Effectiveness Of Digital Game-based Learning Research Articles

EFL learners’ flow experience and incidental vocabulary learning during text-based game tasks: The moderating role of working memory capacity

Despite the evidence provided by research on Digital Game-Based Learning (DGBL) on the effectiveness of educational digital games in promoting engagement, motivation, and learning, evidence regarding the effectiveness of DGBL on students' Incidental Vocabulary Learning (IVL) through the mediation of flow is essentially lacking. This study reports on developing an application in Digital Text-based Game (DTG) genre to induce flow and examine IVL among EFL learners randomly assigned to DTG and Non-digital Text-based Game (NTG) groups. A modified version of the Vocabulary Knowledge Scale (VKS; Paribakht & Wesche, 1997) was used to measure the receptive and productive knowledge of words. To assess different dimensions of flow, we analyzed the contents of the participants’ diaries and to measure working memory capacity (WMC), an Operation Span Task was used. Results indicated that DTGs induced higher levels of flow compared to NTGs. The results further revealed no significant effect for game-induced flow on IVL, but language-induced flow significantly predicted IVL, which emphasizes the importance of considering effects associated with the source of flow on IVL. WMC was also found to exert a significant effect on immediate post-test performance, but its effect on delayed post-test results did not reach statistical significance.

Exploring the Effects of Digital Game-Based Learning on Music Education

Digital game-based learning (DGBL) has been proven its potential and benefits in educational fields, including musical education. Yet, there remains a paucity of robust quantitative evidence on the effects of DGBL on enhancing students’ piano performance, particularly in Chinese tertiary levels. Therefore, this current research aims to conduct a quasi-experimental design to investigate the impact of DGBL on Chinese university students’ piano performance. Participants were recruited in a southern Chinese university with 30 intermediate-level piano major students. Whilst the experimental group received the DGBL during classes, the control one used the traditional method to learn piano. Quantitative findings showed that the posttest of the experimental group students was higher than their pretest. Moreover, students from the experimental group performed better than the control group. This study may shed some light on implicational practices for teachers and educators with regard to using DGBL to teach students piano.

The Effects of Digital Game-Based Learning in Technology-Oriented Course: A Case Study in the Biochemistry Department

This study was done to find out what students thought about the variables of perceived control, perceived learning, perceived benefit, interest, motivation, affective components, attitude, behavioral components, and learning experience when using digital games in information and communication technologies courses. As a case study, the study was created. 30 students from the biochemistry department made up the study's research group. The tool for gathering data was a semi-structured interview form. Data analysis was done using the content analysis method. When the study's results were discussed, students claimed that playing digital games improved their perceptions of their level of control, interest in the subject, motivation, perceived value of the course, learning experiences, and learning facilitation. Students also mentioned that they felt a variety of positive emotions while using digital games, that they wanted to play them constantly and willingly, and that their attitudes had improved. To increase and enhance students' interest in the course, motivation, positive attitudes and emotions, desire, and learning experiences, digital games can be used in technology-focused courses.

Effects of digital game-based learning on students’ digital etiquette literacy, learning motivations, and engagement

Recent years have seen a substantial rise in the number of children and teenagers surfing the Internet; however, not all use this resource responsibly. Digital etiquette, a core element of digital citizenship, contributes to proper Internet adoption and reduces inappropriate behavior in cyberspace. To protect children and teenagers from harm online, it is essential to familiarize them with digital etiquette literacy and codes of Internet conduct from an early age. Digital citizenship education is relatively rare in Chinese primary schools. Research on student performance in this regard is also lacking. Digital game-based learning (DGBL) has demonstrated potential to enhance students' learning, motivations, and engagement. In this paper, we designed and implemented a digital game-based course intended to foster students' digital etiquette literacy. A quasi-experiment in a primary school in Guangzhou revealed that compared with conventional learning, DGBL improved students’ digital etiquette literacy while positively influencing their learning-related motivations and engagement. This study can serve as a reference for primary or secondary schools interested in teaching digital etiquette to support global digital citizenship education.

