Game-based Learning

Games based learning (GBL) in educational contexts is an old tradition where mathematics and strategy have been learned for thousands of years by playing traditional board games like Kalaha and Chess. The discussion on pedagogical aspects of gaming in general started at university level in the 1970s by pedagogues like Jean Piaget and Lev Vygotsky. In the 1980s when computer became available for ordinary people Thomas Malone did an analysis of standard commercial of the shelf (COTS) computer games and investigated why people find them fun and motivating. Later it has been widely discussed how much you can learn from playing games, if the knowledge is transferable to daily life situations and if learning only is possible with tailor-made learning games or serious games. The so called digital natives is the first generation that has played digital games since kindergarten. What are their own opinions on digital games and informal learning by gaming? The aim of this study is to analyse and discuss what digital natives might have learned from their pre-university gaming and if the acquired skills and knowledge can be of use in other contexts. A content analysis has been done based on an assignment in a course on GBL where students submitted and discussed essays in a virtual learning environment. Data has been gathered from 49 students' essay postings in a discussion forum, 26 essays were submitted by male students and the resting 23 by female students. Furthermore students' experiences from learning games have been discussed in groups in the GBL course examination seminars. Findings show that most students claim that they have learned things from playing COTS as well as learning games and several students mention that skills and knowledge have been of use in non-gaming contexts. Some examples of areas where students mention learning are language speaking and reading skills, collaboration, strategic thinking, stress management, and knowledge about history and other cultures.

There is growing attention to using video games for educational purposes, however, many educators struggle to find the right context to bring video games in the classroom. This article examines AAA entertainment games (titles developed by a large studio, funded by a massive budget) and serious video games (games designed for a primary purpose other than pure entertainment) to suggest the ways how video games could be used in classrooms to promote cultural values, human rights, world peace, to reduce stereotype thinking and prejudice, and to develop critical thinking. Selected video games challenge the learner to move beyond known paradigms, to play with cultural identities, to experience new cultures and life circumstances interactively, and to take actions to help change the situation for better in real life. The main focus of the paper is placed on games designed from 2006 to 2018 with an intended outcome to help people learn about current global challenges, including migrant issues, refugee problems, human rights, world peace, intercultural communication, etc. Some advantages and disadvantages of these video games are discussed. Additionally, several learning elements common to video games that could be used in intercultural, diversity and inclusive education are presented. Finally, this article describes some activities to conduct when using video games in the classroom and presents a task-based project involving the use of video games.

The purposes of the research were 1) to design the Digital Educational Computer Games Environments Supporting Education (DECGE-SE) and 2) to evaluate the DECGE-SE. The research procedure was divided into two phases. The DECGE-SE as follows: (1) Learning: (1.1) Subject area, (1.2) Learning objectives/Player goals, (1.3) Learning Theories, (1.4) Platform and (1.5) Type of game; (2) Instruction: (2.1) Game Cycle and (2.2) Components for educational computer games online; (3) Outcomes and Impacts comprised four elements: (3.1) Knowledge acquisition/content understanding, (3.2) Perceptual and cognitive skills, (3.3) Affective and motivational outcomes and (3.4) Behavioural change. The expert opinions on the DECGE-SE evaluated that it was a very high appropriate level.

In the coming decades, the platforms and formalisms scholars employ to display, transform, and transmit information will continue to evolve. Innovations in information management did not stop with the codex. They will not stop with the PC. The purpose of this paper is to explore a specific implication that new paradigms of computing—especially those pertaining to 3D objects and 3D environments—will present for the discipline of history. Put simply, this study suggests historians will need to re‐think the aesthetics of their discipline. Drawing on the experience of the<it> 3D Virtual Buildings Project</it>, it suggests there are two possibilities historians can and ought to explore. The first is to test the efficacy of 3D objects as cognitive tools, tools designed to assist student realization that historical works are models, models that must be distinguished from the objects they represent. The second is to explore the use of 3D‐immersive environments as platforms to display research findings. If Virtual Reality is to emerge as a viable medium for the historical discipline, scholars will need to transform their practice. Assumptions regarding the constitution of narrative, authorship and the scholarly work will all require modification.

