Developing Graduate Attributes Through Competitive Gameplay and Learning Theories

Abstract

The term competitive gameplay or gaming is predominantly associated with esports. Esports, a synonym, or abbreviation for electronic sports is an industry that has a global outreach with a lucrative market. This is accentuated by the event driven, business model focus and organised competitive events, often involving sponsorship. These additional characteristics associated with esports is what distinguishes it from traditional or casual gaming. Though esports games can be played individually, they are predominantly viewed as a team activity. Beyond the debate as to whether esports can be classified as a sport, it is an area that has attracted a significant amount of academic research. Research areas have often included esports psychology, esports player health and nutrition and esports management. Some research studies have also reviewed how esports have the potential to e.0quip esports players with relevant 21st century skills such as critical and lateral thinking. One area where esports appears to be under researched is in the relationship between competitive gameplay and learning theories. It can be argued that this is an important consideration when delivering esports from an educational perspective. The aim of this paper is to provide a scoping review of the esports literature identifying empirical research associated with competitive gaming and graduate attributes. Esports game genres will be explored from a gameplay perspective demonstrating via learning theory examples how these games can facilitate graduate attributes in players. Exploring the domain of esports game genres, learning theories and meta-skills, the paper presents a conceptual model illustrating the interrelationship between these areas. The paper also has practical value to educators, who may be as yet unfamiliar with esports, informing them of the subject’s educational benefits from a graduate attribute and employability perspective.