Digital Game-Based Learning as a Strategy to Expand Vocational Students’ Vocabulary: A Mixed Methods Approach

The Digital Game-Based Learning (DGBL) strategy is widely recommended for digital-native learners to enrich their vocabulary. The purposes of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of DGBL in expanding students’ vocabulary knowledge. A mixed methods approach was implemented. The quasi-experimental design involved an experimental group (taught with DGBL, N = 29) and a control group (trained with conventional vocabulary learning, N = 28). Each group was assigned a test before and following the intervention, consisting of 30 similar questions. IBM SPSS Statistics 26.0 has been employed to gauge the data collected, and utilized a paired sample t-test in conjunction with an independent sample t-test. The inspection exposed that, using DGBL affects students’ vocabulary learning development. The experimental group’s average score rose from 44.83 to 63.45. However, there was no discernible distinction between the two groups’ mean post-test results. The researchers analyzed three factors causing the insignificant results of the independent sample t-test: time constraints, poor internet connection, and both groups obtaining intentional vocabulary learning. Eight questions in the interview session were asked to the experimental group to explore their views about the DGBL and confirmed the unclear information that resulted in quantitative data. Interviewees agreed that DGBL can enrich vocabulary, increase learning motivation, and reduce boredom.

Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Digital Game-Based Learning Given to Nursing Students for the Developmental Care of Infants in Neonatal Intensive Care Unit

Although simulation laboratories are widely used in today's nursing education programs, it is becoming more and more difficult to find adequate physical space, equipment, and instructors for laboratory practices in schools. With increasing access to quality technology, schools prefer Web-based education or virtual games as another way of learning through simulation laboratories. This study was carried out to evaluate the effect of digital game-supported teaching activity given to nursing students for the developmental care of infants in neonatal ICU on learning. This study is a quasi-experimental study with a control group. Within the scope of the study, the researchers, together with the technical team, developed a digital game in accordance with the purpose of the study. The study was conducted in a health sciences faculty, nursing department, between September 2019 and March 2020. Sixty-two students were included in the study, which were divided into two groups, with 31 students in the experimental group and 31 students in the control group. The study data were collected using a personal information tool and a developmental care information tool. Whereas the digital game learning method was used for the students in the experimental group, the traditional teaching method was used for the students in the control group. No significant difference has been found between the pretest knowledge scores of the students in the experimental and control groups (P > .05). A statistically significant difference has been found in the rates of giving correct answers between the groups in the posttest and retention test (P < .05). The students in the experimental group gave more correct answers in the posttest and retention test than the students in the control group. In line with these results, the learning method with digital games is effective in increasing the knowledge level of nursing undergraduate students. Therefore, it is recommended to integrate digital games into education.

Effects of Digital Game-Based Learning on Students’ Cyber Wellness Literacy, Learning Motivations, and Engagement

The Internet has become an essential part of our daily life, but excessive Internet use may lead to a number of risks such as Internet addiction. In order to protect teenagers from the risks, it is important to guide them to use the Internet in a safe, responsible, and ethical way. Cyber wellness literacy, as the core issue of digital citizenship, plays a vital role in the physical and mental well-being of individuals and should be given high priority. While some studies have explored the integration of digital citizenship into school education through digital game-based learning (DGBL), the influence of digital games on teenagers’ learning outcomes, learning motivation, and engagement in the field of cyber wellness remains unclear. It is, therefore, a challenge to provide cyber wellness literacy learning activities that empower students to keep away from Internet addiction and maintain a happy, healthy, and safe digital life. This study addressed the issue of Internet addiction from the perspective of digital citizenship, and designed and implemented a digital game-based course in a middle school. The study then explored the potential impact of DGBL on improving students’ cyber wellness literacy, motivation, and engagement. The statistical results show that DGBL not only promoted the students’ cyber wellness literacy in preventing Internet addiction, but also enhanced their motivations and emotional engagement.

Gaming enhances learning-induced plastic changes in the brain

Digital games may benefit children’s learning, yet the factors that induce gaming benefits to cognition are not well known. In this study, we investigated the effectiveness of digital game-based learning in children by comparing the learning of foreign speech sounds and words in a digital game or a non-game digital application. To evaluate gaming-induced plastic changes in the brain, we used the mismatch negativity (MMN) brain response that reflects the access to long-term memory representations. We recorded auditory brain responses from 37 school-aged Finnish-speaking children before and after playing a computer-based language-learning game. The MMN amplitude increased between the pre- and post-measurement for the game condition but not for the non-game condition, suggesting that the gaming intervention enhanced learning more than the non-game intervention. The results indicate that digital games can be beneficial for children’s speech-sound learning and that gaming elements per se, not just practice time, support learning.

