“With over 90 percent of all school-age children now playing digital games on a regular basis, and many underserved students struggling to benefit from traditional approaches, it is common sense to deploy interactive technologies to engage students in more personalized and joyful learning,” said Michael Levine, executive director of the Cooney Center. “The survey confirms that in many classrooms, teachers are asking students to put down their pencils and play.”
When it comes to the types of digital games used, 95 percent of teachers use digital games that were created specifically for educational use. These games are most often used with literacy or reading content (50 percent) and math (35 percent). Fewer than one-fifth (18 percent) said they adapted commercial games for their classroom environments.
Teachers said digital games also were valuable if they align with the Common Core State Standards. Most teachers use Macs or PCs with classroom games, 25 percent said that students use iPads or tablet computers, and fewer than 10 percent use other portable devices, mobile phones, or video game consoles.
For more news about educational gaming, see:
Nearly half of teachers (46 percent) first learned about digital gaming during in-service professional development, and 35 percent said they discovered digital games by self-directed study.
Thirty percent learned about gaming from online discussion forums for educators, and 21 percent used video tutorial sharing sites. Only 12 percent of teachers said they learned about digital games during preservice training.
Barriers to digital gaming
Half of educators said that cost is the top barrier to using digital games in the classroom, and a close 46 percent said access to technology resources also limits classroom gaming.
Thirty-eight percent said that an emphasis on standardized tests is a “substantial barrier.”
Fewer than 5 percent of teachers said that parents or administrators are “not at all supportive” of digital gaming at school.
- Children learn best on paper: We need better technology, not less of it - July 13, 2026
- In districts, reaching readiness, retention, and success - March 5, 2026
- AI use is on the rise, but is guidance keeping pace? - January 2, 2026