Abstract

In Digital Game-Based Learning (2007), Marc Prensky defines the generation as " digital natives " , who spent time using computers and smart-devices and grew up mostly in a human-computer interaction. In addition, Prensky claims that that interaction changed the way of cognition and learning of digital natives by presenting information in a visual-based information network, allowing students to gather data by hyperlinking this information, and rewarding them as a response to their performance. On the contrary, the conventional education system presents a stable, text-dominant information stream which disregards the needs of pupils.Consequently, Prensky suggests that the conventional education system should be adapted to the evolution of digital natives as recent learners. Moreover, he states that the digital game-based learning approach and video games are significant opportunities for this adaptation process and recent research and experimental studies approve the idea of using video game for educational purposes. This research aims to develop a virtual learning environment to facilitate and motivate the learning of landscape construction and grading topics by performing tasks in a video game-like environment. For that purpose, a three-dimensional virtual environment was set up using the OpenSimulator software. Afterwards, a learning scenario was created in accordance with the curriculum of these topics and simulated in this virtual environment by using 2D and 3D visual representations of tex-tual information. The learning scenario was based on a series of tasks beginning with introductory missions and progressively getting more difficult and requiring more specific information to assist students in developing their knowledge and skills. Moreover, a feedback module was programmed for simulating the effects of their decisions and providing essential information and guidance to students for producing and optimizing solutions in encountered problems. In conclusion, an experimental study was conducted to measure the instructional and motivational effects of the proposed virtual learning environment with 16 undergraduate students as part of " Landscape Construction 1 " course in Istanbul Technical University. The findings showed that the proposed virtual learning environment increased the learning motivation of subjects and raised the learning rate of subjects by 53.14 percent.

Özet
Marc Prensky, Digital Game-Based Learning (2007) kitabında bilgisayar teknolojileri ve akıllı ci-hazları kullanarak ve yoğun olarak bilgisayar-insan etkileşimi içerisinde büyüyen nesli " sayısal yerliler " (digital natives) olarak tanımlamaktadır. Prensky, bu neslin bilgisayar arayüzü ile kur-dukları etkileşimin beyin ve algı yapısının yanı sıra, bireylerin öğrenme yollarını tümüyle değiş-tirdiğini belirtmiştir. Bu değişimin neticesinde, bu neslin yazılı bilgiden ziyade görselleştirilmiş bilgiyi okuyarak, bilgi ağları arasında köprüler yardımıyla seçimler doğrultusunda ilerleyerek ve öğrenme sürecinde ödüllendirilerek öğrenmeye yatkın olduklarını belirtmiştir. Ayrıca, yazı odaklı bilginin baskın olduğu, durağan ve öğrencinin pasif rol aldığı mevcut eğitim sisteminin bu neslin ihtiyaçlarına cevap veremediğini ve bu değişime uyum sağlamasının gerekliliğini savunmuştur. Bu araştırmanın amacı, peyzaj mimarlığı eğitim müfredatında yer alan peyzaj konstrüksiyonu ve tesviye konularının öğrenimini teşvik eden ve kolaylaştıran işbirlikçi çalışmaya elverişli bir sanal öğrenme ortamı oluşturmaktır. Bu amaçla, OpenSimulator yazılımı kullanılarak bir üç boyutlu sanal ortam kurulmuştur. Sanal ortam içerisinde, peyzaj mimarlığı eğitiminde önemli role sa-hip peyzaj konstrüksiyonu ve tesviye konularının öğrenilmesini kolaylaştırmak amacıyla eğitim müfredatı bilgilerinin iki ve üç boyutlu görsel temsilleri oluşturulmuştur. Ardından, öğrencile-rin öğrenme sürecindeki hakimiyetinin arttırılması ve öğrenime teşvik edilmesi amacıyla eğitim müfredatı basit ve göreceli tanımlamalardan başlayarak kademeli olarak zorlaşan oyun-tabanlı görevlere dönüştürülmüştür. Bu sayede öğrencilerin karmaşık kavram ve problemleri algılamak için yeterli bilgi ve beceri birikimini kazanmaları amaçlanmaktadır. Araştırmanın diğer bir amacı da, öğrencileri konu hakkında bilgilendirip, ardından bilgi düzeyini ölçmekten ziyade, öğrenci-lere gerekli uzmanlık alanı hakkında sağlam bir bilgi yapısı oluşturmaktır. Bu amaçla, öğrenciler sanal ortamda verilen görevleri tamamlarken, verdikleri kararlara ilişkin geribildirimler aracı-lığıyla hem bilgilendirilmekte hem de çözüm önerisi geliştirme veya iyileştirme sürecinde öğ-rencilere rehberlik eden bir modül programlanmıştır. Son olarak, araştırma kapsamında geliş-tirilen model önerisinin güdüsel ve öğretici etkilerini değerlendirmek amacıyla İstanbul Teknik Üniversitesi'nde peyzaj konstrüksiyonu 1 dersi kapsamında lisans düzeyindeki 16 öğrencinin gönüllü katılımı ile bir deneysel çalışma yürütülmüştür. Bulgular doğrultusunda, tez kapsamın-da geliştirilen model önerisi katılımcıların sorularını doğru yanıtlama ortalamasını 53,14% art-tırmıştır. Anahtar Kelimeler: Peyzaj mimarlığı eğitimi, bilgisayar destekli eğitim, sanal öğrenme ortamları, oyun-tabanlı öğrenme.

