Game Design Program Research Articles

Information Uses and Learning Outcomes During Guided Discovery in a Blended E-Learning Game Design Program for Secondary Computer Science Education

Information Uses and Learning Outcomes During Guided Discovery in a Blended E-Learning Game Design Program for Secondary Computer Science Education

When Everyone Wins: Dialogue, Play, and Black History for Critical Games Education

In this article, we reflect on the process and outcomes of using dialogue, play, and a focus on Black women’s history to support critical media literacy in game design education. Over three years we developed a dialogue-based introductory undergraduate course in the game design program at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute intended to deepen engagement by students in game design practice. We specifically focused on critical approaches to explore the history and culture of games, utilizing dialogic pedagogy to develop transformative learning environments rooted in social justice education, and helped students develop skills for intercultural dialogue and communicating “across difference.” The dialogue experience created a powerful learning environment that resulted in higher quality and more critical student game design work. This was evident in the 2019 iteration of the course, which included two sections of students and in which we had a semester-long group project on the history of Harriet Tubman, culminating in a selection of student games being shown at a local gallery in an exhibition celebrating Tubman’s legacy. The Tubman project was liberatory not only for students, but also instructors, as we learned together how to navigate discomfort and gain a more critical understanding of the material realities of white supremacy in games, self, and each other. This article shares details from the design and methodology of our course, outcomes as evidenced by student work, survey responses, and instructor observations, and concludes with reflections on areas for further research and opportunities for other educators to incorporate new methods in design education.

Gamification in Education: A Study of Design-Based Learning in Operationalizing a Game Studio for Serious Games

The gamification of learning has proven educational benefits, especially in secondary education. Studies confirm the successful engagement of students with improved time on task, motivation and learning outcomes. At the same time, there remains little research on games and learning at the postsecondary level of education where traditional pedagogies remain the norm. Studies that have been conducted remain almost exclusively restricted to science programs, including medicine and engineering. Moreover, postsecondary subject-matter experts who have created their own gamified experiences often are forced to do so on an ad hoc basis either on their own, teaching themselves game engines, or with irregular support from experts in the field. But to ensure a well-designed, developed, and high-quality educational experience that leads to desired outcomes for a field, a sustainable infrastructure needs to be developed in institutions that have (or can partner with) others that have an established game design program. Moreover, such a design-based learning approach can be embedded within an existing studio model to help educate participants while producing an educational product. As such, this qualitative case study provides an example of the process of operationalizing a game design studio from pre-production through post-production, drawing from the design and development of the educational video game The Museum of the Lost VR (2022). The results, resources, and classification system presented are scalable and provide models for different sized institutions. Methods to develop a sustainable infrastructure are presented to ensure interdisciplinary partnerships across departments and institutions with game design programs to collaborate and create educational experiences that optimize user experience and learning outcomes.

What’s in Their Words? How STEM Game Design Participants Discuss Their Projects, Motivation, and Success Differently

This study explored whether participation in a high school STEM game design enrichment program influenced students’ discussions of project goals, motivation, and success. Seventeen high school students were included in the study, seven participated in the game design program, while ten were traditional students. Post-interviews were conducted using a semi-structured protocol in order to capture students' lived experience in a rich, meaningful way. Transcripts were qualitatively coded by two researchers. Connections between codes were analyzed using epistemic network analysis. Based on experience grouping, we investigated whether there was a difference in how students discussed (1) their projects? (2) their motivation? (3) their success? First, our findings revealed that traditional students discussed performance goals, while game design participants discussed learning goals. Second, game design participants discussed intrinsic motivation while traditional students discussed extrinsic motivation. Third, game design participants discussed persistence in relationship to their success; traditional students did not attribute their success to persistence. Overall, our combined results indicate that traditional students were performance-oriented, while game design participants were mastery-oriented. Designing STEM games is one potential method for helping students develop the mastery orientation that they need for success in future STEM careers and for their future in general.

The role of diversity in a video game design program

ABSTRACTVideo game design is an emerging educational area, related to yet distinct from programs in information technology and game studies. This pilot study aimed to explore the role of diversity in video game design education. Data collection included interviews with two instructors and three students. This poster presents two themes: 1) why diversity is important to game design education and 2) how to address diversity in game design education. The results of this pilot study indicate the need for additional research on the role of diversity in video game design education and practice.

