Aroutis Foster
Drexel University, Learning Technologies, Faculty Member
- Projective Reflection, Educational Psychology, Educational Technology, Video Game Design, Video Games and Learning, Identity Exploration, and 35 moreLearning Sciences, Immersive Virtual Learning Environment, Interactive and Digital Media, Memory (Cognitive Psychology), Self and Identity, Psychology Of Learning, Research Methodology, Digital Games and Learner Identity, Research Design, Student Motivation And Engagement, Projective Identity and Possible Selves, Self-determination theory (Education), Information Communication Technology, Science Education, Multimedia Learning, Digital Games, Student Achievement Motivation, Motivation (Education), Student Motivation, Game-based Learning, Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK), Online Games, Videogames, Learning Technologies, Situated Learning, Game Based Learning, Video Games, Game/Simulation use in education, Games for Learning, Technology Integration in Schools, Problem solving (Cognitive Psychology), Technology in Teacher Education, Digital Media & Learning, 21st Century Literacies, and Digital Game Based Learningedit
- Dr. Aroutis Foster is an associate professor of Learning, Design, and Technology in the School of Education and with ... moreDr. Aroutis Foster is an associate professor of Learning, Design, and Technology in the School of Education and with courtesy appointment in the Digital Media program in Westphal College of Media Arts and Design at Drexel University. His research has focused on the theoretical, design, cognitive, assessment, and motivational aspects related to the use of immersive digital technologies including games, virtual worlds, simulations, and computer based learning environments. Dr. Foster teaches courses at both the masters and doctoral levels in the area of digital media, game-based learning, technology, and design. He has published in peer-reviewed journals and book chapters and received awards for his research. He lives (virtually) at http://www.aroutis.orgedit
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This paper reports the iterative design-based research and implementation of Virtual Ci1ity Planning, a course that leveraged a virtual learning environment (VLE) and supportive classroom curricula to encourage students’ exploration of... more
This paper reports the iterative design-based research and implementation of Virtual Ci1ity Planning, a course that leveraged a virtual learning environment (VLE) and supportive classroom curricula to encourage students’ exploration of environmental science and urban planning identities. Iterative course design and assessment was informed by Projective Reflection - a theoretical and methodological framework that conceptualizes learning as a role-specific process of identity exploration over time. This work describes the cyclical process of contextual analysis, design and implementation, and efficacy evaluation across three sessions of Virtual City Planning, which were implemented in a science museum with 57 high school students. The design case demonstrates how each session was modified to adapt to contextual needs and encourage deeper and more integrated processes of identity exploration as defined by Projective Reflection. The work concludes with lessons learned for future research on identity exploration in VLEs.
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Abstract In a 21st century context of rapid technological advancement, virtual learning environments (VLEs) such as games have been increasingly designed, implemented, and researched for their capacity to offer immersive and... more
Abstract In a 21st century context of rapid technological advancement, virtual learning environments (VLEs) such as games have been increasingly designed, implemented, and researched for their capacity to offer immersive and interdisciplinary experiences that support student motivation and learning. As such, VLEs have acquired greater mainstream acceptance as tools for learning that is embodied, enactive (i.e. learning by doing), extended into the learners’ environment, and embedded in authentic and potentially valuable contexts. However, this domain is still in its infancy and requires research for developing theories of the learning and identity mechanisms occurring in VLEs, evidence-based measurement of these processes, and design principles for virtual learning environments and experiences that promote learners’ knowledge, identity processes, and career paths. As such, this special issue of The Journal of Experimental Education seeks to provide education scholars with insight into current theoretical and methodological approaches to conceptualize, facilitate, and empirically examine learning and identity in VLEs. It brings together empirical examples of conceptually, methodologically, and analytically well-grounded research to illustrate the learning and identity processes, characteristics, and outcomes that VLEs can facilitate. A guest commentary and an invited theoretical article provide rich takeaways for advancing research and practice in this burgeoning field.
