NBA Math Hoops math gains are larger for students entering with stronger incoming math scores, with no significant variation by gender, IEP status, or incoming SEL¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · causal r2 · q3 · i2 medium
Currency · newest study 2026 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q3 i2 A significant treatment-by-pre-math interaction (β = 0.26, p < 0.01) shows larger math gains for students with stronger incoming math; no significant interaction with gender, IEP, or incoming SEL. → McKinney 2026

Evidence¶

McKinney 2026¶

McKinney, D., Walters, K., Powell, K., Sabalburo, E., & Morton, C. (2026). The impact of NBA Math Hoops on students' math achievement: A randomized controlled trial. WestEd. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED681343

q3 · i2 · causal · r2

Exploratory moderation analyses in the RCT found a significant treatment × pre-math interaction (β = 0.26, p < 0.01). Students 1 SD above mean pre-math were predicted to outperform by ~0.5 SD; students 1 SD below showed similar predicted performance in both conditions.

"Results indicated that there was a significant interaction between pre-math composite score and treatment (𝛽 = 0.26, 𝑝 < 0.01) and that there was no significant interaction with the other covariates explored in this manner."

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• NBA Math Hoops significantly improves elementary and middle school students' math achievement compared to business-as-usual summer STEM programming (0.19 SD gain) — related
• NBA Math Hoops was implemented with high fidelity: teachers completed an average of 8.31 of 10 lessons and played 14.5 games per classroom over roughly 15 days — related
• NBA Math Hoops students scored significantly lower than controls on a composite SEL measure (−0.21 SD), though remaining at moderately high levels — related
• NBA Math Hoops can be implemented at low marginal cost: $17.85 per pupil (analytic sample) in materials and training beyond typical summer programming, yielding 0.19 SD math gain — related