The use of serious games in science education: a review of selected empirical research from 2002 to 2013

Abstract

This research aims to systematically review the empirical studies on the use of serious games in science education from 2002 to 2013. To this end, the Science Citation Index and the Social Science Citation Index databases were used as the literature sources and a total of 53 empirical studies were identified as the review targets. A coding scheme including three major dimensions, namely, the game, pedagogy and research method dimensions, was developed, and, with this coding scheme, a series of content analyses were conducted. These analyses identified several significant research trends among the empirical studies using serious games in science education published from 2002 to 2013, including the following: (1) a surge of interest in the use of serious games in science education was revealed; (2) adventure/role-playing games were the most popular game type used in the reviewed empirical studies; (3) knowledge construction was the major learning goal of these serious games used in science educational settings; (4) most of the reviewed studies were concerned with interdisciplinary learning; (5) relatively fewer studies explicitly introduced the educational theoretical foundations for using serious games in science education or the instructional strategies coupled with the use of serious games; (6) quantitative research designs constituted the most commonly used research approach; and (7) a majority of the reviewed studies focused on investigating the effectiveness of serious games from the perspective of cognitive outcomes. The educational implications and directions for further research derived from the findings of this study are further discussed.

Serious Games in Preschool and Primary Education: Benefits And Impacts on Curriculum Course Syllabus

“…Finally, the research methodology was analysed in terms of the following aspects: Participants, Research method, and Research foci. Dimensions, sub-dimensions and categories of the coding scheme were generated by a grounded theory that employs social interactions and collaborative learning as a crucial factor not only on participants' learning outcomes but also on relations between science educators, science instructors and SGs designers [20].…”

The Serious Games Ecosystem: Interdisciplinary and Intercontextual Praxis

“…Furthermore, the conceptualisations of games will also be contextually focused. For instance, games-based learning games used in corporate training sectors may elevate their return on investment [72], whereas in educational settings they may discuss their alignment with standardised national curriculums [73]. It is therefore necessary to consider the context adopting serious games in more detail.…”

“…For instance, in the case of serious games for corporate training, the game may be evaluated in terms of a return on investment, as well as in relation to key performance indicators [72]. For games used in state-education settings, they may be aligned with curriculum standards [73].…”

The Development of Educational Game as Instructional Media to Facilitate Students’ Capabilities in Mathematical Problem Solving

“…An educational and constructive aspect of the game is that individuals want to progress in the game and modify the way of playing. It seems that progress and desire to winning in game motivate the passive students to think [12], Nekah said. Cheng also stated that a very important reason why game has a positive effect on learning is because game provides live experience of user involvement [13].…”