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This paper reports a mixed-methods study supporting twenty 9th grade students' mathematics knowledge, motivation, and identity change through projective reflection using Game Network Analysis (GaNA). GaNA is an ecological game-based... more
This paper reports a mixed-methods study supporting twenty 9th grade students' mathematics knowledge, motivation, and identity change through projective reflection using Game Network Analysis (GaNA). GaNA is an ecological game-based learning framework that was conceptualized for facilitating teachers in selecting and using games. Projective reflection is an identity change process catalyzed by digital game play and facilitated by reflection and discussion activities focused within a domain. From September-December 2010, a game, Dimension M was used to facilitate students' in gameplay to construct mathematics knowledge, motivation to learn, and identity change. Data sources included interviews, in-class participant and video observations, and pre-post assessments. Students had statistically significant gains in mathematics. Students engaged in identity exploration activities that allowed them to value mathematics. The implications of projective reflection and GaNA are discussed. Further studies are needed for scaling and replicating the use of projective reflection.
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Purpose This paper aims to report findings for the following question, “What is the nature of high school students’ identity exploration as a result of exploring the role-possible selves of an environmental scientist and urban planner in... more
Purpose This paper aims to report findings for the following question, “What is the nature of high school students’ identity exploration as a result of exploring the role-possible selves of an environmental scientist and urban planner in a play-based course?” Projective reflection (PR) is served as a theoretical and methodological framework for facilitating learning as identity exploration in play-based environments. Design/methodology/approach From 2016-2017, 54 high school freshmen students engaged in virtual city planning, an iteratively refined course that provided systematic and personally relevant opportunities for play, curricular, reflection and discussion activities in Philadelphia Land Science, a virtual learning environment (VLE) and in an associated curriculum enacted in a science museum classroom. Participants’ identity exploration was anchored in targeted role-possible selves in science, technology, engineering and mathematics: environmental science and urban planning through in-game and in-class activities. This role-playing was made intentional by scaffolding students’ reflection on what they wanted to be in the future while thinking of their current selves and exploring novel role-possible selves. Findings In-game logged data and in-class student data were examined using quantitative ethnography (QE) techniques such as epistemic network analysis. Whole-group statistical significance and an illustrative case study revealed visual and interpretive patterns of change in students’ identity exploration. The change was reflected in their knowledge, interest and valuing, self-organization and self-control and self-perception and self-definition (KIVSSSS) in relation to the roles explored from the start of the intervention (starting self), during (exploring role-possible selves) and the end (new self). The paper concludes with directions to advance research on leveraging role-playing as a mechanism for fostering identity exploration in play-based digital and non-digital environments. Originality/value This paper leveraged VLEs such as games as forms of play-based environments that can present players with opportunities for self-transformation (Foster, 2014) and enculturation (Gee 2003; Shaffer, 2006) to support learner agency and participation in a constantly changing society (Thomas and Brown 2011). The authors introduce and apply novel theoretical and methodological approaches to the design and assessment of play-based environments and address pertinent gaps in the emergent area of learning and identity in VLEs
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The development of several digital technologies has enabled educators and researchers to approach learning and education from a personalized perspective. At the forefront of this technological-pedagogical development is augmented reality... more
The development of several digital technologies has enabled educators and researchers to approach learning and education from a personalized perspective. At the forefront of this technological-pedagogical development is augmented reality (AR). Though research has demonstrated AR's implementations within formal learning environments, there is a distinct lack of research evaluating AR applications within informal learning environments. In order to address this gap in literature, this study provides a systematic review of empirical investigations involving AR applications in informal learning settings. In total, eighteen (18) articles were examined between the time period of 2010 to 2017. Preliminary analysis has revealed several similarities between experiments within formal and informal learning environments such as expected learning outcomes, research design, and data collection methods. This review looks to expand on these overarching trends to answer questions regarding how AR implementations vary across formal and informal contexts.
