Design patterns for learning games

Kelle, S., Klemke, R., & Specht, M. (2011). Design patterns for learning games. International Journal Technology Enhanced Learning, 3(6), 555–569. Geneva: Inderscience.This article concerns the design of self-contained digital games for the life-long learning context. Although the potential of games for teaching and learning is undisputed, two main barriers hamper its wide introduction. First, the design of such games tends to be complex, laborious and costly. Second, the requirements for a sensible game do not necessarily coincide with the requirements for effective learning. To solve this problem, we propose a methodology to the design of learning games by using game design patterns and matching these with corresponding learning functions, which is expected to reduce design effort and help determining the right balance between game elements and learning. First empirical results indicate that such a methodology actually can work

Game Design Patterns for Learning

Kelle, S. (2012). Game Design Patterns for Learning. November, 9, 2012, Heerlen, The Netherlands: Open Universiteit in the Netherlands, CELSTEC. Aachen: Shaker Verlag.What do learning games consist of? How to design learning games and what to keep in mind? How to balance educational objectives with good gameplay? What to do if you are a game designer and you want to use e-learning standards for your game? And what to do if you are an instructional designer and you are in desperate need to gamify your content? This publication aims at illuminating these questions, presenting results from a 4 year long PhD project run at CELSTEC, the Center of Learning Sciences and Technologies at the Open University of The Netherlands. Sebastian Kelle is a multidisciplinary researcher, currently building up a new center for higher education didactics at Stuttgart Media University.EU ICOPER Projec

Games-Based Online Course Design: Prototype of Gamification for Online Tutors

With the ubiquity of interactive games in students’ lives and the rise of gamified experiences across the web and mobile applications, online tutors and practitioners of technology enhanced learning have been inspired to incorporate games-based elements. This paper introduces a prototype of an online application that helps online tutors to embed gaming to design their online course. We developed a framework for online course leaders which explains how Wikis (as an online learning platform) can support students’ learning, interaction, and sharing of knowledge in the online community. We are presenting a metaphor for the course design in a gameboard like “snakes and ladders”. This metaphoric game enables online tutors to elaborate online interaction among their students. The game methodological design approach for this metaphoric game merges different pedagogical theories such as (socio-constructivism) with practice in online learning (Wiki) and gives the online tutor an idea about what theory/approach is used when selecting any technological tool or moving forward in the game. This framework could help tutors, educational institutions and students to use a common language with students to describe their teaching and learning activities. Primarily, it helps tutors to make decisions about learning activities, facilitate, guide and support students’ communication and collaboration

MASELTOV Deliverable D7.1.1: Incidental Learning Framework

This is the first steps towards creating an ‘Incidental learning framework’, and it is a work in progress. It is intended that the Incidental learning framework will facilitate the creation of technology rich learning opportunities for immigrants within cities. The framework will be a descriptive mechanism that permits analysis, a generative tool to support software system design, and it will facilitate the communication of learning design ideas both visually and textually. The framework focuses on incidental learning i.e. learning that is spontaneous and unplanned, in the knowledge domains of interest to the MASELTOV project including health care, culture, and language and information access. However, it provides links and triggers to structured and reflective learning to back up and deepen learning that happens incidentally. This document describes the initial version of the Incidental Learning Framework, presents a few examples of its use, and describes some conclusions and recommendations for work towards the next version of the framework including • Using the framework to develop it, • Extending the literature review, • Gathering evidence about immigrants day-to-day lives, • Running design workshop(s) using the framework

USING SERIOUS GAMES DESIGNED THROUGH THE GAME ELC+ FRAMEWORK TO ENHANCE DEEP LEARNING IN HUMAN RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT

The traditional method of learning has been widely criticised for its limitations and inflexibility to application in non-educational settings. These observations about the traditional modes of learning have necessitated the contemplation and discovery of new approaches embracing technological tools that advances better learning experiences. Hence, new technological innovations, such as Stronger Game or Serious Games (SGs) have been embraced as more effective methods of achieving deep learning. The application of serious game has indeed, gained traction in both the formal educational and human resource (HR) settings, especially for employees’ training and development. Thus, the core question of this PhD research is hinged on whether the SGs are more effective in creating deep learning in adult learners, compared to the more traditional teaching methods. To respond to this query, the study examines the traditional and SGs learning approaches, in order to ascertain which is more effective in creating deep learning in adults, in addition to achieving human resource training and development. To guide the design and development of SGs to support adult DL, this research proposes a pedagogical framework referred to as the Game ELC+ framework that comprises four learning theories namely: The Game (Elements) within the Yu Kai Chou's Octalysis Framework; Bloom Taxonomy’s Player (Learning) Levels; (Cognitive) Theory of Multimedia Learning; and the Ruskov’s four evidence of Deep Learning (+). This framework provides the standard for measuring DL in the design of SGs. The research instruments developed include a traditional andragogical test which uses e-Learning materials containing ten different learning scenarios in the context of workplace HR scenarios, and a digital Serious Game using exactly the same content and scenarios with the traditional andragogical test. ANOVA was utilized as the data analytical approach for comparing the mean score of learners using serious games and the tradition eLearning platforms. The study hypothesised that deep learning can be achieved through the SGs and that it is more effective than the traditional andragogy. It further asserts that participants who used the SGs achieved a higher learning outcome than participants in traditional process. Participant observation during the testing phase suggests that the participants interacting with the SGs demonstrated high level of engagement and curiosity, when compared to participants who used the traditional eLearning platform. The study findings validate the hypotheses. By implication, the SGs designed according to the Game ELC+ framework results in improved learning outcomes. In summary, the findings claim that incorporating SG elements in HR training and development can improve professional practices and mitigate some of the challenges experienced by human resource in the traditional learning environment

Multimodal teaching, learning and training in virtual reality: a review and case study

It is becoming increasingly prevalent in digital learning research to encompass an array of different meanings, spaces, processes, and teaching strategies for discerning a global perspective on constructing the student learning experience. Multimodality is an emergent phenomenon that may influence how digital learning is designed, especially when employed in highly interactive and immersive learning environments such as Virtual Reality (VR). VR environments may aid students' efforts to be active learners through consciously attending to, and reflecting on, critique leveraging reflexivity and novel meaning-making most likely to lead to a conceptual change. This paper employs eleven industrial case-studies to highlight the application of multimodal VR-based teaching and training as a pedagogically rich strategy that may be designed, mapped and visualized through distinct VR-design elements and features. The outcomes of the use cases contribute to discern in-VR multimodal teaching as an emerging discourse that couples system design-based paradigms with embodied, situated and reflective praxis in spatial, emotional and temporal VR learning environments

MASELTOV Deliverable Report 7.1.2: Incidental Learning Framework

This document describes progress in the development of an ‘Incidental Learning Framework’, building on the work reported in Deliverable D7.1.1, submitted July 2012. The goal of the Incidental Learning Framework (ILF) is to facilitate the creation of technology rich learning opportunities for immigrants within cities. The framework is a descriptive mechanism that permits analysis, and a generative tool to support software system design, and it facilitates the communication of learning design ideas both visually and textually. The framework focuses on incidental learning i.e. learning that is spontaneous and unplanned, in the knowledge domains of interest to the MASELTOV project including health care, culture, and language and information access. Its use should encourage links and triggers to structured and reflective learning to back up and deepen learning that happens incidentally. This document describes the Incidental Learning Framework developed for the MASELTOV project, presents a examples of its use, and describes some conclusions and recommendations for future work - Introduction - Purpose of the framework - Challenges with ILF from its initial conception - Work carried out developing ILF for use in the project --Literature --Alternative visualisations --Focus workshops in OU --Partner testing --Template for testing --Examples of the partners’ testing their tools against the template -Reporting on incidental learning reflections with language learning and serious games - Conclusions and recommendations It should be noted that this document is a high level review, identifying significant literature and the on-going development of the framework through dialogue with educational experts and MASELTOV partners. This document offers recommendations therefore in general terms. Decisions about the specific implementation of the learner’s journey as framed by an incidental learning approach will be made in coordination with technical partners as the dialogue progresses