Designing digital game-based learning for professional upskilling: A systematic literature review

In 2001, Prensky proposed the digital game-based learning (DGBL) theory by merging digital games and educational design. Many DGBL studies have been conducted in formal education settings but rarely was the effectiveness of DGBL on adult learners in the context of professional upskilling examined. To examine the influence of DGBL on professional upskilling, we conducted a systematic literature review examining DGBL research conducted over the past 10 years with adult learners. Through analysing 30 articles that met the inclusion criteria, three themes were developed: (a) characteristics of learning-driven digital games, which focus on various learning pedagogies and teaching strategies used in DGBL; (b) game design elements that were used to motivate and sustain players’ engagement in learning, and (c) the research findings that could influence the implementation of DBGL. Based on the results, we recommended a purposeful selection of game design elements as extraneous game design elements can inhibit the learning process. Pedagogical frameworks and teaching strategies, such as sustainable feedback and a supportive learning process, are also recommended for the implementation of DGBL. Lastly, the role of teachers and their knowledge about educational design and pedagogies can help ensure the effectiveness of the DGBL. In conclusion, our systematic literature review found supportive evidence for DGBL to be an effective teaching tool if the three areas, game design and development, use of pedagogy, and role of teachers, were addressed.

The effects of digital game-based learning on children’s Chinese language learning, attention and self-efficacy

ABSTRACT This quasi-experimental study examined the effects of digital game-based learning (DGBL) on elementary-school students’ Chinese language learning, self-efficacy and attention. In total, 126 fourth-graders participated in the study for 6 weeks. Two digital games with different mechanisms (completion-contingent and performance-contingent rewards) that integrated content from the fourth-grade Chinese language-arts curriculum were developed. Data on attention were collected from wearable electroencephalographic sensors while participants played the games. Students’ playing behaviours were coded into five patterns. Students in the DGBL groups outperformed those in the control group in Chinese language-arts learning. Different game mechanisms had significant positive effects on children’s attention and self-efficacy. The performance-contingent reward game significantly enhanced students’ attention, and the completion-contingent reward game significantly enhanced their emotions and confidence in the Chinese language arts. The performance of more leaning behaviours in the DGBL environment was associated with higher Chinese language-arts achievement scores, especially among players with high levels of attention and self-efficacy during game play. These findings support the effectiveness of DGBL in enhancing students’ Chinese language learning.

A digital role-playing game for learning: effects on critical thinking and motivation

ABSTRACT The present research examined the effect of digital role-playing game-based learning on high school students’ critical thinking ability. Playing a digital game designed with RPG Maker and whose story lines featured critical thinking questions, a total of 32 high school student participants were given a learning context to practice critical thinking skills repeatedly. A quasi-experimental design was implemented to explore how students’ performances in critical thinking skills and their learning motivation changed after participation in a four-day workshop camp. The results of the study showed that student participants achieved significant progress both in overall critical thinking performance and in learning motivation. Similar studies on the effectiveness of digital game-based learning on learning performance and learning motivation among students were also compared in lieu of the results of the present study. Both the quantitative and qualitative results of this study not only agreed with a majority of previous research findings on students’ learning performance and learning motivation, but revealed some distinctive pedagogical qualities among different skills of critical thinking. Practical suggestions were also provided to help future studies and instructional designs of digital game-based learning achieve effective learning and enhance learning motivation among students.

