Digital Game Based Learning

The study aimed to investigate (a) the effect of digital games, songs, and flashcards on vocabulary knowledge of Iranian EFL preschool learners and (b) the young learners" performance on mid-course tests of vocabulary with different topics. The participants included 350 preschool female learners in Oshnaviyeh, a town in Western Azarbaijan Province and were divided into three tablet, song, and traditional groups. Pre and post-tests of vocabulary and four mid-course tests based, on the learnt vocabularies, were administered during the research. The materials also consisted of a digital game, 16 songs, a structured student book, a workbook, and 60 flashcards. The analysis of the data revealed that there was no significant difference in the vocabulary knowledge of preschool learners who learnt vocabularies via games, songs, and flashcards. The results also showed that there was a significant difference in the three groups" mid-course tests with different topics. The findings r...

Abstract

In Digital Game-Based Learning (2007), Marc Prensky defines the generation as " digital natives " , who spent time using computers and smart-devices and grew up mostly in a human-computer interaction. In addition, Prensky claims that that interaction changed the way of cognition and learning of digital natives by presenting information in a visual-based information network, allowing students to gather data by hyperlinking this information, and rewarding them as a response to their performance. On the contrary, the conventional education system presents a stable, text-dominant information stream which disregards the needs of pupils.Consequently, Prensky suggests that the conventional education system should be adapted to the evolution of digital natives as recent learners. Moreover, he states that the digital game-based learning approach and video games are significant opportunities for this adaptation process and recent research and experimental studies approve the idea of using video game for educational purposes. This research aims to develop a virtual learning environment to facilitate and motivate the learning of landscape construction and grading topics by performing tasks in a video game-like environment. For that purpose, a three-dimensional virtual environment was set up using the OpenSimulator software. Afterwards, a learning scenario was created in accordance with the curriculum of these topics and simulated in this virtual environment by using 2D and 3D visual representations of tex-tual information. The learning scenario was based on a series of tasks beginning with introductory missions and progressively getting more difficult and requiring more specific information to assist students in developing their knowledge and skills. Moreover, a feedback module was programmed for simulating the effects of their decisions and providing essential information and guidance to students for producing and optimizing solutions in encountered problems. In conclusion, an experimental study was conducted to measure the instructional and motivational effects of the proposed virtual learning environment with 16 undergraduate students as part of " Landscape Construction 1 " course in Istanbul Technical University. The findings showed that the proposed virtual learning environment increased the learning motivation of subjects and raised the learning rate of subjects by 53.14 percent.

Özet
Marc Prensky, Digital Game-Based Learning (2007) kitabında bilgisayar teknolojileri ve akıllı ci-hazları kullanarak ve yoğun olarak bilgisayar-insan etkileşimi içerisinde büyüyen nesli " sayısal yerliler " (digital natives) olarak tanımlamaktadır. Prensky, bu neslin bilgisayar arayüzü ile kur-dukları etkileşimin beyin ve algı yapısının yanı sıra, bireylerin öğrenme yollarını tümüyle değiş-tirdiğini belirtmiştir. Bu değişimin neticesinde, bu neslin yazılı bilgiden ziyade görselleştirilmiş bilgiyi okuyarak, bilgi ağları arasında köprüler yardımıyla seçimler doğrultusunda ilerleyerek ve öğrenme sürecinde ödüllendirilerek öğrenmeye yatkın olduklarını belirtmiştir. Ayrıca, yazı odaklı bilginin baskın olduğu, durağan ve öğrencinin pasif rol aldığı mevcut eğitim sisteminin bu neslin ihtiyaçlarına cevap veremediğini ve bu değişime uyum sağlamasının gerekliliğini savunmuştur. Bu araştırmanın amacı, peyzaj mimarlığı eğitim müfredatında yer alan peyzaj konstrüksiyonu ve tesviye konularının öğrenimini teşvik eden ve kolaylaştıran işbirlikçi çalışmaya elverişli bir sanal öğrenme ortamı oluşturmaktır. Bu amaçla, OpenSimulator yazılımı kullanılarak bir üç boyutlu sanal ortam kurulmuştur. Sanal ortam içerisinde, peyzaj mimarlığı eğitiminde önemli role sa-hip peyzaj konstrüksiyonu ve tesviye konularının öğrenilmesini kolaylaştırmak amacıyla eğitim müfredatı bilgilerinin iki ve üç boyutlu görsel temsilleri oluşturulmuştur. Ardından, öğrencile-rin öğrenme sürecindeki hakimiyetinin arttırılması ve öğrenime teşvik edilmesi amacıyla eğitim müfredatı basit ve göreceli tanımlamalardan başlayarak kademeli olarak zorlaşan oyun-tabanlı görevlere dönüştürülmüştür. Bu sayede öğrencilerin karmaşık kavram ve problemleri algılamak için yeterli bilgi ve beceri birikimini kazanmaları amaçlanmaktadır. Araştırmanın diğer bir amacı da, öğrencileri konu hakkında bilgilendirip, ardından bilgi düzeyini ölçmekten ziyade, öğrenci-lere gerekli uzmanlık alanı hakkında sağlam bir bilgi yapısı oluşturmaktır. Bu amaçla, öğrenciler sanal ortamda verilen görevleri tamamlarken, verdikleri kararlara ilişkin geribildirimler aracı-lığıyla hem bilgilendirilmekte hem de çözüm önerisi geliştirme veya iyileştirme sürecinde öğ-rencilere rehberlik eden bir modül programlanmıştır. Son olarak, araştırma kapsamında geliş-tirilen model önerisinin güdüsel ve öğretici etkilerini değerlendirmek amacıyla İstanbul Teknik Üniversitesi'nde peyzaj konstrüksiyonu 1 dersi kapsamında lisans düzeyindeki 16 öğrencinin gönüllü katılımı ile bir deneysel çalışma yürütülmüştür. Bulgular doğrultusunda, tez kapsamın-da geliştirilen model önerisi katılımcıların sorularını doğru yanıtlama ortalamasını 53,14% art-tırmıştır. Anahtar Kelimeler: Peyzaj mimarlığı eğitimi, bilgisayar destekli eğitim, sanal öğrenme ortamları, oyun-tabanlı öğrenme.

