The effect of game-based teaching method on student success in mathematics course of secondary school 6th grade students

In this research, the effect of teaching mathematics subjects to 6th grade middle school students using a game-based teaching model on students' mathematics achievement was examined. In this direction, mixed research method was used. During the game-based teaching, students' attitudes and attitudes towards the mathematics course were examined and at the end of the study, three random students with low, medium and high achievement levels were asked their opinions about the game-based teaching method. The study group consisted of 6th grade students of a middle school in Southeastern Anatolia in the 2022-2023 academic year. Forty-seven students from two different classes participated in this research. Although the number of students varied, 23 of them constituted the experimental group and 24 of them constituted the control group. Experimental and control group classes were randomly selected. The outcome assessment results of the students who did not attend regularly in the experimental and control groups were not included in the analysis for the weeks they did not attend. The experimental group was taught exponential expressions, operation priority, common factor bracketing and distributive property, divisibility rules, prime numbers, prime factors, sets, whole numbers, absolute value, operations with fractions and algebraic expressions with games, although not as much as the problems solved in the control group after the lecture method. In the control group, after the lecture method, the subjects were continued to be taught by solving problems on the board. After each topic, the achievement assessment test compiled specifically for the topic was applied to both classes and the scores obtained according to the answers given were interpreted according to the independent sample t-test or mann whitney u test. According to the findings obtained in the research, it was seen that the use of game-based teaching method made a significant difference in the topics of exponents, operation priority, common factor bracketing, dispersion property, prime numbers, prime factors, sets, integers, absolute value and algebraic expressions, while it did not make a significant difference in the topics of divisibility rules and operations with fractions. In addition, it was seen that the use of the teaching method with games provided participation in the lesson for students who did not actively participate in the lecture method and whose mathematics achievement was low. According to the student opinions obtained at the end of the research, the teaching method with games enables students to learn and reinforce by having fun and to move away from the boredom of the lesson. According to these results, it can be said that the use of game-based teaching method in the lesson will positively affect the mathematics achievement of the students, the subjects will provide retention in the students and the students will be motivated towards the lesson and their interest will be positively affected.