 Jeffrey Earp |
We’d like to start discussing a key question that many GaLA partners have been asking us - in one form or another - as leaders of the network’s Pedagogy Technical Committee, namely whether and how the pedagogical approaches typically associated with TEL environments can also be applied to Serious Games. So… we decided to ask for your help on this via GEL’s key question corner! What we propose is, first of all, to identify different pedagogical approaches / learning paradigms / theoretical frameworks (what name suits the idea best, in your opinion?), link them to existing Serious Games and investigate their actual relationship. With this in mind, we’ve created a model for proposing a particular paradigm (or approach, or whatever name you prefer….), its definition with respect to games, and papers in which one or more SGs are explicitly linked to it; in this last case, beside existing references, we can also draw on personal experiences, conducted experiments, etc. To get things rolling, we’re providing some initial examples below; you can also KQC Topic 1: Template for pedagogical paradigms. So now you can add a new paradigm, enrich the paradigms posted here with further info, and comment on what’s being proposed. |
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Jeffrey Earp |
PARADIGM 1: EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING (for explanation of the following sections see KQC Topic 1: Template for pedagogical paradigms.) |
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Mireia |
Following the template:
Connectivism Definition 1: (Wikipedia) Connectivism was introduced as a theory of learning based on the premise that knowledge exists in the world rather than in the head of an individual. Connectivism proposes a perspective similar to the Activity theory of Vygotsky as it regards knowledge to exist within systems which are accessed through people participating in activities. It also bears some similarity with the Social Learning Theory of Bandura that proposes that people learn through contact. The add-on "a learning theory for the digital age", that appears on Siemens, (2004) indicates the special importance that is given to the effect technology has on how people live, how they communicate, and how they learn. Definition 2: (Siemens, G. (2004). Connectivism: A learning theory for the digital age. International Journal of Instructional Technology and Distance Learning. Retrieved on September, 26 2011, from http:/
Connectivism is the integration of principles explored by chaos, network, and complexity and self-organization theories. Learning is a process that occurs within nebulous environments of shifting core elements – not entirely under the control of the individual. Learning (defined as actionable knowledge) can reside outside of ourselves (within an organization or a database), is focused on connecting specialized information sets, and the connections that enable us to learn more are more important than our current state of knowing. Connectivism is driven by the understanding that decisions are based on rapidly altering foundations. New information is continually being acquired. The ability to draw distinctions between important and unimportant information is vital. The ability to recognize when new information alters the landscape based on decisions made yesterday is also critical. Principles of connectivism: Learning and knowledge rests in diversity of opinions. Learning is a process of connecting specialized nodes or information sources. Learning may reside in non-human appliances. Capacity to know more is more critical than what is currently known. Nurturing and maintaining connections is needed to facilitate continual learning. Ability to see connections between fields, ideas, and concepts is a core skill. Currency (accurate, up-to-date knowledge) is the intent of all connectivist learning activities. Decision-making is itself a learning process. Choosing what to learn and the meaning of incoming information is seen through the lens of a shifting reality. While there is a right answer now, it may be wrong tomorrow due to alterations in the information climate affecting the decision. Example game 1: I love bees http:/ Game 1 attribution: McGoniglal, J. (2007). Why I Love Bees: A Case Study in Collective Intelligence Gaming.” Ecologies of Play. MIT Press. Comment – In early August 2004, the alternate reality game I Love Bees gave its online players, over 600,000 in number, their first real-world mission. There were no further instructions provided. The I Love Bees (ILB) players were given no goal, no rules, no choices, no resources to manage, no buttons to press, no objects to collect—just a series of very specific, physical locations and an impending cascade of actual, real-time moments. Taken together, what were these ingredients supposed to yield?
Example game 2 : Foldit http:/ Game 2 attribution:
Khatib, F., DiMaio, F., Cooper, S., Kazmierczyk, M., Gilski, M., Krzywda, S., Zabranska, H., Pichova, I., Thompson, J., Popović, Z., Jaskolski, M., & Baker, D. (2011). Crystal structure of a monomeric retroviral protease solved by protein folding game players Nature Structural & Molecular Biology DOI: 10.1038/nsmb.2119
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Jeffrey Earp |
PARADIGM 3: SITUATED LEARNING Definition 1 (Wikipedia): situated learning is learning that takes place in the same context in which it is applied, (not) [...] simply the transmission of abstract and decontextualised knowledge from one individual to another, but a social process whereby knowledge is co-constructed [...] such learning is situated in a specific context and embedded within a particular social and physical environment. Situated learning was first projected by Jean Lave and Etienne Wenger as a model of learning in a community of practice. This type of learning allows an individual (students/learner) to learn by socialization, visualization, and imitation. Learning begins with people trying to solve problems.
