Effective design of training-related games (games for training and/or assessment) requires synergy between the mechanisms for delivering instructional content and the mechanisms for learning game play and game functionality (Becker, 2006). The learning domain must be embedded as a core game mechanic: that is, the game cannot be advanced or won…

Today virtual world instruction faces many of the same educational challenges faced by Web-based instruction during its infancy. There is a lot of jargon and visions of the future being bandied about, but as Hirumi et al. note in the May/June and July/August 2010 issues of "TechTrends" "there little understanding of how to apply" pedagogical…

Studies have shown that pathological involvement with computer or video games is related to excessive gaming binges and aggressive behavior. Our aims for this study were to longitudinally examine if pathological gaming leads to increasingly excessive gaming habits, and how pathological gaming may cause an increase in physical aggression. For this…

Excessive video game playing behaviour may be influenced by a variety of factors including the structural characteristics of video games. Structural characteristics refer to those features inherent within the video game itself that may facilitate initiation, development and maintenance of video game playing over time. Numerous structural…

Learning through play is currently an effective and attractive educational strategy. However, are all educational video games (EVG) successful and do they always keep the player motivated? Here, the authors emphasize that the success of an EVG will be more achievable if the game quality is measured, and suggest the use of playability property as a…

The author's students interviewed people over 50 years old about play when they were young. Their answers capture the many themes that come up in response to the following two questions: (1) Do you think the play of children today is different from when you were growing up?; and (2) If so, how do you think it has changed? In the past, when both…

Though video games are commonly considered to hold great potential as learning environments, their effectiveness as a teaching tool has yet to be determined. One reason for this is that researchers often run into the problem of multicollinearity between prior knowledge, in-game performance, and posttest scores, thereby making the determination of…

We believe video games have a place in libraries. We start by describing two provocative video games. Next, we offer a framework for the general mission of libraries, including access, motivation, and guidance. As a medium, video games have some distinguishing traits: they are visual, interactive, and based on simulations. We explain how these…

This study investigates how players make ethical decisions in "Fable III," a video game, with consideration to avatar gender. Thirty males, 18 to 34 years old, were recruited; 20 were assigned to play "Fable III," with half assigned to play as a male avatar (Condition 1), and half assigned as a female avatar (Condition 2). Any ethical thinking…

"Unraveling Braid" analyzes how unconventional, non-linear narrative fiction can help explain the ways in which video games signify. Specifically, this essay looks at the links between the semiotic features of Jonathan Blow's 2008 puzzle-platform video game Braid and similar elements in Georges Perec's 1978 novel "Life A User's Manual," as well as…

Young people's interests in 21st century texts and the literacy practices that play out in Web 2.0 spaces have implications for classroom teachers and teacher educators. In the digitally mediated world in which we live, boundaries between formal and informal learning from an earlier time are breaking down, thus making room for new ways of…

There have been growing criticisms in recent years among the computer and video games community on the apparent lack of graduates capable of meeting the industry's employment needs. Following the sharp rise in the number of computer and video games courses across higher education (HE) institutions in the UK and across the globe, this article…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the factors that might predict Palestinian teachers' success in modding games for instruction. An instructional game design model named Game Modding for Non-Professionals (GMNP) was created specifically for the training of Palestinian teachers during this study. This study addressed the question: To…

This study draws on a survey of 800 upper primary school students concerning their knowledge of certain 'new media' applications. The findings concur with other studies in suggesting that students' relationship with technology is more complex and nuanced than is conveyed by a simple branding of 'digital native'. Some differential experiences…

Games based learning is currently a hotly debated topic in education and is a fertile field of study (Holmes, 2011; Abrams, 2009). Many schools are exploring ways in which games can be embedded into the curriculum, to enhance learning through deeper engagement and higher levels of motivation (Miller & Robertson, 2010). This paper explores the…