Designing an Educational Game: Case Study of ’Europe 2045’

Abstract. This paper presents a theoretical framework, which has been adopted in designing an on-line multi-player strategy game Europe 2045. Europe 2045 is an educational tool for high school social science courses, aimed at familiar-izing students with political, economic, and social issues in contemporary Europe. Apart from learning facts, players develop a range of key skills: discus-sion ability, negotiation, teamwork, and group decision-making. The presented theoretical framework is based on a critical analysis of crucial issues, which seem to determine the success or failure of development and implementation of an educational game in the formal school environment. It demonstrates key ap-proaches the authors of Europe 2045 have adopted in order to overcome already known problems related to game-based learning. On a general level this paper discusses issues related to formal fact learning in educational systems and the possible role of educational games in enhancing these systems

Educational games and simulations at school: the high-school students’ experiences and attitudes: A qualitative study

Educational computer games are increasingly being used in the formal schooling system; however, it is still largely unknown which game elements (if any) have most influential effect on learning. Here, we present results that suggest that role-playing, discussions, real-world grounding and storytelling can be important game elements for increasing students’ engagement during interfacing with a game. In addition, we present results indicating that emotional graphs are a useful tool for identifying strong and/or weak aspects of a game and assessing student’s mood development during playing the game. All these results were gained during focus group discussions we conducted as a part of a complex experiment taking place at three high-schools in the Czech Republic on 372 subjects during 2011. The focus groups, results of which are presented in this paper, involved 74 students (M=37, F=37). The whole experiment is actually an exploratory study to a broader consecutive research on engagement as a variable influencing learning process and outcomes and it is theoretically grounded in Moreno & Mayer’s Cognitive-affective theory of learning with media. The exploratory study had a comparative design, it combined various quantitative and qualitative measures and it utilized three educational games: Orbis Pictus Bestialis (on the topic of animal training); Bird Breeder (genetics heredity); and Europe 2045 (political, economic, and social issues of the EU)

Educational games and simulations at school: the high-school students’ experiences and attitudes: A qualitative study

Educational computer games are increasingly being used in the formal schooling system; however, it is still largely unknown which game elements (if any) have most influential effect on learning. Here, we present results that suggest that role-playing, discussions, real-world grounding and storytelling can be important game elements for increasing students’ engagement during interfacing with a game. In addition, we present results indicating that emotional graphs are a useful tool for identifying strong and/or weak aspects of a game and assessing student’s mood development during playing the game. All these results were gained during focus group discussions we conducted as a part of a complex experiment taking place at three high-schools in the Czech Republic on 372 subjects during 2011. The focus groups, results of which are presented in this paper, involved 74 students (M=37, F=37). The whole experiment is actually an exploratory study to a broader consecutive research on engagement as a variable influencing learning process and outcomes and it is theoretically grounded in Moreno & Mayer’s Cognitive-affective theory of learning with media. The exploratory study had a comparative design, it combined various quantitative and qualitative measures and it utilized three educational games: Orbis Pictus Bestialis (on the topic of animal training); Bird Breeder (genetics heredity); and Europe 2045 (political, economic, and social issues of the EU)

'I play, therefore I learn?' Measuring the Evolution of Perceived Learning and Game Experience in the Design Flow of a Serious Game

This article explores how the serious game Poverty Is Not a Game (PING) is experienced by high school students in its subsequent design stages. We first focus on the multifaceted construct of game experience and how it is related to serious games. To measure game experience we use the Game Experience Questionnaire and add a perceived learning scale to account for the specificity of serious games in a classroom. Next, the data obtained from testing PING in 22 classrooms are analyzed. Results suggest that the evolution in the different design stages of the game is not just an issue of game experience, but also of usability. Furthermore, little evidence is found indicating that the learning experience changed positively during the different test phases. However, findings show a strong effect of the game experience on perceived learning while the game experience also varies significantly between different classrooms

Higher Sustainability of Mental Models Acquired from a Digital Game in Comparison with a Live Action Role-playing Game and a Traditional Lecture

