Interacting with real-person non-player characters to learn history: development and playing behavior pattern analysis of a remote scaffolding-based situated educational game

Abstract

ABSTRACT This study developed an online role-playing history education game with real-person NPCs (Non-Player Characters). The game features real people playing NPC characters, and provides a multi-dimensional scaffolding mechanism with realistic story and historical scenes, allowing learners to engage in strategic planning and problem solving during a historical event to facilitate their history empathy and further promote their understanding of historical figures and feelings about historical events. A total of 60 participants were recruited online to participate in this study, with 30 in the experimental group (learning by game) and 30 in the control group (learning by general case discussion). This study explored learning effectiveness, flow status, activity anxiety, history empathy, usefulness of scaffolding, game fidelity, and gaming behavioral patterns. The results showed that the experimental group of learners’ history knowledge improved significantly under the history educational game activities. The game also promoted learners’ history empathy. Both groups had high flow. In addition, multi-dimensional scaffolding was noticed in the game at a high rate, and there was a high degree of usefulness. This study also coded videos of learners’ activity processes and further analyzed the behavioral patterns of learners’ collaborative learning.