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Over the last two decades, the educational use of digital devices, including digital assessments, has become a regular feature of teaching in primary education in the Netherlands. However, researchers have not reached a consensus about the so-called "mode effect," which refers to the possible impact of using computer-based tests (CBT) instead of paper-and-pencil-based tests (PBT) to assess student performance. Some researchers suggest that the occurrence of a mode effect might be related to the type of device used, the subject being assessed and the characteristics of both the test and the students taking the test. The international TIMSS 2019 Equivalence Study offered the opportunity to explore possible performance differences between a PBT and a tablet assessment in mathematics and science among Dutch primary school students. In the spring of 2017, the TIMSS PBT and tablet test were administered to 532 grade-four Dutch students. Item response theory was used to explore potential mode effects. This exploration revealed no significant differences in the student ability scales between the paper and the tablet tests for mathematics and science. Also, no systematic mode effects were found for the items with high reading demand. A marginal difference was found for girls outperforming boys on the TIMSS tablet test, although no gender differences in achievement were found for the PBT.

Over the last two decades, the educational use of digital devices, including digital assessments, has become a regular feature of teaching in primary education in the Netherlands. However, researchers have not reached a consensus about the so‐called "mode effect," which refers to the possible impact of using computer‐based tests (CBT) instead of paper‐and‐pencil‐based tests (PBT) to assess student performance. Some researchers suggest that the occurrence of a mode effect might be related to the type of device used, the subject being assessed and the characteristics of both the test and the students taking the test. The international TIMSS 2019 Equivalence Study offered the opportunity to explore possible performance differences between a PBT and a tablet assessment in mathematics and science among Dutch primary school students. In the spring of 2017, the TIMSS PBT and tablet test were administered to 532 grade‐four Dutch students. Item response theory was used to explore potential mode effects. This exploration revealed no significant differences in the student ability scales between the paper and the tablet tests for mathematics and science. Also, no systematic mode effects were found for the items with high reading demand. A marginal difference was found for girls outperforming boys on the TIMSS tablet test, although no gender differences in achievement were found for the PBT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we present an escape box as a means to introduce the escape room concept into classrooms. Recreational escape rooms have inspired teachers all over the world to adapt the popular entertainment activity for education. Escape rooms are problem‐based and time‐constrained, requiring active and collaborative participants, a setting that teachers want to achieve in their classroom to promote learning. This paper explores the adaptation of the escape room concept into educational escape game boxes. These technology‐enhanced escape boxes have become hybrid learning spaces, merging individual and collaborative learning, as well as physical and digital spaces. The design of the box with assignments on each side puts users face to face with each other and requires them to collaborate in the physical world, instead of being individually absorbed in a digital world. The developed box is a unique concept in the field of escape rooms; the content is adaptable. This paper describes the process leading to the design criteria, the design process, test results and evaluation, and provides recommendations for designing educational escape rooms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes a dataset consisting of longitudinal data gathered in the BRXXX project. The aim of the project was to investigate the effectiveness of online mathematics mini-games in enhancing primary school students' multiplicative reasoning ability (multiplication and division). The dataset includes data of 719 students from 35 primary schools in the Netherlands, who were followed from end Grade 1 to end Grade 3. Participating schools were randomly divided over three experimental conditions (playing at school, at home or at home with debriefing at school) and a control group. Tests of multiplicative reasoning ability were administered at the end of Grade 1 (pretest) and the end of Grade 2 and Grade 3 (posttests). In addition to the scores on these tests, the dataset includes measures of gameplay behavior, ie, the time and effort students put in the games, and some student background variables. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes a dataset with data from three individually randomized educational technology experiments on differentiation, formative testing and feedback during one school year for a group of 8th grade students in the Netherlands, using administrative data and the online motivation questionnaire of Boekaerts. The dataset consists of pre- and posttest scores for each experiment, as well as background information on the students, such as gender, age, ability, grade repetition and neighborhood characteristics. It also includes motivation of students. The dataset, or parts of it, could be interesting to use in future studies, focusing on effects of the use of educational technology, for comparison with similar and/or slightly different experiments, and for studies such as meta-analyses or replication studies, especially given the individual experimental setup. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explored the effects of in-class-level differentiation by making innovative use of an interactive whiteboard (SMARTboard) on math proficiency. Therefore, this paper evaluates the use of SMARTboard in class, in combination with teacher training, using a randomized field experiment among 199 pre-vocational students in seventh grade in the Netherlands. During 6 weeks, students in the intervention group participated in math classes in which the SMARTboard was used to apply level differentiation. The teachers of these classes received a specific training (Technological Pedagogical and Content Knowledge [TPACK]) in using the SMARTboard in class. Control classes were taught by teachers without the training, who did not use the SMARTboard in class. The results showed that level differentiation in class, which was possible because of the efficient use of the SMARTboard, significantly increased math proficiency with 0.25 points.