This article analyses the effectivity of teaching EU law using various educational media. It specifically explores the differences between, and sustainability of, mental models constructed within three various educational environments: (1) a digital game played on PCs, (2) a non-digital role-playing game, and (3) a traditional lecture with discussions. We conducted a laboratory experiment, in which participants (253 high school students, M = 112, F = 141, mean age 16.5) studied EU laws, institutions, and politics in the three above-mentioned environments. We evaluated and compared mental models participants constructed through content analysis of the concept maps they drew immediately after the experiment and others made one month later. Within the analysis, we studied content, architecture, and changes in mental models over time. The resulting data offer unique insight into the process of mental models creation and sustainability thereof within game-based learning; particularly, when using a digital game. Digital game-based learners’ concept maps differed in comparison with those of the educational role-playing and traditional lecture groups; the students tended to keep less altered mental models in their long-term memory: even after the one month period. The results suggest that a digital game-based learning environment could be more successful in mental model retention and for efficacy of future recall; particularly, when dealing with complex phenomena like EU law

Spartan Daily, September 1, 1995

Volume 105, Issue 3https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/spartandaily/8718/thumbnail.jp

A Numerical Analysis of Optimal Extraction and Trade of Oil under Climate Policy

We introduce endogenous investments for increasing conventional and non-conventional oil extraction capacity in the integrated assessment model WITCH. The international price of oil emerges as the Nash equilibrium of a non-cooperative game. When carbon emissions are not constrained, oil is used throughout the century, with unconventional oil taking over conventional oil from mid-century onward. When carbon emissions are constrained, oil consumption drops dramatically and the oil price is lower than in the BaU. Unconventional oil is not extracted. Regional imbalances in the distribution of stabilisation costs are magnified and the oil-exporting countries bear, on average, costs three times larger than in previous estimates.Climate Policy, Integrated Assessment, Oil Production, Oil Revenues, Oil Trade

Investments and Financial Flows Induced by Climate Mitigation Policies

In this paper we use the hybrid integrated model WITCH to quantify and analyze the investments and financial flows stimulated by a climate policy to stabilize Greenhouse Gases concentrations at 550ppm CO2-eq at the end of the century. We focus on investments to decarbonize the power sector and on investments in knowledge creation. We examine the financial flows associated with the carbon market and the implications for the international trade of oil. Criticalities in investment requirements will emerge when coal power plants with carbon capture and sequestration and nuclear power plants are deployed around 2020-2040, both in high and low income regions. Investments in energy related R&D increase sharply and might cause stress in the short term. However, the transition to a low-carbon world, although costly, appears to be manageable from a financial point of view. In particular, R&D financial needs can easily be accommodated using revenues from the carbon market, which is expected to eventually become more important than the oil market in terms of traded value.Climate Change, Mitigation, Carbon Finance, Emission Trading, Energy Investments

Optimal Energy Investment and R&D Strategies to Stabilise Greenhouse Gas Atmospheric Concentrations

The stabilisation of GHG atmospheric concentrations at levels expected to prevent dangerous climate change has become an important, global, long-term objective. It is therefore crucial to identify a cost-effective way to achieve this objective. In this paper we use WITCH, a hybrid climate-energy-economy model, to obtain a quantitative assessment of some cost-effective strategies that stabilise CO2 concentrations at 550 or 450 ppm. In particular, this paper analyses the energy investment and R&D policies that optimally achieve these two GHG stabilisation targets (i.e. the future optimal energy mix consistent with the stabilisation of GHG atmospheric concentrations at 550 and 450 ppm). Given that the model accounts for interdependencies and spillovers across 12 regions of the world, optimal strategies are the outcome of a dynamic game through which inefficiency costs induced by global strategic interactions can be assessed. Therefore, our results are somehow different from previous analyses of GHG stabilisation policies, where a central planner or a single global economy are usually assumed. In particular, the effects of free-riding incentives in reducing emissions and in investing in R&D are taken into account. Technical change being endogenous in WITCH, this paper also provides an assessment of the implications of technological evolution in the energy sector of different stabilisation scenarios. Finally, this paper quantifies the net costs of stabilising GHG concentrations at different levels, for different allocations of permits and for different technological scenarios. In each case, the optimal long-term investment strategies for all available energy technologies are determined. The case of an unknown backstop energy technology is also analysed.climate policy, energy R&D, investments, stabilisation costs

Spartan Daily, January 27, 1995

Volume 104, Issue 2https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/spartandaily/8647/thumbnail.jp