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Game-based learning is varied and so are the assessments and methods used to determine what is learned with games. The author used two studies conducted in different settings to illustrate the role of technological pedagogical content... more
Game-based learning is varied and so are the assessments and methods used to determine what is learned with games. The author used two studies conducted in different settings to illustrate the role of technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK) and play, curricular activity, reflection, and discussion (PCaRD) in game-based learning. In the first project in an after-school study in a computer lab, 26 middle school students played a game for 7 weeks. Assessments were created using a game analysis based on TPACK to examine learning and motivation TPACK allowed for the creation of assessments that focused on the content in a game and highlight the genre effect on pedagogy in gameplay. In the second study conducted with 21 high school learners, TPACK played the same role; however, PCaRD was used to integrate the game into a classroom. The integration process included the previously developed assessments for learning and motivation. Whereas TPACK provides a lens to analyze digital games for pedagogy and content, PCaRD provides a pedagogical model for integrating games into learning settings. This has implications for designers of games, teachers using games, and researchers studying games for learning.
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This paper is situated in a 5-year NSF CAREER project awarded to test and refine Projective Reflection (PR) as a theoretical and methodological framework for facilitating learning as identity exploration in play-based environments. 54... more
This paper is situated in a 5-year NSF CAREER project awarded to test and refine Projective Reflection (PR) as a theoretical and methodological framework for facilitating learning as identity exploration in play-based environments. 54 high school students engaged in Virtual City Planning, an iteratively refined course that provided systematic and personally-relevant opportunities for play, curricular, reflection and discussion activities in Philadelphia Land Science, a virtual learning environment, and in an associated curriculum enacted in a STEM museum-classroom. In-game logged data and in-class student data were examined using Epistemic Network Analysis. An illustrative case study revealed visual and interpretive patterns in students’ identity exploration. The change was reflected in their knowledge, interest and valuing, self-organization and self-control, and self-perception and self-definition (KIVSSSS) in relation to the roles explored from the start of the intervention (Star...
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The purpose of this study was to examine patterns of role-specific identity exploration enacted by participants on a community forum for the space flight simulation game Kerbal Space Program (KSP). Identity exploration is a valuable skill... more
The purpose of this study was to examine patterns of role-specific identity exploration enacted by participants on a community forum for the space flight simulation game Kerbal Space Program (KSP). Identity exploration is a valuable skill for 21st century learners, and affinity spaces such as community forums hold promise for supporting role-specific identity exploration but remain underexamined. The study addressed this gap using an explanatory sequential mixed-methods design with a convergent data-transformation variant, in which the initial quantitative examination informed sampling for the qualitative examination, and the qualitative data was later quantified to explore general trends. Social network analysis visualized friend groups in the KSP forum, which highlighted participants with high and low social centrality to be sampled for qualitative case studies. To understand identity exploration as a form of complex thinking, epistemic network analysis visualized participants' patterns of association across identity constructs as defined by the Projective Reflection theoretical framework. Social network analysis results revealed friendships remained relatively static over time but tended to cluster around highly central individuals. Case studies illustrated how most and least socially central participants enacted unique, personally relevant, and socially situated identities over time, but that highly central members tended to take on identities as content contributors. Results from epistemic network analyses found statistically significant differences in three participants' association of identity constructs over time. Integration 1) illustrated general trends about identity exploration as it is enacted in KSP affinity spaces and 2) highlighted unique features of identity exploration processes based on social situation. Findings offer insights into the field of games and identity, including new theoretical understandings, methodological approaches, suggestions for application in formal and informal learning se [...]
