Developing Perspectives of Pedagogy to Andragogy for Educational Gaming

A cross sectional study from four age groups: Elementary School,

High School, College

and Work Place.

By Irvin Engle 12/08 Towson University For EDUC 605 Instructor Professor Tarcy

The makings of educational gaming has stemmed from the childish nature of our very existence and being.

From the first goochy-goochy-goo how are you or peek-a-boo I see you we received as infants from our parents ‘creating object permanence’ to that last instruction from our teachers ‘creating cognition’ we were well on our way to becoming major league professionals.

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I am sure we can all remember times we had at the playground in our early childhood development. As odd as it may sound, what we do, how we act or, how we play today has a great impact on what we become tomorrow.

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The experiential behaviors we learn :

pre-school and throughout school has a great influence on our post-school desires and aspirations in the work place and our social life.

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There are many perspectives to consider when designing an educational simulation G.A.M.E.

1.Goals & Objectives2.Audience3.Motivations4.Environment

The following experimental studies developed varying goals and objectives of educational game play …

Hagerty (1975), utilized simulation games in his experiment to examine changing attitudes of students in relation to commitment toward community integration.

Chapman & Sorge (1999), did a study on the effects of simulation games in the classroom comparing the effectiveness of simulation games for education in comparison to traditional textbooks as learning tools.

Tompson & Dass (2000), study used simulation in business classes to show an increase in self-efficacy that is larger than gains due to learning via the case method.

Dempsey et. al., 2002, examined the possibilities of computer game use for education and training of adults potentiality for educational or instructional use for verbal information, motor skills, or intellectual skills as the object of instruction.

Paul et. al., 2006, developed a game of their own based on principles to examine student classroom experience and performance.

Hutchinson (2007), explores the elements of design that make virtual worlds so attractive to gamers and suggests strategies for incorporating video games into educational programs in a pedagogically sound way.

Vadala C.E. et. al., 2007, conducted a survey interview study that proved , “…that outdoor play is a complex combination of meaningful experiences that probably result in much environmental learning”.

Smith, Morey & Edwin (2007), hypothesize, “…that learners who trained with 3-D imagery ‘feature masks’ would use more strategies based on visual imagery and holistic spatial reasoning.

Ang, Avni & Zapharis (2008), developed a design for a comparative study that classified games according to learning theories of behaviorism, cognitive constructivism and social constructivism.

Goals & Objectives:Structure, focus and purpose for instruction leads to proper directives for learning. Image 7

There were varying audience perspectives to consider as shown in these studies… ChildhoodA. Dr. Crampton (1909), “…maintains that play provides the most effective means of developing the

virtues that are essential to social life…”B. Knowles argues that, “… the adult learner is qualitatively different from the child or adolescent

learner and the need to understand the differences justifies a separate academic discipline and necessitates a very different approach to the learner” (Rachel 2007 p. 225).

Parental:A. Vadala, C.E. et. al. (2007), said, “Parents appear to play a significant indirect role in experientially

preparing their children to benefit from structured environmental education through unstructured , self directed experiences in nature.”

Classroom:A. Chapman & Sorge’s (1999), studied the effects of simulation games in the classroom.B. Paul et. Al. (2006) developed a game to examine classroom experience and performance.C. Ang & Rao (2008), study provides an insight into how to design immersive and experiential

educational software games. Training:A. Smith, Morey & Edwin (2007) examined training with 3-D imagery ‘feature masks’ strategies

relation to visual imagery and holistic spatial reasoning.B. Hutchinson (2007), describes educational games as the serious games category and they share this

category with virtual simulators that are used to train military and emergency service personnel. Work Place:A. Hagerty (1975), examined changing attitudes of students in relation to community integration

utilizing simulation games.B. Tompson & Dass (2000), explanation from Bandura (1997), describes efficacy as transferable from

one sub-skill domain to another and that activities in computer simulation mimic the activities that students eventually will face on the job.

Audience:Knowing who is doing the communicating and who we want to communicate with provides authoritative leadership.

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There have been studies that examine differing motivations and methods…

Hagerty (1975), ascertained that the play of simulation games lead to an attitude of greater commitment toward community integration.

Chapman & Sorge (1999), noted that simulation had strong associations to assess general course learning objectives and that a degree of involvement in simulation was effective for specific learning objectives and broadly defined course learning objectives.

Tompson & Dass (2000), tended to prove that students using simulations in business class show an increase in self-efficacy that is larger than those due to learning via the case method.

Dempsey et. al., 2002, proved that there are potentials for educational or instructional use for education and training adults.

Paul et. Al. (2006), purported that games designed around principles improve classroom experience and performance.

Vadala (2007), ascertained that educators should help teach parents to provide unstructured and child-directed experiences with natural environments.

Smith Morey & Edwin (2007), seemed to prove spatial feature-masks are effective for encouraging people to use visual imagery strategies.

Rachel (2007), supports the ideology that andragogy learners need less direction than pedagogy learners needing only a push in the right direction to find encouragement to research to learn.

Hutchinson (2007), says game simulation has lent itself to varying learning environments such as schooling and services as well as real social life experiences.

