“Qui Sommes-Nous” Educational Game Development and Trials

Final Report

I. Summary

The loss of values and cultural knowledge among young people and the accompanied breakdown of intergenerational communication leads to the degeneration of familiarity with traditional forms of knowledge, such as tales, riddles, local remedies, among other examples. To respond to this problem, the Grandmother Project in collaboration with World Vision Senegal, identified a consultant, Karla Sarr, to develop the instructional game,“Qui Sommes-Nous?” (“Who are we?”), a learning activity designed to promote appreciation of Senegalese cultural identity and heritage. This activity is part of the Development holistique des filles (DHF) initiative, a three-year project to promote girls’ holistic development and to discourage FGM.

The tool, “Qui Sommes-Nous?” aligns with the Senegalese national education policy to reinforce relationships between schools and their milieu. While it is an amusing activity and has competitive elements, the main objective of “Qui Sommes-Nous?” is not to win, but rather, to encourage dialogue and reflection on pertinent issues concerning traditional culture and current influences. “Qui Sommes-Nous?” was developed for primary school students in the 5th and 6th grades (CM1 and CM2), but is also appropriate for upper level classes, as well with community members. Its learning objectives are as follows:

1.  Discuss proverbs and cultural values in groups;

2.  Encourage reflection on cultural knowledge and the role of culture within the daily lives of students and their families;

3.  Promote discussion about intergenerational relations, such as those between students, their parents, and elders within the community and in the family; and

4.  Reinforce teamwork, collaboration and solidarity between students.

This report provides a detailed description of the game, its development, and the series of trials conducted during the month of January 2010 in Velingara, Senegal. These trials took place in two primary schools, one of the main spheres of intervention of the DHF project, as well as at a middle school, with community members, and development workers. In total, the game was tested with 209 students and 36 adults who participated in the trials. This report also identifies lessons learned from the trials and recommendations for future use of “Qui Sommes-Nous?”

In brief, the trials demonstrated the great capacity of “Qui Sommes-Nous” to encourage reflection and discussion on cultural issues within the school and community environment. Moreover, the game was identified as a model that could by adapted by educators to create similar learner-centered classroom exercises. “Qui Sommes-Nous?” elicited a number of highly engaged reactions from students. These were demonstrated by laughter, strong participation, and conversations between teammates. The game requires that participants consult with one another in order to respond to questions related to their everyday lives and experiences. In addition to oral questions, the game also invites players to shake hands, demonstrate traditional dances and songs. These activities were particularly well-received and contributed greatly to an enriching learning experience. One of the strongest expressions of student, teacher, and community member appreciation of the game was their request to maintain copies of the game for their future use.

II. Activities

Game development and description

The development of “Qui Sommes-Nous?” took place during the period of June 2009 through January 2010. During this time, the consultant worked closely with the Grandmother Project Director, as well as DHF collaborators, namely Malang Sagna, Mamadou Coulibaly. and Peace Corps Volunteer, Michael Hebert. Following an initial site visit to Velingara in June 2009, Karla Sarr worked closely with faculty member, Ash Hartwell, at the University of Massachusetts Center for International Education to develop a game design that would best meet the tool’s learning objectives. Simplicity was a key factor to the game’s design as the wording needed to be simple enough for primary school students to grasp in French, the instructional language at school but almost never spoken by students at home. We also were mindful of the need for simple rules of play that would encourage students while not encumbering teachers.

The game is played by a group of students. The ideal number of students is three groups of three, however, during the trials, teachers suggested five groups of three as well as groups of four students. The original game design called for a groupwork approach which would organize the students into groups of twelve with team leaders who would facilitate game play among themselves. In this model, the teacher would function as a supervisor to be certain that the game moves along and to step in should there be need for intervention. However, the game trials revealed that even in a multigrade classroom, where groupwork would normally be commonplace, that this model was in need of adjustment. Educators made it clear that students’ level of French necessitated strong facilitation and continuous clarification on the part of the teacher, even at the CM2 level. It also was clear that students were not comfortable working in groups, or at least, that teachers preferred a teacher-centered method. Thus, the game was played with one group of 12-15 students in front of the rest of the class with the teacher facilitating sothat the rest of the class could follow. In some cases, students rotated into play throughout the game session in order to involve more youngsters in game play. Similarly, when working with the community, a facilitator also served as translator from French into Pulaar as needed.

The content of the game derives from Grandmother Project documentation of intergenerational forums as well as interviews conducted within communities in the Commune of Velingara. These documents provided great insight into the concerns of many community members for the propagation of their culture. Many of the game card prompts originated in these reports.

Bearing in mind the need for portability and ease of reproduction in a low-resource environment, the game consists solely of a deck of cards that can be hand-produced. Additional materials that consist of a bowl and 50 items that function as “points” can be identified locally. In the case of the trials we used a calabash traditionally decorated in a “thiossane” manner for dances at ceremonies. We used local peanuts to represent the points.

The complete deck of cards includes 65 cards. There are two types of cards: Discussion Cards (39 cards) and Chance Cards (26 cards). The two are differentiated by color as well as the image on each card. Discussion cards are green and marked by a cartoon hut, while the Chance Cards are blue and are marked by a question mark and exclamation point. The cards are made from white 3” X 5” index cards glued to a backing made from colored construction paper. The card artwork and text were made using a combination of markers and gel pens.

Not only are the Discussion and Chance Cards different in physical design, but they serve different purposes. The Discussion Cards prompt students with multiple choice, open-ended, and fill-in-the-blank questions concerning their culture and relationships with people of other generations, grandparents in particular. There are also a series of proverb cards and cultural values cards within the larger Discussion Card cluster. The total possible number of points and instructions for scoring are listed at the bottom of each card.