WS05.4 Video games for positive expiratory pressure (PEP) therapy in children with cystic fibrosis: A pilot study

Background Adherence to respiratory physiotherapy is a major challenge in children with cystic fibrosis (CF). Video games have shown promising results in improving adherence to treatment in chronic diseases. However, the feasibility of adapting video games to positive expiratory pressure (PEP) therapy in CF has not been explored. Hypothesis Therapeutic games can be adapted to PEP therapy. Methods In collaboration with students in the game design program of University of Montreal, we developed and adapted 3 video games to the parameters of PEP therapy (6 series of 15 respirations). The PARI's PEP S™ device was connected to a computer by a pressure sensor. Ten children (5 girls, 5 boys) between the age of 8 and 10 tested the video games on one occasion during PEP therapy under the supervision of the physical therapist of the CHU Sainte-Justine CF clinic. Questionnaires were completed before and after the trial by all participants which consisted of their overall evaluation of the games, their interest in pursuing the video games at home and whether they believe the games may improve adherence to PEP therapy. Results The PARI's PEP S™ device was successfully connected to a computer and all PEP parameters were monitored adequately. Nine children (9/10) were very interested in pursuing the video games while doing their PEP therapy at home. All of them thought that the games were well adapted to the PEP therapy and that it may improve their adherence to the treatment. Conclusion Video games can be adapted to PEP therapy. A second study is currently being planned to investigate whether video games may improve adherence to respiratory physiotherapy in children with CF.

A reflective study into children's cognition when making computer games

AbstractIn this paper, children's mental activities when making digital games are explored. Where previous studies have mainly focused on children's learning, this study aimed to unfold the children's thinking process for learning when making computer games. As part of an ongoing larger scale study, which adopts an ethnographic approach, this research reports on how children think when making their own computer games using their “Thinking Maps” and video recordings of group discussions. A model for Thinking for Learning, “think‐to‐learn‐to‐think,” is discussed and children's activities are used to define the stages of this cycle. The study of children's pre–during–after project “Thinking Maps” and explanations during group discussions suggests that their thinking sequences were altered during and after their game design activities. The children presented their “thinking process” when designing computer games as a continual circular cycle and described their mind as a virtual lab to plan and visualise solutions before testing them on screen, using the “Alice” game design program.

Emotional engagement, social interactions, and the development of an afterschool game design curriculum

This formative design study examines how a program curriculum and implementation was emergently (re)designed in dynamic relation to the expressed emotions of teachers and students. The context was a yearlong afterschool game design program for STEM learning at an urban and public all-girls middle school. Using Randall Collins’ (Interaction ritual chains, Princeton University Press, Princeton, 2004) sociology of emotions framework, our analysis of field notes and video data reveal how the original intended curriculum hindered the generation of positive emotions, mutual foci of attention, and feelings of group solidarity—factors important in the generation of successful group interactions. In response to teacher and student expressed emotions, we took these factors as a guide for redesigning the program curriculum and implementation in order to foster a more positive emotional climate and redirect students’ positive emotions toward engagement in learning goals. This study’s implications point to the possibilities for designing curricula and program implementations to engender more emotionally responsive environments for STEM learning.

IT-Adventures: A Program to Spark IT Interest in High School Students Using Inquiry-Based Learning With Cyber Defense, Game Design, and Robotics

The IT-Adventures program is dedicated to increasing interest in and awareness of information technology among high school students using inquiry-based learning focused on three content areas: cyber defense, game design programming, and robotics. The program combines secondary, post-secondary, and industry partnerships in educational programming, competitive events, and service learning projects targeted at high school students to accomplish its goals. This paper provides details about the IT-Adventures program as well as the capstone event for students-the IT-Olympics. Project assessment findings, such as differences between students who compete in different content areas, and descriptive measures about the participants are also provided.

