A
Yale research from 2004 endorses that the Mind Lab method improves math
& verbal scores. Following is the research summary by Prof.
Donald Green from Yale University in the US (See the Word file on the
right for the complete paper):
" ... The data presented above indicate that the Mind Lab curriculum had two statistically significant effects. First,
as expected, it improved game-playing performance, as gauged by the
number of puzzles each child solved during each session. Prior
to the experimental intervention, the control group enjoyed a slight
edge in game-playing performance; after the intervention, the treatment
group significantly outplayed the control group.
Second,
and more importantly, the treatment group outperformed the control
group in standardized testing. The results were more decisive for
verbal than for math scores; nevertheless, the findings lend surprising
support for the idea that instruction in strategic reasoning improves
academic scores.
Additional research is needed to
understand why the Mind Lab curriculum improved verbal and math scores.
One possibility is that the curriculum helped students in the treatment
group negotiate standardized tests - they might have become more
sensitive to the strategy of picking the best option from a field of
choices. Another possibility is that games made ordinary schoolwork
more fun for the children in the treatment group, enhancing their
attentiveness to their lessons. A small post-intervention
interview of the children lends some support to both of these
hypotheses, as children expressed widespread enthusiasm for the Mind
Lab curriculum, claimed that it gave them confidence, and often said
that it helped them in their all around academic performance. "
Various other sources support similar hypotheses, for example:
University
College London research published in 2003 found that those who
regularly engaged in logic and memory games such as cards, chess and
backgammon performed better on short-term memory, mathematical
reasoning and vocabulary tests than those who did not.
According
to Ofsted head David Bell (Daily Mail 31/01/05) children whose parents
play traditional board games such as Scrabble, Monopoly and Cluedo with
them do better at school. He said the games helped children grasp
skills such as learning to think for themselves, to wait their turn and
to hold a conversation with adults. Mr Bell is concerned that computer
games and television discourage children from activities that better
stimulate their imagination. |