Ang, Avni, & Zapharis (2008), says, that in player-game interactions, the player interacts with the game and learns to be a better player through behaviorist and cognitive constructivist learning while social constructivist learning clarifies the understanding of the game through player interaction.

Ang & Rao (2008), developed a perspective based on the motivations of game narrative and rules that model the simulation of the game learning objectives to be conceived to win the game.

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Motivations & Methodologies:Development and design help with assessment evaluation and encourage better outcomes.

Studies have been defining the meaning of environmental influences on learning…

Hutchinson (2007 p. 36) argues, “…that places in education exist not only in the real world of schools and classrooms, but also in the virtual world of children’s imaginations, online life, and video games.

Hutchinson (2007 p. 38) calls his pedagogy one of place he values video games as constructed place worlds worthy of study in educational settings his recommendation proposes “…classroom activities that take place in the real world but ask students to focus on the place worlds of the video games”.

Vadala (2007 et al p. 5) describes the environments in a different manner that speaks of five thematic structured results one was social facilitation, two was play places, three was spatial play, four was play content and five was intermittent play through chores.

The results of this study ascertained that educators should help teach parents to provide unstructured and child-directed experiences with natural environments (Vadala 2007 et al p. 15).

These focuses could be great determinants for learning to help acclimate to certain environments at home with family and friends in school with teachers and classmates or on the job in the work place with co-workers.

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Studies developed varying goals and objectives of educational game play …attitudes, effectiveness, self-efficacy, verbal information, motor skill, intellectual skills, object of instruction, classroom experience and performance, incorporation in educational programs, environmental learning, visual imagery, learning theories of behaviorism, cognitive constructivism and social constructivism.

Varying audience perspectives to consider…

society, child, adult, parental, classroom, military training, emergency service personnel, community and on the job in the work place.

Differing motivations and methods… greater commitment toward community integration, assess general course learning objectives, specific

learning objectives, defined course learning objectives, increase in self-efficacy, potentials for educational, principles improve classroom experience and performance, child-directed experiences, use visual imagery strategies, encouragement to research to learn, schooling and services as well as real social life experiences, behaviorist and cognitive constructivist learning, social constructivist learning, game learning objectives.

Environmental influences on learning…

real world of schools and classrooms, virtual world of children’s imaginations, online life, place worlds of the video games, social facilitation, play places, spatial play, play content and intermittent play through chores.

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Conclusions:

Based on the evidence of these studies goals objectives, the varying audiences, keeping in mind the motivations and methodologies used and the environmental influences described, recommendations for further study would prove beneficial when using, “A cross sectional study from four age groups: Elementary School, High School, College and Work Place” to help understand the influences on the varying audiences the motivations for specific methodologies and reasoning for differing environmental goal objectives.

Keeping in mind the varying age groups this study is being proposed to measure effectiveness, motor skills, intellectual skills, experience and performance, in relation to a comparison of self-efficacy across all four groups.

It is intended to calculate the differences of potentials for educational, game learning objectives, improvement in experience and performance, assess defined course learning objectives, encouragement to research to learn, commitment toward community integration, behaviorist and cognitive constructivist learning, social constructivist learning, and measure self-efficacy.

Survey information would be recorded both pre- and post-game play of a simulated real life experiential environmental situation developed by simulation society into computerized instruction appropriated for each age group that will determine measures of self-efficacy by the outcome of the scores from the game play.

It is the intent of this experiment to prove that there are specific motivations for differing methodological simulation experiences use for each age group that can measure the self-efficacy of each group.

Recommendations:Image 12

Images: Image 1 Peek-A-Boo Picture. From www.photos-of-the-year.com c/o

http://kmwithmissbeth.wordpress.com/2008/07/14/peek-a-boo-i-love-you-week-1/ Image 2 Picture of Teacher Instructing. CPR & First Aid Training. http://

www.uniqueservicestb.com/ Image 3 Rockwell Group (2008). Playground Mochup Picture http://

imaginationplayground.org/ Image 4 (2008). Play Corner Picture. Many attend grand opening of "Early Childhood

Matters! Learn and Play Corner" at Mt. Vernon Library . The Mount Vernon Enquirer The Peoples Newspaper. New York. http://www.mvinquirer.com/april_08_headlines.htm

Image 5 School Play Picture. http://www.fairmount.k12.nd.us/Activities/Activities.htm Image 6 Active & Creative Play for Children Six and Under. Child in toy police car

picture. Pull Over. http://nottoolittle.com/_wsn/page3.html Image 7 Goal Key Puzzle http://www.headachecare.com/goals.html Image 8 Target Audience

http://onlinebusiness.volusion.com/articles/find-online-target-audience Image 9 Money http://news.softpedia.com/news/Money-Changes-Everything-Including-

People-039-s-Behavior-and-Motivations-40405.shtml Image 10 (2008). Street Sign Picture. Work/Life Wellness for UCSB Faculty and Staff.

Human Resources Department Santa Barbera California http://hr.ucsb.edu/worklife/ Image 11 Finish Line Road Center Line http://www.racingwest.com/news/articles/17627-

asa-speed-truck-challenge-feature-movie-finish.html Image 12 Motivation http://netspare.blogspot.com/2008_03_01_archive.html

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