A comparison of methodological frameworks for digital learning game design

Methodological frameworks guide the design of digital learning game based on well founded learning theories and instructional strategies. This study presents a comparison of five methodological frameworks for digital learning game design, highlighting their similarities and differences. The objective is to support the choice of an adequate framework, aiming to promote them as a way to foster principled digital learning games design. This paper concludes that: (i) interactivity, engagement and increasing complexity of challenges are fundamental factors to digital learning game design; (ii) the pedagogical base, the target, the possibility of doing game assessment and the presence of practical guidelines are the selection criteria that influence most the choice of a methodological framework, and (iii) the development of digital learning games - preferably by different research teams - is needed to provide empirical evidence of the utility of framework-based design

Exploring a Research Methodology Group Framework for Nurturing Research Methods and Designs: An Action Research

This presentation will describe a Research Methodology Group that has been established at a university to enhance the research method knowledges and skills of the students and faculty members. Experiential learning and scholarly leadership served as theoretical framework of the group. Scholarly leadership is held as a transformative relationship among scholars and practitioners to advance the community of scholarship. Experiential learning bridges theory and practice cultivating a community of practice. The group created a dynamic community of scholar practitioners who share and apply their research method knowledge. Furthermore, the presentation will provide the results of a practical action research that was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of the group and explore a) issues related to implementing established research designs, b) use and influence of alternative research designs and c) effective practices for teaching and learning research methods and designs. The group methodologists provided design guidelines, resources, and webinars to nurture the researchers’ skills. Survey, interviews, and reflective papers were used to collect quantitative and qualitative data and addressed the three research concerns. The presentation will be useful for the research methodologists, researchers, and instructors who are interested in enhancing knowledge of research methods and designs

Inspirational Professional Development: How Online Adjunct Faculty Re-Engaged in Scholarship and Evolved Into Scholarly Leaders

The new potential for online collaborative research that reaches across cultural and geographical borders may open a new age of research. However, engaging online adjunct faculty into continuous scholarly missions remains a challenge in online higher education. Narrative analysis of faculty stories revealed themes that enhance addressing the challenge. The purpose of this narrative inquiry research study was to capture and describe the perceptions of adjunct faculty members, who joined technology supported, collaborative research teams after a period of being disengaged from research studies. The Research question was: How did the participation in online collaborative research teams engage online adjunct faculty members in continuous scholarly ventures? A narrative inquiry research design is aligned with sensemaking process theory as participant narratives revealed key steps in developing a retrospective understanding of the collaborative research team experience. This presentation shares inspirational evolution of some adjunct faculty into scholarly leaders. The purposive sample of fifteen adjunct faculty members were selected on the basis of participation in an online, collaborative research team that successfully published within two years of inception. Faculty who re-engaged in scholarship by joining technology supported collaborative research teams reported a renewed passion for learning, stronger professional relationships, a sense of membership in a community of practice, and acquisition of knowledge and skills. The study findings will have significance for all who support higher levels of scholarship in the classrooms of online higher education. The presentation will include a PPT and end with question and answer session

Developing an Agenda, Skills, and Presence in Online Research: A Case Study

The University of Phoenix established a research hub with several different areas of focus. The Center for Educational and Instructional Technology Research center (CEITR) has supported collaborative online research team opportunities for the past three years. The collaborative teams offer faculty members an opportunity to learn new skills and collaborate across time and space to achieve mutual goals. This workshop will share the stories of three online collaborative research laboratories. Team members in Teaching and Learning with the Arts (TLAR), Diversity in Learning and Ethics of Education) have successful publishing records and have gained expertise in collaborative research. The workshop will share some insights and strategies for success including how to develop research skills that support publications, how to build a research agenda that builds on and extends previous studies, and how to begin developing a presence in the research world both as individuals and for the institution as a whole. The workshop will start by sharing some background and context from the literature and then provide specific examples of how skills, agendas, and presence emerged during the collaborative online process. We will use a PowerPoint presentation to organize and present information and offer many interactive opportunities for audience members

Influence of online computer games on the academic achievement of nontraditional undergraduate students

Technological advances have provided educational institutions the capability to explore various online teaching strategies such as digital games in the classroom. Though games can be used to engage various learning styles and behaviors, the platform is mainly practiced at the secondary educational grade level with traditional-aged students. Little research literature exists that explores the influence of digital game-based learning on the academic achievement of nontraditional undergraduate students. An extensive literature review of 77 articles was conducted using the procedure developed in Cooper’s Taxonomy (1998) for analyzing and synthesizing literature. Cooper’s system involved (a) formulating the problem, (b) collecting data, (c) evaluating data appropriateness, (d) analyzing and interpreting relevant data, and (e) organizing and presenting the results. This scoping literature review explores how digital games can be used in the educational environment to support the learning of nontraditional students

30 Years and a Pandemic: Panel Discussion of the Impact on Research Methods from Social Distancing

Our recent Covid-19 pandemic has largely accelerated the use of online and distance means for data collection and analysis. In this presentation we will discuss how the social distancing requirements during the pandemic may, and may continue to, impact the specific qualitative methods of: focus groups, narrative inquiry, phenomenology, action research, appreciative inquiry, and content analysis. In many ways the shift must be accounted for starting with topic selection, and the pandemic has offered new topics for inquiry including the shift within education to crisis online education. However, how might these studies be engaged if we are required to be socially distant, avoid in-person data collection techniques such as in-class observation or focus groups, and potentially limit the collaborative analysis of in-person research teams? An additional question becomes, “Has each method been impacted to the same extent?” Content analysis, for example, may be affected very little. Thus, it is important we discuss the ways different methods have been impacted, ways we might adapt, and how altered methods might also impact topic selection beyond the novel topics related specific to Covid-19

Word Score: A serious vocabulary game for primary school underachievers

This paper describes a study of “Word Score”, a serious game designed to extend the vocabulary of pupils in upper primary school in the Netherlands. Word Score was used in one school community as part of the national project “Educational Time Extension” (ETE). In ETE class time is extended beyond normal school hours with the aim of improving the learning outcomes of under-performing pupils. The study showed that the use of Word Score can be effective during ETE. The vocabulary of the pupils who played the game outside the regular class time significantly increased. The experiences of both pupils and teachers were very positive. The pupils liked playing Word Score and the teachers were very enthusiastic about the game and the pupils’ result