Barriers to the Digital Game-Based learning at Secondary level In Punjab: Perceptions of Pre-Service Teachers

Abstract

Teachers’ main aim is to make the students learn with interest by adding daily life activities and examples to get long-lasting effects on their learning. Introducing digital games in the classroom is a new innovative approach that makes it easy for students to learn new skills and knowledge. However, teachers are not frequently using this approach in their classrooms. The present quantitative descriptive study has explored the barriers that hinder teachers from using digital game-based learning approaches. Pre-service teacher perceptions were sought in the teacher training colleges, i.e., district campuses of Quaid-i-Azam Academy for Educational Development in Punjab. After checking its validity and reliability, a self-constructed closed-ended online questionnaire was used for data collection. The alpha value of the questionnaire was .825. All the pre-service teachers studying in the district campuses of Quaid-i-Azam Academy for Educational Development, Punjab were the population of the study. The online survey remained open for about one month, and 384 responses were received from pre-service teachers throughout the Punjab province. Data were collected based on five-point Likert type scale. Collected data was put into SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Sciences) version 25 and descriptive and inferential statistics were applied to get the study results. Major findings include that availability of insufficient resources, teachers’ lack of skills and use of digital tools, and difficulties in managing technology in the classroom are the main barriers to implementing digital game-based learning in the public secondary schools of Punjab. The study benefits stakeholders, policymakers, and decision-makers and has added new knowledge in education.