This paper describes a learning-objective-centric workflow for modifying ('modding') existing tabletop games for educational purposes. The work-flow combines existing research for serious games design with novel systematic analysis techniques for learning and game mechanics and gameplay loops to improve the understanding and rigour of the process. A detailed worked example applies the workflow to the development of a serious tabletop game with the educational goal of increasing knowledge and confidence of performing postgraduate literature reviews. Systematic application of the workflow to a real example supports the value of this approach and provides a useful template for educators to follow for increasing the quality and feasibility of self-designed serious games. 1 Introduction It is now well evidenced that games can be engaging and effective tools for education but that the design of an intervention has as large an effect on success as the medium [1] and that designing effective game-based learning solutions requires significant expertise in both game-design and pedagogy [2]. Educational games which do not successfully combine game design with learning design are ineffective in terms of engagement , learning, or both (often known as a 'spinach sundae': a product which is neither appealing nor good for you [3]). Furthermore, research into game-enhanced learning demonstrates that the different characteristics of different games have discernible effects on the learning behaviours of players [4] and consequently on how well the game achieves its educational purpose [1, 5]. In short, educational game design is complex, resource intensive, and requires multiple interdisciplinary skillsets. Games designed for digital platforms also need significant technical expertise and the resources to support them. Despite these barriers, the well-documented advantages of game-based learning (GBL) drive demand for games for learning, training, or behavioural change (hence-forth referred to as 'serious games') across a wide range of contexts [6-8]. However, as evidence of the efficacy of GBL grows, the discipline gains new advocates from a variety of backgrounds which increases the risk of GBL solutions being designed and implemented in isolation of the expertise and resource contexts necessary to make them effective. This paper presents a practical solution to the tension between the growing desire for serious games amongst students and educators and the barriers to effectively implementing them [9]. It is proposed that serious game design can be streamlined and

This paper reports on the design and evaluation of player experiences related to a Location-Based Game. Location-based games (or LBGs) seek to move gamified play into the " real world " of cities, parks and other locations. These games are played in everyday places, where game information is tied to specific locations (Magerkurth et al. 2005). This connection to real-world physicality makes the game experience multidimensional and fun for players of different ages. Yet, to be able to envision and create an urban gamescape means that a set of criteria is met. The unique challenge of creating and orchestrating location-based game experiences requires a certain sensitivity of its designers to multiple factors that must be considered. These may include but are not limited to factors such as the city infrastructure, flows of urban traffic, maintenance of recreational areas and human-related factors such as cooperation with the city administration. The game introduced in the paper represents an urban game adventure built upon the platform of geocaching. We approach the game with a focus on its potential learning affordances. We ask how the pitfalls in creating opportunities for learning through location-based games could be avoided, especially when designing pedagogic aims into an urban gaming experience fit for school-aged children.

