A Theoretical Framework for Serious Game Design: Exploring Pedagogy, Play and Fidelity and their Implications for the Design Process

It is widely acknowledged that digital games can provide an engaging, motivating and “fun” experience for students. However an entertaining game does not necessarily constitute a meaningful, valuable learning experience. For this reason, experts espouse the importance of underpinning serious games with a sound theoretical framework which integrates and balances theories from two fields of practice: pedagogy and game design (Kiili, 2005; Seeney & Routledge, 2009). Additionally, with the advent of sophisticated, immersive technologies, and increasing interest in the opportunities for constructivist learning offered by these technologies, concepts of fidelity and its impact on student learning and engagement, have emerged (Aldrich, 2005; Harteveld et al., 2007, 2010). This paper will explore a triadic theoretical framework for serious game design comprising play, pedagogy and fidelity. It will outline underpinning theories, review key literatures and identify challenges and issues involved in balancing these elements in the process of serious game design

Using a Text Mining Approach to Examine Online Learning Research Trends of the Past 20 Years (1997-2016)

The purpose of this research is to identify longitudinal trends relevant to online learning research within 15 highly regarded, peer-reviewed publications in educational technology and online education. Online instruction has become a popular form of education delivery across academic institutions. A review of literature on the topic shows that missing from the corpus is a trend analysis focused in online learning research across multiple journals. Previous efforts of establishing trends in online learning are narrow in focus using only one journal or a shortened time frame. This metatrend analysis employed text mining techniques to examine twenty years (1997-2016) of published research in an effort to establish past, present and emerging trends within published literature. A general bibliometric analysis is offered highlighting prolific and yearly journal publications. Meaningful trending terms used during the twenty-year time period were identified and analyzed. A cluster analysis performed on the extracted data provides a single layer taxonomy regarding online learning research. Time trends within the clusters were identified to offer a more in-depth analysis. Trends revealed during the research indicate a changing relationship of online learning and distance education. A strong emphasis on students and learning was noted as a consistent trend throughout the literature. Emerging categories recognized include openness and mobility, game-based learning, and MOOCs. The intention of the research is to offer an overview of trends in online learning research in order to contribute to the ongoing dialogue concerning the development and delivery of online education