Using Gamification Technique in the Assessment of Executive Function of Kindergarten Pupils

Early assessment of Executive Function (EF) can have great implications to children’s academic success. However, there is a need for assessment tools that are adapted to the skills of today’s preschool children other than paper pencil tests. This paper looked at the possibility of using gamification by using the mobile phone app Digital Trail Making Test by Simone Sacchi (dTMT-SS) in the assessment of the Executive functioning of kindergarten pupils at the height of the pandemic. This quasi experimental research utilized the pre-test and post test on ten (N=10) kindergarteners, with a mean age of 6.28 who remotely performed the dTMT at their homes with their parents who were instructed on how to administer or play this app. The time stamped results indicated an average level for both Part A (Numbers only) and Part B (Numbers and letters) in the pretest shows a mean of 1 minute and 10 seconds and 2 minutes and 37 seconds, respectively. The post test mean for Part A mean was 1 minute and Part B mean was 2 minutes and 16 seconds which both indicate average level. When comparing the results there is significant difference in the level of EF for both Part A (Numbers only) and Part B (Numbers and Letters). It can be inferred that the use of gamification technique is an effective tool in the assessment of EF in kindergarten pupils of today’s generation. The use of gamification in assessment is a faster, easier tool especially during health scares such as the Covid19 pandemic. It is recommended that more testing should be done before classes begin as part of the assessment for admission to kindergarten on a larger population and in both public and private schools.