Macro International Evaluates the Teacher Resources

“Some teachers can take anything and turn it into a learning experience,” says Shani Reid of LG2G evaluator Macro International. “But lots of teachers – new teachers, teachers who aren’t that strong in math – need the extra help. They might want to try the game, but they don’t know how they’ll use it in their classroom. And even the most amazing, experienced teachers are going to find it helpful to have good teacher resources.”

That’s why, according to Shani, the teacher resources for the LG2G game, Lure of the Labyrinth, will be essential to the game’s success. They’re so crucial, in fact, that Shani and the Macro team are currently working with a group of six teachers to evaluate these resources – to learn what’s working, what isn’t and how it can all be made better. And what exactly are these resources? Well, they’re not quite ready for the general public, but we can tell you that they’ll include articles about learning games; tips on how to use Lure of the Labyrinth with students; lesson plans built around the game’s puzzles; and charts showing how the game’s content connects with state and national standards. Lure of the Labyrinth also includes an administrator tool that teachers can use to collect data on their students’ work within the game, and the Macro team will be evaluating that as well.

Of the six teachers who are helping Macro to evaluate these resources, three are members of the LG2G Advance Team, the group of teachers who have been working with the game and providing ongoing input into its development, while three are brand new to Lure of the Labyrinth. This second group of teachers was included in the evaluation process, says Shani, because they’re representative of the many teachers who are indeed non-gamers and have never used learning games in their classrooms. And it’s for that larger group of learning game “newbies” that the LG2G teacher resources will be especially important. “If the teacher resources are good, these teachers will feel like the game is something they can try,” says Shani. “They’ll know they don’t have to start from scratch, and that’s going to increase the likelihood that they’ll use it.” Excellent teaching resources, adds Shani, are important in another way: they’ll help teachers convince their school administrators that Lure of the Labyrinth should have a place in their classrooms.

Shani and the Macro team are looking forward to what they’ll find as they observe teachers using the Lure of the Labyrinth resources in “a real-world context.” And while she knows that there are many challenges ahead in bringing the game to the classroom, Shani’s pretty excited about the work she and Macro are doing with the teachers. “It’s really awesome,” she says, “to try and break new ground.”

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