Presenter: Feng Chia-Yen
Advisor: Chen Ming-Puu
Date: December 23, 2009
Robertson, J. , Howells, C. (2008). Computer game design: Opportunities for
successful learning. Computers & Education, 50(2), 559-578.
Abstract
 The paper
 discuss why game making is rich task for learning and how it
fits in with the A Curriculum for Excellence in Scotland.
 look at the "successful learner" strand in particular
 give illustrative examples from a recently completed field
study in a primary school
 presents qualitative results from an eight week exploratory
field study in which a class of ten year olds made their own
computer games.
 The analysis focuses on
 enthusiasm and motivation for learning,
 determination to reach high standards of achievement
 independent and group learning
 linking and applying learning in new situations.
Introduction (1/2)
 Learning how to learn
 successful learners use knowledge of cognition and selfregulating mechanisms, both aspects of meta-cognition,
to monitor their own understanding (Black, et al. , 2006).
 The role of teachers role

strategic thinking and reflection about their own learning.
 Games and learning
 Gee (2003) -four part cycle : engage – probe, hypothesize,
reprobe, and rethink.
 Garris, Ahlers, and Driskell (2002) : judge- mentbehaviour-feedback loops.
 McFarlane, Sparrowhawk, and Heald (2002) : decision
making, design, strategy, cooperation, and problem
solving.
Introduction (2/2)
 Learning by making
 Making games is a rich task, in that it offers
opportunities for children exercise a wide spectrum of
skills (such as devising game rules, creating characters
and dialogue, visual design, and computer programming)
to create a complex artefact.
 Making a game actively engages learners because they
construct their own game using a software tool
 embody their creative ideas in a testable way in their
game and then try it to evaluate their ideas.
Game making toolkits (1/2)
 Logo programming language (Kafai, 1995)
 the children took on many roles, as users, designers,
writers of storylines, teachers (of fractions concepts),
and programmers.
 Visual programming language
 the emphasis away from low level programming,
enabling learners to focus on the other roles as designers
or writers.
 Many programming toolkits
 These studies indicate that making games is motivating,
bolsters esteem, and develops storytelling as well as
technical programming skills.
Game making toolkits (2/2)
 Game making can be seen as a type of user-generated
content, a concept which has lately attracted attention
in educational technology circles.
 which is created and published by end users rather than
media companies.
 Used in a learning context, these types of software can
empower learners by enabling them to express their
creativity and share it with a genuine audience.
The Neverwinter Nights software
 Testing
 learner tests
 peer tests
 Area transitions
 Linking indoor and
outdoor settings
 Writing a conversation
Field studies (1/2)
 Adopted a design-based research approach during the
Adventure Author project .
 This paper focuses on skills related to successful learning.
 Participants
 8 week field study in a state funded primary school in
Dundee.
 30x 9-10 year old children, one class teacher, one ICT
specialist teacher, 3 researchers.
 Six of the pupils were selected as case study participants
Field studies (2/2) - Procedure
 Introductory session : demo software skills to whole group
 Discuss model game(by adults or other learners )in group
 Give children goal for session or give children time for




exploratory play- try out what is possible in toolset and
game
hands-on time: children worked independently.
The children acted as peer reviewers by testing a friend’s
game and giving constructive criticism.
Discussions about what the children had learned. ->Sharing
knowledge
parents were invited to visit to see what the children were
working on-> to teach the adults how to make and play
games.
Findings (1/3)
 Enthusiasm and motivation for learning
 The children’s enthusiasm and motivation were noticeable from the
introductory workshop, and were sustained throughout the project
and beyond.
 Some of the motivation and enthusiasm seemed to be linked to the
element of challenge: ‘‘It was a challenge, but very enjoyable’’
 Determination to reach a high standard of achievement
 New computing skills  a high degree of complexity.
 Demands of the NWN toolset
 Area transition
 New thinking skills
 Orchestration of game ideas
 Understanding the player's perspective
 Working with constraints of time and hardware and creative
flexibilty
Findings (2/3)
 Learning together and alone
 Learning in a group provides many opportunities to develop
ideas, consolidate concepts and learn about social
interaction.
 group learning situations were offered




Whole class discussions beginning and ending each workshop
Informal opportunities for paired and small group interaction
 Collaboration
 Informal peer-tutoring
Structure peer-testing session
Occasional needs-related groups
Findings (3/3)
 Linking and applying learning in new situations
 Transferring learning from one context to another is an
important aspect of independent learning.
 Cross-curricular opportunities

apply skills related to reading and writing in the development of
their games.
Implications for classroom practice (1/2)
 Striking a balance between exploratory learning and
instruction
 independent exploration of the toolset
 more time to ‘‘play’’ consolidate skills introduced and
to discover the creative potential
 time for direct, interactive teaching  to ensure that
essential skills and features are introduced.
 Facilitating the exchange of knowledge between
learners
 discussions about interesting features
 the load on the adult helpers was reduced
Implications for classroom practice (2/2)
 Facilitating cross-curricular learning and transferable
skills
 cross-curricular potential of NVW / embedded in a
wider curriculum experience.
 classroom activities connection to the game design
experience
 skill transfer implicitly and explicitly on the part of
the learners.

Interview, teacher-observations
 Evaluating successful learning
 children’s own reflections on their progress
 peer assessment
 peer tuition and supportive group critiques of games.
Conclusions
 Game making creates a rich environment
for learning. Its complexity is an asset.
 It can foster the development of successful
learning skills, including creativity
 Incorporating learning of this style in
classrooms will be challenging…
 …but the benefits could be great within the
Curriculum for Excellence framework.
Lesson learned
 What the relationship of the game creation effort and
productivity ?
 How to assessment for game making?
 Produce check lists of success criteria and summative
questionnaires  the progress
 How to investigating the process of game creation
 Creative thinking-> How to evolution of ideas