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NORMALIZATION SHOOTOUT: A COMPETITIVE GAME THAT IMPACTS STUDENT LEARNING

The normalization shootout described in this paper is an effective way to challenge students to learn normalization concepts. Students compete two at a time in a tournament-style series of matches. Tournament questions require students to identify closures, the key, and highest normal form for relations and their corresponding functional dependencies. Since introducing a shootout game in the fall of 2004, initial test scores have improved over previous semesters, retesting indicates those who advance in the tournament retain more at the end of the semester, and written feedback indicates students perceive the game is an effective teaching tool.