(in press). In S. Tettegah & W. (D.) Huang. Emotions, Technology, and Games. New York: Elsevier. (Will be freely available for download through open access in October, 2015).
ABSTRACT.
Summary
This case study challenges the assumption that successful game-based learning requires flow experience. Analysis of player logs of gameplay behavior and self-reports of subjective experience (the experience sampling method adapted as the Flowometer with self-perceptions categorized through the channel model as flow, arousal, anxiety, worry, apathy, intrinsic motivation, boredom, routine expertise, control) establish that challenge often exceeds skill during the type of inquiry-based learning that occurs when instructional games scaffold player discovery and application of targeted concepts. This pattern persists when integrated game dashboards allow players to define and achieve expertise. The analysis follows three players during their trajectories toward expertise while playing the online instructional video game Selene: A Lunar Construction GaME: an undergraduate female (USA Midwest university) before and after she achieved an “aha!” learning moment, and two Spanish (non-USA, female and male, 15-year-old) players who used the game and dashboard to achieve expert status for targeted planetary geology concepts achieved by only 1% of Selene players (players = 3882). Theory and data suggest perceived experience during game-based learning (states such as anxiety, worry, and arousal) might be conceptualized as eustress, which is known to accompany successful adaptation.

In primary education, digital games give students the opportunity to explore and participate in digital learning environments. Several researchers have found that digital game-based learning in primary education has many benefits. However, studies have also identified certain problems related to the use digital games in learning. This paper presents the findings of a systematic review of empirical studies published between May 2009 and May 2019 focusing on students' learning outcomes and teachers' pedagogical activities in digital game-based learning in primary education. The results indicated that support, guidance, and interaction are the most frequently used pedagogical activities during gameplay sessions in primary education and that teachers' most significant concern with regard to learning outcomes is knowledge acquisition, followed by attitude and motivation, skill outcomes, and behavior change. The findings will be useful for enabling researchers and teachers to integrate effective pedagogical activities into digital game-based learning strategies. Further studies are proposed to explore teachers' competencies in relation to digital learning environments in primary education.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the ways in which VET teachers can be supported to successfully integrate game-based learning into vocational education and training. After the presentation of the findings from a systematic analysis of research literature, a unique learning architecture for VET educators is introduced as a conceptual basis for the implementation of the GATE:VET project, representing a practical use case to systematically develop VET teachers' skills and competencies.

Games have always been a staple of ELT, but their use has been concentrated at elementary levels; in contrast, EAP is often thought of as too serious to warrant games in class. At the same time, “gamification” has become a buzzword in education, business and social activism. This paper draws on the practice of gamification to show, not only that games have a place in the EAP class, but more importantly, to demonstrate how we can learn from games to make learning more game-like. In particular I show how certain characteristics of online games make them addictive - notably clear long- and short-term goals, constant feedback, enhanced self-image, “flow”, and the balance of collaboration and competition – and how we can try to introduce these qualities to EAP courses.

The paper presents the results of “Live Action
Role Plays in School Education,” a quasi-experimental
project piloted in 2010 and 2012 and conducted in
2013 by Games Research Association of Poland and
educational publisher Nowa Era. In this project, larp
was used in high-schools as a revision class before a
test in History, the hypothesis being that larp as pretest
revision leads to higher retention of knowledge
than traditional revision classes. Small sample size
cannot be considered conclusive evidence, but the
preliminary findings seem encouraging for further
research. Beside students’ test scores, the report
provides non-standardized qualitative observational
data on participant attitudes, plus information about
practical issues of edu-larp research in public school
environment. Next to the findings, the text reports
on the research process and the rationale behind its
modification

Autores por orden de firma:  Marta Martín del Pozo y José Luis Martín López

Las Habilidades para la Vida (toma de decisiones, resolución de problemas, pensamiento creativo, pensamiento crítico, comunicación efectiva, habilidades de relación interpersonal, autoconocimiento, empatía, manejo de emociones y manejo de estrés) son habilidades esenciales para el Ser Humano que permiten a los individuos responder efectivamente a las demandas y desafíos del día a día y, de este modo, contribuyen a su bienestar y felicidad. Debido a su importancia, consideramos que las Habilidades para la Vida deberían ser trabajadas en el sistema educativo y para ello es preciso que se utilicen todos los recursos que estén a nuestro alcance. En este sentido, uno de los recursos que pueden utilizarse son los videojuegos, una de las formas más usuales de entretenimiento en la actualidad. Los videojuegos pueden ser utilizados también en la educación y consideramos que pueden ser utilizados para trabajar las Habilidades para la Vida. En este caso, mostramos una propuesta educativa sobre cómo usar el videojuego Los Sims 2 para fomentar el desarrollo de la una de las Habilidades para la Vida, en particular la Comunicación Efectiva, en Educación Primaria, usando para ello un enfoque de aprendizaje colaborativo. Debido a todo esto, este artículo tratará de: Las Habilidades para la Vida (definición, una lista de ellas según la Organización Mundial de la Salud y su presencia en las leyes educativas españolas); algunos beneficios y experiencias de videojuegos en la educación; y la propuesta educativa para trabajar una de las Habilidades para la Vida, en particular la Comunicación Efectiva, usando el videojuego Los Sims 2 mediante un enfoque de aprendizaje colaborativo.

