Persephone Group (2009)
Overview
In October 2009, the Persephone Group, an educational evaluation service, conducted an independent assessment of iCivics’ effectiveness and popularity. The results of this study indicate that iCivics is a fun and effective instructional tool popular with both students and teachers.
Method
Persephone Group studied students in sixth, seventh, and eighth grade in 22 classrooms across thirteen states. Of the participating schools, seven were urban, nine were suburban, five were rural, and half of the participating educators taught at Title I schools. Students were given a pretest before and a posttest after playing two of iCivics’ earliest games, Do I Have A Right? and Supreme Decision. The study included observation of students receiving iCivics lesson plans, playing iCivics games, and a collection of surveys and teacher feedback.
Results
Persephone Group study results show student posttest scores improved 13.7% after playing Do I Have A Right? only once; those who played at least twice improved by 18.3%. The study found the greatest increase between pretest and posttest scores among sixth grade students, the youngest of the test population. After playing the game in class, researchers found that 57% of students played Do I Have A Right? in their free time at home, unprompted. Student posttest scores improved 14.4% after playing Supreme Decision in class, and 78% of said they would like to play the game again. 100% of participating teachers said they would use iCivics again and would recommend it to a colleague.