Example game 2: Fizziees - http:/ Game 2 attribution: Examining the pedagogical foundations of modern educational computer games. Mansureh Kebritchi, Atsusi "2c" Hirumi. Journal Computers & Education Volume 51 Issue 4, December, 2008 Comment: Fizzees (D. Sutch, personal communication, September 11, 2006) (has) been suggested to situate learning in online communities of practice within a game format… knowledge is gained through the use of higher order of thinking skills. The learning takes place in simulated authentic context and players participate in online interaction and collaboration with other players, as the members of community, to improve their knowledge. Game 3 attribution: Examining the pedagogical foundations of modern educational computer games. Mansureh Kebritchi, Atsusi "2c" Hirumi. Journal Computers & Education Volume 51 Issue 4, December, 2008 Comment: Modeling the authentic activities, coaching and scaffolding, and fading support have been used to design simSchool (Zibit & Gibson, 2005) The learners are coached by the game feedback, hints, and scaffolding…As the learners advanced in their abilities, the complexity of the game increased and they moved to a new level of challenge. In addition, several key concepts associated with learner assessment have formed the pedagogical foundations of simSchool. Specifically, simSchool organizes game tasks into four levels of difficulty in assessment and uses a conceptual assessment framework to guide a four-process architecture to assess student learning (D. Gibson, personal communication, June 28, 2006; Gibson, Aldrich, & Prensky, 2007). Game 4 attribution: Examining the pedagogical foundations of modern educational computer games. Mansureh Kebritchi, Atsusi "2c" Hirumi. Journal Computers & Education Volume 51 Issue 4, December, 2008 Comment: Modeling the authentic activities, coaching and scaffolding, and fading support have been used to design KM Quest (Leemkuil et al., 2003)….KM Quest … has been designed based on the cognitive apprenticeship principles (Collins, Brown, & Newman, 1989) to teach knowledge management (Leemkuil et al., 2003). The game simulates a realistic context where the learners solve practice knowledge management skills. The game includes four main phases of introduction, instruction, play, and reflection.
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Jeffrey Earp |
Paradigm 4 - Problem Based Learning (PBL)
Definition 1 - Wikipedia: Problem-based learning (PBL) is a student-centered pedagogy in which students learn about a subject in the context of complex, multifaceted, and realistic problems. Working in groups, students identify what they already know, what they need to know, and how and where to access new information that may lead to resolution of the problem. The role of the instructor is that of facilitator of learning who provides appropriate scaffolding of that process by (for example), asking probing questions, providing appropriate resources, and leading class discussions, as well as designing student assessments.
Definition 2 - Barrows, H.S. & Tamblyn, R. M. (1980) Problem-based learning: an approach to medical education. Springer Series on Medical Education. Vol. 1: Learning from problems is a condition of human existence. In our attempts to solve the many problems we face every day, learning occurs. […] Although we may not be consciously aware, these problem situations are all learning experiences that are providing us with information and knowledge that we can apply to future problems. The more opportunity we have to use this information in our day-to-day activities, the more ingrained and unforgettable it becomes. […] PBL is the basic human learning process that allowed primitive man to survive in his environment. […]PBL is not simply the presentation of problems to students as a focus for learning or as an example of what has just been learned. It is a rigorous, structured approach to learning that is tailor-made for medical education and based on considerable experience and research.
Definition 3 - Boud, D. and G. Feletti (1977). Changing-problem learning. Introduction to the Second Edition. In D. Boud and G. Feletti (Eds.), The Challenge of Problem-based learning. London: Kogan Page: PBL as it is generally known today evolved from innovative health sciences curricula introduced in North America over 30 years ago. Medical education, with its intensive pattern of basic science lectures followed by an equally exhaustive clinical teaching programme, was rapidly becoming an ineffective and inhumane way to prepare students, given the explosion in medical information and new technology and the rapidly changing demands of future practice. Medical faculty at McMaster University in Canada introduced the tutorial process, not only as a specific instructional method (Barrows & Tamblyn, 1980) but also as central to their philosophy for structuring an entire curriculum promoting student-centered, multidisciplinary education, and lifelong learning in professional practice. (p. 2).