Abstract This research project applied Projective Reflection (PR) as a theoretical and methodological framework to facilitate learning as identity exploration. PR was used to iteratively design and implement three versions of Virtual City... more
Abstract This research project applied Projective Reflection (PR) as a theoretical and methodological framework to facilitate learning as identity exploration. PR was used to iteratively design and implement three versions of Virtual City Planning, an augmenting virtual learning environment (AVLE) course in a science museum classroom to support high school students’ exploration of role-possible selves in STEM. In-game and in-class, student data were examined using Quantitative Ethnography (QE) to interpret unique trajectories of student identity exploration. This article reports two cases which supports integrated shifts in students’ knowledge, interest and valuing, self-organization and self-control, and self-perceptions and self-definitions in the first iteration of the 9-week AVLE course. The article concludes with future directions to advance research on learning and identity in VLEs.
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The objective of this design-based research study was to develop, implement and refine Philadelphia Land Science (PLS), an interactive web-based experience designed to support learning framed as identity exploration over time, leading to... more
The objective of this design-based research study was to develop, implement and refine Philadelphia Land Science (PLS), an interactive web-based experience designed to support learning framed as identity exploration over time, leading to identity change around environmental science and urban planning careers. PLS was developed using Projective Reflection (PR) and tested with high school students at a science museum in Philadelphia as part of a larger on-going study funded by the National Science Foundation (Foster 2014). Projective Reflection (PR) frames learning as identity exploration and change to inform the design of games and game-based learning curricula to facilitate intentional change in learners’ (a) knowledge, (b) interest and valuing, (c) self-organization and self-control, and d) self-perceptions and self-definitions in academic domains/careers. Change is tracked from a learner’s initial current self, through exploration of possible selves (measured repeatedly), to a learner’s new self at a desired specific end-point (Shah et al. 2017). PLS was constructed through the modification of the virtual internship Land Science, and capitalized on the strengths of its design features, which were informed by the Epistemic Frames Theory (Shaffer 2006). The paper introduces two iterations of PLS and concludes with implications for design and implementation of games for facilitating identity change. Implications are discussed for advancing research on learning and identity in immersive virtual environments.
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Abstract Teachers can use mobile applications to integrate the visual arts back into the classroom, but how? This article generates recommendations for selecting and using well-designed mobile applications in the visual arts beyond a... more
Abstract Teachers can use mobile applications to integrate the visual arts back into the classroom, but how? This article generates recommendations for selecting and using well-designed mobile applications in the visual arts beyond a “click and view ” approach. Using quantitative content analysis, the results show the extent to which a sample of 16 mobile applications promoted physiological features (e.g., interactive touch), psychological learning principles (post, share comment/art work), pedagogical voice (e.g., social constructivist teaching), socio-cultural dimensions (artist ’s background), aesthetic understanding (e.g., line, color) and creative self-efficacy (e.g., the belief in the ability to make a new painting). We propose to address this imbalance through the pedagogical model Play, Curricular activities, Reflection, Discussion (PCARD).
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There is a paucity of research frameworks that focus on aiding game selection and use, analyzing the game as a holistic system, and studying learner experiences in games. There is a need for frameworks that provide a lens for... more
There is a paucity of research frameworks that focus on aiding game selection and use, analyzing the game as a holistic system, and studying learner experiences in games. There is a need for frameworks that provide a lens for understanding learning experiences afforded in digital games and facilitating knowledge construction and motivation to learn. Towards this goal, the purpose of this article is to introduce the inquiry, communication, construction, and expression (ICCE) framework. This qualitative study with interviews and observations examined the mathematics game Dimension M. It was analyzed using the ICCE framework. It reports the interpretive results of twenty 9th graders' motivation and achievement in a game-based learning course to learn mathematics using Dimension M. The ICCE framework may be a valuable tool for aiding teachers to assess the efficacy of games for learning and for students to benefit from the possible designed experiences within games.