משמעות המשחק ומהותו הם נושאים שהעסיקו את האדם משחר התרבות. עדויות לכך קיימות לאורך ההיסטוריה בציורי הקיר במערות קבורה במצרים, בניסיונות לברר את משמעות המשחק ביוון העתיקה, ברנסנס, בתקופה הרומנטית, וכלה ימינו. משחק הוא אחד הנושאים המעסיקים את חוקרי המחשבה האנושית.תכונות בסיסיות של המשחק, במשמעות הקלאסית שלו, היא היותו פעילות לשמה, הנעשית מרצון, בהנאה וללא פיצוי.
למידה ומשחק פנים רבות להם ולעיתים הגבולות המצופים מהם מטשטשים.  עולם הלמידה חודר לעולם המשחק וכך גם הפוך עד שאין זה ברור מי מהם נעזר באחר.
בני דור המילניום גדלים לתוך עולם המישחוק, והם מורגלים ברעיון שניתן לשלב העצמה, משוב, משמעות ופעילויות חברתיות בכל דבר. הם מקבלים את המנגנונים האלה כמובנים מאליהם. לכן, כדי לשמור על מוטיבציה בכל פעילות שהם עושים, הם זקוקים למנגנונים אלה. ילדים המשחקים במשחקים דיגיטליים מפתחים את הכישורים הדרושים כדי להפוך למומחים בתחום הדיגיטציה. החוויות הנצברות בעולמות וירטואליים, יכולות להשפיע השפעה רבה על ההתנהגות שלנו בעולם האמיתי.
מחקר זה בא לבחון שלוש סוגיות עיקריות. הראשונה, ללמוד ולהכיר את הרגלי ומאפייני השימוש במשחקים דיגיטליים. השנייה, לבחון את אופי המֵשַחקים כפי שתיאר Bartle (1996), ולהבין את קשרים בין אופי המֵשַחקים למאפיינים שונים של הרגלי שימוש במשחקים דיגיטליים. השלישית, לבחון כיצד תופסים וחווים התלמידים, את מקומם של משחקי דיגיטליים, בעולם הפנאי  והלימודים, ככלי חברתי, תרבותי, לימודי וחינוכי.

Resumen: La Realidad Aumentada (RA) y el Aprendizaje Basado en Juegos Digitales (DGBL) son dos tendencias que están siendo aplicadas a la educación alrededor del mundo. Sin embargo, las implicaciones relacionadas con la aplicación de ambas tendencias simultáneamente al aprendizaje inclusivo es aún algo por observar. Hemos diseñado un videojuego inclusivo con RA para el aprendizaje de Habilidades de Lógica Matemática. Probamos el juego con un conjunto de 20 estudiantes con diversas necesidades de aprendizaje. Nuestro experimento mostró que el desempeño durante el juego es similar para niños con distintas necesidades. Los resultados y la realimentación por parte del personal docente nos sugieren que la RA y el DGBL permiten la integración de niños con necesidades especiales en el proceso formativo. Palabras clave: Aprendizaje Basado en Juegos Digitales, TDAH, Videojuego, Realidad Aumentada,