This book is about the three identities of the videogame, the gamer, and Game Studies. I write that there are no definitive truths but rather discourses and constructions; ideas, actions, beliefs, and practices related to videogames are discourses that merge and shape our perception of videogames as an area of study of its own right. These discursive responses meet and clash creating what we call truths, which are temporary and negotiable.

This perspective is inspired by Foucauldian ideas and present few questions about videogame-related identities in and outside of academe. Does Game Studies have a conceptual core? What makes game studies difficult to be disciplined in academe? What do we learn from the scholarly and popular discourses on videogames that would help understand the identity questions related to games?

I go on to describe what makes the videogame identity according to game studies: aesthetics, fictions, meaning-making, performance, transformation, etc. and what makes it difficult for game studies being an open market of ideas and an academic "un-discipline". This leads me to the gamer's identity: an aficionado first, and a connoisseur of fictional worlds.

Most primary school teachers would concur that mathematical games are a valuable pedagogical tool to deploy in the primary classroom; however, not all mathematical games are likely to be equally valuable. How might teachers decide which games to introduce in their classrooms? In this paper we attempt to support teachers to address this our intention for presenting these principles is to stimulate critical discussion and to guide teacher decision-making. Examples of mathematical games that we believe appropriately capture each principle are provided.

Educators face major challenges as a result of the shift from the Information Age to the Experience Age (Wadhera, 2016). For example, students are passive and disengaged (Capps and Crawford, 2013) and may struggle to see the relevance of what they are learning to their lives (Gee, 2009); also, important skills needed for 21st century learners-such as empathy, systems thinking, creativity, computational literacy, and abstract reasoning-are difficult to teach (Smith and Hu, 2013). Virtual reality, an immersive, hands-on tool for learning, can play a unique role in addressing these educational challenges. In this paper, we present examples of how the affordances of virtual reality lead to new opportunities that support learners. We conclude with a discussion of recommendations and next steps.

Digital learning environments are increasingly becoming popular in recent years. The rising usage of cell phones has invited researchers to design and develop learning applications and games for mobile phones. Specifically, game-based language learning is being promoted by researchers in many parts of the world. "Language Learning Serious Game (LLSG)" is based on a theoretical model constructed by the researcher that supports children learning English as a second language in a cultural context. The usability of such games is evaluated based on well-defined heuristics and other standard methods. This research aims to appraise the usability of LLSG through heuristics and think-aloud approaches while involving all essential stakeholders, including language experts, students, teachers, and game developers. The researcher proposed the heuristics in a cultural context, whereas the think-aloud review is compiled from the rigorous discussion session involving these stakeholders to evaluate the LLSG. The findings obtained from the heuristics evaluation reveal that the usability of LLSG is acceptable. On the other hand, various interesting suggestions and reviews were gathered from the discussion between experts and students. This evaluation will further improve the future versions of the game.

Mobile language learning applications have the potential to transform the way languages are learned. This study examined the fifty most popular commercially-available language learning applications for mobile phones and evaluated them according to a wide range of criteria. Three major trends were found: first, apps tend to teach vocabulary in isolated units rather than in relevant contexts; second, apps minimally adapt to suit the skill sets of individual learners; and third, apps rarely offer explanatory corrective feedback to learners. Despite a pedagogical shift toward more communicative approaches to language learning, these apps are behaviorist in nature. To better align with Second Language Acquisition (SLA) and L2 pedagogical research, we recommend the incorporation of more contextualized language, adaptive technology, and explanatory feedback in these applications.

