SUPERVISORs: Judith ter vrugte, Pantelis papadopoulos & reza farrokhnia
Game-based learning (GBL) is the use of games for educational purposes. In most game-based learning environments information is not transferred directly to learners. Instead, game-based learning environments (or ‘serious games’) often employ experiential and discovery learning principles, where learners learn by doing and abstract the learning content from their problem-solving experiences during gameplay. One of the challenges that students face is that they may get better at playing the game, but that they fail to reproduce this knowledge in other contexts. Hence, a central research issue revolves around the provision of learner support. Several authors have concluded that games alone are not sufficient for learning. Rather, they must be coupled with some kind of learner support for effective learning to occur. All kinds of support can be included in a game, but a support can also address the context in which the game is used.
This research theme focuses on the effectiveness of learner support in GBL. Besides, the possibility of designing a (prototype of a) game for a specific learning objective, students can investigate the following research questions:
- What is the effect of giving learners specific hypotheses before they start playing on game performance and learning outcomes?
- Does the inclusion of an advanced organizer in drill-and-practice games enhance learning?