In the last decade, game-based learning has received growing attention in educational contexts in general and science education in particular. A recent game trend, which has also found its way into STEM classrooms, is escape rooms. In this type of game, players have to work through several puzzles to achieve a specific goal (mostly to escape from…

Given the hypothesis that card games form a strong tool capable of shaping the aforementioned interest, this study has developed a card game called Math Zap as a pedagogical tool for numeracy skills development in the context of mental computation. It is geared towards investigating the efficacy of this Math Zap card game, in facilitating the…

The use of serious educational games has the potential to increase student learning outcomes in science education by providing students with opportunities to explore phenomena in ways that vary from traditional instruction; yet, empirical research to support this assertion is limited. This study aimed to explore deeply what learning gains were…

This study evaluates the efficacy of a physically-active number learning game for young preschoolers. The intervention adapts Ramani and Siegler's (Child Develop 79(2):375-394, 2008) successful The Great Race by modifying the mode of play from seated at a table to jumping with two feet on a large game mat. 75 children (mean age: 46 months) in the…

During the last decade, many governments and ed-tech companies have demonstrated an increased interest in digital personalised learning, which resulted in a variety of often game-like adaptive learning environments. However, there has been limited attention for the impact of these personalised learning technologies on children's learning…

There is growing interest in games as an exciting and engaging tool for professional development. At GFRP, we believe gamification holds promise for in-person and on-line professional development designed to build the capacity of teachers and all those who work to engage families in their multiple roles supporting their children's learning and…

Moral decision-making models in game environments have been increasingly reported in research. These models, however, focus on identifying affordances and goals of games and educational interventions rather than tracing the process of moral decision-making in game worlds. This dissertation study addresses this gap in the literature by presenting…

Although there has been profound evidence showing the positive correlation between spatial abilities and math performances, we still know very little about how and why spatial thinking facilitates the learning of mathematics. This dissertation unpacks several aspects of mathematics that are embedded in learning and playing an ancient and rich game…

Game-based assessment (GBA), a specific application of games for learning, has been recognized as an alternative form of assessment. While there is a substantive body of literature that supports the educational benefits of GBA, limited work investigates the validity and generalizability of such systems. In this paper, we describe applications of…

Gamified online quizzes have gained popularity for their potential in enhancing student learning motivations, creating engaging lessons, and improving learning outcomes. Yet, its application and effectiveness in support of student vocabulary learning have only been explored in synchronous learning setting. This study, hence, extended the…

Purpose: Despite the fact that research on creativity and cognition have garnered the attention of researchers and practitioners for decades, there is a lack of valid, reliable, and accessible instruments for enhancing and measuring these critical skills. Leveraging research from The LEGO Foundation and in collaboration with BrainPOP and the…

Computational thinking (CT) education has drawn increasing attention from educators and researchers. This study conducted a meta-analysis of 27 empirical studies to examine the effectiveness of game-based learning (GBL) for fostering students' CT. The effects of various factors on the learning process for acquiring CT were also examined. The…

In this study, we have proposed and implemented a sequential data analytics (SDA)-driven methodological framework to design adaptivity for digital game-based learning (DGBL). The goal of this framework is to facilitate children's personalized learning experiences for K-5 computing education. Although DGBL experiences can be beneficial, young…

Animals depend on their surroundings for their survival. In consuming their food, animals are consuming energy. This cycling of matter and the accompanying flow of energy within an ecosystem occurs because of interactions among and between organisms. To guide students in modeling how ecosystems function, the authors share "Ecosystem…

The collaborative board game was predicted to be a potential game-based learning environment to improve students' knowledge of cyberbullying and prevent cyberbullying behaviors. The games with the debriefing method could enhance the quality of the learning environment for improving the cognitive domain. Scholars pointed out that the well-designed…