Background: As one of the gamification elements, leaderboard, especially absolute leaderboard, is widely used in educational gamification systems. However, empirical studies on the optimal use condition of the leaderboard and underlying influence mechanisms are deficient. Objectives: This study explored which difficulty was more conducive to…

Technology, constantly present in current society and education, needs to make use of the most effective digital resources to optimize the teaching-learning process. Despite the growing body of literature on the pedagogical effectiveness of digital resources in a second language (L2) context, limited research has been conducted when working with…

In this study, we investigated whether the use of smartphone games while reading a text reduces learning performance or reading speed. We also examined whether this is affected by push notifications. Ninety-three students were randomly assigned to three learning conditions. In the gaming group (G), participants played a game app for 20 s at 2-min…

Purpose: Gamification is an effective method to boost students' academic achievement and engagement in second language learning. This study aimed to test the effectiveness of the gamification application, Class Dojo, among Year 4 pupils who are learning Mandarin as a Second Language (MSL). It also sought to investigate how the MSL learners became…

This paper presents results from a comparative analysis of two sections of Introduction to International Politics, one of which used a traditional research paper as a supplemental assignment and one that used the Statecraft online simulation. Both sections were taught during the same semester and used common lecture notes, PowerPoint slides, exam…

Homemade PowerPoint games are a low-tech alternative for using game design in classrooms. To date, much of the research examining the games has not shown an improvement in performance. This has led some to question whether the games are properly aligned with the instructional strategies researchers have used as justifications to support using…

The use of different tools in the field of education has become widespread with the developments in technology. Online student response systems are one of these tools. Online student response systems have been used for many years. In the last couple of years, game items have been added, and game-based online student response systems have started…

Achieving sustained student engagement with practice in computer-based writing strategy training can be a challenge. One potential solution is to foster engagement by embedding practice in educational games; yet there is currently little research comparing the effectiveness of game-based practice versus more traditional forms of practice. In this…

Achieving sustained student engagement with practice in computer-based writing strategy training can be a challenge. One potential solution is to foster engagement by embedding practice in educational games; yet there is currently little research comparing the effectiveness of game-based practice versus more traditional forms of practice. In this…

Previous research has illustrated the importance of acquiring knowledge from authentic contexts; however, without full engagement, students' learning performance might not be as good as expected. In this study, a Team Competition-based Ubiquitous Gaming approach was proposed for improving students' learning effectiveness in authentic learning…

Whereas the assessment of complex problem solving (CPS) has received increasing attention in the context of international large-scale assessments, its fairness in regard to students' cultural background has gone largely unexplored. On the basis of a student sample of 9th-graders (N = 299), including a representative number of immigrant students (N…

Eighty, seventh grade students attending a suburban middle school in southern Connecticut participated in the study evaluating the effectiveness of computer based geography games on student motivation and achievement. Using Connecticut Mastery Test (CMT) Scores and baseline U.S.A scores as criteria to develop matched pairs, students were divided…

This study investigates the effectiveness digital game-based learning (DGBL) on students' problem solving, learning motivation, and academic achievement. In order to provide substantive empirical evidence, a quasi-experimental design was implemented over the course of a full semester (23 weeks). Two ninth-grade Civics and Society classes, with a…

This study investigated whether kindergarten students who played Sony Play Station (Lightspan) computer games learned better than peers who did not play such games. Participants were 47 African-American kindergartners from two classes of an urban school in the Northeast. A pretest and posttest with control group design was used in the study. The…

Discussion of the use of microcomputers by special education students highlights a study that compared the effects of a drill and practice program with an instructional computer game on the acquisition of multiplication skills among junior high and high school learning disabled students. (22 references) (LRW)