(in press). In S. Tettegah & W. (D.) Huang. Emotions, Technology, and Games. New York: Elsevier. (Will be freely available for download through open access in October, 2015).
ABSTRACT.
Summary
This case study challenges the assumption that successful game-based learning requires flow experience. Analysis of player logs of gameplay behavior and self-reports of subjective experience (the experience sampling method adapted as the Flowometer with self-perceptions categorized through the channel model as flow, arousal, anxiety, worry, apathy, intrinsic motivation, boredom, routine expertise, control) establish that challenge often exceeds skill during the type of inquiry-based learning that occurs when instructional games scaffold player discovery and application of targeted concepts. This pattern persists when integrated game dashboards allow players to define and achieve expertise. The analysis follows three players during their trajectories toward expertise while playing the online instructional video game Selene: A Lunar Construction GaME: an undergraduate female (USA Midwest university) before and after she achieved an “aha!” learning moment, and two Spanish (non-USA, female and male, 15-year-old) players who used the game and dashboard to achieve expert status for targeted planetary geology concepts achieved by only 1% of Selene players (players = 3882). Theory and data suggest perceived experience during game-based learning (states such as anxiety, worry, and arousal) might be conceptualized as eustress, which is known to accompany successful adaptation.

Digital simulations and games constitute a distinct category of learning intervention that calls for a tailor-made instructional design approach. This article will provide some background for that claim. A brief summary of several well-known I.D. models is presented as well as typical simulation and game design models. These are then combined to form the new synergistic design process model that takes into consideration key features of all three design disciplines, resulting in a new model uniquely adapted for the design of instructional simulations and games. The paper concludes with some lessons learned from first-hand experience designing simulations and games for instructional purposes.

Drawing on the self-concept activation and goal-priming account of the
priming effect, this study examined how self-concept—i.e., ideal self,
ought self, and actual self—can be harnessed as a model for avatar
customization in digital games to promote healthy-eating behavior.
Female participants (N = 133) customized an avatar in a digital
game to reflect either the ideal, ought, or actual self. Participants then
selected food items for their avatar within the digital game as well as
food items for themselves to eat afterward. Results suggest that for
participants using an ought-self avatar, the extent to which they were
conscious of their health was positively related to healthier food choice
both within and after playing the game. No such effect emerged for
participants who used an ideal- or actual-self avatar, indicating that
participants formed the goal of being healthy only with regard to the
ought self. This study demonstrates that avatar customization in a digital game can serve a regulatory function by representing individuals’ duties and responsibilities, thus, causing them to adopt such attributes manifested in their avatar during and after the game.

This report presents an overview of gaming consoles and a comparison of consoles and the PC. Benefits of games to learning and the learning environment are touched on, as is the use of games consoles in research and teaching. Issues pertaining to potential future applications of games and consoles to learning and teaching, especially through the enhanced functionality of consoles, are addressed. The report concludes with an overview of other gaming platforms, and a summary of key points and trends to monitor.

To assist in the compilation of this report, an email survey was undertaken of various computer and video game researchers in UK academia, and video game companies worldwide, in 2002. This survey was useful in discovering trends, perceptions and examples of non-gaming uses of video games and gaming consoles.

In the spring semester of 2015, I was given the opportunity to develop a digital history project at the University of Nebraska at Kearney. Since my historical interest mainly involves baseball, and at that time I was researching the 1879 Northwestern Baseball League for a book, I was thinking about what options there might be to create a digital history project that included the 1879 NWBL. At that time, I had recently discovered that the league had only played half of its season when it folded in mid-July. One of the obvious historical questions that had been on my mind was that if a complete ‘championship season’ ran its’ course in 1879, who would have won? Was there a way to simulate the season that might provide this information? I had done this on other gaming platforms with contemporary baseball rosters and seasons. Then, I realized that Out of the Park Baseball 16 (OOTPB) provided a perfect opportunity to uniquely answer this question. This is how my idea for a digital history project came about. OOTP Baseball allows the user to recreate historical baseball leagues or even develop fictional leagues at the creators’ discretion. For this project, parameters were set to function in 1879, and the league with all the historical data gathered was included. The 36-game season was the framework for this ‘tryout’ that included a Championship series occurring at the end of the simulated 1879 season. The simulation model was set for 10 seasons to give an impartial representation of what the actual results might have been if a whole season had been played.

