Research

As part of our mission to positively impact student’s academic, social, and emotional wellness, NASEF has partnered with leading researchers from the Connected Learning Lab at the University of California, Irvine to document, assess, and continually improve our programs. 

Principal Investigator Dr. Constance Steinkuehler, expert in games and learning and former senior policy analyst in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy under President Barack Obama, in collaboration with her team of doctoral students and post-doctoral fellows at UCI, empirically examine the impacts of our enriched esports model on students who participate.

Using mixed methods that range from qualitative field observations and interviews to quantitative surveys and experimental design, Steinkuehler and her lab help NASEF understand how students’ interest in esports can be a gateway to interest and affiliation with school, improved STEM learning and interest, positive relationships with peers and adults, and strengthened self-regulation.

Here, we share some of our findings.