The difference between group and solo play in the research goes beyond machines vs. humans. When children worked together under a single feedback source, their conversations became part of the learning process: they explained thinking, negotiated answers, and corrected mistakes collaboratively. The results show stronger gains when play happens in these peer settings, suggesting that social interaction can amplify the benefits of well-designed digital tools.
For educators and parents focused on unlocking more of each child’s potential, this work points toward practical change: design learning moments that invite shared reasoning rather than isolating learners behind screens. Follow the link to see how the “Magic Box” was used, how partial feedback was structured, and what this could mean for making math classrooms more inclusive and growth-oriented.
Abstract
Because many children worldwide fail to realize their potential for learning school mathematics, diverse initiatives have embraced using digital technologies that provide feedback to individual children. Such training, however, draws children’s attention away from the teacher and peers, reducing opportunities for peer-to-peer teaching, learning, and collaboration. In this paper, we present a novel approach to learning through a digitally controlled training program providing partial feedback to groups of children who play together with concrete materials to foster discussion, collaboration, and consensus-based responses to mathematical problems. To evaluate the effectiveness of this approach, children from each participating classroom were randomly assigned to play the same math games either individually on digital tablets with feedback to each individual child or in small groups using physical cards guided by a digital device that provided feedback only at group level: a “Magic Box.” To encourage children in both conditions to reflect on their performance and correct their errors, partial rather than complete feedback was given in both conditions. Results showed that play in groups produced greater improvement in children’s math skills than individual play. Thus, math play in groups with partial digital feedback may serve as an effective complement to traditional school math curricula.
