Multiple intelligences and video games: Assessment and intervention with TOI software

Abstract

Howard Gardner revolutionized the concept of intelligence with his Multiple Intelligences Theory. His vision was widely supported by the educational community, which considers different forms of learning and accessing knowledge. Despite its impact, there is still a lack of development of tools that can easily, practically and reliably evaluate multiple intelligences. This work describes the design, development, and piloting of TOI (Tree of Intelligences) software, a digital tool to evaluate multiple intelligences and perform interventions through video games. The aim of the study is to present the design of the TOI software and test its operation, analysing the distribution of the results game by game and checking whether there are differences according to gender or school year. A total of 372 primary school students participated, aged 5 to 9 years old (M=7.04, SD=.871), from three schools in Asturias and Madrid. The results show that 9 out of 10 games had a normal distribution and that there were no gender differences in most games, but there were differences in relation to the school year. We concluded that due to its operation and design TOI software has the potential be a suitable instrument for the evaluation and intervention of multiple intelligences. Howard Gardner revolucionó el concepto de inteligencia con su Teoría de las Inteligencias Múltiples. Su visión fue acogida por la comunidad educativa como la oportunidad para una educación más personalizada y que atienda las diferentes formas de aprender y acceder al conocimiento. A pesar de su impacto, todavía hoy hay una carencia en cuanto al desarrollo de herramientas capaces de evaluar de forma sencilla, práctica y fiable las inteligencias múltiples. Por ello, este trabajo plantea el diseño, desarrollo y pilotaje del software TOI, del inglés ‘Tree of Intelligences’, una herramienta digital para evaluar e intervenir las inteligencias múltiples a través de los videojuegos. El objetivo del estudio es presentar el diseño de TOI y testar su funcionamiento, analizando la distribución de los resultados juego a juego y comprobando si existen diferencias en función del género y el curso. Participaron un total de 372 estudiantes de primero a tercer curso de educación primaria de tres centros de Asturias y Madrid, con edades comprendidas entre 5 y 9 años (M=7.04, DT=.871). Los resultados muestran que 9 de 10 juegos presentan una distribución normal y que no existen diferencias en función del género en la mayoría de los juegos, pero sí en relación al curso. Se concluye que por su funcionamiento y diseño el software TOI puede ser un adecuado instrumento de evaluación e intervención de las inteligencias múltiples.

Percepciones de los estudiantes de Educación Secundaria sobre el valor educativo de los videojuegos y su diseño como estrategia pedagógica

“…El diseño de videojuegos es una tarea que implica conocimiento sobre múltiples áreas bien diferenciadas, pero intrínsecamente relacionadas entre sí (Garmen et al, 2019). Nallar (2016), defiende la necesidad de definir "un conjunto de reglas, condiciones de victoria y derrota, dinámica, interacción, meta de diseño, objetivos y desafíos, aprendizaje, sociabilidad y expresión, todo ello en un conjunto indisoluble de narrativa ficcional y su ambiente, programación, estética gráfica y sonido" (p. 1).…”

Impact on the video game industry during the COVID-19 pandemic

“…The quarantine marked a before and after in the video game industry since it has encouraged users from all over the world to learn and enjoy a good video game and, above all, mark a challenge for their designers in order to adapt them to the new user requirements and demands [17] [18].…”

Serious Games and Their Effect Improving Attention in Students with Learning Disabilities

“…Recently, researchers, educationalists and engineers from Cuicui Studios, created the Tree of Intelligences (ToI) method [26,28] based on Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences (MIT) [29,30], conceived to identify and intervene in Multiple Intelligences (MI) and associated components. ToI combines the theoretical foundations of Gardner’s theory and the basic assumptions of video game design.…”

“…The ToI method was created, based on previous evidence, with the aim of exploring the multiple possibilities that both serious games and the multiple intelligences approach may offer for improving cognitive components. The result of this synergy is an algorithm that allows the individual´s performance to be measured in real time, offering information about their intelligence profile and clues to strengthen their strong areas while improving their weak areas at the same time [28].…”

“…These tools have been used in previous studies, demonstrating good psychometric properties. Garmen et al [28] analyzed the performance of a normative sample of 372 students from first to third grade in “Boogies Academy.” Results showed a normal distribution in the variables of correct responses, playing time, and accuracy in the different games. In addition, Garmen et al [26] analyzed the effect of both “Boogies Academy” and “Cuibrain” on levels of anxiety and self-concept in a sample of children and adolescents with learning difficulties.…”