Impact & Voices

How We Think About Impact

At Games For Ed, we’re cautious about how we talk about impact.

We don’t look for loud transformations or instant results. We pay attention to smaller signals that tell us whether learning is landing.

Sometimes those signals show up in the classroom. Sometimes they show up later, at home, during dinner table conversations. Both matter.

What We’re Seeing So Far

Across our sessions and early pilots, a few patterns keep repeating.

Students Tend To:

  • Stay engaged for longer than expected
  • Explain their thinking more clearly during play
  • Reference earlier choices during reflection
  • Remember details days after the session

Teachers Often Notice:

  • Quieter students participate more actively
  • Collaboration feels more balanced
  • Assessment becomes more visible through discussion
  • Conversations continue beyond the session

Why These Signals Matter to Us

Learning doesn’t always announce itself. It shows up when students:

  • • Can retell an experience in their own words
  • • Connect ideas across contexts
  • • Revisit decisions after time has passed
  • • Feel confident enough to explain, not just answer
Dinner Table Conversations

Dinner table conversations are one of many places where this becomes visible. Not because they are planned, but because they are unprompted. For us, that matters.

Voices from the Classroom

I liked that we had to decide together. I told my parents what our group argued about.

- Student

At first it was confusing, but later it made sense when I explained it at home.

- Student

I remembered the rules even after a few days.

- Student

I don’t usually talk in class, but in the game I had to.

- Student

Students who don’t usually speak were much more involved.

- Teacher

I could see their thinking clearly while they were playing.

- Teacher

Some parents mentioned their children talking about the activity at home.

- Teacher

What This Means for Schools

We’re still building and learning, and we’re transparent about that.
But these patterns give us confidence that our approach supports:

Deeper engagement
Clearer thinking
Stronger student voice
Learning that doesn’t end when the class does
See It In Action