Example game 1 - Foldit game , paper , dissemination Game 1 attribution - Khatib et al (2011). Crystal structure of a monomeric retroviral protease solved by protein folding game players. Nature Structural & Molecular Biology DOI: 10.1038/nsmb.2119 Comment – it took the online gaming community just three weeks to solve the structure of a retroviral protease that has eluded scientists for many years. Players of the protein folding game Foldit were challenged to produce three-dimensional models of the simian AIDS-causing Mason-Pfizer monkey virus’ (M-PMV) retroviral protease (PR). Their solutions were good enough to allow scientists to make a few fine-tuning molecular tweaks and solve the crystal structure of the protein. They claim the results show the M-PMV protein carries surface features that could represent drug targets for retroviruses including HIV. People have spatial reasoning skills, something computers are not yet good at. Games provide a framework for bringing together the strengths of computers and humans. The results in this week’s paper show that gaming, science and computation can be combined to make advances that were not possible before.
Example game 2 - Internal Force Game 2 attribution - Ebner, M., & Holzinger, A. (November 01, 2007). Successful Implementation of User-Centered Game Based Learning in Higher Education: An Example from Civil Engineering. Computers & Education, 49, 3, 873-890. Comment – Despite the widespread recognition of the advantages attached to the use of games in elementary and secondary education, we found little evidence of their use in higher education. Game Based Learning (GBL) is similar to Problem Based Learning (PBL), wherein specific problem scenarios are placed within a play framework (Barrows & Tamblyn, 1980). Previous experience in the field of Medicine highlighted the usefulness of this approach (Schmidt, 1983), (Baroffio et al., 1997), (Carlile et al., 1998), (Morrison, 2004). Subsequently, PBL can provide a Student Centered e-Learning (SCeL) approach (Motschnig-Pitrik & Holzinger, 2002). Also, games include many characteristics of problem solving, i.e. an unknown outcome, multiple paths to a goal, construction of a problem context, collaboration in the case of multiple players etc., and they add the elements of competition and chance. The concept of the online game Internal Force Master (IFM) is to provide a motivating computer game, wherein players need to identify the right solution in order to win. Even players not willing to learn may do so indirectly; by playing and remembering the correct solution – and we consider that the learning effect is much higher in an emotional and motivated situation, such as when playing a game. In order to test the efficiency of incidental learning methods and to measure the degrees of motivation, certain demands have been placed on the learning module.
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Jeffrey Earp |
Paradigm 5 - Discovery learning
Definition 1 - Wikipedia: Discovery Learning is a method of inquiry-based instruction and is considered a constructivist based approach to education [...] Discovery learning takes place in problem solving situations where the learner draws on his own experience and prior knowledge and is a method of instruction through which students interact with their environment by exploring and manipulating objects, wrestling with questions and controversies, or performing experiments. Definition 2 - Mansureh Kebritchi, Atsusi "2c" Hirumi Examining the pedagogical foundations of modern educational computer games Journal Computers & Education Volume 51 Issue 4, December, 2008: Discovery learning is, ‘‘. . .an approach to instruction through which students interact with their environment by exploring and manipulating objects, wrestling with questions and controversies, or performing experiments” (Ormrod, 1995, p. 442). The idea is that students are more likely to remember concepts that they discover on their own. Researchers have also found that discovery learning is most successful when students have prerequisite knowledge and go through some structured experiences (Roblyer, Edwards, & Havriluk, 1997). Example game 1 - Discover Babylon Game 1 attribution - Examining the pedagogical foundations of modern educational computer games. Mansureh Kebritchi, Atsusi "2c" Hirumi. Journal Computers & Education Volume 51 Issue 4, December, 2008 Comment – Discover Babylon applies a guided discovery and an inquiry-based approach to convey knowledge through the following features: compelling simulations of real environments with contextualization of museum artifacts used by learners’ avatars in the virtual environment; opportunities for guided discovery and unguided exploration; authentic and motivating challenges designed with Subject Matter experts (SMEs); immediate feedback to learners; a question and answer tool that provides contextual information in a question/answer game format; opportunities to learn by doing and learn through observation; scaffolding (e.g., clues to learning challenges that help learners associate content and apply lessons learned in earlier levels that could be obtained through dialogue with avatars); and opportunities to moderate game levels, objectives and time by offering (a) an optional higher score for people who sought out additional information, (b) a kiosk version of the game that address different learning objectives, and (c) a faster ramp-up time to meet the needs of learners who typically spends only 3–5 min at any one place.
