GRAY -- Peek into Marty Harrington’s Gray Elementary School classroom and you’ll see some kids playing video games on their computers while others are busy figuring out math problems on their screens.

Those gamers aren’t troublemakers goofing off in class. Quite the contrary. They are the students who have completed the math problem and answered the question correctly using a new free online learning system called Qtopia.

Their reward -- a short, fun video game.

If a student answers a question incorrectly, the program will show them the answer and how to get it right next time before moving on to the next question.

Gray Elementary is a pilot school for the Qtopia program, started by Qwizdom, which allows students to use remote control devices as they race to punch in answers to multiple-choice questions displayed on a projection screen.

The school has used Qwizdom for years, and Principal Cecil Patterson said the system has “made a huge improvement in student achievement.”

A student favorite is the Qwizdom “Fast Track” game, Harrington said.

Looking around the room, there are wide eyes and even wider smiles as students wait to see how they fared against their classmates, followed by fist pumps from those whose “Fast Track” race cars appear among the top five on the screen.

“There’s no discipline problems. There’s no daydreaming,” Harrington said. “They are into this.”

Fifty teachers in Jones County currently use the program for classes of all subjects and all grade levels in K-12, she said.

The Qtopia system is a newer addition, implemented at Gray Elementary in January, but it’s already a hit with students.

“I like playing with the games and getting stuff on my character,” said fourth-grader Cameron Rockmore, speaking of his avatar.

Along with games, students are also rewarded with credits, which they can use at an online store to create and re-create their personal avatar, which is a graphical representation of each user on the Qtopia system.

Some of the avatars look like animated versions of the students, while others look more like aliens. Rockmore’s has wings, an eye patch and is surrounded by lions.

The lions, Harrington said, are “expensive,” meaning students with lions surrounding their avatars have gained a substantial amount of points through successfully answering questions.

“My philosophy is, if you have to do it anyway, why not have fun doing it?” Harrington said.

Education traditionalists need not worry. Students still used paper and their trusty pencils to “carry the one” while solving math problems.

School administrators said this technology allows even those students who generally aren’t as excited about learning to get in on the fun. The program also is available for students to use at home.

“I’ve seen students who dislike school or dislike certain subjects, and you see a boost in self-esteem and they find a way to learn,” she said. “They are motivated to do well and keep doing well.”

The program also allows teachers to monitor individual student success and pinpoint problem areas for different students.

Gray Elementary students will begin taking the Criterion-Referenced Competency Tests on Thursday, and Harrington said she is anxious to see how the system has helped student learning.

“I don’t think you’ll find a student in this school who will say Qtopia hasn’t helped them in some way,” she said.

To contact writer Caryn Grant, call 744-4347.