EA SPORTS, NFL Players Association and Discovery Education Team Up For EA SPORTS Madden NFL: Football By The Numbers – A New Educational Initiative Supporting Math and Science Instruction
- National Program Launching on December 1 Uses Famed Sports Video Game to Ignite Students’ Passion for Math and Science -
SILVER SPRING, Md. [November 4, 2015] – EA SPORTS™, the NFL Players Association (NFLPA), and Discovery Education, the leading provider of digital content and professional development for K-12 classrooms, have teamed up for a national educational program that taps into children’s excitement about football and video games to ignite a passion for math and science. EA SPORTS Madden NFL: Football by the Numbers, a comprehensive educational initiative, is a first-of-its-kind initiative to engage students in grades 5-9 with science and math content through an interactive digital learning game. The program also includes a virtual field trip to EA’s Tiburon development studio to meet the team behind the Madden NFL games and a local school community night featuring an NFL player, in addition to other learning tools.
A national survey from the Games and Learning Publishing Council about teaching with digital games found that 78 percent of teachers agreed digital games improved students’ mastery of curricular content and skills, and digital gaming helps to motivate students to attend class, pay attention and make stronger efforts to succeed. Madden NFL: Football by the Numbers will excite students about math and science by using a combination of famous Madden NFL highlights and plays by some of the League’s most recognizable players and additional compelling content from the series. The educational program takes students inside the science and math behind football fundamentals and teaches them how and why certain offensive and defensive plays work. The program will launch on December 1 and will be available at no cost to educators, parents and students worldwide at www.footballbythenumbers.discoveryeducation.com.
“This is an amazing new program to reach kids and engage them in math and science, and we’re excited to be a part of it,” said Anthony Stevenson, VP of Marketing for Electronic Arts. “We’ve always strived for Madden NFL to be a teaching tool for the sport of football, and now we’re marrying the art of the video game to the science behind our young fans’ favorite sport, teaching them both the fundamentals of the sport and the math that fuels it.”
The program consists of interactive scenarios that are broken down into three sections: Explore, Learn and Game Play. In “Explore,” students are introduced to football-related concepts, positions and strategies that relate to the game. Students then “Learn” about specific math and science concepts as they relate to various offensive and defensive strategies. Lastly, students will apply learnings during “Game Play.” For example, in the offensive scenario, after receiving a set of conditions of what is needed to execute a pass between NFL players Eli Manning and Odell Beckham, Jr., the student selects which type of pass is best for the play, and at what angle and velocity the ball should be thrown based on concepts explained in the earlier sections. The program keeps giving the student plays to run until he either scores a touchdown or uses three plays without gaining a first down. Conversely, in the defensive scenario, students assume the role of defensive coordinator and are encouraged to use probability to make game-time decisions about what type of defense to use based on the yardage and downs of their opponents.
“Learning to love math and science has always been important, and even more so now as our world becomes more dependent on technology. Many of our players are passionate about these subjects, and through the Madden NFL: Football by the Numbers platform, kids will see that math and science can be fun and relatable,” said Ahmad Nassar, President, NFL Players Inc. “We're proud to team up with innovators like Discovery Education and EA SPORTS to provide kids an extraordinary opportunity to learn and achieve results alongside their favorite players.”
“Discovery Education is thrilled to collaborate with Electronic Arts and the NFL Players Association to use game and play to reach students at a time when research shows their interest in math and science fades,” said Bill Goodwyn, President and CEO, Discovery Education. “Not only does Madden NFL: Football by the Numbers engage students in these critical subjects through interactive, dynamic content, but it shows them the real-world relevance of these classroom subjects.”
Discovery Education will also broadcast into thousands of schools a virtual field trip in the Spring of 2016 that will take students inside EA’s Tiburon development studio in Orlando, Fla., to meet the team behind the Madden NFL games that they love. The virtual event will showcase how engineers, animators, designers, analysts and producers work together on the Madden NFL series to bring the games to life and ignite emotion into sports. To learn more about the virtual field trip and the community night, please go to www.footballbythenumbers.discoveryeducation.com.
EA SPORTS™ is one of the leading sports entertainment brands in the world, with top-selling videogame franchises, award-winning interactive technology, fan programs and cross-platform digital experiences. EA SPORTS creates connected experiences that ignite the emotion of sports through videogames, including Madden NFL football, EA SPORTS™ FIFA, NHL® hockey, NBA LIVE basketball, Rory McIlroy PGA TOUR® golf, SSX™ and EA SPORTS UFC®.
For more information about EA SPORTS, including news, video, blogs, forums and game apps, please visit www.easports.com to connect, share and compete.
About Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts (NASDAQ: EA) is a global leader in digital interactive entertainment. The Company delivers games, content and online services for Internet-connected consoles, personal computers, mobile phones and tablets. EA has more than 300 million registered players around the world.
In fiscal year 2015, EA posted GAAP net revenue of $4.5 billion. Headquartered in Redwood City, California, EA is recognized for a portfolio of critically acclaimed, high-quality blockbuster brands such as The Sims™, Madden NFL, EA SPORTS™ FIFA, Battlefield™, Dragon Age™ and Plants vs. Zombies™. More information about EA is available at www.ea.com/news.
EA SPORTS, The Sims, Dragon Age, Plants vs. Zombies and Battlefield are trademarks of Electronic Arts Inc. and its subsidiaries. John Madden, NFL and FIFA are the property of their respective owners and used with permission.
Xbox and Xbox 360 are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies. "PlayStation" is a registered trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.
About the NFL Players Association
The National Football League Players Association is the union for professional football players in the National Football League. Established in 1956, the NFLPA has a long history of assuring proper recognition and representation of players’ interests. The NFLPA has shown that it will do whatever is necessary to assure that the rights of players are protected—including ceasing to be a union, if necessary, as it did in 1989. In 1993, the NFLPA again was officially recognized as the union representing the players, and negotiated a landmark Collective Bargaining Agreement with the NFL.
About Discovery Education
Discovery Education is the global leader in standards-based digital content for K-12, transforming teaching and learning with award-winning digital textbooks, multimedia content, professional development, and the largest professional learning community of its kind. Serving 3 million educators and over 30 million students, Discovery Education’s services are in half of U.S. classrooms, over 40 percent of all primary schools in the UK, and more than 50 countries. Discovery Education partners with districts, states and like-minded organizations to captivate students, empower teachers, and transform classrooms with customized solutions that increase academic achievement. Discovery Education is powered by Discovery Communications (NASDAQ: DISCA, DISCB, DISCK), the number one nonfiction media company in the world. Explore the future of education at www.discoveryeducation.com.
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Elizabeth Hillman, Discovery Education
240-662-2664, Elizabeth_Hillman@discovery.com
Brad Hilderbrand, Electronic Arts
407-386-4246, BHilderbrand@ea.com
Mike Donnelly, NFLPA
202-756-9160, Mike.Donnelly@nflpa.com