FA2022: Game-Based Learning in K-12 Education (Monica Neal)

Title:  A Microworld-Based Role-Playing Game Approach – Is it a more effective approach for teaching math than a technology-enhanced one? 

Author Name:  Monica L. Neal, M.Ed.

Selected Case (Published Article): 

Wang, S. Y., Chang, S. C., Hwang, G. J., & Chen, P. Y. (2018). A microworld-based role-playing game development approach to engaging students in interactive, enjoyable, and effective mathematics learning. Interactive Learning Environments, 26(3), 411-423. https://doi.org/10.1080/10494820.2017.1337038

1. Introduction

Picture it!  It’s 1974 and a new game has burst on the scene.  The game is Dungeons and Dragons.  It’s one of the first popular tabletop role-playing games on the market.  Each player creates a character, who then explores the worlds, earning points and power as they go along.  Unfortunately, my parents never allowed me to play the game, so I was stuck brushing plaque off of giant teeth in my Tooth Invaders game on my Commodore 64.  What I didn’t know then is how popular role-playing games will become in my generation and those to come.  

Role-playing games (RPG) have been around for decades.  Now you can set aside the antiquated tabletop games and submerge yourself into beautiful, well-designed worlds.  RPG are beloved because of the varying styles of play that allow players to choose who they want to be while they embark on quests and adventures in a virtual world.  Popular games like Minecraft, Prodigy (Math), Pokemon, and older games like Dungeons and Dragons, MathQuest, and The Legend of Zelda continue to intrigue the minds of both adolescents and adults alike.  

Research shows that children and young adults commit a lot of time and attention to gaming, whether it’s on a computer, a console or a mobile device.  According to Boston Children’s Hospital Digital Wellness Lab, the statistics for average game usage are as follows:

  • Young children (ages 5 to 8) spend 19 minutes per day playing computer or console games, and 21 minutes playing mobile games.
  • Tweens (ages 8 to 12) spend 55 minutes per day playing computer or console games, and 34 minutes playing mobile games.
  • Teens ages thirteen to eighteen spend 69 minutes per day playing computer or console games, and 27 minutes playing mobile games.

For this reason, video game use in educational settings has grown considerably over the years.  This is apparent in the sheer number of educational platforms, game types, published books, and research focused on it.  Part of our job as educators is to tap into kids’ passions and current trends to engage them in learning.  

For this blog, I am focusing on educational gaming in the mathematics classroom.  As an elementary educator and Math Educator Coach, I have a vested interest in the research surrounding gaming in math.  It is well documented some of the challenges of traditional methods for teaching math:  low motivation to learn, low achievement, and limited retention of learning.  According to Wang, Chang, Hwang and Chen (2017), game-based learning has been recognized as a potential approach to addressing these issues.  The hope is that playing educational video games will motivate and engage students in the learning process. “This increase in motivation is assumed to lead to higher invested mental effort, to more intentionally processing of information, and thus to more enjoyable and increased learning” (Alessi & Trollip, 2001; Vogel et al., 2006).

2. Overview of the Case

With the advancements of technology and game creation, along with the increase in asynchronous learning, integrating games into the learning setting has become more the norm, especially in the area of mathematics.  This integration looks different depending on the approach of the teacher. Some educators “gamify” lessons and activities to make them more interesting (gamification).  Gamification is “the addition of game elements to non-game activities.”  The role of gamification is to support student learning (Cunha et al, 2019) Teachers still teach content in the same way they always have but add games to make it more interesting.  For example, in the aforementioned game of Prodigy, students encounter math problems that are very similar in appearance and format to those presented in their workbooks or textbooks. It’s just a more fun and engaging way to “practice” the content. Game-based learning, more specifically role-playing game-based learning, immerses students in engaging environments where they learn content and apply their math knowledge as they embark on challenging quests as their chosen character, move from level to level, gain rewards and have fun doing it.  The key difference – game-based learning focuses on achieving objectives (Tao et al, 2019).

The researchers in this case study considered other findings from studies on the topic of role-playing game-based learning and decided to address what many researchers have identified as a missing gap:  aligning the effectiveness of educational games with learning outcomes that promote higher order thinking, practical problem solving and subsequently increased performance.  This study focused on developing a contextual math learning environment for an elementary unit on speed to help students understand the concept and application of speed through a microworld approach.  The purpose is to evaluate the proposed approach, the student’s learning performances, and their learning motivations.

What is a microworld? You may ask.  It is a computer-simulated learning system that provides problem scenarios with interactive manipulation of the environment.  Previous studies have concluded that a micro-world learning system for elementary math may reduce student’s cognitive load, enhance learning engagement, and develop cognitive skills.  This study focuses on the development of a micro-world gaming approach learning system, “Speedy World”, that would increase student’s motivation to learn and enhance learning performance for a unit on speed.

