The Case for Tech and Gaming: Driving the Future of Student Engagement 

The debate is everywhere: Are screens, video games, and AI destroying our kids’ ability to focus? Many educators and parents see these technologies as the enemy of academic success. But Stacy Barrows, a passionate teacher at Volunteer State Virtual Academy (VSVA), sees things very differently. For Barrows, the solution isn’t fighting the digital world—it’s leaning into it. 

Barrows’ philosophy is simple yet powerful: technology and AI aren’t going anywhere, so the smart approach is to teach students how to use these tools to their academic advantage. Her virtual classroom is a vibrant testament to this idea, proving that when executed correctly, gamification is the key to unlocking student engagement and superior performance. 

The Psychology of Play and Reward 

Barrows’ approach is rooted in solid psychological principles. “Children learn best through play,” she explains, noting that our earliest and most effective learning experiences happen when we don’t even realize we’re being taught. 

She merges this foundational concept with the psychology of gameplay, which is built on the need for mini-rewards and the drive to “keep trying, keep trying” despite failure. Just like a video game: 

• You have multiple opportunities to fail. 

• You receive small rewards (like coins in Mario Brothers). 

• These rewards trigger dopamine in the brain, pushing you to continue engaging. 

Barrows translates this directly into her classroom, ensuring students are asked to respond every three to five minutes, mirroring the rapid-fire engagement of video games. This strategy has resulted in stellar outcomes, including a 92% attendance rate and classes that consistently outperform other grade-band classes. 

Making Learning Inclusive: Accessibility Through Gamification 

The traditional “sit, listen, and hopefully learn” model of education can be a significant hurdle for students with learning differences like dyslexia or autism. Pen and paper can be a source of overwhelming frustration, but an engaging, creative game offers a path to success. 

Gamification allows Barrows to utilize powerful digital tools, including speech-to-text and AI support, to take the cognitive load off struggling students. As Barrows puts it, “AI does that for us… giving children who have felt like failures to feel like successes because they are capable as long as we’re willing to support them.” 

She is teaching students to view technology as a tool, not a crutch, and to use it for support, whether that’s asking for help from a robot tutor or using generative AI to help with visualization tasks. 

From Quizzes to Quests: The Gamified Classroom 

In Barrows’ classroom, a lesson is an adventure. She transforms curriculum into interactive experiences: 

• The Learning Target is the Flag: Just like Mario trying to reach the flag at the end of a board, students work toward a Learning Target for the day. 

• “I’m Still Standing”: A question-and-answer game where correct answers are rewarded with “clothing” to add to a virtual avatar. The motivation lies in the desire to see the final product and the celebratory song at the end. 

• Directed Drawing: Students learn content (like the meaning behind a Pharaoh’s hat) by adding details to a drawing as they answer questions—they’re taking notes but don’t realize it, just like they don’t realize they are building skills while playing a video game. 

• Performance Assessments as Boss Battles: Projects like creating a pirate map to demonstrate map-reading skills become fun, collaborative “smaller bosses” leading up to the final learning objective. 

• Role-Playing and Real-Life Skills: Playing mock court on topics like Ancient Civilizations deepens content knowledge while also building real-life skills like respectful debate and court procedure (“I concur,” “I dissent”). 

The Real Reward: Intrinsic Motivation 

The ultimate goal of Barrows’ methodology is to cultivate intrinsic motivation. While token economies (stickers, small prizes) often fail to build lasting self-determination, Barrows finds that gamification works differently. 

By pushing students through “productive struggle” with an immediate, engaging reward system, she teaches an important life lesson: it’s okay to fail, just go back and try again. 

“Gamification teaches you that it’s okay to miss an answer,” Barrows concludes. “That internal driver – that success breeds success – is what it cultivates.” 

In a world saturated with digital stimulation, Stacy Barrows has found the antidote to distraction. Instead of seeing a threat, she sees an opportunity to meet students where they are, transforming technology into the most powerful teaching tool we have.  

Ready to see what VSVA and teachers like Stacy Barrows can do for your student? Learn more about our school today!

Back to Blog