Big data in education has fostered emergent fields like educational data mining (Baker & Yacef, 2009) and learning analytics (Siemens & Long, 2011). Simulations and educational videogames are obvious candidates for the application of these analytic methods, affording big data situated in meaningful learning contexts (Gee, 2003; Steinkuehler et al., 2012). In design of these educational games, clickstream analytics for core design, alpha usertesting, and final-stage adaptive play design play a key role in optimizing learner experience. This paper maps learning analytics methods to these learning game development phases. Leveraging these powerful analytic tools of visualization, association mining, and predictive modeling throughout the design process is key to supporting players in a user-adaptive, engaging play experience optimized for learning.

There is increased interest in the use of gamification as an innovative practice in the field of training and education. Based on the use of game mechanics, gamification aims at engaging students in their learning. However, there is not much research on the use of gamification in school settings, especially when it comes to foreign language learning; hence, we know little about to what extent this aim is actually fulfilled. This study intends to contribute to filling this research gap. Silva’s four dimensions of play – built from Henriot’s theory of play – are used as an analytical framework to study a teaching situation where a gamified application, developed for this research project, was introduced in a French-as-a-foreign-language class in a Norwegian upper secondary school. This article focuses on the students’ engagement in their learning activities and their control over the tasks. The interaction analysis of video data reveals that students are indeed showing expressions of playfulness and autonomy. The analysis also shows that the students are engaged in the activity and are voluntarily completing additional language tasks. These findings are promising for the use of gamified resources in foreign language learning classes.

Keywords: Gamification; game-based learning; playfulness; learner autonomy; foreign language learning

Several studies have investigated students’ perceptions toward technologies that add game elements to gamify learning content in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classroom. Yet, identifying what specific game elements in these technologies have a significant impact on students’ perceptions has not received much attention. This quasi-experimental study aimed at exploring the effect of Kahoot music on Moroccan students’ acceptance of Kahoot gamified quizzing in the EFL classroom. Two intact groups of secondary school students were recruited for this study. One group played Kahoot Gamified Quizzes without music, while the other group played the same quizzes with music. The results of the independent samples t-test showed that the students in both groups perceived Kahoot gamified quizzing positively and that music had no significant effect on their perceptions.

Learning nowadays requires innovative methods for the students to acquire the information essential in learning. Technology allows educators to reinvent the learning process suitable to the needs of the 21st century learners. Nowadays, vast amount of information and data is certainly used to support the needs of humans and even the needs of the community. Many of the social areas such as education has expanded its technological requirements to suit the needs of its clients. This study attempts to combine mobile into a game-based learning strategy enhancing the capacity of students to understand the OOP concepts and apply it with Java language. Further, the study is initiated by the researchers for the students to be acquainted with the latest technological advancement in relation to teaching and learning processes. The idea here is to provide a more playful and interactive learning experience to the students and give them a learning environment that they are all familiar.

The central thesis of this chapter is that emerging technologies such as digital games compel educators, educational researchers, and instructional designers to conceptualize learning, instruction, and assessment in fundamentally different ways. New technologies, including massively multi-player digital games offer new opportunities for learning and instruction; however, there is as yet insufficient evidence to support sustained impact on learning and instruction, apart from the case of military training based on large simulated war games. Technologically sophisticated design and assessment frameworks are likely to facilitate progress in this area, and that is our focus in this chapter. Specifically, we provide an integrated framework for assessing complex problem solving in digital game-based learning in the context of a longitudinal design-based research study.

Culture and game-based physics activities are anticipated to promote active and fun learning of physics concepts. The study features non-conventional design and development of physics activities using traditional Filipino games also known as "Laro ng Lahi". These non-conventional processes in the development comprise literature reviews, document analyses, and interviews. The eight developed "Laro ng Lahi"-based physics activities are presented as activity pack intended for highschool physics and introductory physics students. Key features of these activities include standard and synchronized rules and game mechanics, aligned and matched competencies in the K+12 science curriculum, inclination to student conceptual development, penchant for the preservation of Filipino culture and traditions, comprehensible texts and procedures and use of locally-available or indigenous materials. Results of the development study show that the "Laro ng Lahi"-based physics activities are content valid based on expert ratings (4.74 out of 5) with moderate to substantial agreement for the inter-rater reliability and an excellent overall reliability index (0.90) suggesting a good and standard supplementary and support material for classroom use and for a wider goal of promoting active physics learning-Physics in Action.