Chance Cards are fewer in number than the Discussion Cards but are nonetheless essential as they provide the competitive element that makes the game amusing to participants. The Chance Cards prompt players to stand up and do active demonstrations of shaking one anothers’ hands, performing traditional dances, and singing traditional songs. They also provide opportunities to earn and lose points simply by the luck of the draw. For example, they announce Senegalese holidays and allow the team at play to earn points as a result. They also include cards that make the team lose their turn or alter the game’s direction of play. Perhaps most importantly, the Chance Cards provide lessons to participants about intergenerational relationships by providing scenarios and then attributing either a gain or loss of points. For instance, a group earns points for remaining at home to spend time with a grandparent while they lose points for choosing to leave grandparents at home and hang out with friends instead. (For a complete listing of all the Discussion Card and Chance Card prompts for “Qui Sommes-Nous?” see the Appendix.)

A follow-up discussion is imperative to the learning objectives of the game and assuring a more comprehensive understanding of traditional and modern concepts as well as the importance of intergenerational communication. We developed a list of five key questions during the trials (see Detailed Game Instructions in the Appendix for more information). While we explored these questions with participants, one of the key recommendations in the section under the same name below is to allow even more time for discussion and to equally privilege this part of the activity with game play.

Game Trials

The period of game trials occurred between January 7th and January 17th 2010. The GMP consultant for the game project was in Velingara from January 6th thru January 19th in order to organize and conduct the sessions. The trials took place in three primary schools (Kael Bassel, Saré Faramba, and Ecole 1 in Velingara), as well as at a middle school in Kandia, with community members, and with the DHF team. In total, the game was tested with 209 students and 36 adults who participated in the trials.

In preparation for the sessions, I met with the Inspector from the IDEN as well as the directors at the four schools in which we held the trials. During this time, I also identified a research assistant, Fodé Baldé, under the recommendation of the GMP Director. Fodé was of great assistance throughout the project, helping to arrange meetings, provide transportation, and perhaps most importantly, act as translator as while I spoke French and Wolof, I did not speak Pulaar.

Prior to beginning the trials with school and community member participants, we held a test trial at the World Vision office with members of the DHF team and others from the office. This session helped to better understand the mechanics of the game with a large group, as well as identify changes necessary to the cards prior to their implementation at the primary school level. We also conducted training sessions with teaching staff at two of the primary schools: Kael Bassel and Ecole 1. This entailed introducing and playing the game with teachers prior to its usage with a particular classroom. These trials were particularly useful as they introduced the entire teaching staff to such a unique pedagogical tool as well as allowed the implementing teacher to begin to identify ways to utilize the game in the classroom. In the case of the teachers from Saré Faramba, since there were only two teachers, we invited them to attend the trial at Kael Bassel for their training. Both participated actively and used some of the methods they saw at Kael Bassel in their classrooms.

In regards to game materials, we distributed a deck of cards to each implementing teacher a few days before the actual trial. In the case of Kael Bassel, the teachers performed a practice session with each of the CM1 and CM2 classes before they combined the classes for the formal test. We also identified a decorated calabash to function as the receptacle for points during game play. Upon the suggestion of colleagues, we used local peanuts for points. Prior to departure, the consultant left decks of the trial cards with World Vision, and the schools at Kael Bassel, Saré Faramba, and Kandia, a total of four decks.

The following table provides a detailed depiction of the game trials and participant profiles:

Meetings and Project Presentations / Children Trials / Adult trials
At IDEN in order to provide an introduction to the intervention and obtain the Inspector’s feedback and authorization for implementation (January 6) / Primary School Level: / DHF team and collaborators for GMP (8 adults) (January 7)
Kael Bassel:
1.  Observation of student preparation for CM1 and CM2 classes; (CM1: 37 students; CM2: 46 students) (January 12)
2.  Mixed trial with CM1 and CM2 during Enrichment hours (January 14)
Kael Bassel School Director / Saré Faramba: Multigrade CM1/CM2: 28 students (CM1: 18; CM2: 10) (January 15) / Kael Bassel: 8 teachers and PTA President (January 8)
Saré Faramba School Director / Ecole 1 (Velingara) (CM2: 80 students) (January 18) / Ecole 1 (Velingara): Estimated 10 teachers with School Director (January 12)
Ecole 1 (Velingara) School Director / Secondary Level: / 8 Saré Farmba Community Members (January 15)
Kandia Middle School: Selective participation: 18 students total from 6ième (6), 5ième (6), et 4ième (6) (January 16)
Kandia Middle School Principal / Presentation and abridged game trial, GMP teacher training, Saré Adia (January 17)

III. Lessons learned

The following illustrate the game’s strengths and weaknesses as well as adaptations made during game play. They arise both from observations made during play and conversations with students, educators and community members.

·  Teachers demonstrated a general appreciation for the game, including its approach that seeks to revalidate African culture as well as a model for didactic materials. Many of educators’ comments identified ways to adapt such an activity for use with other school subjects, such as math, science, grammar and vocabulary. It was also cited as a possible assessment tool for students. Educators asked to retain copies of the gain for future use, a clear indication that they appreciated the activity and the model it represents. They also demonstrated continued interest beyond the trial period. The Kandia Middle School implemented the game during a student council activity on February 6, 2010. GMP Director also implemented additional trials with two groups in Saré Faramba (a group of men and a group of young girls), in addition to supplemental tests in classrooms.

·  Students showed great enthusiasm and involvement in the game. After each trial, we asked students to speak freely about the game. When asked if there were those who did not enjoy the game, there were no negative opinions. Students fully interacted with the game. This was evident not only in the smiles on students’ facing and reoccurring laughter, but the instances of group deliberation among teammates, and movements other students made in order to follow along with the game (moving in order to see the card, comments that it was a team’s turn to go or that they should take points, etc.).