Simulations and Games in Education Research Group

1
Simulations and Games in Education Research Group

• Aysegül Bakar abakar_at_metu.edu.tr
• Göknur Kaplan Akilli akilli_at_metu.edu.tr
• Computer Education and Instructional Technology
• Middle East Technical University
• E-Transformation in Learning Symposium, Sabanci
  University - April 21, 2005

2
Outline

• About SimGE
• Completed studies
• Current studies
• Further Studies

3
About SimGE

• "Simulations and Games in Education (SimGE)" RG
• is established in 2004 in METU
• is actually a subgroup of a HCI RG in METU
• has 10 members (just at the moment)
• is coordinated by Kürsat Çagiltay

4
Aims of SimGE RG

• SimGE aims to
• conduct research on the use of simulations and
  games in education
• pedagogical cognitive issues of sims games
• social technical issues of sims games
• contribute to the literature
• potentials problems of sims games
• the effects of gaming on Turkish people

5
What have been done?

• Historical development of games in Turkey - Erdal
  Yilmaz
• Perceptions of prospective teachers toward the
  use of computer games - Gülfidan CAN
• Students game play characteristics at a Turkish
  university - Pinar Onay Durdu
• Factors that affect primary school students game
  preferences - Yavuz Inal
• ID Model - Göknur Kaplan Akilli

6
Historical development of games in Turkey by
Erdal Yilmaz

• Games have entered to our homes in 1980s with
• TV
• Video
• Atari
• Gameboys
• Personal computers
• Commodore 64,
• Sinclair ZX Spektrum
• Amiga
• computers compatible with IBM

7
Perceptions of prospective teachers toward the
use of computer games by Gülfidan CAN

• 116 students from CEIT departments of four
  different universities
• She found that playing computer games

• is suitable for every age group
• is not just for children
• helps developing some useful knowledge and
  skills
• help develop social skills when played with a
  group of people

• requires too much engagement time
• leads to addiction
• not an important leasure time activity
• waste of time

8
Perceptions of prospective teachers toward the
use of computer games, Gülfidan CAN

• Results (cont.)
• Use of computer games as
• teaching aid in courses (98)
• reward (78) rather than
• main instructional tool (60 disagreed)
• 83 will use computer games with educational
  features in their courses in the future
• 11 expressed that they will not use such games

9
Students game play characteristics at a Turkish
university by Pinar Onay Durdu

• to determine the current situation among Turkish
  students
• what the game preferences of Turkish students are
• why they prefer to play games
• what determines their game play and game
  preference
• whether gender, mothly income or departments has
  any affect to game play and game preferences
• 225 students taking Introduction to Information
  Technologies and Applications course
• Questionnaire - Quantitative data analysis

10
Students game play characteristics at a Turkish
university, Pinar Onay Durdu

• Results
• 61 out of 225 participants played games
• The average game playtime among the 61 game
  playing participants were 5,66 hours per week. .
• the reason for not playing computer games,
• first choice being not interested as a reason,
• second choice waste of time,
• third choice having no time,
• fourth and fifth choice not knowing how to play.

11
Students game play characteristics at a Turkish
university, Pinar Onay Durdu

• Results (cont.)
• The mean time/week for computer play 5 hours
• the more favorable game genres were
• strategy,
• racing,
• quiz-trivia,
• sports
• action-adventure games
• Adventure discovery game themes were more
  favorable game themes
• more students stated diversion for their game play

12
Students game play characteristics at a Turkish
university, Pinar Onay Durdu

• Results (cont.)
• gender makes difference between game play game
  preferences
• owning a computer affects game play
• game players read fewer hours/week than the
  others
• the game players spent more time with their peers
  and family members in social activities than the
  others

13
Primary school students habits of playing
computers games and the factors that affect their
game preferences Yavuz Inal

• to investigate the attitudes of primary school
  students in Turkey toward playing computer games
• 274 (Karabük) and 281 (Ödemis) ? compare and
  contrast
• Gender differences in terms of game playing
  habits
• Socio Economic Status
• Social environments in which
• the school is placed and
• Geographic factors

Affect students attitudes and habits toward
playing computer games
14
The FIDGE Model For Game-like Learning
Environments, by Göknur KAPLAN AKILLI

• the lack of available comprehensive design
  paradigms well-designed research studies
• how to incorporate games into learning
  environments
• despite more than 30 years existence of computer
  games and simulations in the instructional design
  movement

15
The FIDGE Model For Game-like Learning
Environments, by Göknur KAPLAN AKILLI

• a formative research study is conducted and it
  was found that
• phases of the IDD process should not be
• separate,
• strictly bounded,
• processing a linear manner.
• these results the inspiration from fuzzy logic
  , FIDGE model is created

16
What is being done?

• Using eye tracking data to analyze a video game
  learning experience - Serkan Alkan
• What is happening in classrooms? - Aysegül Bakar
  Yavuz Inal
• Cultural issues and Identification by Avatars, -
  Göknur Kaplan Akilli Yavuz Inal
• ADDIE model game, - Memet Üçgül
• FP-6 Proposal
• A course for prospective teachers Design,
  development evaluation of educational software

17
Using eye tracking data to analyze a video game
learning experience - Serkan Alkan

• to explore how novices learn video games
• an eye tracking method was integrated with
  usability studies methods
• 17 undergraduate university students
• 10 minutes eye tracking recordings were kept
  while subjects playing a video game
• Semi structured posttest for attitudes and
  reflections

18
What is happening in classrooms? Aysegül Bakar
Yavuz Inal

• To investigate
• The dynamics among group members
• The opinions of prospective teachers about the
  games in terms of their possibility to be used in
  teaching/learning process
• Individual reports
• Demographics
• Scenarios
• Group interviews

19
What is happening in classrooms? Aysegül Bakar
Yavuz Inal

• To investigate
• Childrens behaviors when playing a game for the
  first time
• Childrens preferences in terms of game playing
• Demographics
• Observations
• Formal informal interviews

20
International ResearchesFP-6 Project

• (coordinator) FH JOANNEUM GMBHDepartment of
  Information-Design
• Middle East Technical UniversitySchool of
  Education, Department of Computer Education and
  Instructional Technology
• UK BusinessLab
• DELFT University of Technology
• Karl-Franzens-University GrazInstitute of
  Psychology / Educational Psychology
• Amebis d.o.o.AMEB

21
A course for prospective teachers
Design, Development Evaluation Of Educational
Software

• New approaches
• Situated Learning
• Cooperative Learning
• Goal-Based Scenario, etc.
• ID Model
• FIDGE

• Desktop Virtual Reality
• Game-like Learning Environments
• Motivation theories

22
Conclusion

• More meaningful learning in more effective
  learning environments
• Life is a game, so is learning
• and the GAME is ON!!!!

http//www.simge.metu.edu.tr
23
Questions Comments

24

• for
• YOUR PARTICIPATION !!!