IN THIS PAPER WE REPORT SOME initial findings from our investigations into the Australian Government's Longitudinal Study of Australian Children dataset. It is revealed that the majority of Australian children are exceeding the government's Screen Time recommendations and that most of their screen time is spent as TV viewing, as opposed to video game play or computer use. In light of this finding, we review the body of research surrounding children's engagement in Screen Time activities and the associated positive and negative effects. Based on existing evidence, we define two categories of Screen Time—Active Screen Time and Passive Screen Time. It is proposed that this distinction provides a more accurate classification of Screen Time and a more informative lens through which to consider the associated benefits and detrimental effects for young children.

The GameFlow model strives to be a general model of player enjoyment, applicable to all game genres and platforms. Derived from a general set of heuristics for creating enjoyable player experiences, the GameFlow model has been widely used in evaluating many types of games, as well as non-game applications. Initial applications of the GameFlow model were limited to real-time strategy games. However, in order to be considered a general model of player enjoyment in games, the GameFlow model needs to be applied to a more varied set of play experiences. In this article, we revisit the design of the GameFlow model, review the various applications and derivative models, and discuss on-going analysis of the model. Subsequently, we describe a study that aims to extend the initial validation of the GameFlow model to incorporate additional game types. We report the results of expert reviews conducted using the GameFlow criteria to evaluate first person shooter games on Sony PlayStation 3 and adventure games on Apple iPhone. Our findings provide insight into the manifestation of the GameFlow elements in these types of games and also highlight some of the genre-specific considerations in the application of the GameFlow model. Key issues are raised and discussed in relation to immersion, social interaction, and multiplayer games.

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Children on the autism spectrum (AS) often struggle with writing tasks at school. They commonly experience difficulty with two key aspects of writing: the skills required for handwriting (fine motor and perceptual) and the conceptual and language skills required for written composition. Specialist intervention to assist with written expression is, therefore, often needed for students on the AS to succeed academically. This research evaluated the impact of using self‐regulated strategy development (SRSD) in combination with assistive technology on the quality and length of written compositions of students on the AS. It also investigated how students felt about using the SRSD writing strategy. Eight primary school students on the AS between the ages of 9 and 12 participated in this single‐subject study. An ABAC study design was used to evaluate student writing performance across three conditions. Baseline handwriting measurements were collected during condition A. During condition B students used assistive technology alone; in condition C, students applied their understanding of SRSD while using assistive technology. Results from this study show that, in many cases, the quality and/or length of written compositions and feelings of self‐efficacy towards persuasive writing of students on the AS improved when they received physical and/or conceptual writing supports. This paper presents the research design, methods and results from this single‐subject study followed by a discussion of the results and final thoughts and areas for future research. What is already known about this topic? There is limited research about how the persuasive writing of students on the autism spectrum (AS) can be supported in a socially inclusive way. Research has shown that the use of assistive technologies like keyboards and writing‐support software can improve the writing outcomes of students on the AS. Research has shown that the use of self‐regulated strategy development (SRSD) writing strategies can improve the persuasive writing outcomes of diverse students. What this paper adds? A single‐subject study using an ABAC study design showed that persuasive writing outcomes improved in quality or length for some students when they used an app that combined the two strategies. Implications for policy and practice SRSD combined with writing‐support software appeared to improve the writing outcomes of some students on the AS. It can, therefore, be used as a tool to support teachers in developing strategies for inclusive classrooms.

Fighting games can have barriers to entry as a result of the competency and skill needed to understand the mechanics and objectives of play. One of the key challenges in fighting game design is to teach players how to attain competency. The most common teaching strategy employed in many fighting games is to include a tutorial level. However, there is a lack of research on how fighting game tutorial levels should be designed to support learning for new players. In this paper, we propose design guidelines for video game tutorials, based on the Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning and video game design theory. We developed a fighting game tutorial, based on our design guidelines. We evaluated our design against a popular, recent fighting game, Guilty Gear Strive, in a user study with 10 players new to the genre. Our evaluation showed that our design improved on the in-game tutorial, in terms of supporting player learning. We also demonstrated that our design guidelines can provide useful insights into how to provide learning support in fighting game tutorials. CCS CONCEPTS• Software and its engineering → Interactive games; • Applied computing → Computer games; • Human-centered computing → User studies.