Browsing by Author "Godfrey, Zitto"

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    Development of interactive games to stimulate pupils' interest in numeracy skills in Tanzania
    (University of Dar es Salaam, 2019) Godfrey, Zitto
    Lack of interest and negative attitude towards learning mathematics have resulted into continuous poor performance of the subject in primary schools and beyond in Tanzania. Despite several government efforts to improve pass in mathematics, the use of digital games has not been well adopted. This study redesigned local games played by majority of Tanzania Children into digital games for the aim of finding out if such games can stimulate interest in pupils numeracy skills. Three games; Ruka Kamba, Manati, and Kombolela were digitized using extreme Programming practices and elements of game design for learning as proposed by plass et al. (2015). The developed digital games were piloted at Mlimani pre-school on 63 pupils using direct observation and interviews. Twelve teachers were involved through focus group discussion. The majority of pupils indicated that the games were enjoyable, fun, and easy to play. Nonetheless, some few usability problems were identified during observation and were discussed. Similarly, teachers indicated that the developed games were effective and have the content and skills necessary for improving numeracy skills both for self-learning and classroom teaching. This study has demonstrated that local games can be redesigned into digital form and be used for stimulating pupils' interest in numeracy skills in developing countries.