TVO has launched a kindergarten pilot of its new learning product, mPower, with over 150 students in Ontario. mPower immerses children in a virtual world of math in which they learn key concepts through fun and engaging game experiences.
TVO is bringing together teachers, software developers and game designers to build the product, which is then rigorously play-tested with students. This innovative digital resource weaves together ideas in Ontario’s math, science and social studies curricula, and leverages TVO’s expertise at the intersection of curriculum, pedagogy and technology.
mPower presents Ontario’s learners with complex problems through which they explore and apply math skills in authentic STEAM challenges, and uses modern game mechanics to motivate and empower young learners. The challenges adapt to the learner’s skill level in math, with targeted focus on areas of math identified by provincial achievement data as requiring support. The platform also offers a comprehensive dashboard for teachers to track and monitor student achievement.
Teacher feedback to date has been incredibly insightful. Here is one such example:
“We put away all iPads but one and each student took a turn showing how they played, to connect their thinking about what tools they were using. For example, one student said “I counted” but hadn’t used her finger to point to each fish, she was using mental counting to count up, and another student had to physically touch every fish to decide. That, for me, was very powerful in understanding the students’ learning.”
TVO continues to iterate and improve mPower based on feedback from the pilot, and will be making it available to classrooms across Ontario in the coming months.