Given the considerable heterogeneity in students skills within Physica Education (PE) classes, there is a constant need for differential instruction and modification of games. In this chapter we present the game-based approach and curriculum model Game Insight (GI) and propose the 'game slope' concept. By embedding this concept in the didactical components of the GI curriculum model the PE teacher can design and teach meaningful game activities, in wich players' differing abilities and needs are met.
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Sustainability has become an important blueprint to achieve a better future for all, and as part of this process, nations are called to accelerate an energy transition towards clean energy solutions. However, an often-neglected pillar is educating individuals on the benefits and challenges of energy efficiency and renewable energy, especially among young people. Their support and willingness to use clean energies will be a significant driver in short, medium and long term. However, reality shows that attention from youth on these issues has not been sufficient yet. Formal education settings become therefore a key place to educate youth in the energy transition. In search of innovative approaches, game-based learning is gaining popularity among scholars and practitioners; it can contribute to content development of complex issues by integrating insights from different disciplines in an interactive, fun and engaging manner.In this context, we would like to present “the We-Energy Game” as an innovative educational strategy which makes use of game-based learning to create understanding on the challenges in the provision of affordable energy from renewable sources for an entire town. During the game, players negotiate, from their respective roles, which energy source they want to employ and on which location, with the goal to make a village or city energy neutral. The game has been played by students in higher education institutions in The Netherlands.In addition to introducing the game, a study is presented on the effects of the game on students´ awareness on the energy transition, self-efficacy -the feeling that they can contribute to a sustainable energy transition in their towns by themselves- and collective efficacy -the feeling that they can contribute to a sustainable energy transition in their towns together with their community-. For that purpose, we conducted a survey with 100 bachelor (Dutch and international) students aged between 18 and 30 years old, at Hanze University of Applied Sciences, before and after playing the game. We also conducted a group discussion with a smaller group of students to understand their opinion about the game. From the survey, results reveal an increase in awareness about the energy transition, as well as (slightly higher) collective efficacy compared to self-efficacy. From the group discussion, findings reveal that the game makes students reflect on the complexity of the process and need for collaboration among different stakeholders. It also shows how educational games have still a long way to go to achieve the high levels of engagement of commercial games, despite the fact that students still preferred to have this type of interactive practice rather than a traditional class characterized by a unidirectional transmission of information. Different implications must be taken into account for educators when interested in implementing game-based learning in class, including immediate feedback, appropriate length of gameplay during class, and time for a reflection and critical thinking after playing the game.
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Game-based learning (GBL) and gamification can improve the learning experience of students by making learning more fun, interesting, and motivating. However, integrating games in practice is challenging for many teachers as it requires competences that not necessarily are part of their teaching repertoire. Game-based pedagogy (GBP) refers to the teaching methods and learning processes involved in learning with games. Research stresses the need for adequate professional development and teacher education on GBP. However, there is a lack of empirical knowledge on effective methods to prepare pre-service and in-service teachers for using game-based learning. The aim of our research is to gain insight into the design of effective GBP learning experiences for teachers. The guiding research question was: What design elements of a course on GBL impacted in-service teachers' GBP competences and teaching practice? We investigated this question in the context of a teacher education program in the Fall 2023. We conducted an empirical study in which a course on GBL was designed, implemented, and evaluated in practice. The participants were 16 in-service secondary teachers from different disciplines in secondary education, from which 13 agreed to participate in this study, and three course leaders. We investigated participants’ and course leaders’ experiences, participants’ competences in GBP, the impact on participants’ teaching practice and the way design elements contributed to it. The data consisted of participant reflections, transcripts from participants and course leaders’ interviews and answers to a questionnaire. The data was collected and analysed using quantitative and qualitative methods between January and April 2024. Results reveal that in-service teachers’ improved their competences on GBP and increased their use of GBL in practice. Qualitative data analysis provides insight into the course's design elements and on participants’ learning process. This study contributes to GBP-education by offering a possible design solution and framework for developing effective teacher education.
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Game User Research is an emerging field that ties together Human Computer Interaction, Game Development, and Experimental Psychology, specifically investigating the interaction between players and games. The community of Game User Research has been rapidly evolving for the past few years, extending and modifying existing methodologies used by the HCI community to the environment of digital games. In this workshop, we plan to investigate the different methodologies currently in practice within the field as well as their utilities and drawbacks in measuring game design issues or gaining insight about the players' experience. The outcome of the workshop will be a collection of lessons from the trenches and commonly used techniques published in a public online forum. This will extend the discussion of topics beyond the workshop, and serve as a platform for future work. The workshop will be the first of its kind at CHI, tying together HCI research and Game User Research.
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This investigation explores relations between 1) a theory of human cognition, called Embodied Cognition, 2) the design of interactive systems and 3) the practice of ‘creative group meetings’ (of which the so-called ‘brainstorm’ is perhaps the best-known example). The investigation is one of Research-through-Design (Overbeeke et al., 2006). This means that, together with students and external stakeholders, I designed two interactive prototypes. Both systems contain a ‘mix’ of both physical and digital forms. Both are designed to be tools in creative meeting sessions, or brainstorms. The tools are meant to form a natural, element in the physical meeting space. The function of these devices is to support the formation of shared insight: that is, the tools should support the process by which participants together, during the activity, get a better grip on the design challenge that they are faced with. Over a series of iterations I reflected on the design process and outcome, and investigated how users interacted with the prototypes.