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Game-based learning is varied and so are the assessments and methods used to determine what is learned with games. The author used two studies conducted in different settings to illustrate the role of technological pedagogical content... more
Game-based learning is varied and so are the assessments and methods used to determine what is learned with games. The author used two studies conducted in different settings to illustrate the role of technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK) and play, curricular activity, reflection, and discussion (PCaRD) in game-based learning. In the first project in an after-school study in a computer lab, 26 middle school students played a game for 7 weeks. Assessments were created using a game analysis based on TPACK to examine learning and motivation TPACK allowed for the creation of assessments that focused on the content in a game and highlight the genre effect on pedagogy in gameplay. In the second study conducted with 21 high school learners, TPACK played the same role; however, PCaRD was used to integrate the game into a classroom. The integration process included the previously developed assessments for learning and motivation. Whereas TPACK provides a lens to analyze digital games for pedagogy and content, PCaRD provides a pedagogical model for integrating games into learning settings. This has implications for designers of games, teachers using games, and researchers studying games for learning.
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This chapter reports on the seemingly incongruous use of 2D media-avatar drawings and 3D media-math-based digital gameplay. As part of a larger mixed methods study, we examined students’ cultural identity, player styles, and tacit... more
This chapter reports on the seemingly incongruous use of 2D media-avatar drawings and 3D media-math-based digital gameplay. As part of a larger mixed methods study, we examined students’ cultural identity, player styles, and tacit perceptions of schooling while inventing their own avatars, which are analyzed as symbols representing who they are and who they wish to be as gameplayers enrolled in a yearlong game-based course. Interviews, class discussions, observations, drawings, and short questionnaires were used to analyze issues of identity that emerged during the drawing process and the ways that the pedagogical activity of making the drawings affected student engagement in the game-based learning process. An emergent typology of drawings is reported on: race-based, where the student explicitly affiliated himself with his race and cultural, and race-less avatar drawings, where the student does not associate himself with race and cultural. This typology is explained in terms of two representative students. Finally, we compare the findings with extant theories of student identity and arts-based research as well as generate implications for an integrated theory of academic, possible, and virtual selves that emphasize the dynamic and culturally responsive needs of learners in educational settings that use gameplaying as a learning modality.
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ABSTRACT There is a need for game-based learning frameworks that provide a lens for understanding learning experiences afforded in digital games. These frameworks should aim to facilitate game analyses, identification of learning... more
ABSTRACT There is a need for game-based learning frameworks that provide a lens for understanding learning experiences afforded in digital games. These frameworks should aim to facilitate game analyses, identification of learning opportunities, and support for learner experiences. This article uses the inquiry, communication, construction, and expression (ICCE) framework to examine a mathematics game (Dimension M) to support learners. The study was conducted using mixed-methods with interviews, observations, and pre-post assessments, in addition to analyzing learner experiences using the ICCE framework. Results showed that the twenty 9th graders’ in the game-based learning course had statistically significant mathematics gains, but not for motivation. Interpretive results highlight how ICCE as enacted in the game design supported learners’ experiences. The ICCE framework may be a valuable tool for aiding teachers to assess the efficacy of games for learning and for students to benefit from the possible designed experiences within games.
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Research Interests: Psychology, Game studies, Teaching and Learning, Educational Technology, Teacher Education, and 12 moreSerious Games, Learning and Teaching, Video Games and Learning, Computer Games Technology, Video Games, Technology in Teacher Education, Game Based Learning, Digital Games, ICT in Teachers Education, Curriculum and Pedagogy, Game Studies, and Technology Teacher Education
... Education International Conference (SITE) 2011 Nashville, Tennessee, USA March 7, 2011 ISBN 1–880094–84–3 Matthew Koehler & Punya Mishra AACE More Information on SITE Table of Contents. Authors. Aroutis Foster, Jennifer... more
... Education International Conference (SITE) 2011 Nashville, Tennessee, USA March 7, 2011 ISBN 1–880094–84–3 Matthew Koehler & Punya Mishra AACE More Information on SITE Table of Contents. Authors. Aroutis Foster, Jennifer Katz-Buonincontro, Mamta Shah, Drexel ...