The emergent digital game-based learning (DGBL) concept is attracting educational enthusiasts across the world. This article will follow that global trend and demonstrate how Out of the Park Baseball provides a valuable framework for classroom-based, DGBL projects. The aim of this article is to exhibit the benefits, learning outcomes and potential for DGBL baseball projects in college and high school classrooms. This commentary will also reveal that DGBL can provide learning engagement and motivation for students when given the opportunity to participate in similar DGBL ventures. The editorial will offer a brief explanation of DGBL and provide simulation results, comparative analysis and conceptual modeling for a DGBL baseball project utilizing Out of the Park Baseball. Additionally, the work will provide learning outcomes for the classroom project and includes a suggested reading list that potential instructors may access. The hope is that this article will be referenced as a curriculum development resource in future DGBL projects.
Please feel free to contact me at foresmanrr@lopers.unk.edu with any questions or for the opportunity to collaborate further. The full article is free and open to the public.

In primary education, digital games give students the opportunity to explore and participate in digital learning environments. Several researchers have found that digital game-based learning in primary education has many benefits. However, studies have also identified certain problems related to the use digital games in learning. This paper presents the findings of a systematic review of empirical studies published between May 2009 and May 2019 focusing on students' learning outcomes and teachers' pedagogical activities in digital game-based learning in primary education. The results indicated that support, guidance, and interaction are the most frequently used pedagogical activities during gameplay sessions in primary education and that teachers' most significant concern with regard to learning outcomes is knowledge acquisition, followed by attitude and motivation, skill outcomes, and behavior change. The findings will be useful for enabling researchers and teachers to integrate effective pedagogical activities into digital game-based learning strategies. Further studies are proposed to explore teachers' competencies in relation to digital learning environments in primary education.

This book is about the three identities of the videogame, the gamer, and Game Studies. I write that there are no definitive truths but rather discourses and constructions; ideas, actions, beliefs, and practices related to videogames are discourses that merge and shape our perception of videogames as an area of study of its own right. These discursive responses meet and clash creating what we call truths, which are temporary and negotiable.

This perspective is inspired by Foucauldian ideas and present few questions about videogame-related identities in and outside of academe. Does Game Studies have a conceptual core? What makes game studies difficult to be disciplined in academe? What do we learn from the scholarly and popular discourses on videogames that would help understand the identity questions related to games?

I go on to describe what makes the videogame identity according to game studies: aesthetics, fictions, meaning-making, performance, transformation, etc. and what makes it difficult for game studies being an open market of ideas and an academic "un-discipline". This leads me to the gamer's identity: an aficionado first, and a connoisseur of fictional worlds.

The present study aims at examining in-game language usages of students playing online games. It was conducted with the case study design of the qualitative research methods. The study group consisted of 10 participants who were determined by using criterion sampling method. Semi-structured interview form, observation notes and voice recordings were used in the data collection process. The collected data were analyzed by content analysis technique. In the application part of the research, two game environments were designed, in which the use of language was not restricted and then the use of expressions of foreign origin was prohibited. During the first game, it was revealed that the participants playing League of Legends produced mixed expressions in Turkish and English and used them frequently in the in-game communication. In the second game, the participants continued to use these expressions voluntarily or involuntarily, although the use of expressions of foreign origin was restricted. The observations of the researchers supported these data, as well. Although the game was designed entirely in Turkish, the participants thought that it was very difficult to use merely Turkish for in-game communication. In addition, it was emphasized that the Turkish-English mixed expressions used in the game process were important for comfortable communication and this communication style became a pattern.

A játék jelentősége a pszichológiai fejlődésben széleskörűen elismert a fejlődéspszichológusok és a neveléssel foglalkozó szakemberek között. Az utóbbi három évtizedben egy további játéktípussal is bővült a fejlesztő alkalmazások eszköztára, a digitális játékokkal. Jelen tanulmány célja az, hogy átfogó képet nyújtson a digitális játékokhoz kapcsolódó kutatásokról. A digitális játékoknak több olyan tulajdonsága is van, amelyek révén hatékony oktatási eszközzé válhatnak. Számos bizonyíték támasztja alá, hogy eredményesen növelik a diákok tanulási teljesítményét, azonban az empirikus eredmények gyakran ellentmondásosak. A „Hatékonyak-e” kérdés helyett termékenyebbnek tűnik a „Milyen formában, milyen feltételek mellett” válhatnak a tanulási kimenet és a motiváció dimenzióiban is eredményes fejlesztő eszközzé kérdések vizsgálata. A válaszok megtalálásához azonban további részletesen adminisztrált, kísérleti és kontrollcsoport bevonásával megvalósuló kutatásokra van szükség.