Examining the use of Kahoot to support digital game-based formative assessments in UAE higher education

Attempts to sustain economic growth and diversification within the Middle East have seen governments invested in various educational initiatives. In alignment with this ethos, the United Arab Emirates offers citizens, free education in government-funded higher educational institutes, and bursaries linked to grade point average scores.It is believed that incentivised learning environments provide a powerful motivation to stimulate academic excellence in summative assessments⁠—linked to grade point average scores. An unfortunate outcome of these environments may, however, be that non-grade point reliant tasks are not prioritised by learners. Thus, identifying pedagogical tools which engage student agency towards such tasks, is of obvious interest to educators working within these settings.One such tool which may engage student agency towards formative assessments, is the digital game-based learning platform Kahoot. Kahoot is known to have permeated many educational domains due to its claimed ability to transform classrooms into fun, competitive environments, where students are engaged and motivated to learn. There is, however, a sparsity of literature evidencing the effects that contextual or demographic influences may have upon this and other digital game-based learning tools effectiveness. As such, an explanatory case-based study situated in the United Arab Emirates incentivised learning environment, was undertaken to evaluate female students’ perceptions of Kahoot, as a formative assessment tool. To achieve this Mwanza's eight-step model for translating data into activity theory components was utilised to develop semi-structured interview questions (Mwanza, 2002). These questions permitted analyses of the social, the individual, and socio-economic structures influencing user engagement with this technology.Upon introduction of Kahoot as a formative assessment tool, into the incentivised learning context of the UAE, students described contradictions between classroom and institutional rules, community expectations and the divisions of labour. The transformed classroom environments resultant from resolution of these contradictions produced, greater learner collaboration, superior knowledge retention, reduced test anxiety, and increased levels of student satisfaction.In contrast with other contexts, this study evidenced that digital game-based learning did not predominantly influence student’s motivation to study outside of the classroom for formative assessments. Instead, conventional paper-based assessments provided the greater impetus to engage in out of class learning. This finding may have resulted from the socio-economic and socio-cultural perceptions of the students within this specific learning context.This study, therefore, urges researchers and educators to undertake shifts in their consciousness to acknowledge socio-cultural and intersubjective factors, which may impact upon the effectiveness of digital game-based learning as a formative assessment tool. This is in recognition of this study’s findings that such technologies, may be heavily dependent upon both contextual and demographic influences of those utilising them.Keywords: digital game-based learning; Kahoot; formative assessments; Mwanza’s eight-step model; student motivation; United Arab EmiratesPart of the Special Issue Technology enhanced learning in the MENA region

Effectiveness of digital games in producing environmentally friendly attitudes and behaviors: A mixed methods study

Awareness of environmental sustainability issues alone is not enough. Environmental Sustainability Education (ESE) should produce changes in attitude and encourage lifelong behaviors. However, behavioral changes are curtailed by constraints and negative perceptions, necessitating the use of persuasive pedagogical tools in ESE. Digital game-based learning (DGBL) environments can provide cognitive knowledge, besides emotionally engaging learners by letting them test new behaviors and seeing the consequences instantly. This study examined the effectiveness of DGBL in producing attitudinal and behavioral changes regarding environmental sustainability and about learning experiences from a game, through a mixed methods study. One group of undergraduate students in an educational technology course played EnerCities, an ESE game. Another group played a Science game that was not connected to ESE. The Attitudinal Learning Instrument was administered to collect quantitative data pertaining to attitudinal and behavioral learning after one week and after five weeks of game play. Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) was used to develop a model to measure learning. PLS-SEM helps analyze relationships simultaneously in complex models. Quantitative data analysis using PLS-SEM showed that EnerCities was effective in producing attitudinal and behavioral changes that were retained until one week of game play. Thematic analysis of qualitative data, collected through interviews after five weeks of game play, helped interpret why and how attitudinal changes were produced by the game. This provided insights into what game features facilitated cognitive, affective, behavioral and social learning and learning retention, that could be used in future game design. Future research could apply the measurement model to measure long-term retention of attitudinal and behavioral learning using games and other interventions on socio-scientific topics.

An Investigation of Digital Game-Based Learning Software in the Elementary General Music Classroom

Game-based learning, or the process of adapting an educational concept into a game-based structure, has been studied by researchers for nearly a century. Over the last several decades, new technologies have allowed digital media to create a multibillion-dollar entertainment industry commonly known as video games. Video games have become a tool for many educators who have the potential to engage students to learn musical concepts and skills. The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of digital game-based learning in comparison to other teaching methods for music education and to explore the perspectives of young students regarding video games both in school and in their personal lives. Eighty-two (n = 82) fifth- and sixth-grade students in a northeastern U.S. elementary school completed a study consisting of a pretest/posttest control group design. Results showed that students who had access to educational video games combined with the assistance of an instructor achieved higher mean scores than students who had access to either video games without instruction or instruction without video games. These findings suggested that educational video games may potentially be used as an effective tool in the music classroom to teach musical concepts and skills.

