CUIN 6320 Individual Final Project: Technology: Kahoot 1

Individual Final Project: Kahoot as an Educational Tool

Omar Elizondo

University of Houston

CUIN 6320: Technology in Learning Environments

December 3, 2018

Author Note

Omar E. Elizondo, Department of History/Political Science, Mount Saint Mary College

Omar Elizondo is now at the College of Education, University of Houston

Correspondence pertaining to this paper should be addressed to Omar Elizondo, College

of Education, University of Houston, Texas 77004.

Contact: osivori76@yahoo.com
CUIN 6320 Individual Final Project: Technology: Kahoot 2

Individual Final Project for Kahoot as an Educational Tool

For the Individual Final Project for CUIN 6320, the technology I selected is an online

gaming tool that has become very popular at all levels of education. Kahoot, an online quiz

system from Norway, is a game-based learning platform for teachers and students. According to

Van Den Burg (2015) “With an intentional pedagogical design and a wealth of resources, Kahoot

is a robust space for real, fun learning.” (p.1) While lectures and lessons can be informative

when delivered with passion and good materials, many traditional instructional practices are

methodical and ineffective. The key to any engaging lesson is to connect course objectives to

interactive and meaningful real-world experiences. Students today learn through the process of

playing games and by doing so, pupils can understand a new concept or idea, take on multiple

perspectives, or experiment with different options or variables. There are countless proficiencies

students can acquire via game playing, such as critical thinking skills, creativity, collaboration,

and good sportsmanship. Kahoot provides an excellent opportunity for educators to teach a

variety of social and academic abilities which do not traditionally show up in a curriculum’s

scope and sequence.

21st century education is at a stage where games and learning landscapes are changing

rapidly. What’s happening in academic institutions now will look different in a decade and more.

Gaming is being incorporated into daily instruction in response to the climate of student

disengagement that currently exists in classrooms. Students use technology in every aspect of

their lives. Connecting it with academic activities can raise student interest and participation. The

attention to pedagogy is a strength of Kahoot. The learner-leader cycle, in which teachers create

quizzes for students, students research materials to create quizzes for peers, and teachers assess

student-created quizzes, supports students to become the leaders of knowledge in the classroom.
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Digital tools are resources teachers can use to make their classroom more engaging,

relevant and culturally diverse. Understanding students and their skill sets before implementation

can help increase effectiveness of subject comprehension and retention. Technology is in our

daily life; each tool has its own features and only good for its purpose as it was designed for. If

used improperly, the instrument can cause more nuisance than providing help. So, the advice

here is to use the device when appropriate for the content, subject area, and learning activities.

There are mainly two ways to use digital tools for educational purpose. Liu argues, (2010) “One

way is to integrate digital tools into the current educational system as a teaching and learning

resource to assist the process of curriculum delivery. This is a wise move with the least

interruption of exiting curriculum delivery system. Another way is to use digital resources as a

parallel learning channel to compliment current curriculum delivery, and to extend the learning

environment to the real world and to enrich students learning experiences with real life practice.

The second way will be more challenging and difficult to implement and manage for current

education status quo.” (p.10)

Many educators use Kahoot to get a quick snapshot of how their class is doing with

course content. According to Singer (2016) “Teachers can get immediate feedback on how many

students answered correctly and which questions students are still struggling with. Then they

adjust the lesson plans for the next day based on that data. Some teachers use Kahoot to

introduce a lesson, as a way of piquing students’ interest in absorbing unfamiliar material.” (p.5)

As adolescents become more influenced by the gaming culture, educators can use these online

assessment resources as an effective instructional strategy to teach content, to facilitate subject

comprehension, and to formally assess students in a fun and engaging manner.

