Designing Analog Games That Engage Girls with Computer Science Concepts

Autor/inn/en	Gee, Elisabeth; Tran, Kelly M.; Parekh, Priyanka
Titel	Designing Analog Games That Engage Girls with Computer Science Concepts
Quelle	In: International Journal of Designs for Learning, 11 (2020) 2, S.17-26 (10 Seiten) PDF als Volltext kostenfreie Datei Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	2159-449X
Schlagwörter	Games; Design; Females; Learner Engagement; Computer Science Education; Middle School Students; Situated Learning; Thinking Skills; Story Telling; Concept Formation; Informal Education; Disproportionate Representation; Game Based Learning; After School Programs; Early Adolescents; Socioeconomic Background + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Game; Spiel; Spiele; Weibliches Geschlecht; Computer science lessons; Informatikunterricht; Middle school; Middle schools; Student; Students; Mittelschule; Mittelstufenschule; Schüler; Schülerin; Denkfähigkeit; Concept learning; Begriffsbildung; Informelle Bildung; Nichtformale Bildung; After school education; After-school programs; Program; Programs; Programme; Außerschulische Jugendbildung; Programm; Sozioökonomische Lage
Abstract	This design case describes the development of three analog games intended to introduce middle school-age girls to core computer science (CS) concepts. We describe the learning objectives, game mechanics, and narrative elements of each game, and some key problems and decisions that we confronted during the design process. Our design process was guided by two key goals and assumptions: (a) the games should help players develop a "situated" understanding of CS concepts through engaging them in computational thinking (CT) practices associated with each concept, and (b) game mechanics and story elements should be meaningfully integrated with and supportive of the games' learning objectives. We discuss several challenges that we encountered in the design process, both in identifying CT practices that lent themselves to game mechanics, and in finding ways to embed mechanics into stories in a meaningful way. Data from gameplay sessions suggests that, on the whole, girls found the games engaging and improved their understanding of CS concepts. However, we conclude that we were only partially successful in achieving our design goals. Testing the facilitator guides with a broader set of users and integrating the facilitator role into gameplay and story are potential goals for future work. (As Provided).
Anmerkungen	Indiana University. 107 South Indiana Avenue, Bryan Hall 203B, Bloomington, IN 47405. Tel: 317-274-5647; Fax: 317-278-2360; e-mail: ijdl@indiana.edu; Web site: https://scholarworks.iu.edu/journals/index.php/ijdl
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2024/1/01