[Author's Note: Although the article focuses on Italian FL/L2, this practicum can be applied to ESL and all major languages in which the games I mention are localized]

Video games are an integral part of life for our students. Some commercial video games are multi-media realia that can be used to enhance language acquisition both in and outside the classroom. Compared to other digital realia, they add opportunities for language exploration: direct interaction and agency; critical thinking and problem-solving; and a detailed narrative. This article presents a practicum for their use. Evidence that utilizing communicative video games can be conducive to F/L2 acquisition is provided, particularly focusing on the use of Assassin’s Creed II and Heavy Rain. Then, technical advice and best practices related to gaming in F/L2 acquisition are offered. Discussion of the development of an intensive language & culture course for gamers concludes the article.

This article examines the use of both game-based learning (GBL) and gamification in tertiary education. This study focuses specifically on the use of games and/or simulations as well as familiarity with gamification strategies by communication faculty. Research questions concentrate on the rate, frequency, and usage of digital and non-digital games and/or simulations in communication courses, as well as instructor familiarity with gamification. A survey was constructed with questions emerging from the game-based learning and gamification literature. It was distributed to communication faculty at public institutions of higher education in a southern state. In this context, the author argues that while the term gamification is novel, the approach is not. Based on the results, current gamification strategies appear to be a repackaging of traditional instructional strategies.

The goal of this article is to provide a conceptual framework to better understand digital games in learning and creative contexts through the dimensions of play, design, and participation. This framework can be used as a guiding tool for the selection, implementation, and evaluation of game- based approaches in formal and informal educational settings, as well as a blueprint for making sense of playful learning and creativity in virtual worlds and technology-mediated environments. In essence, this article seeks to answer the question “What are digital games and how can we make sense of them for learning and creativity?” The proposed visual model and conceptual framework, here defined as Playful Constructivism, is grounded on the learning theories of Situated Cognition, Social Constructivism, and Constructionism, and draws from play and game studies, design-based learning, and affinity spaces research. This framework is not intended as the “ultimate” conceptualization of game-based learning, but rather as an agile tool that can guide scholars, practitioners, and students through the affordances, challenges, and opportunities of implementing and using digital games in learning and creative contexts.

Statement of the Problem:

Though chaos theory has been researched since the 1960s, it has only recently been applied in a limited way to education and the social sciences. Some research suggests that a problem inherent in education is the application of the scientific-deterministic model (the standard cause and effect/outcome model) underlying the philosophy guiding most schools. Some educators and researchers have concluded that this model imposes too much order on learning; restricting student and teacher possibilities for connections, limiting the flow of information between subject areas, stifling student and teacher curiosity, creativity and potential for growth. Of equal importance, is the problem that ideas and innovations are often introduced but have only limited local effects. Innovations do not rise to the top. The question is whether or not a new, more adaptive and emergent model might address this problem.

Gamification is an exploitation of game design elements and game mechanics in non-game scenarios. It can be used as a web based education tool to increase student engagement and motivation. According to World Federation of the Deaf (WFD) in addition to our past research with hundreds of Arab deaf-muted people along nine years, we reached a conclusion that most of them are undereducated or semi-literate. This is due to poor ways of communication with the society, and lack of means that support lifelong learning to them. Since, parity in life and self-learning systems are a right to everyone regardless of their ability. From this point, the aim of this project is to develop an e-learning system for teaching a difficult subject, such mathematics, to the Arab deaf students. Gamification technique will be followed and different gamification components will be included through the process of system development to motivate the deaf students. This framework is supported with an Arabic Sign Language (ArSL) acting avatar to support more clarity, interactivity and integration for the deaf-muted students. Therefore, the proposed framework will fulfill the psychological satisfaction needs of the intended users.

Wargaming has been part of military curricula for about 200 years since the introduction of Kriegsspiel, but it is still something of an art form. This thesis attempts to theorise the practice of military educational wargaming, and specifically to explore why such wargaming takes the form it does.

The thesis is limited to army educational wargaming for officers and officer cadets. Wargaming for analytical purposes, and political and strategic gaming, are excluded.  Instead, the focus is on army educational wargaming at the tactical level, which is arguably more comparable between countries. The research method combines an exploratory approach influenced by grounded theory with a comparative case study approach encompassing three successive levels of army officer education in five countries: Sweden, Germany, the United Kingdom, the United States and Japan.