The GOALS study ( Grootschalig Onderzoek naar Activiteiten van Limburgse Scholieren [ Large-scale Research of Activities in Dutch Students]) was set up to investigate possible associations between different forms of physical activity and inactivity with cognitive performance, academic achievement and mental well-being. It was conducted at a secondary school in the south of the Netherlands. Data collection took place during normal school weeks from October 2011 to March 2012, and 1 year later from October 2012 to May 2013. The study was approved by the local Ethical Committee of the Open University of the Netherlands. All students in grades 7 and 9 of senior general secondary education and university preparatory education were invited to participate ( n = 526). At baseline, a sample of 440 Dutch-speaking adolescents was willing to participate (83.7%). Of these, 344 participated in the follow-up. Physical activity was measured objectively by an Activ Pal3TM accelerometer (Paltechnologies, Glasgow, UK). Cognitive performance was measured by the d2 Test of Attention and the Symbol Digit Modalities Test. Academic achievement was determined using the mean of school grades in Dutch, English and Mathematics. Several well-validated instruments were used to determine mood/depressive symptoms, self-esteem and goal orientation. Information on several covariates such as sex, academic year, school level, ethnicity, socio-economic status, body mass index, pubertal status, smoking, drinking, viewing television, computer use, etc., are available. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the effect of digital differentiation on student performance using a randomized experiment. The experiment is conducted in a second year biology class among 115 prevocational students in the Netherlands. Differentiation allowed students in the treatment group to work at three different levels. The results show that there is a significant effect of digital differentiation on the posttest score. This effect is robust to adding covariates such as students' ability, grade repetition, age, gender, class and average neighborhood income. There are no differential effects when dividing students in three groups, by ability. The results imply that differentiation in large classrooms is possible and beneficial for all students, once done digitally.

This paper describes a dataset with data from three individually randomized educational technology experiments on differentiation, formative testing and feedback during one school year for a group of 8th grade students in the Netherlands, using administrative data and the online motivation questionnaire of Boekaerts. The dataset consists of pre- and posttest scores for each experiment, as well as background information on the students, such as gender, age, ability, grade repetition and neighborhood characteristics. It also includes motivation of students. The dataset, or parts of it, could be interesting to use in future studies, focusing on effects of the use of educational technology, for comparison with similar and/or slightly different experiments, and for studies such as meta-analyses or replication studies, especially given the individual experimental setup.

This paper describes a dataset consisting of longitudinal data gathered in the BRXXX project. The aim of the project was to investigate the effectiveness of online mathematics mini-games in enhancing primary school students' multiplicative reasoning ability (multiplication and division). The dataset includes data of 719 students from 35 primary schools in the Netherlands, who were followed from end Grade 1 to end Grade 3. Participating schools were randomly divided over three experimental conditions (playing at school, at home or at home with debriefing at school) and a control group. Tests of multiplicative reasoning ability were administered at the end of Grade 1 (pretest) and the end of Grade 2 and Grade 3 (posttests). In addition to the scores on these tests, the dataset includes measures of gameplay behavior, i.e., the time and effort students put in the games, and some student background variables.