To determine the effectiveness of the “Speedy World” approach, an experiment was conducted in an elementary school in Taiwan.  One hundred seven (107) sixth graders from 2 classes were divided into 1 experimental group and 1 control group.  The experimental group (52 students) were assigned the micro-world gaming learning activities, while the control group (57 students) learned with the conventional technology enhanced (gamification) learning approach.  Students knew which group they were in and could opt out of the study if they chose.

3. Solutions Implemented

Which approach will most effectively show an increase in student performance, as well as an increase in student motivation to learn?  The answer: a well-designed, objective aligned one.  This study proposes that a role-playing game-based development approach will be the solution.  The approach aims to show growth through engagement, practical application of knowledge and content in problem solving situations, and ease of use.

The 107 sixth grade students at an elementary school in Taiwan are beginning a math unit on speed.  Fifty-two students are assigned to the experimental group and 57 are in the control group.  Before the learning activity, both groups participated in an 80-minute lesson on speed.  Afterwards, they took a pre-test and completed a pre-questionnaire of learning motivation (using the 6-point Likert rating scale). The teacher then spent 40 minutes orientating both groups about the learning activity, including learning tasks and the “Speedy World”.  After the introduction, the students started work on the 80-minute learning activity. The experimental group learned with Speedy World micro-world gaming approach.  The control group learned with the conventional technology-enhanced learning approach, where they were guided by the teacher to solve mathematical problems presented in an online learning system.  Finally, both groups of students took a post-test and a post-questionnaire of learning motivation and technology acceptance.

4. Outcomes

Analysis of Learning Achievement:  In order to investigate the impact of the microworld-based role-playing game on student learning achievement, an analysis was employed to compare the post-test scores of the experimental group with those of the control group.  The results showed that students who learned with the microworld-based role-playing game had significantly better learning achievement than those who learned with the conventional technology-enhanced approach.

Analysis of Learning Motivations:  One of the aims of the study was to see if student motivation for learning mathematics was enhanced based on using the microworld-based role-playing game.  Analysis found that the learning motivation of the experimental group was significantly higher than that of the control group.  This result implies that the microworld-based role-playing learning approach significantly improved the student’s learning motivation when compared with the conventional technology-enhanced approach

Analysis of Technology Acceptance:  This last category is used to gauge how well students enjoyed interacting with the technology:  ease of use and perceived usefulness.  The results revealed that students learning in the microworld-based role-playing learning approach had significantly higher technology acceptance scores than those in the conventional technology-enhanced approach.

5. Implications

“Speedy World”, a micro-world role-playing based gaming program was created for this study.  Student’s learning achievement, learning motivation, and technology acceptance were analyzed for the “Speed” unit in a 6th grade mathematics class.  The outcomes reflected significantly higher results for the group of students using the micro-world role-playing gaming approach in all three areas (achievement, motivation, tech acceptance) when compared to the group of students who used the conventional technology-enhanced approach. These experimental results show that the micro-world role-playing gaming approach can “significantly advance” student’s learning and achievement…and they love the technology involved doing it.

Students learning in the micro-world role-playing gaming environment outperformed their counterparts in learning achievement.  It can be inferred that when students engage in an interactive digital game-based learning environment, they are more willing to problem solve which invokes higher level thinking which in turn results in better performance.  This finding is consistent with several previous studies that came to the same or a similar conclusion.  

Teaching methods that retain conventional elements for math instruction – such as teacher-centeredness and drill and practice activities – only encourage students to be passive learners. As proven in this study, the conventional approach to teaching mathematics puts students at a deficit in both achievement and motivation when compared to their counterparts who experience math in a game-based (specifically role-playing) learning approach.   As students evolve, technology advances, and society changes, teaching methods have to adjust.  With that understanding, it is important that the game-based role-playing learning approach in math continues to be explored if we, as educators, want to seriously impact the quality of teaching and learning of mathematics.

Linked Research and Other Informational Resources

C. A. Cunha, L. P. Barraqui and S. A. A. de Freitas, “Evaluating the use of gamification in mathematics learning in primary school children,” 2018 IEEE Frontiers in Education Conference (FIE), 2018, pp. 1-4, doi: 10.1109/FIE.2018.8658950.  Evaluating the use of gamification in mathematics learning in primary school children | IEEE Conference Publication | IEEE Xplore

Tao, F. Wang and X. Li, “A Visualized Analysis of Game-Based Learning Research from 2013 to 2017,” 2018 International Joint Conference on Information, Media and Engineering (ICIME), 2018, pp. 192-196, doi: 10.1109/ICIME.2018.00047.  A Visualized Analysis of Game-Based Learning Research from 2013 to 2017 | IEEE Conference Publication | IEEE Xplore

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