Educational Gaming Middle School Children’s Preferences

1. Educational GamingMiddle School Children’s Preferences Dolly Joseph, Ph.D. Mable Kinzie, Ph.D. University of Virginia

2. Prior Findings • Games provide opportunities for: • Serious Play Rieber, Smith, & Noah • Flow Csikszentmihalyi • Identification, sequencing & classification Henderson, et al • Skill based, declarative, procedural, strategic & affective learning Garris et al • Game creation: evaluation, content mastery, problem-solving practice Kafai

3. Research Questions • What attributes of computer games are appealing to middle school students? • How can these attributes be successfully incorporated into educational games? • What gender differences exist in middle school children’s preferences?

4. Methodologies • Got Game! Camps • Two 2-week camps to investigate game playing preferences of middle school students • Qualitative research methodology~ in-depth case study and cross-case analysis • Survey • Multiple choice and likert scale survey • Administered to 44 middle school students • Analyzed for gender differences

5. Got Game? • Setting • Research Participants • Analysis • Results

6. Setting • Two locations • GMS- Public suburban school • Predominately White • 16% free or reduced lunch • 10 participants, 5 boys & 5 girls • TASK- Local not-for-profit organization • Predominately African-American • 100% free or reduced lunch • 11 participants, 7 boys & 4 girls

7. Structure • Exploration, Reflection & Creation • Game play • Discussion • Video Closet “Confessional” • Journaling • Game modification • Game creation • Thematic Elements • Functional, • Aesthetic, • Character & • Educational Design

8. Participants Anthony • 6th grade, African American & Caucasian from TASK • Loved the Myst-like game Bioscopia • Gravitated towards games that had clear goals and procedures- Oregon Trail was too complex • Liked to know that he had solved problems correctly

9. Participants Diana • 7th grade, Mexican American from TASK • Enjoyed games with a problem solving component • Favorite games included driving games • Preferred games with clearly identifiable goals

10. Participants Megan • 8th grade, Caucasian from GMS • Loved to collaborate during play and creation • Enjoyed complex play and adaptable goals • Liked controlling social interactions of characters

11. Participants Paul • 7th grade, African American from TASK • Liked complex, realistic problems • Wanted “action” and “conflict” in games • Liked to set own goals

12. Analysis • In-depth case studies & cross-case analysis structured by: • Participation Style • Preferred Activity types • Thematic Elements

13. Activity types • Alternative to industry classifications • Emphasizes player’s experiences within gameplay • Emerged during analysis of children’s gameplay • Tested and refined through follow up survey • 6 types are usually found in combination

14. Active Play • Time pressured play • Rapid character death and rebirth • Dichotomous storylines • All studied campers were proficient • Educational games which included active play were rated highly

15. Explorative Play • Physical space and travel are simulated through game board layout • Players discover new areas and challenges in turn • Most often found in combination with other activity types • Was a preferred mode for one camper • Several highly rated games include explorative aspects, including Zoombinis and Osmosis Jones

16. Problem-solving • Discreet challenges with set goals, specific rules and correct solutions • Multiple challenges games are generally independent • Can be fast- or slow- paced • Enjoyable for all studied participants • Clear challenges and readily apparent success and failure appealing • Reviewed educational games often contain problem solving activities, but insufficiently challenging

17. Strategic Play • Long-term manipulation of resources • Flexible goals • Multiple pathways through the game • 2 of the 4 campers enjoyed this mode • Greater complexity may be overly challenging • Few educational games incorporate this mode

18. Social Play • Intra-game~ players control game’s character in social interactions • Multi-player~ players compete against others • Collaborative~ players work together • Intra-game play was a preferred mode of only one campers • Multi-player & collaborative play were compelling to three of the four campers • Social play was not a component for any surveyed games

19. Creative Play • Creation or personalization of artifacts within the game environment • Manipulation of “skins” found within The Sims, the Tycoon series and others • May not be seen as a game-like due to lack of obvious competition • Only 1 camper demonstrated a strong preference for creative play • Few of the surveyed educational games contained this element

20. Results • 4 game design suggestions • Designed for a “type” of player • Alternate gameplay for other “types” • Exciting gameplay with integrated content

21. Cures of the Rainforest • Goal: find plants with potential curative properties within the rainforest • Activity types: social, strategy, creative, problem-solving, active • Gameplay: select a team of experts best suited to reach the goal, while managing emergencies and negotiating challenges • Content: flora/fauna of region, botany, geography

22. Vigilante PI • Goal: solve crimes and bring corrupt businessmen to justice • Activity types: strategy, problem-solving, active • Gameplay: solve crimes in an urban neighborhood, using mental powers, as well as a bit of muscle • Content: forensics, chemistry, health-hazards

23. Butterfly Babies • Goal: collect, breed, and “grow” butterflies • Activity types: problem-solving, active, creative • Gameplay: choose a variety of butterflies, breed them for a variety of phenotypes • Content: biology, genetics, lab procedures

24. Zoo Rescue • Goal: free a trapped zookeeper by traveling through a maze-like zoo • Activity types: Explorative, problem-solving, active • Gameplay: travel through a series of passageways in order to progress, the player must answer questions and solve puzzles • Content: biology, ecology

25. Survey • Setting • Research Participants • Analysis • Initial Results

26. Setting • Suburban Middle School • Two heterogeneously grouped homerooms • 6th- 8th grades • 42 of 44 surveys returned • 64% White, 12% Asian, 10% African American, 2% Hispanic, and 12% Other

27. Survey • Demographic/ Game Play Experience • Character/Setting/Help Preferences • Activity Mode Preferences • Activity Mode Attitudes

28. Analysis • Statistical significance- gender differences • One way ANOVAs • Pearson Chi-Square Tests

29. Game Play Experience • Significant gender differences • Type of hardware p<.01 • Boys= Consoles / Girls= Computer • No significant gender difference: • How often • How long • Access to Internet • Play with others

30. Character • Significant gender differences: • Preference for own gender p<.001 • Girls prefer thinner female characters p<.05 • No significant gender differences • Character age • Male build • Significant ethnicity difference • Whites prefer White characters, Other races/ethnicities prefer other ethnicities p<.001

31. Setting • Significant gender differences • Boys prefer games set in the “street” or sports fields, Girls prefer games set in a mall or meadow p<.01 • Boys prefer warlords as opponents, girls prefer rival kids p<.05 • Boys have greater interest in saving adults and senior citizens, Girls would rather save young children p<.05 • No significant gender difference • Animals vs. people- individual vs. groups • Method of meeting challenge

32. Mode Preference In a game I most like to: • Fight an enemy active • Design objects like cars or clothes creative • Control individuals social • Work out puzzles problem-solving

33. Mode Preference • Significant gender difference • Girls prefer • Creative p<.01 • Boys prefer • Explorative p<.05 • Active p<.001 • Strategy p<.01 • No significant gender difference • Problem-solving • Social

34. Activity Attitudes If I had a telescope in a game I would like to watch the neighbors, 1 2 3 4

35. Activity Attitudes • Significant gender differences • Girls prefer • Creative p<.01 • Boys prefer • Active p<.01 • Strategy p<.01 • No significant gender differences • Explorative • Social • Problem-solving

36. Recommendations • Testing of activity types with larger populations of children • Prototypical game design with the inclusion of activity types • Game designs which also address the interests of girls

37. Contact Information Mable Kinzie kinzie@virginia.edu Dolly Joseph dolly@virginia.edu