Example game 2 - Gamenomics Game 2 attribution - Examining the pedagogical foundations of modern educational computer games. Mansureh Kebritchi, Atsusi "2c" Hirumi. Journal Computers & Education Volume 51 Issue 4, December, 2008. Comment – The discovery learning approach has been used to design … Gamenomics (2006), a multiplayer management simulation game developed by Carnegie Mellon University… Gamenomics has been designed based on different scenarios and each scenario has included the following instructional events: Present an event that exaggerates an economic concept; Challenge the learner to discover that concept; Place the knowledge where they can find it; Provide rewards by overcoming obstacles, improving economic knowledge, and improving ability in the game...the designers of Gamenomics (gamenomics, 2006) … modified discovery learning events and strategies to fit their needs …. Example game 3: The monkey wrench conspiracy Game 3 attribution -Examining the pedagogical foundations of modern educational computer games. Mansureh Kebritchi, Atsusi "2c" Hirumi. Journal Computers & Education Volume 51 Issue 4, December, 2008. Comment – The discovery learning approach has been used to design The Monkey Wrench Conspiracy (M. Prensky, personal communication, (June 12, 2006), a role-playing simulation game… According to Spectre and Prensky (n.d.), the following instructional events have been used to design The Monkey Wrench Conspiracy game: Ask questions that allow mistake and offer the learning topic in a way that motivates and accommodates multiple senses; Provide feedback and reinforcement; Offer challenges, goals, and problems that are involving and relevant to the learners; Allow the learners to learn by performing authentic tasks; Apply cognitive apprenticeship method. The overall approach is similar to situated learning which focuses on solving meaningful and real world problems. The game has used a cognitive apprenticeship model by offering a video serving as a model that provides overviews of the tasks and detailed instruction of how to complete the tasks. In addition, coaching and scaffolding are offered in the step-by-step fashion and are faded as the players gain control over the game missions. the designers of …The Monkey Wrench Conspiracy (Spectre & Prensky,n.d.) modified discovery learning events and strategies to fit their needs .
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Jeffrey Earp |
Paradigm 6 - Project Based Learning Definition 1 - Wikipedia: Project-based learning, or PBL, is the use of in-depth and rigorous classroom projects to facilitate learning and assess student competence (not to be confused with problem-based learning). …PBL is an instructional method that provides students with complex tasks based on challenging questions or problems that involve the students' problem solving, decision making, investigative skills, and reflection that includes teacher facilitation, but not direction. PBL is focused on questions that drive students to encounter the central concepts and principles of a subject hands-on. Students form their own investigation of a guiding question, allowing (them) to develop valuable research skills as (they) engage in design, problem solving, decision making, and investigative activities Definition 2 - Project Based Learning Handbook: A Guide to Standards-Focused Project Based Learning for Middle and High School Teachers.
'Projects' are tasks of research and development which are limited in time and with which students, individually or in groups, are introduced to the contents and methods of the subject and to autonomous work” (Eckstein 1978:134 cited by Burdewick, 2003).
Project-based learning is centred on the learner and affords learners the opportunity for in-depth investigations of worthy topics. The learners are more autonomous as they construct personally-meaningful artefacts that are representations of their learning. (Grant, 2002)
Central aspects of project-oriented learning according to Burdewick (2003):
Example game 1 - Trails (game design course)
Game 1 attribution - Repenning, A., and Lewis, C. (2005). Playing a game: The ecology of designing, building and testing games as educational activities. In ED-Media, World Conference on Educational Multimedia, Hypermedia & Telecommunications (2005), Association for the advancement of Computing in Education.