Simulation video games (SVGs) are extremely wide category of modern video games, which provide innovative educational possibilities for personal and professional development. SVGs represent practically all forms of human activities, which in turn may raise sophisticated ethical issues. In terms of methodology, most of the educational vehicle SVGs can be studied within the framework of ludology. The typological features of hybrid social SVGs can be investigated by means of narratological methodology and non-reductionist approach (I. Bogost). It is possible to identify two problematic ethical aspects of SVGs: "internal" and "external". The "internal" aspect investigates ethical issues within the virtual worlds of SVGs. The "external" aspect focuses on the problem the use of SVGs experience for the violation of moral and legal norms in society. The main objective of the paper is to identify key educational possibilities of SVGs and reveal their ethical dimension. Civil vehicle SVGs (car, bus, truck, train, racing games) provide outstanding educational possibilities for training driver skills, but may provoke traffic offense. Flight SVGs allow training pilots of civil airlines, but can be used by terrorists. Military aviation, tank, navy and submarine SVGs train combat vehicles control and raise ethical issues of violence against virtual/real civilians. Sports SVGs allow skills training and actualize the problem of cheating/doping. More complicated social SVGs represent the models of social behaviour as well as the problems of deviant behavior and virtual harassment. Business simulators are relevant in the context of gamification, but raise the ethical issues of capitalist exploitation. Medical SVGs can help to rehearse a surgical operation and at the same time represent medical errors. Educational combat SVGs actualize the problems of the virtual violence and its influence on social behavior. Construction and management SVGs raise moral dilemmas in city management ("SimCity"). Government SVGs besides the educational aspects of public administration may represent the violation of legal norms. God games actualize the problems of moral choices in the discourse of religious ethics. The findings of the paper can be useful for the study of game based learning and modern ethical research.

This book offers a comprehensive examination of the theory, research, and practice of the use of digital games in second and foreign language teaching and learning (L2TL). It explores how to harness the enthusiasm, engagement, and motivation that digital gaming can inspire by adopting a gameful L2TL approach that encompasses game-enhanced, game-informed, and game-based practice. The first part of the book situates gameful L2TL in the global practices of informal learnful L2 gaming and in the theories of play and games which are then applied throughout the discussion of gameful L2TL practice that follows. This includes analysis of practices of digital game-enhanced L2TL design (the use of vernacular, commercial games), game-informed L2TL design (gamification and the general application of gameful principles to L2 pedagogy), and game-based L2TL design (the creation of digital games purposed for L2 learning). Designed as a guide for researchers and teachers, the book also offers fresh insights for scholars of applied linguistics, second language acquisition, L2 pedagogy, computer-assisted language learning (CALL), game studies, and game design that will open pathways to future developments in the field.

In recent years, research into the effectiveness of digital game-based learning (DGBL) has
increased. However, a large heterogeneity in methods for assessing the effectiveness of
DGBL exist, leading to questions regarding reliability and validity of certain methods. This
has resulted in the need for a scientific basis to conduct this type of research, providing
procedures, frameworks and methods that can be validated. The present study is part of a
larger systematic process towards the development of a standardized procedure for conducting DGBL effectiveness studies. In a first phase, the variety in methods that are used
for sampling, implementation of the interventions, measures and data analysis were
mapped in a systematic literature review using Cochrane guidelines. The present paper
reflects the second stage, where this variety in elements are presented to experts in
psychology and pedagogy by means of semi-structured interviews, in order to define
preferred methods for conducting DGBL effectiveness studies. The interview was structured according to five dimensions that were used in the literature review: 1) participants
(e.g., characteristics of the sample involved) 2) intervention (e.g., contents, format, timings
and treatment lengths, intervention(s) in control group(s)) 3) methods (sampling,
assignment of participants to conditions, number of testing moments) 4) outcome measures (e.g., instruments used to measure a certain outcome) and 5) data-analysis. The
interviews were transcribed and analyzed using qualitative software package nVivo. Our
results show that areas for improvement involve the intervention dimension and the
methods dimension. The proposed improvements relate to implementation of the interventions in both the experimental and control group, determining which elements are
preferably omitted during the intervention (such as guidance by the instructor, extra elements that consist of substantive information) and which elements would be aloud (e.g.,
procedural help, training session). Also, variables on which similarity between experimental and control condition should be attained were determined (e.g., time exposed to
intervention, instructor, day of the week). With regard to the methods dimension, proposed improvements relate to assignment of participants to conditions (e.g., variables to
take into account when using blocked randomized design), general design (e.g. necessity of
a pre-test and control group) test development (e.g., develop and pilot parallel tests) and
testing moments (e.g., follow up after minimum 2 weeks). In sum, the present paper
provides best practices that cover all aspects of the study design and consist of game
specific elements. While several suggestions have been previously made regarding
research design of DGBL effectiveness studies, these often do not cover all aspects of the
research design. Hence, the results of this study can be seen as a base for a more systematic
approach, which can be validated in the future in order to develop a standardizedprocedure for assessing the effectiveness of DGBL that can be applied flexibly across
different contexts.

