Adaptive hypermedia driven serious game design and cognitive style in school settings: an exploratory study

The potential value of adaptive hypermedia and game based learning to education and training has long been recognised, numerous studies have been undertaken in both those areas investigating its potential to improve learner performance. In particular research has indicated that tailoring content to match the prior knowledge of the user has the power to increase the effectiveness of learning systems. Recent studies have begun to indicate that Adaptive Hypermedia Learning Systems (AHLS) based on cognitive styles have the power to improve learner performance. Recent examples of research exploring avenues for effectively incorporating serious games into AHLS indicated that integrating serious games into a personalized learning environment has the potential educational benefits of combining a personalized delivery with increased learner motivation. The exploratory study presented in this paper here developed an Adaptive Hypermedia Driven Serious Game (AHDSG) based around Pask’s Holist-Serialist dimension of cognitive style. A prototype AHDSG was designed and developed to teach students about Sutton Hoo and archaeological methods. Sixty-six secondary school students participated in this study. Overall the findings of this study show that there was an improvement in performance among all participants. Although the participants that used the system which adapted to their preferred cognitive style achieved a higher mean gain score, the difference was not significant

iTEC: conceptualising, realising and recognising pedagogical and technological innovation in European classrooms

Innovation, a complex concept, underpinned a four-year pan-European research project designed to increase the effective use of technology in school classrooms. This article revisits evaluation data collected during the project and explores the challenges of conceptualising, realising and researching ‘innovation’. The authors describe how innovation was conceptualised, highlighting key issues, not all of which could be resolved in the project. The development of an approach to support teachers to change their practices facilitated the realisation of innovation in the classroom. This approach, through which researchers and national pedagogical coordinators worked with teachers to develop their teaching and learning practices with technology in potentially innovative ways, is outlined. Case study data are then used to exemplify how teachers and other stakeholders applied this approach and how they perceived innovation in practice within their own countries. Through a discussion of these cases, the article highlights the challenge of defining innovation in different country settings and, in turn, the complexity of identifying its occurrence. It concludes by proposing the next steps for similar research endeavours

The serious games ecosystem: Interdisciplinary and intercontextual praxis

This chapter will situate academia in relation to serious games commercial production and contextual adoption, and vice-versa. As a researcher it is critical to recognize that academic research of serious games does not occur in a vaccum. Direct partnerships between universities and commercial organizations are increasingly common, as well as between research institutes and the contexts that their serious games are deployed in. Commercial production of serious games and their increased adoption in non-commercial contexts will influence academic research through emerging impact pathways and funding opportunities. Adding further complexity is the emergence of commercial organizations that undertake their own research, and research institutes that have inhouse commercial arms. To conclude, we explore how these issues affect the individual researcher, and offer considerations for future academic and industry serious games projects

Issues impacting games-based learning in formal secondary education

This paper proposes a model for analysing the ways in which teachers negotiate the tensions between games narratives and curriculum objectives in incorporating commercial off-the-shelf computer games into formal educational practice. The paper is based on the year long Teaching with Games project which comprized surveys of over 1000 teachers and students, and 10 exploratory case studies of teachers use of COTS games in 4 schools with over 300 children. The games used in the study were The Sims 2, RollerCoaster Tycoon 3, and Knights of Honor. These were used in "traditional lessons and in diverse competency and content-based curricular environments. A key finding was that teachers focusing on encouraging competency skills such as teamwork and problem-solving were more likely to maintain the overarching narrative of the game in lesson activities than teachers who were focusing on students’ acquisition of content knowledge

Factors influencing teachers’ adoption of AR inquiry games to foster skills for Responsible Research and Innovation

Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) is a contemporary approach to promote science with and for society for aligning scientific innovations with societal needs. Literature about education for RRI is limited because it is not a widespread practice at the moment. To explore this gap, this study examines teachers’ views about a novel inquiry game with Augmented Reality to foster inquiry skills for RRI. This game about Genetic-Modified food was used by 18 educators from Secondary and Higher Education who engaged 390 students to form opinions about risks and benefits of GM cereal. The thematic analysis of qualitative data: semi-structured questionnaires, teaching reports and focus groups, revealed motivations and practices that influence teachers’ adoption of OER created with new technologies. Findings revealed that the 3-phase-model approach used in the game engaged students to “CARE” about global issues, “KNOW” science concepts and “DO” actions through an active open schooling network. The key drivers for educators’ adoption of AR inquiry games are to make learning more meaningful and engaging through students-centred approaches and topical resources for them to develop scientific knowledge and skills. However, the key requirements for that are easy-to-use technologies and pedagogical strategies for identifying learner’s achievements and difficulties