Post by Meghan McCormick

Excited to share that the results from the first randomized controlled trial of NBA Math Hoops—supported by Overdeck Family Foundation—have been released by WestEd. Full paper link in the comments. NBA Math Hoops, developed by LearnFresh, is a game-based math program that uses basketball statistics and gameplay to help students practice math skills (https://lnkd.in/eeR9aGny). It can be implemented during regular instruction, but also during summer or OST settings [this study looked at implementation during summer]. Key findings: • Students who participated scored about 8 percentile points higher in math (assessed with a subset of items from the 4th grade NAEP) than peers in typical STEM enrichment after only about 15 days of instruction. • The program appears cost-effective and scalable, with free materials, minimal training, and an estimated cost of under $20 per student beyond normal summer programming. • Implementation was feasible, with teachers able to run the program after only a few hours of training. • Students were highly engaged, with qualitative findings showing strong participation in both gameplay and math problem-solving. • SEL results were unexpectedly negative, highlighting the need for additional research to better understand how game-based math programs influence social-emotional outcomes. Appreciate the thoughtful work from Learn Fresh and the WestEd research team—and the transparency around findings re: SEL skills that are already informing the next phase of the work. Kudos to Nick Monzi at LearnFresh and study authors David McKinney, Kirk Walters, Khamia Powell, Edrick Sabalburo, and Chloe Morton on this multi-year collaboration that reflects more than a decade of research-practice partnership! And thanks to my colleagues Emma Banay and Katelyn Fletcher for making programmatic investments in NBA Math Hoops, helping to scale the model and get more kids access to this super cool program! [The study is pre-registered on REES: #19261.1v1.]