Kids with Premium memberships are also allowed to advance through the game faster, which makes it appear that they are progressing faster in math. That creates “two classes of students, those whose families can afford a premium membership, and those that cannot.”

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“Children can see who has the cool stuff and who doesn’t,” the groups write. That’s, in part, because kids who are members are given access to “coveted virtual items,” including costumes and wizard spells, even when they play the game at school. “Prodigy unfairly manipulates children into asking their parents for a Premium membership,” argued the groups, which also include the Badass Teachers Association and the Network for Public Education. These ads promote the “Premium annual membership” version of the game, which can cost a little over $100 annually, if parents elect to pay month-to-month rather than buying a six-month or annual subscription. But in the home-based version, students see up to four times as many advertisements than math questions, according to the Campaign for a Commercial Free Childhood. The school-based version doesn’t include advertisements, although it encourages kids to continue playing at home.

Many schools integrate Prodigy into instruction. It is designed for use by students in grades 1-8, and anyone with an internet connection can sign up to receive free access to the game, according to Prodigy’s website. Prodigy has more than 100 million registered users around the world, according to a recent press release.

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