Title: The Effectiveness of Game-Based Learning
Author Name: Ashley Kinsey
Selected Case (Published Article): (2020) Game On: Exploring the Effectiveness of Game-based Learning, Planning Practice & Research
1. Introduction
I chose to do a case study on games-based learning in education because as a teacher, myself in an elementary setting; I frequently have to incorporate game-based learning activities within my instruction. With e-learning becoming more popular today, it opens more opportunities for instructors to find and create more engaging activities for learners to gain and remain interested in learning. Using sites and applications such as Kahoot, Quizizz, and virtual escape rooms, they provide more interactive and competitive learning opportunities for learners. I will be reviewing the article, Game On: Exploring the Effectiveness of Game-based Learning written by Maxwell Hartt. The article discusses the research conducted to determine if and how effective game-based learning is in a college setting.
2. Overview of the Case
In this case study. Matthew Hartt conducted his own study of how the utilization of educational games in k-12 settings could be beneficial and create both an intrinsic and extrinsic motivation in learners through the course of their learning experience. According to the article, Promoting Active Learning: Strategies for the College Classroom, written in 1993 by C. Meyers and T. Jones understood that in a classroom setting, the learners needed to be engaged in active learning activities in order to promote their own desire and motivation to learn; however, active learning may not always be enough for learners, especially given the age range and learning style of each learner. Therefore, this brought about the idea of game-based instruction which provides the utilization of interactive games that motivates learners to engage in classroom activities.
Two interactive games that Hartt identifies are The Sims and Farmville. In The Sims game, the player is in control of the events that take place to their character, which allows for autonomy or the freedom to be able to make one’s own decisions without the governing opinion of an external factor. Farmville allows the players to practice social interaction with other players, providing both autonomy and relatedness, since the players can choose what happens on their “farm” and who they are interacting with as well as being able to engage in similar activities as others to play the game as well.
There are four key elements to game-based instruction (C. Tu, 2014). Those four key elements are goal setting, player engagement, environment building, and progressive design. As discussed in Trends and Issues in Instructional Design and Technology, Chapter 9, Reiser discusses theses key components in a classroom or learning environment as well by acknowledging the that in order to increase the learner’s motivation and volition, there has to be an objective or goal for what the learners are expected to gain from the course. The same would go for a game-based instruction. What is the objective of the game and how can it enhance a player’s understanding of the concept being taught.
The second part is how will it gain the player’s engagement as well as be able to keep the player engaged to want to keep playing. The third component is the environment building or how can the game help to promote positive social and interactive skills between players so that it does not create a haste environment in the classroom nor discourage the learners too much to where he or she may begin to feel unmotivated. Finally, the fourth concept is the progressive design of the game itself. This is how the game will have to go under consistent development within its design to remain updated with the changes and progression of technology. There are some non-technological games as well that have had to go through progressive design as well such as monopoly and Uno. Monopoly being a game in which it can teach about money management and economics as well. Game-based learning has to go through a cyclical process to provide consistent and a more accurate sense of motivation, action, and feedback to the learners. Meaning since the audience, goals, and resources are always changing, so will the designs of the games as well.
3. Solutions Implemented
The goal of Hartt’s study was to determine how effective game-based techniques improve learners’ motivation, engagement, and team building skills in a social, learning environment. He completed two studies in an undergraduate course, Introduction to Planning Analysis. He conducted the study using two different teaching methods. The first being a traditional learning style and the second was game based. He gathered student feedback through an online questionnaire and semi-structured interviews. To create their framework, they first began to select the specific lectures where they identified two different topics with similar or close pedagogical outcomes and student perceptions. They based their decisions by reviewing and analyzing the courses, students’ grades and performance, as well as making sure that the topics could stand independent from the others in the course.
Study 1: Traditional Learning
This lecture was an introduction to regression-based population forecast that had three intended learning outcomes that students should be able to do by the end of the course:
- Explain the regression-based forecast method,
- Calculate simple forecasts using linear regression,
- Explain how regression-based forecasts inform the planning process.
The students had to depend on the instructor-led lecturing and questions that explained the conceptual underpinnings of the topic, were introduced to multiple examples, and provided with a set of steps to conduct simple linear regression.
Study 2: Game-Based
This course was an introduction to cohort-based population forecasts and the intended learning outcomes of the lecture were for the students to be able to:
- Explain the cohort-based forecast method,
- Calculate simple forecasts using cohorts and changing demographic factors,
- Explain how cohort-based forecasts inform the planning process.
To do this, the students participated in The Game of a Lifetime, which was developed specifically for the course and students were able to actively demonstrate different demographic processes (births, migration, deaths) that would impact a select population.
As mentioned in the section above, both relatedness and autonomy were both prompted in this game as the students were organized into groups but were able to control their own progress through individual gameplay. “The goal of the game was for students to live as long as possible and birth as many children as possible,” (Hartt, 2020)
In their groups, the students were able to build game pieces out of paper and progressed through cohort life cycles represented by progressive stages on a game board shown in the figure below. At every turn, they had to face one of the four ‘random’ life events:
- Survive
- Birth
- Migration
- Death
If they were to die, they could go to the front of the class and analyze the demographic changes occurring in as well as between the groups. If they had a child, they could create a new game piece and enter it into the game. If they survive, they would ‘age’ five years and move along through the game. If they immigrated, they’d move their entire ‘family’ to a new assigned group and would place their game pieces on the new game board. Each group represented a country such as France, Germany, and Angola. So, their likelihood of events had to reflect real life events in their ‘country’.
4. Outcomes
For the study, 19 out of 60 students fully completed the questionnaire, which resulted in a 30% response rate and four students voluntarily went through the semi-structed interview. The questionnaire was organized into four sections:
- About you- a set of questions regarding general questions about the students,
- About the lecture,
- Working together,
- Opportunities
The students answered the questions using a 9-point Likert scale by agreeing or disagreeing with each given statement. “These questions were asked to gauge the study habits, self-confidence and overall perspective of the students’ own abilities. The subsequent sections were each designed to measure various aspects of the teaching and learning experience. This included questions regarding the students’ perceptions of the clarity, organization and effectiveness of the lecture, effectiveness of peer-instruction and interaction, and the opportunity to engage critically with the material,” (Hartt, 2020).
Summary of planning student responses to online questionnaire
5. Implications
After the study, Hartt’s and his team’s findings highlighted the potential for game-based learning in planning education. It opens the door for further research into student perceptions of game-based learning and the development of non-technical game-based learning activities. Both formative and summative assessment can be done to provide further quantitative evidence and data, Comparisons across a variety of courses could provide evidence of how effective game-based learning is across multiple levels to shed light on the benefits of game-based learning in different settings.
References
Meyers, C., & Jones, T. B. (1993) Promoting Active Learning: Strategies for the College Classroom, (San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass). [Google Scholar]
Reiser, R., & Dempsey, J. (2014). Trends and Issues in Instructional Design and Technology (4th ed., pp. 77-86). Pearson.
Tu, C.-H., Sujo-Montes, L. E., & Yen, C.-J. (19 2014) Gamification for learning, in: R. Papa (Ed) Media Rich Instruction, pp. 203–217 (Cham, Switzerland: Springer). [Google Scholar]
Hartt, M., Hosseini, H., & Mostafapour, M. (2020). Planning Education. Game On: Exploring the Effectiveness of Game-Based Learning. https://doi.org/10.1080/02697459.2020.1778859