The Effects of Digital Game-Based Learning on Early English Literacy Task for Non-Native Speakers

Despite the growing evidence for the benefits of digital game-based learning (DGBL) in promoting learning in various contexts, the effects of DGBL on...

Effects of Digital Game-Based Learning on Elementary Science Learning: A Systematic Review

Effects of Digital Game-Based Learning on Elementary Science Learning: A Systematic Review

Effects of Digital Game-Based Learning on Elementary Science Learning: A Systematic Review

Digital game-based learning (DGBL) has been perceived as an engaging teaching approach to foster students' learning and motivation. There are different opinions about the potential benefits of gaming on students' academic achievements, motivation, and skills in science courses due to the lack of empirical evidence and mixed results. To address this issue, this paper provides a review of relevant literature from 2006 to 2017 to examine the effects of using educational computer games in teaching science at the elementary education level. This paper employed a multidimensional framework to classify learning outcomes from studies of DGBL applications in the area of elementary science education. The findings of this review show a promising potential of DGBL, particularly in the area of content understanding. However, the findings of the review also suggest that there is a need to provide additional research in order to gain a more comprehensive picture of the educational effectiveness of DGBL. Hence, researchers are advised to conduct more randomized controlled trials (RCTs), various learning modes (e.g., collaborative and individual), and comparisons of DGBL to traditional methods of teaching. Furthermore, the researchers are highly encouraged to examine the effectiveness of DGBL applications in other areas, such as problem-solving and critical thinking. The findings of this review can benefit educational computer game designers, educators, and practitioners in the area of science education, particularly at the elementary level.

Effects of digital game-based learning on achievement, flow and overall cognitive load

The purpose of this study was to examine differences in learning achievement, flow, and overall cognitive load between digital game-based learning (DGBL) and traditional computer-based learning (CBL). This study was conducted with 103 Taiwan college students: 50 college students in the experimental group used DGBL; 53 students in the control group used CBL. Results show the DGBL participants displayed significantly better learning achievement, flow, and lower cognitive load compared to the CBL participants. Learning achievement and flow exhibit a positive correlation, while negatively correlating with overall cognitive load. These results align with the existing research concepts of flow theory, cognitive theory of multimedia learning, and cognitive load theory.

Learning and motivational effects of digital game-based learning (DGBL) for manufacturing education –The Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) game

Despite its potential, empirical evidence of the educational effectiveness of Digital Game-based Learning (DGBL) for manufacturing education is still limited. To this respect, the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) Game was developed in order to explain in an interactive way to university students life cycle assessment, a tool which is becoming increasingly important for sustainable manufacturing. The study was based on a two-group pretest-posttest quasi-experimental design involving 62 participants and was aiming at understanding the impact of LCA Game on both learning and motivation of university students. The results show that students using LCA Game performed significantly better on procedural knowledge while students involved in the non-gamified activity performed significantly better on factual knowledge. In addition, while higher levels of usability and enjoyment were associated to the LCA Game group, no particular differences were found on the other motivational dimensions. Thus, this study provides important insights about the specific educational benefits that can be obtained through DGBL in manufacturing education.

Effects of the Digital Game-Based Learning (DGBL) on Students Academic Performance in Arabic Learning at Sambas Purbalingga

Arabic has been an official language of the United Nations since 1971. However, infrastructure, availability of technology by either students or teachers and professional training for teacher's technological usage in Arabic teaching are still lacking. This paper presents the effectiveness of Digital Game-Based Learning as media towards students’ academic performance in Arabic learning. DGBL was designed by ADDIE model. Quasi experimental Design was used as the method for the implementation phase. The sample of this study was 72 students of the first grade of junior high school. They were divided into two groups of 36 respectively: Group A as the experimental group and Group B as the control group. Group A was treated with DGBL method whereas Group B treated with The Non-DGBL method. The learning results showed that Group A performed significantly higher than Group B cause the results of t table is smaller than the result based on t-Test value (1,67 < 3,244). The Digital Game-Based Learning (DGBL) suggested being used as a tool to increase student’s academic performance in Arabic learning for high school students.