Georgia Wood Hodges

Georgia Hodges’ research explores the intersection of teachers, students, and gameplay in the classroom. Her team recently created the Virtual Vet serious educational game that they designed for elementary learners to engage in science practice in a virtual world by playing the role of a veterinarian. Currently, the team is examining how this game actually works by testing it with students and teachers across the United States. The team has found significant conceptual learning gains associated with the gameplay as well as mindset shifts by early learners. The team continues to study teacher implementation of this learning environment as well as earlier immersive environments created by collaboration with Cogent Education, a small business created from UGA. Collectively, their research points toward the use of gameplay in K-12 classrooms as novel forms of assessment that more accurately illuminate student knowledge than traditional assessments such as pre- and posttests