Comment – The positive experience with using games in a computer science course let to the game inspired version of the Trails course at the University of Colorado. In the spirit of the Trails framework regarding project-oriented, collaborative and interdisciplinary approaches a course called games4education recruited not only students from the computer science department but also from education and fine arts. The introduction of the object-oriented programming course employs an aggressive project-oriented game design component based on weekly game design and implementation homework. Each student individually produces the same set of games ranging over a large part of the design Flow diagram from Frogger-like to the Sims-like games. Each week the games are collected as Java applets in a web pages open to the entire class. An open project format allows students to get inspired by other students’ implementation.
Example game 2 - RoboCup Jr. (project)
Game 2 attribution -Kitano, H., Suzuki, S., & Akita, J. (January 01, 2000). RoboCup Jr.: RoboCup for Edutainment. Proceedings, 1, 807-812.
Comment – The integrated nature of RoboCup is particularly suitable for project-oriented education. The Robot World Cup Initiative (RoboCup) is an international joint project to promote science and technology in intelligent robotics, AI and related fields with the specific goal of building a fully humanoid robot that can be the human world cup champion by 2050, and to apply technologies developed in this activity to socially significant issues such as rescue, and for next generation industries.
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Muriel Ney |
Paradigm 7: Inquiry-Based Learning
In short, we are talking about a data-driven pedagogical approach that engages learners in hypothesis testing by looking for meaningful relationships among data. The target knowledge is typically in one of the experimental sciences, but there are also examples in history or other fields. Examples of questions are (Kupperman et al ICLS 2010): “what is the relationship between GDP and HIV infection rates in Africa?” “What are the biggest health problems in my community, and how big are these problems regionally and globally?”
Definition 1 National Science Foundation. (2000). An introduction to inquiry. In Foundations. Inquiry: Thoughts, views and strategies for the K-5 classroom. (Vol. 2, pp. 1-5). Inquiry learning is « an approach to learning that involves a process of exploring the natural or material world, and that leads to asking questions, making discoveries, and rigorously testing those discoveries in the search for new understanding ».
Definition 2 W. R. van Joolingen and Z. C. Zacharia 2009, Developments in Inquiry Learning, in: Technology-Enhanced Learning, Part I, 21-37, N. Balacheff et al (Eds), Springer. Inquiry is both a mean and a goal, the teacher using inquiry as an instructional approach and students acquiring the ability to do an inquiry. Learners start from an authentic issue, analyse the problem situation, and define research questions (orientation). Then they define hypotheses and a procedure to test them. These tests can be carried out through real observation, experiments, or simulations that allow changing variable values and making predictions. Planning and monitoring are also part of the process.
Comparing Inquiry-based and Problem-based learning: Inquiry-based learning shares many aspects with problem-based learning except for two: the type of problem to be solved is more specific since it includes hypothesis testing through data gathering, and it is not necessarily carried out in groups (it may be done alone although findings are most often shared with others, at the end).
Inquiry-based learning and games, examples:
MOBILE DEVICES: a common goal of science museums is to support the public in an inquiry that engages groups of visitors with interactive exhibits, often using wireless handheld devices. An example is the program ‘Inquiry Games’ at the Exploratorium Museum: S. Allen, J. P. Gutwill, 2009, Creating a Program to Deepen Family Inquiry at Interactive Science Exhibits, Curator: The Museum Journal, vol 52, issue 3, pages 289–306.
AUGMENTED REALITY: AR has the potential to provide participatory, situated, and collaborative experiences that foster inquiry-based problem solving. Example: K. D. Squire, and Mingfong Jan, 2007, Mad City Mystery: Developing Scientific Argumentation Skills with a Place-based Augmented Reality Game on Handheld Computers, Journal of Science Education and Technology, Vol. 16, No. 1.
VIDEO GAMES: an example is Science Pirates: The Curse of Brownbeard, a 3D educational computer game for middle school students that communicates food safety knowledge in an environment of scientific inquiry. http:/
INQUIRY-BASED GAME DESIGN: J. Kupperman, B. Robertson, S. Baglin 2010 DevInfo GameWorks: supporting inquiry-based game design, ICLS '10 Proceedings of the 9th International Conference of the Learning Sciences – Vol. 2. These authors give an example of an environment that supports learning by designing an inquiry-based game. The goal is to engage learners in "higher-level thinking activities, such as collaboration, network awareness, and critical consumption of information". This study suggests that two aspects of the system are particularly relevant for this goal: (1) a strong sense of the audience (potential players) during game design, and (2) a tangible artefact as a product of inquiry.