Halo teman-teman, disini saya akan sedikit sharing bagaimana caranya membuat game dengan menggunakan Construct 2 tanpa coding. Aplikasi yang saya gunakan yaitu Construct 2 versi r277. Nah, aplikasi Construct 2 ini sangat cocok digunakan untuk para pelajar di sekolah karena tampilannya sangat menarik dan mudah digunakan oleh siapapun. Seperti yang dibahas pada website pendidikan https://smkit-maarifnu.sch.id, bahwa saat ini pelajar perlu untuk mengoptimalkan pembelajaran berbasis projek dam teknologi informasi agar dapat mengembangkan wawasan global serta agar tidak ketinggalan zaman.

Learning happens everywhere but where and how you learn make all the difference. With increasingly ubiquitous technology in schools, it is imperative that educational leaders must select the right device for teaching and learning. The right learning framework suitable for the student’s grade level will activate their new pedagogical priorities and create their own artifacts of learning. This paper presents a comparative analysis between computer game-based learning and mobile game-based learning as the learning framework in Preschool Education in the Philippine setting when delivering effective digital game-based learning. A technical comparison was made to ascertain the implications of the selected learning medium in DGBL. The study was then evaluated based on the device assessment of the pupils covering various aspects such as availability, technical adequacy, usability, preference, enjoyment, and game repository. Another evaluation was made with regards to the learning criteria o...

Two new trends in education: BYOD (bring your own device) and games and gamification are steadily being recognized and adopted by K12 and Higher Education practitioners. A team of faculty from two different countries, Bulgaria and the United States, is exploring the application of information and communication technologies in education. A jQuery-generated site for mobile devices is used by students to gamify their learning experience out of the classroom and in their professional field.
Students are using their mobile phones to access information through a mobile Web site and are expected to accomplish set of tasks, which reflect their knowledge of literature and procedures. Although Learning Management Systems (LMS), such as BlackBoard might offer mobile access, the stereotype of gamification with LMS remains bound to static students taking quiz on a desktop/laptop. A methodological change was sought from class-centered to experiential and project-oriented activities while the learning process is shifted from computer-based to mobile-based setting. 
The goal is to establish if a dynamic and mobile access to information and feedback and switching from a lecture-based teaching style to a more constructivist approach of will encourage students to build knowledge on their own while pursuing a game-like activity out in their working field.
The growing affordability and access to the Internet, as well as the global penetration of mobile devices across all ages have transformed e-learning into m-learning (mobile learning). Pedagogy and methodology respectively are in a process of change.  The traditional F2F (face-to-face) class is evolving into a hybrid classroom, a place where practices and achievements from e-learning and m-learning are increasingly absorbed and turned into a customary practice. There is a growing need to transform pedagogy from the traditional F2F classroom to learning and teaching practices reflecting student-centered, mobile-based, real-life, project-based environment with authentic, experiential and evidence based learning.

[Author's Note: Although the article focuses on Italian FL/L2, this practicum can be applied to ESL and all major languages in which the games I mention are localized]

Video games are an integral part of life for our students. Some commercial video games are multi-media realia that can be used to enhance language acquisition both in and outside the classroom. Compared to other digital realia, they add opportunities for language exploration: direct interaction and agency; critical thinking and problem-solving; and a detailed narrative. This article presents a practicum for their use. Evidence that utilizing communicative video games can be conducive to F/L2 acquisition is provided, particularly focusing on the use of Assassin’s Creed II and Heavy Rain. Then, technical advice and best practices related to gaming in F/L2 acquisition are offered. Discussion of the development of an intensive language & culture course for gamers concludes the article.

Aim: Determine the effectiveness of the Game-Based Learning(GBL) using theSnake-and-Ladder mechanical game boarding in teaching primarymathematics like addition, subtraction, multiplication and division of wholenumbers. Methodology: Descriptive and experimental method. In descriptive method,where the developed mechanical Game-Based Learning, validated by eighty (80) pre-service teachers as major teaching strategy in primary mathematics and tested its' effectiveness using the pre and post-test design. Results: In validating the mechanical GBL (Game-Based Learning)-A mathematical Snake-and Ladder game boarding in eighty (80) pre-service teachers for their practicum-classroom demonstration, manifested agreeable perceptions (x =4.30) terms of technical quality, content quality and instructional quality. Using the mechanical GBL as major instructional aids in teaching basicmathematics got a very satisfactory (x = 3.50) respondents' responses in theactual classroom demonstration. Recommendation: Mobile Apps of GBL(Game-Based Learning) development.