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Digital game-based learning (DGBL) can be regarded as a promising teaching pedagogy to prepare students for challenges of the 21st century. However, the incorporation of digital games into K-12 curricula remains limited. Research suggests that a comprehensive understanding of barriers and motivational factors that teachers face when implementing DGBL is needed to ensure that teachers can receive the support required. To delineate suggestions for tailored curricula on game-based pedagogy in teacher education programs, we conducted a study to gain insight into in-service teachers’ perception of DGBL in relation to their previous experience in teaching with DGBL. To achieve our goal, we examined the factors that impede and promote the implementation of DGBL among in-service teachers who are presently pursuing master's level education programs, having in mind that this group of teachers is different from pre-service teachers. Data was collected using an online survey with open- and closed-ended questions. The sample consisted of in-service teachers (n=37) who were enrolled in a master’s course in math education. The data analysis conducted was of a qualitative nature. One significant finding derived from this study is that the level of pedagogical experience in utilizing games as a teaching tool appears to be a crucial factor in understanding the inclination of in-service teachers towards game-based pedagogy. Pedagogical factors were mentioned by teachers at all stages of experience with DGBL, and differences were observed between teachers at different stages. For instance, in-service teachers with experience with DGBL (intermediate and advanced stages) were concerned about being able to maintain focus on the math concepts, the need to adapt the game lesson to students, and the ways to evaluate student learning less experienced teachers were essentially concerned about ways to control the classroom during DGBL and whether the pupils would receive adequate practice in this learning mode. Differences were also noted for other factors between teachers at different stages. Advanced stage teachers did have concerns about game appropriateness for the intended learning; teachers with less experience were concerned about the lack of games (technical factors). Dealing with an existing curriculum and high workload were common aspects for teachers with no or some experience but only teachers with some experience mentioned obstacles related to school organization (structural factors). Teachers with few and some experience referred to the lack of knowledge and competence (personal factors) and that pupils would not take the lessons with games seriously (social factors). This research supports DGBL- practice (i) by adding new knowledge on the factors that can support or constrain the integration of DGBL and its implications for the development of curricula on game-based pedagogy; (ii) by providing suggestions to design and implement meaningful curricula on digital game-based pedagogy for teaching education and training programs.
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Design and development practitioners such as those in game development often have difficulty comprehending and adhering to the European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), especially when designing in a private sensitive way. Inadequate understanding of how to apply the GDPR in the game development process can lead to one of two consequences: 1. inadvertently violating the GDPR with sizeable fines as potential penalties; or 2. avoiding the use of user data entirely. In this paper, we present our work on designing and evaluating the “GDPR Pitstop tool”, a gamified questionnaire developed to empower game developers and designers to increase legal awareness of GDPR laws in a relatable and accessible manner. The GDPR Pitstop tool was developed with a user-centered approach and in close contact with stakeholders, including practitioners from game development, legal experts and communication and design experts. Three design choices worked for this target group: 1. Careful crafting of the language of the questions; 2. a flexible structure; and 3. a playful design. By combining these three elements into the GDPR Pitstop tool, GDPR awareness within the gaming industry can be improved upon and game developers and designers can be empowered to use user data in a GDPR compliant manner. Additionally, this approach can be scaled to confront other tricky issues faced by design professionals such as privacy by design.
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Fysiotherapie en/of manuele therapie spelen een belangrijke rol in de zorg voor mensen met lage rugpijn. Om de kwaliteit van deze zorg te verbeteren is een richtlijn ontwikkeld die vervolgens geïmplementeerd dient te worden. Technologische innovaties zoals serious games kunnen een rol spelen bij de implementatie van deze richtlijn. In een gerandomiseerde gecontroleerde studie is onderzocht in hoeverre een serious game de implementatie van een richtlijn lage rugpijn bevorderd. Achtenveertig fysiotherapeuten/manueel therapeuten zijn at random toegewezen aan een serious game groep of een groep die voorlichting kreeg over de richtlijn. Uitkomstmaten in deze studie zijn de mate van adherentie aan de richtlijn (vignettentoets), ervaren knelpunten van implementatie, de mening van de deelnemer over de wijze van implementeren, en de mate waarin de richtlijn is gelezen en wordt toegepast in de praktijk naar eigen inschatting van de deelnemer. Na zes weken follow-up is er geen significant effect gevonden van de serious game op de mate van adherentie aan de richtlijn (0,4 punten op 100 puntsschaal; 95% betrouwbaarheidsinterval -4,0 tot 4,8) ten opzichte van de voorlichtingsgroep. Ook voor de andere uitkomsten werden geen statistisch significante effecten gevonden. Het introduceren van een serious game had derhalve geen groter effect op de mate van adherentie aan de richtlijn lage rugpijn dan voorlichting.
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Recent years have witnessed a rise in Game Jams - organized events to create playable prototypes in a very short time frame. Game Jams offer a unique and quick way to prototype games. Beyond that, we believe Game Jams can also be seen as a design research method, situated in the research-through-design tradition, to create knowledge in a fast-paced, collaborative environment. The goal of this Game Jam is thus twofold: first, participants will use the Game Jam approach to investigate a research question; second, participants can, through actual practice, identify advantages and disadvantages of Game Jams as a research method. Hereby the Game Jam workshop provides a unique opportunity for HCI practitioners and researchers to gain experience in applying game-oriented methods for research.
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What makes an educational game good? This paper describes three research directions that could provide insight in the underlying principles of effective educational games. These aspects are 1) The importance of distinguishing between types of to-be-learned knowledge, 2) the need to understand the relationship between game mechanics and learning goals, and 3) using research on intelligent tutoring systems to create more personalized learning experiences. Central in these directions is the concept of cognition and how it impacts the educational effectiveness of an educational game. This paper will give a short introduction on cognition and discuss why the research directions require further research.
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