Teaching systems thinking through game design

Akcaoğlu, Mete; Green, Lucy Santos

doi:10.1007/s11423-018-9596-8

Cited by 33 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 32 publications

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“…The learning results can be summarized as the ability to narrow down anecdotic behaviour to a few factors, understanding the dynamic character of these factors, their inter-relations, and the ability to identify underlying mechanisms. These results with adults (entrepreneurs) were comparable with the cognitive learning results achieved by undergraduate students who participated in educational gaming simulations (Akcaoglu & Green, 2019; Assaraf & Orion, 2005).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 78%

“…In gaming simulations personal learning experiences and knowledge are often modelled to be the main cornerstones of design and the methodological approach deployed (Kriz, 2009). Some studies in which undergraduate students participated, show that gaming simulation sessions can be used to acquire cognitive skills like systems thinking and active participation through carefully sequenced explicit instructions (Akcaoglu & Green, 2019;Assaraf & Orion, 2005). This study uses a participatory design process and the application of a board gaming simulation to extract tacit knowledge, based on the question: Can we design and develop a gaming simulation to capture tacit knowledge?…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Do Gaming Simulations Substantiate That We Know More Than We Can Tell?

Haaften

Lefter

Lukosch

et al. 2020

Simulation & Gaming

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Background. Revealing tacit knowledge often is seen as very valuable for organizations, although it is usually challenging to enunciate and share this type of knowledge. Methods. This study uses a participatory design and the application of a board gaming simulation as instruments to extract tacit knowledge. To illustrate this application, the gaming simulation is played with entrepreneurs from horticulture. Horticulture represents a complex social system where tacit knowledge plays a major role in the trade process. A participatory design process is used to explore whether the design and play of gaming simulations enable participants to explicate their tacit knowledge. Participants’ participation in designing the gaming simulation explicated that reconstructing reality was a prerequisite for their commitment. Results. The results from playing simulation sessions show that participants were able to: (1) narrow down the anecdotic behaviour to a few factors; (2) to structure these factors; (3) explore how these factors relate to trade barriers and (4) to explain which tactics are applied to foster trade. Conclusion. The educational value of this study is that it helped entrepreneurs in understanding complex real-life situations.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 78%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Do Gaming Simulations Substantiate That We Know More Than We Can Tell?

Haaften

Lefter

Lukosch

et al. 2020

Simulation & Gaming

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The research reported similar products to what was observed, which include digital stories (Girmen et al, 2019;Kimbell-Lopez et al, 2016), information projects (Koh, 2013;Koh et al, 2019), graphic design (Hsu et al, 2016), 3D modelling (Yildirim, 2018), music (Kim, 2013), and blogging (Alhinty, 2014;Freeman et al, 2016). There were other products reported that were not observed in my study, such as coding and creating digital games (Akcaoglu & Green, 2018;Ejsing-Duun & Skovbjerg, 2016;Liao et al, 2016;Melander Bowden, 2019), non-digital products using 3D printers (Hansen et al, 2019), animated digital stories (Liao et al, 2016;Yildiz Durak, 2018), and digital media (videos) (Spante, 2019). The systematised review conducted in my research shows that most of the students' products studied were part of an intervention.…”

Section: Production Mediumsupporting

confidence: 72%

Using Digital Devices in Classroom Learning: A Complexity Theory Perspective

Daoud¹

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<p>Using digital devices in primary classrooms has become a common practice in many schools around the world. A considerable amount of research has explored this phenomenon. However, the majority of studies published in highly ranked educational technology journals have focused on the effectiveness of interventions related to using digital devices in primary classrooms and few studies examine students’ use of digital devices during learning which reflects a dominance of the reductionist approach in studying classroom environments. While there is rich literature addressing the outcomes of using devices, much is still unknown about the use itself. The present study aimed to understand how students use digital devices in classroom learning activities. It explored the ways of use, the factors that shaped these uses, and how the uses contributed to the purposes of learning activities. Approaches used to study phenomena in open recursive systems, such as classrooms, should be different from approaches used to study phenomena in closed systems under controlled conditions. Therefore, Complexity Theory provided a framework to understand the socio-materiality of digital devices in classrooms learning. In addition, Actor-Network Theory was used to study the phenomenon in action and Biesta’s (2009) framework of the functions of education to understand the contribution of the uses to educational purposes. This multiple case study was conducted in New Zealand within two schools where two teachers and seven upper-primary students participated in the study. Data were collected across six months through observations, semi-structured interviews, group interviews, informal conversations, student think-aloud interviews and artefacts from learning including video screen-captures. Data were coded and analysed using the thematic analysis and an abductive strategy. From a synthesis of the findings a ‘Using Devices for Classroom Learning’ model was developed in which seven patterns of use were identified. The children used their devices as a source of information, means of communication, production medium, external personal memory, collective memory coordinator, trial-and-error learning space, and as a research tool. Interconnected factors shaped these uses which were related to the educational system, school and classroom environment, teachers, students, and digital technologies. The findings showed how the seven uses contributed to the educational purposes of classroom learning which were classified into students’ qualifications, socialisation, and subjectification. However, some of these uses led to undesirable influence on students’ learning. This study provides theoretical and practical contributions to the field of using digital technologies in education. Complexity thinking, as a holistic approach, sheds light on blind spots of the educational process and acknowledges the complexity and uncertainty when using devices for learning in social complex systems such as classrooms. What emerges in classrooms does not result from separate factors but from a network of relationships and interactions of interconnected factors. The model developed provides an analysis tool for researchers and assists educators and policymakers to understand and anticipate the role of digital devices in classroom learning.</p>

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“…As interacting and interrelating components, mechanics, dynamics, and aesthetics work as a unified whole towards a common goal (e.g., entertaining, learning, training, etc.). Designing a game can help learners to develop systems thinking (Akcaoglu & Green, 2019) as any change to the game, as a relatively complex system, can introduce disorder, irregularities, and chaos to the system. Redesigning a game can be considered as the process of introducing a change to an initial state of a game system and modifying different aspects of it to accommodate the changes toward a unified and new state of the game system.…”

Section: Theoretical Frameworkmentioning

confidence: 99%

Learning Through Redesigning a Game in the STEM Classroom

Rahimi

Kim

2021

Simulation & Gaming

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Background Play is an important part of the childhood. The learning potential of playing and creating non-digital games, like tabletop games, however, has not been fully explored. Aim The study discussed in this paper identified a range of activities through which learners redesigned a mathematics-oriented tabletop game to develop their ideas and competencies in an integrated STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) class. Method Third and fourth graders worked as teams to make changes on Triominos over a period of six weeks. Considering what could be changed from the original game, each group provided a different design for Triominos to accommodate the changes introduced. We gathered data through weekly observations of two classes (about 45 learners, ranging from age eight to ten) in a west-Canada school. In this paper, we present the works of three groups of three teammates. Results We found that any change made by learners not only influenced mechanics, dynamics, and aesthetics of the game but also helped engage learners, encourage unconventional ideas, promote learning, and solve problems. Based on our findings, we suggest redesigning games facilitated learners deepen their understanding of mathematical concepts as part of a designed game system in STEM classes.

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Teaching systems thinking through game design

Cited by 33 publications

References 32 publications

Do Gaming Simulations Substantiate That We Know More Than We Can Tell?

Do Gaming Simulations Substantiate That We Know More Than We Can Tell?

Using Digital Devices in Classroom Learning: A Complexity Theory Perspective

Learning Through Redesigning a Game in the STEM Classroom

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