This chapter explores the phenomenon of SLA in social, multiplayer digital gaming contexts, for example, in MMOGs, or massively multiplayer online games. After providing some background and history of multiplayer gaming, we focus on the notion of game interaction and how it can be conceptualized in relation to SLA. We then survey research that has applied the aforementioned variety of SLA frameworks to analysis of multiplayer L2 interaction. Using pedagogical metaphors, we then discuss implications for practice and the design of L2 educational games. We then present and advocate for a design-informed approach and describe seven game mechanics or types – adventure, narrative, open world, role play, socialization, survival, and team cooperative – that might be examined more closely for their SLA potential when played in multiplayer modes. We conclude with a call for more research.

There is a great potential for cloud computing adoption in Bahrain, something which will power exciting innovations and touch every area of people's lives, especially in the education sector. The current study investigates the critical success factors for implementing cloud computing into learning activities in higher institutions in Bahrain and how can effectively enhance the digital educational environment. The data sample of the current research consists of academic and administrative staff from nine universities in Bahrain, both private and public universities. The findings revealed that the adoption of cloud computing has proven to help build a digital educational environment in the Kingdom of Bahrain. Cloud computing can help in making digital research and digital learning and teaching. Besides offering more excellent student choices in education, cloud computing can provide good opportunities for enhancing research in these universities.

The goal of this article is to provide a conceptual framework to better understand digital games in learning and creative contexts through the dimensions of play, design, and participation. This framework can be used as a guiding tool for the selection, implementation, and evaluation of game- based approaches in formal and informal educational settings, as well as a blueprint for making sense of playful learning and creativity in virtual worlds and technology-mediated environments. In essence, this article seeks to answer the question “What are digital games and how can we make sense of them for learning and creativity?” The proposed visual model and conceptual framework, here defined as Playful Constructivism, is grounded on the learning theories of Situated Cognition, Social Constructivism, and Constructionism, and draws from play and game studies, design-based learning, and affinity spaces research. This framework is not intended as the “ultimate” conceptualization of game-based learning, but rather as an agile tool that can guide scholars, practitioners, and students through the affordances, challenges, and opportunities of implementing and using digital games in learning and creative contexts.

Pendidikan dan pembangunan keusahawanan telah berkembang menjadi semakin penting di Malaysia. Peningkatan jumlah syarikat baru yang berdaftar dilihat sebagai salah satu petunjuk tentang kepentingan pendidikan keusahawanan. Terkini, jumlah syarikat berdaftar menunjukkan peningkatan sebanyak 61% berbanding tahun 1995. Namun begitu, pendidikan secara tradisional menyekat keusahawanan, maka sistem pendidikan perlu dikemaskini untuk  menitikberatkan dan mementingkan keusahawanan ke arah memupuk budaya perusahaan/perniagaan. Permainan dan simulasi komputer telah digunakan secara meluas dalam bidang pendidikan ketenteraan, perubatan dan sains, oleh itu ia mempunyai potensi yang tinggi untuk digunakan dalam pendidikan keusahawanan. Tambahan pula, permainan digital telah berjaya menarik minat pengguna dengan baik. Contohnya, kebanyakan pelajar memilih untuk bermain permainan digital bukan kerana disuruh oleh guru atau orang lain, bahkan ada yang sanggup untuk ponteng sekolah semata-mata kerana ingin bermain permainan digital di pusat permainan video. Kertas kerja ini akan membincangkan kesesuaian dan potensi daya tarikan permainan digital untuk dimanfaatkan oleh golongan pendidik dalam pendidikan keusahawanan.

Over the decades there has been a paradigm shift in school design and operations. Schools have been transformed static, authoritarian systems to dynamic learning organisations. A new tenet in the education world is 21 st century learning organisations. This paper reviews the traditional schooling system in Nigeria and juxtaposes it with recent developments in advanced countries. It provides a framework for how schools in Nigeria can be transformed into 21 st century learning organizations.

Game-based learning has dominantly embedded itself into a tool of education in the 21st century.  In developing educational games, many researchers have proposed frameworks to define elements of an educational game. This paper presents a survey of the different frameworks for educational games and analyzes these frameworks against several criteria for effective video games, well-designed games and key elements of educational games.  The authors will also look at the frameworks support towards learning theories. In addition, the analysis continues in the context of software engineering practices to develop effective educational games.

This research explores the rationale behind the utilisation of electronic games in education. A qualitative research sheds light on the students’ opinions and perceptions toward the use of serious games in-class. Semi-structured, face-to-face interview sessions among secondary school students suggest that they are acquiring relevant academic knowledge and competences, as the reap motivational and emotional benefits from these learning games. The students reported that their engagement with these games has improved their critical thinking and helped them make evaluative decisions to solve problems. Generally, students were capable of developing their interpersonal skills as they have actively collaborated in teams. On the other hand, there were a few students who were not perceiving the usefulness and the ease of use of playing serious games at school. This study postulates that the research participants possessed different skill-sets as they exhibited different learning abilities. In conclusion, this paper opens-up some avenues for future research in this field of study.