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Jeffrey Earp |
Paradigm 8 - constructionism
Definition 1 - Wikipedia: Constructionist learning is inspired by the constructivist theory that individual learners construct mental models to understand the world around them. However, constructionism holds that learning can happen most effectively when people are also active in making tangible objects in the real world. In this sense, constructionism is connected with experiential learning and builds on some of the ideas of Jean Piaget Definition 2 - constructionism entry on the STELLAR TEL Thesaurus
Example game 1 - SuperCharged!
Game 1 attribution - Examining the pedagogical foundations of modern educational computer games. Mansureh Kebritchi, Atsusi "2c" Hirumi. Journal Computers & Education Volume 51 Issue 4, December, 2008.
Comment – Constructionism has been used to design SuperCharged! (Hauck, Holland, Targum, & Squire, 2002)… SuperCharged! designers have referred to a definition of constructionism posited by Papert (1991) and refined by Kafai and Resnick’s (1996), suggesting that new knowledge could be acquired more effectively if the learners were engaged in constructing products that were personally meaningful to them. The game designers explained that constructionism has been used to teach Electromagnetism in SuperCharged! by allowing the players to build their own game levels. The players can use the click and drag interface to design complex game levels that can be played or traded with other players over the Internet.
Example game 2 - Hephaestus
Game 2 attribution - Examining the pedagogical foundations of modern educational computer games. Mansureh Kebritchi, Atsusi "2c" Hirumi. Journal Computers & Education Volume 51 Issue 4, December, 2008
Comment – Hephaestus has been designed based on a community supported constructionist approach in which constructionism strategy is situated in a supportive community context (Bruckman, 1998). This approach emphasizes the importance of social aspect of learning environment… The players learn through iterative design processes, observing how the robot works, and modifying the robot design (Tan et al.,2001). As a community-based game, players also learn through interaction with other players, observing other players’ design, and altering their designs accordingly.
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Maria Popescu |
Paradigm 9- multi-sensory learning Definition 1 ( from languages withoutlimits.co.uk) All of us learn through all our senses. Some of us learn better through one sense than another. Some pupils learn best through visual approaches; others through auditory approaches; yet others through a combination of the two. One of the advantages of using visual, audio and tactile materials to support textual ones is that the resulting mixture of styles means that teaching will be appropriate for a wider range of learners. Why should we provide multi-sensory learning opportunities? * For learners with special needs, understanding of concepts depends on experience rather than on 'telling'. * Frequent change of activity prevents boredom, sustains interest. Definition 2 (Benefits of multisensory learning, Ladan Shams; Aaron R. Seitz , UCLA , CA 90095, USA , http:/ "Accelerated" (multisensory) learning incorporates memory techniques and a see-hear-do approach that appeals to multiple learning styles. The strategy has proven to be effective in learning foreign languages (see www. acceleratedlearning.com). Shams and Seitz (2008) advocate multisensory teaching approaches as mirroring more closely evolved learning processes, suggesting unisensory approaches are sub- optimal and that their selection is based in practicality rather than pedagogy Example game 1 - Action Sticker HD KidsJobs: Multi-Sensory Learning Game Game 1 attribution-http:/ Comment- Education app that allows young children to learn about 10 different, real-world jobs by seeing, touching, and listening. Kids participate in interactive activities that teach them about 10 different careers by visiting a: School, Beauty Salon, Restaurant, Hospital, Fire Station, Police Department, Airport, Toll Road, Train Station, and a Zoo. At each locale, kids meet the adults working there and view the equipment used. At launch in landscape orientation, the app is like a side scroller game, as the young boy walks down the street with one job place after another. Stopping to touch the building, kids are challenged to fit five different stickers into shaped cutouts. Each one illustrates something normally found inside that workplace. On touching a sticker, it doubles in size and can be dragged to fill in the appropriate part of the puzzle |
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Maria Popescu |