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According to Shapiro, (2014) “Gaming inherently involves systems-thinking which is

best taught through collaborative learning. Anyone who has watched kids play games together

has seen this trend: They give each other tips and advice, they share tricks, and they teach each

other to understand the game’s systems.” (p.3) As I explained previously, Kahoot is an online

gaming tool which allows teachers to formally assess students in their progress of mastering

content. When students play, either in groups or individually, this gaming environment fosters

collaborative learning, opens a learner’s eyes to new academic possibilities, and heightens

pedagogical impact. Players earn more points for quick answers, and they see how they rank

between each question. Since they choose “nicknames,” this is an opportunity for them to test

their learning with low stakes, but intrinsically rewarding. Teachers can access different modes

of assessments; such as discussion, survey, and quizzes present different pedagogical

possibilities and uses. Van Den Berg states, “Kahoot provides example rubrics from educators in

the field for assessing student-created quizzes, and reminds teachers that evaluating the incorrect

answers that students generate can be as informative as the correct answer.” (p.1) Students and

their instructor see immediate feedback between questions. This is a powerful tool for formative

assessment; students hardly notice they are evaluating their own knowledge and being assessed.

It’s becoming more apparent that teachers will need to do more than just embrace new

technologies. They will need to embrace the epistemological foundations of gaming

technologies. There are connected, networked ways of knowing that will dominate the digital

future. Sharing and collaboration go together with integrating non-competitive and non-

commodified ways of playing. The way students play and learn today is the way they will

work tomorrow. The promise of game-based learning lies in the premise that the technology

provides an efficient and effective tool with which to replace a points-based extrinsic
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motivation system with a contextualized hands-on learning experience. According to Shapiro,

(2014) “For a student sitting in the median who doesn’t have a game, his or her learning

achievement would have increased by 12 percent if he or she had that game. In the world of

education achievement, 12 percent is significant.” (p.2) The key point here is that games

themselves are not necessarily competitive. Play is useful because it simulates real life

experience in a safe, iterative, and social environment. Games such as Kahoot provide a variety

of sensory experiences for students and allow them to create their own digital assessments.

Asking your pupils to create their own questions, gives them extra motivation to understand their

lessons. and has them coming back for more.

With the fast advancement of technology, there will be more cutting-edge technologies

appearing in all aspects of our lives. As educators, should we ignore them or chase after them? It

is always a huge challenge to keep up with new technology trend. It is much more important to

understand the nature of technology in the process of education than technology integration

itself. No matter how fascinating a new technology can become, it is still a tool. Technology

should not and will never replace education, but assist educational practice, improve teaching

efficiency, and enhance student learning experiences. As a social studies teacher specialist, I am

always searching for new digital resources that will increase student engagement. 21st Century

scholars no longer learn via traditional methods of lecturing and note taking. Technology and

experiential learning are the new tools teachers must adapt and encompass in daily lesson that

will make student learning lasting, memorable, and most importantly, relevant.
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References

Brooks, Sarah. (2014). How to Protect Students While Integrating Social Media in Classroom

Instruction and Assignments. Emerging EdTech. Retrieved from

http://www.emergingedtech.com/2014/02/how-to-protect-students-while-integrating-

social-media-in-classroom-instruction-and-assignments/

Hughes, Brian. (2016). How Social Media is Reshaping Today’s Education System.

Entrepreneur. Retrieved from https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/273044#

Liu, Youmei. (2010). Social Media Tools as a Learning Resource. Journal of Educational

Technology Development and Exchange. Volume 3/Issue 1/Article 8. Retrieved from

https://aquila.usm.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1012&context=jetde

Shapiro, Jordan. (2014). Games in the Classroom: What the Research Says: KOED

News. Part 9. Retrieved from https://ww2.kqed.org/mindshift/2014/06/27/games-in-the-

classroom-what-the-research-says/

Singer, Natasha. (2016). Kahoot APP Brings Urgency of a Quiz Show to the Classroom:

The New York Times. Retrieved from

https://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/17/technology/kahoot-app-brings-urgency-of-a-quiz-

show-to-the-classroom.html

Van Den Berg, Sarah. (2015). Kahoot: New Learning Times. Retrieved from:

https://newlearningtimes.com/cms/article/3214/kahoot
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