Educational Mathematical Games as an Aid to Learning with Seventh Grade Mathematics Students at Wahlquist Junior High

One of the trends in mathematics has been the introduction of educational games as learning devices . A student\u27s attitude toward mathematics is recognized to be very high when games are used. Walter Cronkite, on CBS television, summed up the promise of educational gaming when he said, By participating, by playing a game , an other - wise dull subject becomes fascinating and unforgettable to the student. (Nesbitt, 1971, p. 2) Bradfield states it in this manner: Many teachers of mathematics are unbelievably boring in their approach to teaching. Consequently , many potentially strong students never develop any great liking for mathematics. This loss of interest is an educational waste ... Therefore , a more stimulating atmosphere is needed in most mathematics classrooms . One way of stimulating the atmosphere is to use recreational mathematics material. (Bradfield, 1970, p . 239) Stark sums up the idea of using games as an aid to learning: The Games Theory is not a panacea for all educational ills, but possibly another important teaching-learning tool to prepare children for life. It could serve as an inspirational force, providing the human striving for greatness with a playground . (Stark, 1968, p . 44) Many questions need to be answered for the teacher wanting to use mathematical games in his classroom. It will be the purpose of this paper to summarize the literature concerning the effectiveness of mathematical games in the secondary classroom. In addition, an experiment will be conducted involving the use of mathematical games in the secondary classroom and to survey the changes in attitude of the students , involved in the study, toward mathematics