Recently, content-based language teaching has emerged as a successful
response to the increasing challenges that language departments in higher education
face. This is a case study. The hybrid format enabled the creation of a content-based
intensive foreign language video game-based course. Flipping the classroom allowed
learners to spend more time and focus their attention on exploring the spoken language
through the digital gaming realia and communication. It also encouraged independent
language exploration. Pilot data show that students attained the desired level, autonomous
learning continued, and less stress was involved.

For decades now, video games have been a pervasive part of our culture. Recent data indicate that approximately half of all American adults and seventy percent of college students play video games “at least once in a while”. Some video games are effective in the foreign language & literature classroom as supplements to more traditional teaching techniques, because they reinforce vocabulary and grammatical forms, present authentic cultural data, and challenge students to solve problems in their target language.
For gaming-based activities to be effective and meaningful, teachers must also do extensive preliminary work, preparing more traditional materials based on the gaming narrative, including vocabulary worksheets, listening and reading comprehension exercises, and written and oral production follow-up activities. Such activities must precede and follow classroom gaming sessions.
Games can offer many advantages to language learners and can turn what is typically viewed as a mindless extracurricular activity into a vibrant learning experience that extends beyond the confines of the classroom.

For decades now, video games have been a pervasive part of our culture (NBCNews.com, 2013). About half of all American adults play video games (Duggan,
2015), while 97% of teen boys and 83% of teen girls also play video games
(Anderson & Jiang, 2018).
The potential for utilizing gaming in learning has been explored in a variety of
fields, including language acquisition (e.g., Reinders, 2012). Some commercially available cinematic video games are fully-interactive multimedia experiences. Thus, including such games in the curriculum as realia (Spurr, 1942; Dlaska, 2003) can help students reinforce, and expand upon, materials they learn through traditional methods. Realia reinforce second/foreign language (F/L2) acquisition through development of specific personal interests. Cinematic games, similar in nature to movies, also add agency, which improves learning (Deters et al., 2014). They also involve problem-solving and critical thinking that can be applied to group interaction, all of which is particularly conducive to learning (Wenger, 1998) and F/L2 acquisition (Nunan, 1992). Video games can
contribute to the goal of transforming our students into life-long learners of (a)
F/L2 language(s), a process explored by CALL (e.g., Smith, 1997).
This article is a case study on teaching practices with video game-based learning, its benefits in the foreign language classroom and, in a more general sense,
in second/foreign language & culture acquisition (F/L2). I argue that utilizing
video games as part of F/L2 experiences, including in the different phases of
the study abroad experience (pre-departure, during the program, and post-departure), can enhance the learning of F/L2 language and culture. Video games
are simulations that challenge, based on repetition, which involve players at a
deep level, thus affording agency. In recent cinematic “AAA” commercial video
game titles, the simulation aspect engages players in a dialogue-based, narrative context that can prepare students for real-life conversations. The article
also serves as a practicum, by providing suggestions on how to use commercial video games to enhance language & culture acquisition as part of independent, autonomous students’ learning that educators and administrators
can foster, structured learning experiences such as study abroad (including
pre- and post-departure), and courses.

Keywords: Game-based learning, CALL, CAI, gamification, foreign languages, second language acquisition, SLA, video game-based learning, VGBL, gaming, non-serious gaming, Italian, Italian as a Second Language, Assassin’s Creed, Tomb Raider, Heavy Rain, Beyond: Two Souls, Sony PlayLink.

* This research was supported in part by a fellowship and an award from the Saint Louis University Reinert Center

https://www.beyondjournal.online/post/video-game-based-learning-as-a-preparatory-device-simulation-strategies-for-study-abroad-programs

As digital gaming has increased in popularity and become a global practice, computer-assisted language learning (CALL) researchers and second and foreign language (L2) educators have begun reconsidering games as potential L2 teaching and learning (L2TL) resources. To provide an overview of this new field, this chapter surveys the history and theory of games in CALL and presents the origins of the field, rationale for the use of games in L2TL, games purposed for L2TL, and major research findings. The chapter then presents three useful heuristics for interpreting research on games in CALL: metaphor, research object, and research orientation. The chapter concludes with implications for future research and practice, focusing on a call for cooperation and collaboration among the stakeholders in the field—CALL researchers, L2 instructors, and the L2 educational gaming industry.