Paradigm 10 Connectionism definition 1 (Edward Thorndike)(http:/ The learning theory of Thorndike represents the original S-R framework of behavioral psychology: Learning is the result of associations forming between stimuli and responses, which become strengthened or weakened by the nature and frequency of the S-R pairings. The paradigm for S-R theory was trial and error learning in which certain responses come to dominate others due to rewards. Thorndike's theory consists of three primary laws: (1) law of effect - responses to a situation which are followed by a rewarding state of affairs will be strengthened and become habitual responses to that situation, (2) law of readiness - a series of responses can be chained together to satisfy some goal which will result in annoyance if blocked, and (3) law of exercise - connections become strengthened with practice and weakened when practice is discontinued. A corollary of the law of effect was that responses that reduce the likelihood of achieving a rewarding state (i.e., punishments, failures) will decrease in strength. The theory suggests that transfer of learning depends upon the presence of identical elements in the original and new learning situations ( transfer is always specific, never general) later on, Important concepts: - the concept of "belongingness" ( connections are more readily established if the person perceives that stimuli or responses go together )(c.f. Gestalt principles). - "polarity" (connections occur more easily in the direction in which they were originally formed than the opposite). Thorndike also introduced the "spread of effect" idea, i.e., rewards affect not only the connection that produced them but temporally adjacent connections as well. Connectionism was especially applied to mathematics (Thorndike, 1922), spelling and reading (Thorndike, 1921), measurement of intelligence (Thorndike et al., 1927) and adult learning (Thorndike at al., 1928). PRICIPLES: 1. Learning requires both practice and rewards (laws of effect /exercise) 2. A series of S-R connections can be chained together if they belong to the same action sequence (law of readiness). 3. Transfer of learning occurs because of previously encountered situations. 4. Intelligence is a function of the number of connections learned. Definition 2 ( Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy) First published Sun May 18, 1997; substantive revision Tue Jul 27, 2010 Connectionism is a movement in cognitive science which hopes to explain human intellectual abilities using artificial neural networks (also known as ‘neural networks’ or ‘neural nets’). Neural networks are simplified models of the brain composed of large numbers of units (the analogs of neurons) together with weights that measure the strength of connections between the units. These weights model the effects of the synapses that link one neuron to another. Experiments on models of this kind have demonstrated an ability to learn such skills as face recognition, reading, and the detection of simple grammatical structure.
Example game 1: ROBOT
game 1 attributions:RAMBOT- A Connectionist Expert System That Learns by Example, Mozer, Michael C.California Univ., San Diego, La Jolla. Inst. for Cognitive Science,08, 1986, descriptive reports.Office of naval research. Comment:One solution to the problem of getting expert knowledge into expert systems would be to endow the systems with powerful learning procedures that could discover appropriate behaviors by observing an expert in action. A promising source of such learning procedures can be found in recent work on connectionist networks, which are massively parallel networks of simple processing elements. This report discusses RAMBOT, a connectionist expert system that learns to play a simple video game by observing a human player. The game, Robots, is played on a two-dimensional board containing the player and a number of computer-controlled robots. The object of the game is for the player to move around the board in a manner that will force all of the robots to collide with one another before any robot is able to catch the player. The connectionist system learns to associate observed situations on the board with observed moves, and is capable not only of replicating the performance of the human player, but also of learning generalizations that apply to novel situations. Diagrams illustrate the Robots game, game strategies, and RAMBOT's performance. Listings of references, ICS Technical Reports, and earlier reports from the Cognitive Science Laboratory are provided. (KM) |
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Jeffrey Earp |
Paradigm 11 - cognitive approach
Definition 1 - Greenwald, A. G. (1968). Cognitive learning, cognitive response to persuasion, and attitude change. In A. G. Greenwald, T. C. Brock & T. M. Ostrom (Eds.), Psychological foundations of attitudes (pp. 147-170). New York: Academic Press: Since the individual is not born with his cognition, but acquires them, there seems to be no reasonable alternative to tThe assumption that cognition bearing on attitude objects are learned. Further, the most obvious source of such cognition is the wealth of persuasive messages to which one is exposed via the public communications media as well as through face-to-face communication.
Definition 2 - A.P. Rovai (2002). Sense of community, perceived cognitive learning, and persistence in asynchronous learning networks. Internet and Higher Education, 5, pp. 319–332: Educators largely view learning in terms of cognitive change. Previous studies have compared levels of learner outcomes as measured by final grades or course outcomes between distance learning and on-campus students. […]Research evidence suggests self-reports can be a valid measure of cognitive learning. Definition 3 - Siemens, G. (2004). Connectivism: A learning theory for the digital age. International Journal of Instructional Technology and Distance Learning:
Cognitivism often takes a computer information processing model. Learning is viewed as a process of inputs, managed in short term memory, and coded for long-term recall. Cindy Buell details this process: “In cognitive theories, knowledge is viewed as symbolic mental constructs in the learner's mind, and the learning process is the means by which these symbolic representations are committed to memory.”
