them separately.
One of our first projects is using Class Dojo as a behavior management tool, where students earn points for following directions such as quietly sitting down, participating, and showing effort. The idea is to gamify and positively reinforce students for good behavior, motivating them to be more engaged while also tracking those who are behind in behavior. The top-scoring students in ClassDojo would be rewarded with a treasure box and a prize of their choice. In addition, we used educational board games focused on critical thinking and problem-solving to help them stay engaged and respond more effectively to learning that did not feel like traditional instruction.
What was noticed over time is that students became more willing to listen and follow directions, which we think ties back to the consistency of a reward system. Educational board games also seemed to hold their attention better than regular lessons and homework, where students were more actively participating during those sessions.
Overall, these findings are significant, as they show how to positively support students' engagement and behavior management, reinforcing programs beyond Westwood and giving College Corps a stronger framework to support student development for the future.
