Interactive games can invigorate undergraduate curricula, promote collaboration, and engage students, but few studies evaluate which conditions facilitate learning and collaboration during game-based geoscience activities. This study examines educational gains, cooperative learning elements, and enjoyment during two educational board games, “Taphonomy: Dead and Fossilized” and “Reef Survivor,” deployed in two-hour geoscience labs (n = 136 students). Varying conditions (in-person versus online labs, team versus solo play, and an introduction to counter stereotype threat versus a neutral introduction) were assessed to understand effects of playing in teams, use of priming conditions, and class modality. We used pre- and post-lab low-stakes assessments to test knowledge, student perception surveys following gameplay (both described in Martindale et al., 2024; Martindale & Weiss, 2020), and the Kern et al. (2007) cooperative learning observation protocol during lab to document and quantify student behaviors. Although gameplay conditions did not result in significantly different learning gains (no significant differences between student demographic groups), team play was typically related to cooperative learning advantages, including strategizing, group processing, and positive interdependence. Overall, individual accountability was high, and conflict was low no matter the conditions, but cooperative learning was less common during online labs than in-person. Working together may support connections to the material and other students, as well as encourage engaged learning; moreover, students preferred playing in teams. Therefore, when using games or game-based learning, we recommend playing in-person with teams; together, these conditions can support student engagement and cooperative learning during gameplay.
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Open Access
Sep 25, 2024
Ninik Sudarwati + 2
