Influence of Belief in a Just World on Knowledge in Game-based Learning

The belief in a just world can have an influence on the learning success of students because students who believe in a just world are willing to invest more time in learning. Previous studies have already shown that people who believe in a just world achieve better grades. However, measuring learning success using a single indicator does not provide sufficient information, because learning success depends on many factors (e.g. prior knowledge). For this reason, the influence of belief in a just world on objective and subjective knowledge changes is measured for a game-based learning application in this study with an online survey. The results of the study show that the students achieve subjective and objective knowledge gains. Nevertheless, not many significant correlations could be identified between the students’ belief in a just world and objective or subjective knowledge changes. These results contradict previous studies that reduced the measurement of learning success to a single indicator

Does epistemology matter for educational practice?

Lankshear, Peters & Knobel (2000) suggest that 'The digital age is throwing many of our educational practices and emphases and their underlying epistemological assumptions, beliefs, concepts and substantive theories into doubt'. In particular, because of new technology, educational philosophers must reconsider 'epistemological matters in relation to educational theory and practice' as a matter of 'very high priority'. Of course, philosophers need no excuse at all to reconsider anything; but since Lankshear, Peters & Knobel argue forcefully that 'key elements of the epistemological model that has underpinned education throughout the modern-industrial era' are brought into question by the fact of a 'digital age where more and more of our time, purposes and energies are invested in activities involving new communications and information technologies', it is perhaps worth asking whether the advent of new technology can, in itself, have profound implications for epistemology, and' more fundamentally – how exactly does epistemology 'underpin' or 'underlie' educational practice? In what follows, the main practical educational questions that I have chosen to consider with respect to issues of epistemology are: – What should be taught? – How should it be taught? – How can one tell what has been learned? This paper is in four parts. The first part outlines the case made by Lankshear, Peters & Knobel that traditional versions of epistemology must be replaced by a post-modern social epistemology because of changed social practices brought about by new technology; and that educational practice must consequently be reconsidered. The second part of the paper considers some of the claims made about the influences of technology on contemporary knowledge practices. The third part of the paper suggests that the argument offered by Lankshear, Peters & Knobel works as a whole if 'epistemology' is identified with 'accounts of knowledge practices'. The final part considers whether there may be more to epistemology than just social epistemology

Mathematical models of games of chance: Epistemological taxonomy and potential in problem-gambling research

Games of chance are developed in their physical consumer-ready form on the basis of mathematical models, which stand as the premises of their existence and represent their physical processes. There is a prevalence of statistical and probabilistic models in the interest of all parties involved in the study of gambling – researchers, game producers and operators, and players – while functional models are of interest more to math-inclined players than problem-gambling researchers. In this paper I present a structural analysis of the knowledge attached to mathematical models of games of chance and the act of modeling, arguing that such knowledge holds potential in the prevention and cognitive treatment of excessive gambling, and I propose further research in this direction

Cultural Influences in Probabilistic Thinking

Concerns about students' difficulties in statistics and probability and a lack of research in this area outside of western countries led to a case study which explored form five (14 to 16 year olds) students' ideas in this area. The study focussed on probability, descriptive statistics and graphical representations. This paper presents and discusses the ways in which students made sense of probability constructs (equally likely and proportional reasoning) obtained from the individual interviews. The findings were interpreted in relation to cultural perspective. The findings revealed that many of the students used strategies based on cultural experiences (beliefs, everyday and school experiences) and intuitive strategies. While the results of the study confirm a number of findings of other researchers, the findings go beyond those discussed in the literature. The use of beliefs, everyday and school experiences was considerably more common than that discussed in literature. The paper concludes by suggesting some implications for teachers and researchers

Experiencing Poverty in an Online Simulation: Effects on Players’ Beliefs, Attitudes and Behaviors about Poverty

Digital simulations are increasingly used to educate about the causes and effects of poverty, and inspire action to alleviate it. Drawing on research about attributions of poverty, subjective well-being, and relative income, this experimental study assesses the effects of an online poverty simulation (entitled Spent) on participants’ beliefs, attitudes, and actions. Results show that, compared with a control group, Spent players donated marginally more money to a charity serving the poor and expressed higher support for policies benefitting the poor, but were less likely to take immediate political action by signing an online petition to support a higher minimum wage. Spent players also expressed greater subjective well-being than the control group, but this was not associated with increased policy support or donations. Spent players who experienced greater presence (perceived realism of the simulation) had higher levels of empathy, which contributed to attributing poverty to structural causes and support for anti-poverty policies. We draw conclusions for theory about the psychological experience of playing online poverty simulations, and for how they could be designed to stimulate charity and support for anti-poverty policies

Just picking it up? Young children learning with technology at home

We describe a two-year empirical investigation of three- and four-year-old children's uses of technology at home, based on a survey of 346 families and 24 case studies. Using a sociocultural approach, we discuss the range of technologies children encounter in the home, the different forms their learning takes, the roles of adults and other children, and how family practices support this learning. Many parents believed that they do not teach children how to use technology. We discuss parents' beliefs that their children 'pick up' their competences with technology and identify trial and error, copying and demonstration as typical modes of learning. Parents tend to consider that their children are mainly self-taught and underestimate their own role in supporting learning and the extent to which learning with technology is culturally transmitted within the family