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Redesigning learning games for different learning contexts: Applying a serious game design framework to redesign Stop & Think

Gauthier, Andrea; Porayska-Pomsta, Kaśka; Mayer, Sveta; Dumontheil, Iroise; Farran, Emily K; Bell, Derek; Mareschal, Denis; (2022) Redesigning learning games for different learning contexts: Applying a serious game design framework to redesign Stop & Think. International Journal of Child-Computer Interaction , 33 , Article 100503. 10.1016/j.ijcci.2022.100503. Green open access

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Abstract

The Activity Theory-based Model of Serious Games (ATMSG) provides a visual framework through which designers and researchers can explicitly map the gaming, learning, and instructional design of their learning game mechanics and game flow. Here, we use the ATMSG to redesign an existing learning game, Stop & Think (S&T), which was created to train children to apply their inhibitory control skills when solving counterintuitive mathematics and science problems. S&T was previously found to be effective at increasing science and mathematics achievement when the activity was led by a teacher in the classroom. However, we sought to modify its design for use by children in an independent learning scenario (e.g., homeschooling). This work contributes to the literature by demonstrating how the ATMSG was used iteratively during the redesign of S&T for use in a child-led context. We found the ATMSG useful for (i) identifying design gaps created by removing the teacher from the gaming activity, thereby outlining areas of the game requiring modification, (ii) ideation to facilitate discussion about how different design ideas would impact the structure of the game and the feasibility of the approach, (iii) negotiating design decisions between team members, communicating proposed changes in the design amongst stakeholders, seeking approval from project leaders, and serving as a design document for developers, and (iv) cataloguing changes made to the game throughout the redesign process, thereby archiving versions of the game which can be used to reflect upon how each version might impact counterintuitive reasoning. Yet, we also found some challenges in using the ATMSG, including its lack of ability to represent non-structural design decisions (e.g., visual strategies, adaptivity), its impractical format for representing more complex games, and its time-consuming nature.

Type: Article
Title: Redesigning learning games for different learning contexts: Applying a serious game design framework to redesign Stop & Think
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijcci.2022.100503
Publisher version: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijcci.2022.100503
Language: English
Additional information: Copyright © 2022 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Keywords: Learning games, Design framework, Activity theory, Independent vs collaborative learning, Inhibitory control
UCL classification: UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education > UCL Institute of Education
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education > UCL Institute of Education > IOE - Culture, Communication and Media
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education
UCL
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10149192
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