The research indicates the central importance of individual game directors. This is particularly evident when wargaming forms evolve. The main concern of the individual game director is how to achieve instructor buy-in. This core category encompasses control, credibility and comfort. Three methods, or strategies, were discovered regarding how to achieve instructor buy-in. Those three strategies are: innovative active learning, simple standardising and control & veiling. This discovery contributes to new substantive theory, as it explains how specific army educational wargaming forms commence, evolve and are discontinued.

Since gamification has strengthened its place in education over the years, it is frequently preferred in
English as a Second Language learning. This study aims to investigate the literature on the effects of
gamification on students’ English learning as a second language and the tendency of students to use
games to learn English as a second language. This review contains a systematic review of published
articles about gamification in English as a Second Language learning for learners aged between
11-18 from 2013 to 2020. The study was designed according to the specifications of the PRISMA
2009 checklist. A combination of words related to gamification, game-based learning, English as a
Second Language, and secondary school was included as a search strategy. After selection, 10 research
articles written in English were reviewed. Their results indicated that the games enhance the fun,
raise students’ motivation, and boost their participation while helping their autonomous learning.
This review includes suggestions to support planning game-based English lessons.

This research explores the rationale behind the utilisation of electronic games in education. A qualitative research sheds light on the students’ opinions and perceptions toward the use of serious games in-class. Semi-structured, face-to-face interview sessions among secondary school students suggest that they are acquiring relevant academic knowledge and competences, as the reap motivational and emotional benefits from these learning games. The students reported that their engagement with these games has improved their critical thinking and helped them make evaluative decisions to solve problems. Generally, students were capable of developing their interpersonal skills as they have actively collaborated in teams. On the other hand, there were a few students who were not perceiving the usefulness and the ease of use of playing serious games at school. This study postulates that the research participants possessed different skill-sets as they exhibited different learning abilities. In conclusion, this paper opens-up some avenues for future research in this field of study.

Nondigital board games are being used to engage players and impact outcomes in health and medicine across diverse populations and contexts. This systematic review and meta-analysis describes and summarizes their impact based on randomized and nonrandomized controlled trials. An electronic search resulted in a review of n = 21 eligible studies. Sample sizes ranged from n = 17 to n = 3110 (n = 6554 total participants). A majority of the board game interventions focused on education to increase health-related knowledge and behaviors (76%, n = 16). Outcomes evaluated included self-efficacy, attitudes/beliefs, biological health indicators, social functioning , anxiety, and executive functioning, in addition to knowledge and behaviors. Using the Cochrane Collaboration tool for assessing bias, most studies (52%, n = 11) had an unclear risk of bias (33% [n = 7] had a high risk and 14% [n = 3] had a low risk). Statistical tests of publication bias were not significant. A random-effects meta-analysis showed a large average effect of board games on health-related knowledge (d* = 0.82, 95% confidence interval; CI [0.15–1.48]), a small-to-moderate effect on behaviors (d* = 0.33, 95% CI [0.16– 0.51]), and a small-to-moderate effect on biological health indicators (d* = 0.37, 95% CI [0.21–0.52]). The findings contribute to the literature on games and gamified approaches in healthcare. Future research efforts should aim for more consistent high scientific standards in their evaluation protocols and reporting method-ologies to provide a stronger evidence base.

Digital gaming applications can motivate and promote health awareness among adolescents thus can help in preventing obesity. This paper will specifically review some existing digital game applications in promoting healthy eating and physically active in helping to prevent obesity among young children and adolescents. The publications to be included in the review are being identified using relevant keywords This paper will gather and analyse the elements of the learning objectives of the games and the evaluations carried out on the existing games. The game types and mechanics, the objectives related to learning and the possible categorisation of the games are examined. From the findings, all the developed games were received positive feedback and have potential to motivate students to live healthily. Digital game-based learning reveals the potential in offering knowledge gain for young children and adolescents in promoting good health

Recently, content-based language teaching has emerged as a successful
response to the increasing challenges that language departments in higher education
face. This is a case study. The hybrid format enabled the creation of a content-based
intensive foreign language video game-based course. Flipping the classroom allowed
learners to spend more time and focus their attention on exploring the spoken language
through the digital gaming realia and communication. It also encouraged independent
language exploration. Pilot data show that students attained the desired level, autonomous
learning continued, and less stress was involved.