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This paper presents an in-depth examination of three exemplary virtual environments for science learning (Land Science, River City, and EcoMUVE) to identify and conceptualize game features that support student identity exploration. The... more
This paper presents an in-depth examination of three exemplary virtual environments for science learning (Land Science, River City, and EcoMUVE) to identify and conceptualize game features that support student identity exploration. The work showcases findings obtained from Years 1-2 of an NSF CAREER project (DRL#1350707) undertaken to support the study, design, and implementation of games and curricula that enhance science learning and teaching to promote intentional student learning as identity change (Foster, 2014). The examination was guided by Projective Reflection (PR), a theoretical framework that explains and facilitates learning as identity exploration in immersive play-based environments such as games (Foster, 2014). PR characterizes identity exploration as intentional changes in a) knowledge, b) interest and valuing, c) self-organization and self-control, and d) self-perceptions and self-definitions in a given domain. The Playing Research Method (Aarseth, 2003; Foster, 201...
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Game-based learning and designing has become a hot topic in educational technology. It is believed that video gaming is one way to get students engaged in learning complex and illstructured material, holistic learning, and preparing... more
Game-based learning and designing has become a hot topic in educational technology. It is believed that video gaming is one way to get students engaged in learning complex and illstructured material, holistic learning, and preparing learners for 21st century jobs. However, beyond engagement, games may also be used for learning and developing personal inter est in science by utilizing the affordances for personal identi ty, applicability beyond the school setting and for a personal agenda, and relevance and meaningfulness of scientific prac tices and ideas. This article, based on the synthesis of infor mation from the games, science education, and motivational research literatures present a focused view on how games for learning (serious games) can be designed and used for learn ing and developing an interest in science. The article also points in the direction of much needed research to assess the claims about games for learning. Science is often taught in ways that make the informa...
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The development of several digital technologies has enabled educators and researchers to approach learning and education from a personalized perspective. At the forefront of this technological-pedagogical development is augmented reality... more
The development of several digital technologies has enabled educators and researchers to approach learning and education from a personalized perspective. At the forefront of this technological-pedagogical development is augmented reality (AR). Though research has demonstrated AR's implementations within formal learning environments, there is a distinct lack of research evaluating AR applications within informal learning environments. In order to address this gap in literature, this study provides a systematic review of empirical investigations involving AR applications in informal learning settings. In total, eighteen (18) articles were examined between the time period of 2010 to 2017. Preliminary analysis has revealed several similarities between experiments within formal and informal learning environments such as expected learning outcomes, research design, and data collection methods. This review looks to expand on these overarching trends to answer questions regarding how AR...
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To adapt to the needs of a 21st century context, educational researchers and practitioners could benefit from leveraging the potential of virtual learning environments such as games and the participatory cultures that surround them to... more
To adapt to the needs of a 21st century context, educational researchers and practitioners could benefit from leveraging the potential of virtual learning environments such as games and the participatory cultures that surround them to support learning as a transformational and intentional process of identity exploration. This research offers a theoretically-comprehensive look into how a participant in an online game community forum engaged in identity exploration processes. Publicly-available longitudinal data was downloaded from Kerbal Space Program (KSP) players, which informed the development of an illustrative case study selected to elucidate how individual processes of identity exploration manifest. Lines of player data were deductively coded as representative of identity exploration and visualized using Epistemic Network Analysis to represent shifts in integration of identity constructs over time. Findings suggest that player participation in the community forum can support st...
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Page 1. Understanding, Confidence, Perceptions, Constraints, and Affordances within a Case-Based Multimedia Environment Aroutis Foster foster74@msu.edu Viola Manokore vmanokore@yahoo.com Michael Phillips phill345@msu.edu Mary Lundeberg... more
Page 1. Understanding, Confidence, Perceptions, Constraints, and Affordances within a Case-Based Multimedia Environment Aroutis Foster foster74@msu.edu Viola Manokore vmanokore@yahoo.com Michael Phillips phill345@msu.edu Mary Lundeberg mlunde@msu. ...