Electronic arts game design program at USC CNTV

ELECTRONIC ARTS ANNOUNCES MULTI-MILLION DOLLAR GIFT TO USC SCHOOL OF CINEMA-TELEVISION'S INTERACTIVE MEDIA DIVISIONFunds Will Expand School's Global Leadership in Computer Game Research and EducationPress release belowELECTRONIC ARTS ANNOUNCES MULTI-MILLION DOLLAR GIFT TO USC SCHOOL OF CINEMA-TELEVISION'S INTERACTIVE MEDIA DIVISIONFunds Will Expand School's Global Leadership in Computer Game Research and EducationFOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEREDWOOD CITY, Calif., March 22, 2004, 2004 - Electronic Arts (EA) (Nasdaq: ERTS) announced today that it has made a multi-million dollar donation to the USC School of Cinema-Television (USC-CNTV) to advance interactive media education and create a launch pad for the next generation of interactive entertainment. The contribution, part of EA's global educational and talent development effort, will fund two new facets of USC-CNTV's Division of Interactive Media: the Electronic Arts Interactive Entertainment Program and the Electronic Arts Endowed Faculty Chair. The EA Interactive Entertainment Program is a 3-year Master of Fine Arts degree program. The program will help forward USC-CNTV's goal to educate the next generation of high-level gaming design and visionary thinkers in what will be one of the 21st Century's primary entertainment media."The School's rich storytelling tradition and long-standing commitment to technological experimentation make it an ideal partner for EA," said Don Mattrick, President, Electronic Arts Worldwide Studios. "This is an excellent opportunity for EA to invest in the future of the industry by providing today's students with the skills and knowledge they will need to push technology and entertainment forward." Mattrick, the newest appointee to the School's Board of Councilors, will be part of a high-profile team - the ranks of which include entertainment giants Jeffrey Katzenberg, George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, John Wells, and Robert Zemeckis - that will work to ensure that interactive media studies at USC continues to move confidently in the direction of growth and innovation."This gift clearly demonstrates EA's commitment to expanding the frontiers of game design, and to developing a well rounded, highly skilled, and forward-thinking talent base overall," said Elizabeth M. Daley, Dean, USC School of Cinema-Television. "The School's position as an international academic leader is further solidified by its relationship with the world's number-one interactive entertainment developer - a partnership that will set new standards of excellence in a field that is truly changing global culture."The EA gift will fuel the growth of the School's Interactive Media Division's gaming component, and enable the Division, headed by Scott Fisher, to define and expand this nascent, multi-faceted field. With the aid of these funds, the School will grow its efforts to graduate students who are visionary thinkers, but who also have a deep understanding of the crafts and skills required to produce quality content for a diverse media array. Specifically, the Electronic Arts Interactive Entertainment Program will spawn the creation of a curriculum and research lab to explore the boundaries of interactive entertainment and to study the emerging discipline of game development. The gift will enable the creation of an intra-USC gaming community that will bring together creative and technical expertise in cinema-television, the arts, and technical sciences, and will provide students with invaluable real-world experience through internships and work-study programs at EA, including its newest Los Angeles campus.The Electronic Arts Chair will enable the Division to meet the intensifying demand for talented game developers who are solidly grounded in story and content. The endowed funds to support faculty specializing in game development elevates the field into the ranks of other professions, such as law and engineering, worthy of scholarly study and specialized training."It's astonishing how quickly games have become an essential part of the entertainment arts, and there is no better place than USC to nurture the creative and conceptual thinkers who will take the medium to places we can only imagine," said USC alumnus George Lucas, a longtime supporter of the School of Cinema-Television, the founder of game-design studio LucasArts and the filmmaker behind the Star Wars series. "USC is a major force in cinema education, and thanks to Electronic Arts, it can become a leader in interactive arts education as well.""To create the next generation of entertainment, we need the next generation of talent," said Rusty Rueff, Executive Vice President of Human Resources, Electronic Arts. "Melding storytelling, art, music, game design, and technology has become so complex that it is imperative for tomorrow's designers and producers to acquire an education with both depth and breadth in order to achieve success in our ever-growing industry.""Our new development studio in Playa Del Rey and this investment reflect EA's long term commitment to Los Angeles and Southern California," said John Batter, Vice President and General Manager, Electronic Arts Los Angeles. "We are proud to be expanding our presence within the region by fostering creativity through education and by stimulating current and future growth within the entertainment industry."