Example game 1 - CyberCIEGE
Game 1 attribution - Greitzer, F. L., Kuchar, O. A., Huston, K. A., & Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA (US). (2007). COGNITIVE SCIENCE IMPLICATIONS FOR ENHANCING TRAINING EFFECTIVENESS IN A SERIOUS GAMING CONTEXT. Journal on Educational Resources in Computing, 7(3): Article 2, 2.1 - 2.16, 7, 3.)
Comment – In this paper, we review cognitive principles that can be applied to improve the training effectiveness in serious games and we describe a process we used to design improvements for an existing game-based training application in the domain of cyber security education. We examine one serious game entitled “CyberCIEGE”, a hands-on virtual laboratory that provides cyber security training within a game-based environment. We depict how cognitive principles can be applied to improve the training effectiveness in this serious game. We conclude this paper with recommendations for gaming educators.
Example game 2 - Command and Conquer
Game 2 attribution - Graham, J., Zheng, L., & Gonzalez, C. (2006). ACognitive Approach to Game Usability and Design: Mental Model Development in Novice Real-Time Strategy Gamers. Cyberpsychology Behavior, 9, 3, 361-366.
Comment – This paper takes a cognitive psychology approach to understanding how players develop concepts of game-embedded AI (artificial intelligence) agents. Traditional game design and usability has used play-testing, questionnaires, and observations.13 Our approach gathers data from novice players to determine and represent their mental model of AI agents as the player develops experience in the game. We then go on to describe a mental model approach, as opposed to a performance approach, to increase game playability. This approach holds promise as a method to increase play time without hitting the current limitations of payer physical and cognitive abilities.
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Jeffrey Earp |
Paradigm 12 - metacognitive approach
Definition 1 - Wikipedia: Metacognition is defined as "cognition about cognition", or "knowing about knowing." It can take many forms; it includes knowledge about when and how to use particular strategies for learning or for problem solving. Metamemory, defined as knowing about memory and mnemonic strategies, is an especially important form of metacognition.
Definition 2 - Metallidou, P. & Platsidou, M. (2008). Kolb's Learning Style Inventory-1985: Validity issues and relations with metacognitive knowledge about problem-solving strategies Learning and Individual Differences, 18, 1, Pp. 114-119: Metacognitive knowledge about problem-solving strategies: Part of the soundness of an instrument is its relation to other theoretical constructs. Given that learning styles represent individual differences in the way people grasp and process information, it is likely that learning styles are related to the selection process of strategies for handling new situations, as in the case with problem solving. It is already known that learning styles are differentiated regarding the kinds of learning strategies activated in various learning situations (Riding & Rayner, 1998).
Example game 1 - Gersang
Game 1 attribution - Bokyeong Kim, Hyungsung Park, Youngkyun Baek. Not just fun, but serious strategies: Using meta-cognitive strategies in game-based learning Computers & Education, Volume 52, Issue 4, May 2009, Pages 800-810
Comment – The purpose of this study is to explore the effects of the meta-cognitive strategies on the academic and gaming achievements. Exploring the effects of those achievements on the social problem solving of students is also of interest. For this purpose, the MMORPG Gersang was used.… commercial game playing in conjunction with meta-cognitive strategies can be an effective way to increase students’ performance both in learning and gaming by keeping them involved.
Example game 2 - eFinance Game
Game 2 attribution - Usart, M., Romero, M. & Almirall, E. (2011). Impact of the Feeling of Knowledge Explicitness in the Learners’ Participation and performance in collaborative Game Based Learning Activity. Proceedings of the 2nd international conference, SGDA 2011. Lisbon.
Comment – we expect better performances in collaborative settings with the explicitness of the KGA thanks to the socially shared metacognition process, developed through the displaying of the intersubjective FOK. For this purpose we designed a collaborative SG in the field of finance, introducing an ad hoc KGA explicitness system with the aim of supporting the students’ FOK declaration according to the 3 CL.
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